Month: November 2019

Acts 4 records the conclusion of Peter and John’s healing of the lame beggar.  It caused such a stir that the Jewish religious leaders had them arrested and put in jail overnight.  Then they brought Peter and John before them to examine them for what they had done.  We’re told Peter was filled with the Holy Spirit before he responded.  This is a vital point, because Jesus promised when we are brought before the authorities for His sake, His Spirit will tell us what to say.  In any case, Peter’s response is classic.  He tells the Jewish leaders if they are being brought to trial for a good deed done to a crippled man (interesting point to put on the matter!), the explanation is simple: the miracle was done in the name of Jesus.  Peter went on to say there is no other name under heaven given among us by which we must be saved.  The religious leaders wanted to punish Peter and John, but they couldn’t deny a great miracle had been done, so they warned them not to preach any more in Jesus’ name, and then let them go.  The two went back to the rest of the believers and testified to what God had done among them.  Then they cried out to God and prayed for…boldness!  We might have thought they would have prayed for protection, but it was boldness for which they asked.  

In Acts 5 we read the sobering account of a couple named Ananias and Sapphira who sold some property and brought a portion of the proceeds to the apostles, but said it was everything.  As a result, they DIED. Yes, they died. They didn’t die, because they didn’t bring a 100% of the proceeds of the sale to the apostles.  They died for lying about what portion they brought.  We’re told this brought fear to the church.  The apostles continued to perform incredible miracles in Jesus’ name, and eventually they were all brought before the Jewish religious leaders again and punished for their activities. Nevertheless, they continued to live powerfully in Jesus’ name.

In Acts 6, we read of one of the first problems in the early church: the Hellenistic or Gentile widows weren’t being treating equally in the distribution of food.  When the problem was brought to the apostles, they didn’t say it wasn’t a problem, but they did say they wouldn’t be solving it themselves.  They weren’t going to give up their ministry of prayer and devotion to the Word of God to “wait tables.”  The solution was to select what we call “deacons,” who were godly men to take care of the situation.  The result was the church was strengthened, and even a number of Jewish priests became obedient to the faith.   At the close of Acts 6, Stephen, one of the deacons, is arrested by the Jews and put on trial for his faith.  We’ll read the conclusion of the matter tomorrow.

As we return to Matthew 2, we read of the coming of the wise men to see Jesus, and the slaughter of the babies and toddlers who were two years of age and under in and around Bethlehem by King Herod.  The slaughter was Herod’s effort to kill Jesus, and to stop Him from ever threatening his throne.  Jesus escaped this attempt, because an angel appeared to Joseph and led him to take Mary and Jesus to Egypt.  Thus, Jesus spent His early years as a refugee in Egypt.  When Herod died, an angel told Joseph to return to Israel, but because another Herod was ruling, Joseph moved the family to Nazareth in northern Israel.

Today we turn to the Book of Acts for the first time.  The full title is often “The Acts of the Apostles,” but some have contended a better title would be “The Acts of the Holy Spirit.”  The Holy Spirit is the central actor in the book.  From start to finish, we see how different the presence of the Holy Spirit in every believer’s life makes humanity.  As we saw so often in the Old Testament, only a select few received the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit.  The masses followed these anointed leaders. Now, from Acts 2 forward, every believer has the opportunity to be led by the indwelling presence and power of the Holy Spirit.

In Acts 1, Luke introduces his second book to Theophilus.  He tells us the first book (the Gospel of Luke) told all that Jesus had done and taught.  This second book starts after Jesus had risen from the dead.  Indeed, in chapter 1, Jesus has his final meeting with the apostles before returning to heaven.  In that meeting, He tells the apostles they will be baptized in the Holy Spirit not many days from that moment.  He also tells them once they receive the power of the Holy Spirit they will be His witnesses “…in Jerusalem, all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” (Acts 1:8)  The “formula” is: Wait.  Receiver Power.  Go.  How vital it is for us to keep that order in our minds and hearts.  Unless we wait for the filling of the Holy Spirit, we won’t have any power to carry Jesus’ mission forward in the world.  There’s no sense going without that power.  In the remainder of chapter 1, the apostles choose a replacement for Judas.  The interesting thing about that is we never hear about the replacement again, because Jesus already had a replacement in mind–more about that in future chapters of Acts. 

