The Glory of Jesus

One Year Bible
New Testament passage for Wednesday, May 28, 2014:  John 17:1-29

Jesus spoke these words, lifted up His eyes to heaven, and said: “Father, the hour has come. Glorify Your Son, that Your Son also may glorify You,"   John 17:1 (NKJV)

Toward the end of Jesus time here on earth, He began to speak about GLORY.  He spoke of the Father GLORIFYING Him.  "The time has come that the Son of Man should be glorified" (John 12:23). Today we read, "Jesus spoke these words, lifted up His eyes to heaven, and said: “Father, the hour has come. Glorify Your Son, that Your Son also may glorify You," (John 17:1).

There are three ways THE GLORY OF JESUS shines so brightly.

1.  In His DEATH.

We just celebrated Memorial Day.  We remember those who, in the words of Abraham Lincoln, "gave the last full measure of devotion."  Young patriot Nathan Hale said just prior to being hung by the British, "I only regret that I have but one life to give for my country."  These are such inspiring words!

It is in death for a just cause that the character of a man or woman shines brightest.  We call them heroes. The history of Christianity is filled with glorious stories of those who stood for truth at the cost of their lives.  We call them martyrs.  

This sounds like such a contradiction.  But, the greatest glory shines when the greatest price is paid.  In this light, if you want to see the GLORY OF JESUS, look at the Cross -- look at His pain -- look at His passion -- all for you!

2.  In the Completion of His WORK.

Jesus said, "I have finished the work which You have given me to do" (John 17:4).  All of us revel in the completing of a task.  It is not enough to stay active or busy.  We love a job finished and a job well done.  

The Father made an assignment for His Son: salvation to those who would believe. Jesus got the job done! On the Cross, He uttered the words, "It is finished" (John 19:30).  

3.  In His RESURRECTION and ASCENSION.

The Cross is not the full story. The Resurrection is not the end, either.  Throughout history, kings or governments have commissioned armies to fight their battles. The victorious return of this conquering army has always been met by joy and celebration.  

When Jesus rose from the dead, Paul says He was raised by "the glory of the Father" (Rom. 6:4). A celebration began breaking forth.  It hit the high mark when Jesus ascended to the Father bringing with Him the fruit of His labor. We read about it in Revelation 5:12 where the angels shouted out, "Worthy is the Lamb who was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and blessing!"

That's glory!

When I consider this, it makes me SO THANKFUL for Who Jesus is, and what He has done on our behalf. It truly is all about Jesus -- His life, His death, His work, and His place today at the right hand of the Father making intercession for us. He brought glory to the Father -- Who also laid glory on Him.  Now I can live in the afterglow of that light.

The Most Controversial Bible Verse in the World

One Year Bible
New Testament passage for Saturday, May 23, 2014:  John 13:31-14:14

Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.  John 14:6 (NKJV)

Perhaps the greatest religious controversy of our day centers on Christian claims of exclusivity -- the belief that salvation is possible only through Jesus.  It is a firestorm running through our culture.  At the center of this storm are Jesus own words, "I am the way, the truth, and the life.  No one comes to the Father except through Me."  Peter echoes this in Acts 4:12, "Neither is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved."

From the school house to the court house, from the campus to the congress, anyone claiming the uniqueness of Jesus is rapidly being pictured as public enemy #1.  We are seeing an increasing onslaught of attacks belittling those of us who hold this foundational biblical truth.  We are being accused of intolerance, bigotry, small-mindedness, and worse.  Simple FREEDOM OF RELIGION is in trouble in our day -- particularly if your beliefs are out-of-step with pluralism, out-of-step with tolerance, and out-of-step with "history."

It is not my aim in this short blog to outline the apologetic reasons WHY we believe Jesus is uniquely the answer to man's sin problem.  The rationale and reasoning is certainly there.  Suffice to say, His own words are true.  He said it.  I believe it.

In light of the growing battles over gay rights, public prayers, corporate tolerance policies, and governmental thought police, it is harder to be a biblical Christian without suffering ostracism, ridicule, and perhaps even job loss.  All because we hold to the Bible as God's Word and Jesus as our Savior.   

A few weeks ago, Jeff Schweitzer, writing in the Huffington Post summed up this sentiment:   "The time has come for us to fight the arrogant certainty among Christians that they hold a truth more valid than Jews, Muslims and those who eschew all religion."  This amounts to a declaration of war.  In the words of Harvard professor Diane Eck, the philosophy of PLURALISM "has come to characterize every part of our world today."  

Pluralism is the philosophical underpinning whereby Jeff Schweitzer attacks the "arrogant certainty" of Christians who say Jesus is the only way.   Pluralism is not only the presence of diversity.  It is the philosophy that says "No one has the truth."     

