John 2
Wedding at Cana of Galilee verse 1- 11
And the third day was a marriage in Cana of Galilee
and the mother of Jesus was there
and both Jesus was called
and HIS disciples to the marriage
And when they wanted wine – the mother of Jesus
said unto HIM
They have no wine
Jesus said unto her
Woman – what have I to do with you?
MINE hour is not yet come
HIS mother said unto the servants
Whatsoever HE says unto you – do it
And there were set there six waterpots of stone
after the manner of the purifying of the Jews
containing two or three firkins apiece
Jesus said unto them
Fill the waterpots with water
and they filled them up to the brim
And HE said to them
Draw out now – and bear unto the governor of the feast
And they bare it
WHEN the ruler of the feast had tasted the water
that was made wine
and knew not whence it was
(but the servants which drew the water knew)
the governor of the feast called the bridegroom
and said unto him
Every man at the beginning does set forth good wine
and when men have well drunk
then that which is worse
BUT you hast kept the good wine until now
This beginning of miracles did Jesus in Cana of Galilee
and manifested forth HIS glory
and HIS disciples believed on HIM
Jesus in Capernaum verse 12
After this HE went down to Capernaum
HE – HIS mother – HIS brethren – HIS disciples
and they continued there not many days
Jesus cleanses the Temple verse 13- 17
And the Jews Passover was at hand – and Jesus went up to Jerusalem
and found in the temple those that sold oxen and sheep and doves
and the changers of money sitting
and when HE had made a scourge of small cords
HE drove them all out of the temple
and the sheep – oxen and poured out the changers’ money
and overthrew the tables
AND said unto them that sold doves
Take these things hence
make not MY Father’s house an house of merchandise
And HIS disciples remembered that it was written
The zeal of THINE house hath eaten ME up
Jesus predicts three days in grave verse 18- 22
Then answered the Jews and said unto HIM
What sign show YOU unto us
seeing that YOU does these things?
Jesus answered and said unto them
Destroy this temple – and in three days I will raise it up
Then said the Jews
Forty and six years was this temple in building
and wilt YOU rear it up in three days?
BUT HE spake of the temple of HIS body
When therefore HE was risen from the dead
HIS disciples remembered
that HE had said this unto them
AND they believed the Scripture
and the word which Jesus had said
Jesus understand heart of man verse 23- 25
Now when HE was in Jerusalem at the Passover – in the feast day
many believed in HIS name
when they saw the miracles which HE did
BUT Jesus did not commit HIMSELF unto them
BECAUSE HE knew all men
and needed not that any should testify of man
FOR HE knew what was in man
COMMENTARY:
DAILY SPIRITUAL BREAKFAST: Young Believers
: 11 This beginning of miracles did Jesus in Cana of Galilee, and manifested forth his glory; and his disciples believed on him. (4592 “miracles” [semeion] means sign, wonder, or token.)
DEVOTION: In the eyes of believer the only one who can truly show a wonder in our world is God. At this wedding Jesus started HIS public ministry with HIS first sign that HE was God. (
HIS mother Mary asked HIM to provide wine for the wedding they were attending because they had run out. HE seemed to be not inclined to honor her request. However, HE did honor her by granting her request.
HE told the servants to fill six waterpots of stone with water. The waterpots could hold between eighteen to twenty-seven gallons of water each. So there were six times twenty-seven gallons of water turned into wine.
Not only did HE turn the water into wine but the governor of the feast said it was the best wine. When God does something HE always does it with class.
Why did Jesus turn water into wine? The first answer could be to honor HIS mother. The second answer was that HE manifested HIS glory. HE showed those around who HE really was. The disciples needed to see HIM in action.
What was the result of the turning water into wine? John states that HIS disciples believed on HIM. It was one more proof to the disciples that HIS claims were real. Did they believe beyond a shadow of doubt? NO!! They had hard hearts. They were still showing signs of doubt even after HE showed them many signs and wonders.
Did all the people who saw the disciples perform signs and wonders become believers? The answer again was NO!! People seem to not trust their senses when they see something beyond their explanation. They want more information.
We tend to be the same way today. God can do a wonder sign in our life that HE is real and yet we will want more. HE gives more and we still seem to doubt that it is real. God is working blessing after blessing in our life and we seem to still doubt that HE loves us.
CHALLENGE: Trust in the LORD. When HE gives us a sign of HIS love we should just praise the LORD. Praising the LORD should be a sign of our love for HIM.
DAILY SPIRITUAL LUNCH: Transitional Believers
: 17 And his disciples remembered that it was written, The zeal of thine house hath eaten me up. (2205 “zeal” [zelos] means earnest concern, excitement of mind, ardour, fervor of spirit, a noble passion, fervent mind or jealousy.)