Acts 2 offers us the record of the first “Christian” Pentecost, often considered the “birthday” of the Church.  That’s because Jesus’ promise to send the Holy Spirit was fulfilled that day.  120 believers were filled with the Holy Spirit and witnessed to the thousands of Jews who were in Jerusalem for what was at that moment the Jewish holy day of Pentecost.  Through their ministry 3,000 people responded to the Good News, and the Church was born.  In Acts 3, we see the amazing power God gave to His children through the Holy Spirit as Peter and John received power to heal a lame beggar.  The account is amazing and joyous as we see a man released from a lifetime of being unable to walk.  He not only walks, but he also leaps and runs and praises God.  Peter uses this opportunity to tell the people gathered in the Temple where the miracle took place, about Jesus.  More people responded to the Good News and additional thousands were added to those who believed. 

As we return to Matthew 1, we read again the genealogy of Jesus as well as the account of His birth.  Matthew’s account of Jesus’ birth contains different details than Luke’s, as we would expect. After all, Matthew’s heritage was Jewish, and Luke’s was Gentile.  That means Matthew was quite concerned about how Jesus, as the Messiah, fulfilled the Jewish Scriptures.  Luke, on the other hand, was more concerned about how Jesus’ coming fulfilled God’s overall plan for humanity.

John 19-21 record Jesus’ death, resurrection and the events that took place after His resurrection before He returned to heaven.  In John’s record of Jesus’ crucifixion, we read of the soldiers piercing Jesus’ side, rather than breaking His legs as had been done to the others who were crucified beside Him.  This holds significance, because the Old Testament tells us not a bone of the Messiah’s body would be broken.  Even though He was brutally beaten and crucified, His bones weren’t broken.  John is the only gospel writer who gives us a detailed record of Jesus appearing first to Mary Magdalene after He rose from the dead.  The meeting is so poignant, because Mary doesn’t recognize Jesus at first, thinking He’s just the gardener, but all He has to do is say, “Mary!” and at once she recognizes Him.  In the final chapter, Jesus reinstates Peter by asking Him three times, “Simon, Son of John do you love me?”  Each time Peter answers in the affirmative.  Jesus tells Peter he will one day give up his life in serving Jesus, which must have been a great comfort, after his previous denials of Jesus. As we know, Jesus’ grace is always greater than our sin or failure, but John 21 shows us that so powerfully. 

John 16-18 moves us through Jesus’ final time of teaching and prayer with His disciples, and then to His arrest and trial before the Jewish religious leaders, and the Roman governor, Pilate.  Jesus made it clear to the disciples they would be hated because of their relationship with Him, that they would be filled with sorrow, because of their loss of Him, but their sorrow would turn to joy.  In chapter 17, we read “The high priestly prayer” of Jesus.  It received that title, because in it, Jesus prayed to His Father on behalf of His followers, but not only for the disciples, but for all who would follow Him in the future–including us!  Jesus’ heart for us is we will remain faithful and overcome the challenges we face in serving Him, and we will be one as He and His Heavenly Father are one.  Some have taken this “oneness” prayer of Jesus and used it to show He is not God, or that we are to become “gods,” but it doesn’t lead us to such a conclusion.  That Jesus prays for our oneness to be like that of He and His Father means He wants us to let the Holy Spirit bring a supernatural unity to our lives and fellowship. Chapter 18 shows us Jesus had been right all along, when He prepared His disciples for this moment of being rejected by people, and when the religious leaders would hand Him over to be crucified.  The crucifixion doesn’t happen in chapter 18, but the way is laid for it to take place.  Peter’s denial of Jesus might have been the most painful experience He faced in this experience.

In John 13, Jesus offers His disciples one of the most powerful examples of what it means to be a servant leader, by washing their feet after they eat their last meal together before He is arrested, tried, convicted, beaten and crucified.  Jesus sets forth a new commandment that they must love one another as He has loved them.  In John 14, Jesus tells of His impending return to heaven, but that ultimately that would mean His return to take them to be with Him.  While the disciples weren’t sure where Jesus was going or how to get there, Jesus told them, “I am the way, the truth, and the life.  No one comes to the Father except through me.”  He also told the disciples they would do greater works than He, because He was going to the Father.  In John 15, Jesus provides the amazing metaphor of Him being the “vine,” and we His followers, being the “branches.”  So long as we abide in Him, we will bear much fruit.  Jesus tells us again of the importance of His new command to love one another as He first loved us.