To that, we humbly hold to the greatest man who ever lived.  He was God in the flesh.  He was observed by the men of His day who said, "He committed no sin" (I Pet. 2:22).  Yet He died being crucified, thus serving as a spotless sacrifice for me.  Three days later, He was raised from the dead, raised to grant life to those who trust Him.  It was this same Jesus who said, "I am the way, the truth, and the life.  No one comes to the Father except through me."    

REBOOT: "README"

Here are the notes from yesterday's message at New Life Community Church.  Fourth message in the series REBOOT, entitled "README."  If you would like to listen to this message, you may do so by going to our website at www.newlifesite.com.  God bless!

Reboot, Part 4                                                  Sunday, May 25, 2014

 “README”

In series:

Restart

Restore

Refresh

Now today;

README

Typically, readme files contain late-breaking information that could not be included in the printed or original documentation.

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.  II Corinthians 5:17 (NKJV)

Illustration:  St. Augustine

Turbulent youth enslaved by sexual passion and drunkenness, all along rising in terms of his teaching profession – literature and rhetoric.  But always the object of the prayers of his mother, Monica. 

It was the year 386, and he was now 32 years old and teaching in Milan, Italy.  Occasionally he would go to listen to the preaching of Ambrose.  He found himself one day in the garden that adjoined his apartment.  Amidst a huge internal struggle, he said he “was twisting and turning in my chains”.  He said, “I threw myself down somehow under a certain fig tree and let my tears flow freely.

Confessions:

Suddenly I heard a voice from the nearby house chanting as if it might be a boy or a girl … saying and repeating over and over again, ‘Pick up and read, pick up and read …’  I interpreted it solely as a divine command to me to open the book and read the first chapter I might find … So I hurried back to the place where … I had put down the book of the apostle when I got up.  I seized it, and opened it and in silence read the first passage on which my eye lit:  ‘Not in riots and drunken parties, not in eroticism and indecencies, not in strife and rivalry, but put on the Lord Jesus Christ and make no provision for the flesh in its lusts’ (Romans 13:13-14).  I neither wished nor need to read further.  At once, with the last words of this sentence, it was  as if a light of relief from all anxiety flooded into my heart.  All the shadows of doubt were dispelled.

¹¹ And do this, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep; for now our salvation is nearer than when we first believed. ¹² The night is far spent, the day is at hand. Therefore let us cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armor of light. ¹³ Let us walk properly, as in the day, not in revelry and drunkenness, not in lewdness and lust, not in strife and envy. ¹⁴ But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts. Romans 13:11-14 (NKJV)

README

Typically, readme files contain late-breaking information that could not be included in the printed or original documentation.

“Eschatology, an understanding of the times in which we live, should govern our conduct.”  Moo: Romans 13:11-14, P. 439

“God superintends the course of human history, and we can live rightly only by knowing what phase of history we are now in.”  Moo, p. 441.

We need…

To stay CURRENT with God.

To know the TIMES.

To walk in God’s PROTECTION.

¹¹ And do this, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep; for now our salvation is nearer than when we first believed. ¹² The night is far spent, the day is at hand. Therefore let us cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armor of light. ¹³ Let us walk properly, as in the day, not in revelry and drunkenness, not in lewdness and lust, not in strife and envy. ¹⁴ But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts. Romans 13:11-14 (NKJV)

¹¹ And do this,

And considering this…

All the previous chapter and a half.

knowing the time,

¹ Now concerning the times and the seasons, brothers, you have no need to have anything written to you. ² For you yourselves are fully aware that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. ³ While people are saying, “There is peace and security,” then sudden destruction will come upon them as labor pains come upon a pregnant woman, and they will not escape. ⁴ But you are not in darkness, brothers, for that day to surprise you like a thief. ⁵ For you are all children of light, children of the day. We are not of the night or of the darkness. ⁶ So then let us not sleep, as others do, but let us keep awake and be sober. ⁷ For those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who get drunk, are drunk at night. ⁸ But since we belong to the day, let us be sober, having put on the breastplate of faith and love, and for a helmet the hope of salvation. ⁹ For God has not destined us for wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ,  I Thessalonians 5:1-9 (ESV)

¹⁴ for anything that becomes visible is light. Therefore it says, “Awake, O sleeper, and arise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.”  ¹⁵ Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, ¹⁶ making the best use of the time, because the days are evil. ¹⁷ Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. ¹⁸ And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit,  Ephesians 5:14-18 (ESV)

that now it is high time to awake out of sleep;

HOW DO YOU STAY AWAKE IN JESUS!