DEVOTION: Jesus walked into the temple area and looked around at what was happening in HIS Father’s house. What HE saw HE didn’t like. HE could be like most and just walk on or HE could change what was happening. HE decided to change what was happening.
What did HE do? HE cleaned up the Temple. HE made a scourge and drove out all the animals. HE overthrew the tables of the money changers. HE declared that they had made HIS Father’s house into a place of merchandise.
What was the Temple supposed to be? It was to be a house of prayer. It was a place where people came to come into the presence of God. They came to offer sacrifices to God.
What was the difference? There were people in the Temple that didn’t care about God. They only cared about themselves. They cared about making a profit. They were concerned about being rich while they were on this earth. The difference was that the money changers wanted this world and those who were right with the LORD wanted to be close to the LORD in this world and in the next.
When we see things that are not right happening in the LORD’S house, what do we do? We realize that a building is not where the Holy Spirit dwells. We realize that the Holy Spirit indwells the individuals who are gathered in the building called the church. If the fellowship of believers is headed in the wrong direction, should we do something about it?
Jesus seems to think so. HE not only thought so, but did something about it. There is something happening in the church of Jesus Christ today. In some of the churches HE is being worshipped and honored and HIS word is being preached and individuals are choosing to follow the LORD.
However, in many churches these things are not happening. What can we do? We have two choices. We can do what Jesus did and clean up the house of worship or we can start a new work that honors the LORD. We don’t have a choice of compromising with the world or being politically correct. We need churches that will stand up for the truth of the Word of God while many are drifting away from the Word. Is our heart eaten up with the excitement for a pure church? Are we jealous for a people that truly love the LORD? That should be our prayer. Christ had the proper jealousy. There is proper and improper jealousy. Proper jealousy honors the LORD.
We need to speak the truth in love. Jesus spoke the truth and showed them the door because they were not interested in the truth.
CHALLENGE: Confront those who are not interested in the truth of the Word of God with the Word of God. If they listen, they will repent and want to honor the LORD!!
DAILY SPIRITUAL SUPPER: Mature Believers
: 22 Where therefore he was risen from the dead, his disciples remembered that HE had said this to them, and they believed the scripture, and the word which Jesus had said. (1124 “scripture” [graphe] means the entirely of sacred Scriptures inspired by the God of Israel, passage, sacred writing, written document, prescription, or writing.)
DEVOTION: How good is your memory? As someone who is young in age your memory can develop into something good. We are told to memorize the multiplication table in math. We are told to memorize simple words as we read. They give us spelling test all the time while we are in school to help up memorize words.
We build memories with our children and grandchildren as they grow up. We take them places and do things with them that are fun. They remember the fun times. However, we also train them to pick up their room and do chores around the house and those are not as much fun.
Sometimes our memory is used just for the bad things that happened rather than the good things that have happened in our life. We should concentrate on the good things of our past rather than the bad things.
Here the disciples remembered three years later what HE had stated earlier in HIS ministry. HE had planted a seed of truth in them that came true. They remembered that HE knew the future when it happened.
God does know the future. We might not see it happen for a number of years but HE knows what is going to happen in our life. Our responsibility is to be like HIS disciples when we see that HIS statements are true. We need to believe!!!
CHALLENGE: We have two witnesses to truth. The first witness is our personal life. The second is the statements of the Word of God. Our life has to be based on the truth of the Word of God.
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: 25 And needed not that any should testify of man: for HE knew what was in man. (3140 “testify” [martureo] means bear witness, speak well of, to be well spoken of, to solemnly asset something, offering firsthand authentication of the fact, or often concerning grave or important matters.)
DEVOTION: Do we think that we can hide our true self from God? We can fool some people about who we really are but not all the people.
Too often Christians have been taught that their outward appearance is what is important. They think as long as their outward actions look like we are believers we can fool people into to thinking we are believers.
God always concentrates on the heart of people. HE looks on the inside. Jesus knew what was inside each person HE met while HE walked on this earth. HE was not fooled by appearances or some actions.
HE knew that all men were sinners in need of a Savior. HE came for that purpose. HE died on the cross to bring individuals into a proper relationship to HIS Father. The Father would only accept those who trusted in Jesus Christ as their personal Savior. HE would look at those individuals though HIS Son. HIS shed blood covered all the sins of those individuals.
People didn’t have to tell Jesus what was real. HE knew what was real and what was fake.
CHALLENGE: Don’t try to fool Jesus into believing you are a believer. It can’t be done. HE knows!!!