In John 10, Jesus tells us He is the “Door” to the sheepfold, and the Good Shepherd.  Jesus distinguishes between the devil’s work, which is to kill, steal and destroy, and His work, which is to bring us life in all of its abundance.  In John 11, we read the powerful account of Jesus’ friend Lazarus dying.  Even though Lazarus’ sisters: Mary and Martha, had sent for Jesus to let Him know Lazarus was sick, Jesus waited until Lazarus had been dead for four days, before going to visit the family.  In Jesus’ poignant interaction with Martha, Jesus proclaims, “I am the Resurrection and the Life!”  Then he proves it by raising Lazarus from the dead.  This amazes all but the religious leaders. They see this as one more evidence that Jesus will be the ultimate reason for the Romans to come and destroy them.  They begin to plot in earnest to have Jesus killed.  John 12 records Jesus being anointed by Mary, which was a preparation for His death.  The religious leaders develop a plot to kill Lazarus, because he was evidence of Jesus’ power.  Jesus marches triumphantly into Jerusalem, but this only causes more division as people must choose whether they are going to side with Jesus being the Messiah, or an impostor.

In John 7-9, John shows us Jesus is God.  That’s a powerful statement, but we see it time and time again.  In John 7, Jesus tells the people He is the source of rivers of living water.  In John 8, Jesus calls Himself the Light of the World.  In John 9, Jesus heals a man who was born blind, and tells the man He healed He is the Messiah.  None of this happens without conflict.  The religious leaders argue and debate with Jesus, but Jesus doesn’t back down.  He knows they are out to put an end not only to His ministry, but to His life.  Nevertheless, Jesus continues to proclaim who He is: The Son of God.  

As we return to John 4-6, we’re reminded of how Jesus often helped one person at a time.  In John 4, Jesus transformed the life of an entire Samaritan village, but it started with a long conversation with a Samaritan woman.  In John 5, Jesus healed a paralyzed man who had been waiting by the Pool of Bethesda for thirty-eight years.  In John 6, just for good measure, Jesus feeds 5,000 men (along with the women and children)!

As we come again to the Gospel of John, remember John’s gospel is the “different” one.  It is not “synoptic.”  By the time John wrote his gospel, all three of the other gospels had been written and circulated.  John wrote not so much to tell the chronology of Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection, as to demonstrate Jesus is the Son of God.  He tells us as much in John 20.  John 1-3 covers the theological expression of Jesus’ equality with God (John 1); Jesus’ first miracle: turning water into wine (John 2); and tell Nicodemus we must be born again (John 3).

Luke 21-24 records the last few days of Jesus’ life, His arrest, trial, conviction, death and resurrection. One of the aspects of Jesus’ resurrection included by Luke, but by none of the other gospel writers, was Jesus’ conversation with two “disciples” on the road to Emmaus.  The account is so powerful, because the two, one of whom was named Cleopas, were walking home because Jesus is dead, and their hope is gone.  Suddenly, a “stranger” appears with them on the road and begins to ask them why they are upset.  They ask if He is the only one who has been to Jerusalem who hasn’t heard of what went on there over the past three days.  Jesus then took them through the Scriptures (which would be our Old Testament) and told them the Messiah must suffer and then rise again.  At the end of the trip, when the men made it home, Jesus acted as if He would continue on, so they invited Him to have dinner with them.  As Jesus was breaking bread with them, they realized it was Jesus.  At that moment He disappeared from their sight.  Even though it had to be getting dark, even though they had no means of lighting their way back to Jerusalem, they ran back to town, and told the other disciples they had seen Jesus.  What a powerful aspect of Jesus’ resurrection interaction with His followers!  Our Lord and Savior is no martyr, because He rose from the dead.  That’s what sets Him apart from every other great person, or religious figure who ever lived.