Tremendous tendency to DRIFT. 

for now our salvation is nearer than when we first believed. ¹² The night is far spent, the day is at hand.

Therefore let us cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armor of light. ¹³ Let us walk properly, as in the day, not in revelry and drunkenness, not in lewdness and lust, not in strife and envy. ¹⁴ But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts. Romans 13:11-14 (NKJV)

We need…

To stay CURRENT with God.

⁶ All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, ¹⁷ that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.

4 I charge you therefore before God and the Lord Jesus Christ, who will judge the living and the dead at His appearing and His kingdom: ² Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching. ³ For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; ⁴ and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables. ⁵ But you be watchful in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.  II Timothy 3:16-4:5 (NKJV)

1.  HEARING FROM GOD

2.  OBEYING HIS VOICE

3.  STAYING IN FELLOWSHIP

4.  ALLOWING GOD TO CORRECT YOU

5.  GIVE AWAY YOUR FAITH

To know the TIMES.

KNOW – eidotes which is tied to oida which means seeing.

Three words in Greek dealing with TIME:

Chronos, Kairos, and Ora

Chromos: duration

Kairos:  spot action or opportunity

Ora: limited moment or window in time.

3 But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. ² People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, ³ without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, ⁴ treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God— ⁵ having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with such people.

⁶ They are the kind who worm their way into homes and gain control over gullible women, who are loaded down with sins and are swayed by all kinds of evil desires, ⁷ always learning but never able to come to a knowledge of the truth.  II Timothy 3:1-7 (NIV)

To walk in God’s PROTECTION.

Armor of light.

It Starts with a Thought

One Year Bible
New Testament passage for Friday, May 23, 2014:  John 13:1-30

And supper being ended, the devil having already put it into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon’s son, to betray Him,  John 13:2 (NKJV)

It all starts with a thought.  John tells us that the most despicable betrayal of history began with a thought. Satan planted a seed in the heart of Judas.  That seed grew into treachery.

Most people do not start out planning to fail.  No marriage begins with wishes for divorce.  No new friendship hopes for anger and bitterness.  No man or woman plots out ways they can ruin their life. Yet, somehow along the way, a bad thought gets embedded.  A misconception finds a foothold.  An attitude takes root.

That thought grows into action.  It plays itself out like a slowly eroding hillside.  At first, it may be imperceptible.  But over time, the ground shifts until finally a landslide takes place.  The landscape of your life gets rearranged.  It all starts with a thought.

It is obvious that Judas played a game for quite some time.  He prayed and preached with the best of them.  He fed the poor.  He was part of a two-man team sent out on apostolic missions (wonder who his partner was).  But, all along, there were growing doubts and distrust, resentments and reservations.  

We each need to guard our thought life.  It is so easy to become cynical and critical.  It seems Judas found fault even with Jesus!  No wonder we could find fault in human co-workers and companions.   


One of Satan's primary tools is a judgmental spirit that easily finds fault.  It is a path toward destruction.  It happened with Judas; it can happen with us.  So, guard you heart and mind in Christ Jesus.  Thoughts are important.  They grow!!!  Success or failure doesn't just happen.  It all starts with a thought.

The Darker the Night, the Greater the Glory

One Year Bible
New Testament passage for Tuesday, May 20:  John 11:1-54

Then, when Mary came where Jesus was, and saw Him, she fell down at His feet, saying to Him, “Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died.”  John 11:32 (NKJV)

³⁸ Then Jesus, again groaning in Himself, came to the tomb. It was a cave, and a stone lay against it. ³⁹ Jesus said, “Take away the stone.”  Martha, the sister of him who was dead, said to Him, “Lord, by this time there is a stench, for he has been dead four days.”  ⁴⁰ Jesus said to her, “Did I not say to you that if you would believe you would see the glory of God?”  John 11:38-40 (NKJV)

Like Stars that Shine

In Genesis 15, God led Abraham out under the night sky and told him to look up.  "Look now and count the stars ... So shall you descendants be." (Gen. 15:5)  God made a comparison between the stars of heaven and the seed of Abraham.  The first point of comparison is in multitude.  God told him "count the stars."  But the similarities go beyond an innumerable host.

There is something about night stars that matches the nature of God's people.  "So shall your descendants be."  The darker the night, the brighter the stars shine.  No one star-gazes at noontime.  Stars shine best when the sky is darkest.  That's where God's people have their finest hour.  The world at its worst needs the church at its best.

This is why John 11 tells such a grand story.  The tragic death of a dear friend, Lazarus, was but the set-up for one of Jesus' greatest miracles.  Jesus said it, "Did I not say to you that if you would believe you would see the glory of God?" 