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DISCIPLINES OF THE FAITH:
BODY
Chastity (Purity in living)
Fasting (Time alone with LORD without eating or drinking)
Sacrifice (Giving up something we want to serve the LORD)
Submission (Willing to listen to others and LORD)
Solitude (Going to a quiet place without anyone)
SOUL
Fellowship (Gathering together around the Word of God)
Frugality (wise use of resources)
Journalizing (Writing down what you have learned from the LORD)
Study and Meditation (Thinking through your study in the Word)
Secrecy (Doing your good deeds without others knowing but God)
SPIRIT
Celebration (Gathering around a special occasion to worship LORD)
Confession (Tell the LORD we are sorry for our sins on a daily basis)
Prayer (Conversation with God on a personal level)
Silence (Letting the LORD deal with some problems and needs)
Worship (Time to praise the LORD alone or in a group)
Passover verse 13, 23
Temple verse 14, 15, 20
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DOCTRINES OF THE FAITH:
Scripture (66 inerrant books of the Bible)
It was written verse 17
Scripture verse 22
God the Father (First person of the Godhead)
Father’s house verse 16
God the Son (Second person of the Godhead –God/man, Messiah)
Jesus verse 1- 4, 7, 11, 13,19, 22, 24
Miracle of turning water into wine verse 1- 11
Beginning of miracles
Manifests HIS glory
Capernaum with mother, disciples verse 12
Cleansing the Temple verse 13- 16
went to Jerusalem
found in temple those who sold
oxen and sheep and doves
Temple Father’s house
not a place of merchandise
Made a scourge of small cords
and drove them all out of the
Temple and the sheep and oxen
and poured out the changers’
money and over threw tables
Told them that sold doves – Take these
things hence; make not MY Father’s
house a house of merchandise verse 16
Jesus body a temple verse 19- 21
Told Jews: Destroy this temple,
and in three days I will raise
it up -talking about the
temple of HIS body
Miracles verse 23
Knew hearts of men verse 24
did not commit himself to them
because HE knew all men
Knew what was in man verse 25
God the Holy Spirit (Third person of the Godhead – our comforter)
Trinity (Three persons of the Godhead who are co-equal = ONE God)
Angels (Created before the foundation of the world – Good and Evil)
Man (Created on the sixth twenty-four hour period of creation)
Marriage in Cana verse 1- 11
Governor verse 8, 9
Ruler of feast verse 9
Bridegroom verse 9
All men verse 24, 25
Sin (Missing the mark set by God on man and angels)
Selling things in temple verse 14
House of Merchandise verse 16
Salvation (Provided by Christ’s death on the cross for our sins)
Zeal verse 17
Disciple’s believed verse 11
Believed the Scripture verse 22
Believed in HIS name verse 23
Israel (Old Testament people of God)
Cana of Galilee verse 1, 11
Mother of Jesus (Mary) verse 1, 3- 5, 12
Jews verse 6 , 13, 18, 20
Asks Jesus – What sign show to us,
Seeing that YOU do these things
Sold oxen and sheep and doves and
changers’ money
Capernaum verse 12
Jesus’ brothers verse 12
Jew’s Passover verse 13, 23
Jerusalem verse 13, 23
Jews answered and said to Jesus
What sign show you us
seeing you do these things? verse 18
Jews told Jesus that it took 46 years to
build temple and he was going
to rear it up in three days verse 20
Church (New Testament people of God)
Disciples verse 2, 11, 12, 17, 22
Went to marriage with Jesus
Believed on Jesus
Remembered that it was written
“The zeal of thine house has
eaten ME up”
Remembered what Jesus told the Jews
regarding HIS resurrection
Believed the Scripture and the word
which Jesus had said
Many believed on Jesus’ name
when they saw the miracles verse 23
Last Things (Future Events)
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QUOTES regarding passage
4–5 Jesus’ reply to Mary was not so abrupt as it seems. “Woman” (gynai) was a polite form of address. Jesus used it when he spoke to his mother from the cross (19:26) and also when he spoke to Mary Magdalene after the Resurrection (20:15). Two translations of Jesus’ rejoinder to his mother are possible: (1) “What business is that of ours?” or (2) “What authority do you have over me?” The second alternative is based on the analogy of the question of the demoniac, “What do you want with us, Son of God?” (Matt 8:29), which employs exactly the same phraseology. Since Jesus’ mother expressed neither surprise nor resentment, the former translation is probably more acceptable in this instance. She acknowledged that he should act independently, and she confidently told the servants to follow his orders. She fully expected that he would take appropriate action. He did indicate that he was no longer under her authority but that he was living by a new pattern timed by the purpose of God. Jesus had begun his miracles, not at the request of earthly parents whom he still respected, but according to the purpose of his heavenly Father. The “time” refers to the first hour when he manifested the real reason for which he came: “Father, the hour has come. Glorify your Son, that your Son may glorify you” (John 17:1). (Tenney, M. C. (1981). John. In F. E. Gaebelein (Ed.), The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: John and Acts (Vol. 9, p. 42). Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House.)