Three Lessons

Three ways this story speaks to me.

1. The Response to Rejection.

The three years of Jesus' earthly ministry divides into three segments: 1) obscurity (He came out of nowhere), 2) popularity (He rose to immense fame), and 3) rejection (He descended toward the Cross).  The raising of Lazarus comes hot on the heels of the onset of rejection -- the Jews had just attempted to stone Jesus (John 10:31, 39).

It is as if Jesus is saying to the world, "OK, so you don't want Me, you hate Me, you reject Me.  Let Me show you more clearly Who you are rejecting!"  There is a kind of defiance about the raising of Lazarus.  The harsher the rejection, the greater the glory of God.

2.  The Trials of Timing.

Jesus delayed His arrival at the tomb of Lazarus.  While He waited, everyone else worried -- particularly Mary and Martha.  While He lingered in Jordan, they languished in Bethany.

By the time Jesus arrived, Mary and Martha had given up.  "Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died," they both said.  These two sisters were actually scolding Jesus about how He had cared for them.

Jesus' greatest miracles are always on HIS TIMING, not ours.

3.  The Connection to the Cross.

There is always a bigger picture.  We focus on our small circumstance and think the world revolves around us.  When Jesus raised Lazarus, He was not simply blessing three friends.  He was not just answering a young woman's prayer.  He was pointing to HIS OWN RESURRECTION.

As dire as Mary and Martha thought things were, there was a bigger picture.  It was a world lost in sin.  As Jesus raised Lazarus, He was standing in the shadow of His own Cross which lay only a few days ahead.

The glory of God is revealed as we see the bigger picture of what God has done for us in Christ.  It is only a temporary blessing to pay a bill or heal a sickness or even raise a dead man from the grave.  It is the ETERNAL GLORY OF GOD to see Jesus risen and reigning!  Too often in the fog of our present crisis we forget the stark drama of human history -- the light and the darkness of the human condition.

 Not Unto Death

Jesus Himself interpreted the difficult circumstances surrounding Lazarus, Mary, and Martha.  He said, "This sickness is not unto death, but for the glory of God" (John 11:4).  Wow!  This bad development is serving a blessed destiny.  This sickness is a set-up for glory.  We need to remember that!  It is in the darkest night that the stars shine brightest.

Once Saved Always Saved vs. Fall from Grace

One Year Bible
New Testament passage for Monday, May 19:  John 10:22-42

²⁸ And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand. ²⁹ My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father’s hand.  John 10:28-29 (NKJV)

One of the most hotly argued subjects in the Bible is the security of the believer.  One side says you can't lose your salvation ("once saved always saved") while the other declares that unrepentant sinners will not inherit the Kingdom of God ("you can fall from grace").

It is usually the tactic of both sides to caricature their opponents in the worst possible light.  Those who believe you can lose your salvation say "once saved always saved" people give license to live like hell and still claim heaven.  On the other side of the coin, security Christians criticize the "fall from grace" people saying a person can get saved again and again -- maybe several times in one day depending on how active their sin life is!

Both sides marshal considerable Scriptural ammunition to make their point.  For my part, I believe that salvation has sticking power.  I acknowledge that many people who CLAIM to know Jesus simply do not act like it.  It is difficult to affirm their salvation based solely on a hand-shake with a preacher 30 years ago.  However, IF a person is truly regenerate -- they really did meet the living God and receive His new life through Jesus -- I believe they will be KEPT by the power of God.

That's what Jesus says here in John 10.  There may be times that we falter temporarily in our faith and go through trials, but the man or woman who has truly been born again is held in the hands of Jesus.  NO ONE can snatch him out!  He may even run from God, but the Hound of Heaven will track him down.

The Reformers called this "the perseverance of the saints."  I actually like that phrase better than "once saved always saved."  The latter sounds like a free ride -- once your ticket is stamped you can do as you please.  I know that no one wants that impression to be given, but it is still there.  "The perseverance of the saints" says that the seed will endure -- it is imperishable.  

The unfortunate problem with many of these arguments about security vs. falling from grace is that we forget that both agree on one thing:  WE ALL NEED TO LOVE JESUS AND WALK WITH HIM.  No "security person" I know says carnality and sin is acceptable.  That is the thrust of the "fall from grace" position.  In the words of Paul, "Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound?  Certainly not..."  (Romans 6:1-2)

Which ever way you stand on this topic, let's agree on this:  God is good -- sin is bad -- believers ought to obey God -- anyone who is living in rebellion against God is in trouble and should repent.

I love it when we can solve the problems of the world so easily.  God bless!!!