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Woman (γυναι [gunai]). Vocative case of γυνη [gunē], and with no idea of censure as is plain from its use by Jesus in 19:26. But the use of γυναι [gunai] instead of μητερ [mēter] (Mother) does show her she can no longer exercise maternal authority and not at all in his Messianic work. That is always a difficult lesson for mothers and fathers to learn, when to let go. What have I to do with thee? (Τι ἐμοι και σοι; [Ti emoi kai soi?]). There are a number of examples of this ethical dative in the LXX (Judges 11:12; 2 Sam. 16:10; 1 Kings 17:18; 2 Kings 3:13; 2 Chron. 35:21) and in the N. T. (Mark 1:24; 5:7; Matt. 8:29; 27:19; Luke 8:28). Some divergence of thought is usually indicated. Literally the phrase means, “What is it to me and to thee?” In this instance F.C. Burkitt (Journal of Theol. Studies, July, 1912) interprets it to mean, “What is it to us?” That is certainly possible and suits the next clause also. Mine hour is not yet come (οὐπω ἡκει ἡ ὡρα μου [oupō hēkei hē hōra mou]). This phrase marks a crisis whenever it occurs, especially of his death (7:30; 8:20; 12:23; 13:1; 17:1). Here apparently it means the hour for public manifestation of the Messiahship, though a narrower sense would be for Christ’s intervention about the failure of the wine. The Fourth Gospel is written on the plane of eternity (W. M. Ramsay) and that standpoint exists here in this first sign of the Messiah. (Robertson, A. T. (1933). Word Pictures in the New Testament (Jn 2:4). Nashville, TN: Broadman Press.)
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2:4–5. The word woman applied to His mother may seem strange to a modern reader, but it was a polite, kind expression (cf. 19:26). However, the clause, Why do you involve Me? was a common expression in Greek that referred to a difference in realms or relations. Demons spoke these words when they were confronted by Christ (“What do You want with us?” [Mark 1:24]; “What do You want with me?” [Mark 5:7]). Mary had to learn a painful lesson (cf. Luke 2:35), namely, that Jesus was committed to God the Father’s will and the time for His manifestation was in the Father’s hand. My time has not yet come or similar words occur five times in John (2:4; 7:6, 8, 30; 8:20). Later the fact that His time had come is mentioned three times (12:23; 13:1; 17:1). Mary’s response to the servants (Do whatever He tells you) revealed her submission to her Son. Even though she did not fully understand, she trusted Him. (Blum, E. A. (1985). John. In J. F. Walvoord & R. B. Zuck (Eds.), The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures (Vol. 2, p. 278). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.)
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Jesus the Son (vv. 3–5). Since Jewish wedding feasts lasted a week, it was necessary for the groom to have adequate provisions. For one thing, it would be embarrassing to run out of either food or wine; and a family guilty of such gaucherie could actually be fined! So, to run out of wine could be costly both financially and socially.
Why did Mary approach Jesus about the problem? Did she actually expect Him to do something special to meet the need? Certainly she knew who He was, even though she did not declare this wonderful truth to others. She must have been very close to either the bride or the bridegroom to have such a personal concern for the success of the festivities, or even to know that the supply of wine was depleted. Perhaps Mary was assisting in the preparation and serving of the meal.
Mary did not tell Jesus what to do; she simply reported the problem. (Compare the message of Mary and Martha to Jesus, when Lazarus was sick—John 11:3.) Jesus’ reply seems a bit abrupt, and even harsh; but such is not the case. “Woman” was a polite way to address her (John 19:26; 20:13), and His statement merely means, “Why are you getting Me involved in this matter?” He was making it clear to His mother that He was no longer under her supervision (it is likely that Joseph was dead), but that from now on, He would be doing what the Father wanted Him to do. There had been a hint of this some years before (Luke 2:40–52).
At this point, John introduced one of the key elements of his record, the idea of “the hour.” Jesus lived on a “heavenly timetable,” marked out for Him by the Father. (See John 7:30; 8:20; 12:23; 13:1; 17:1; and note also the words of Jesus as recorded in John 11:9–10.) As you study John’s Gospel, you will observe how this concept of “the hour” is developed.
Mary’s words to the servants reveal that she was willing to let her Son do whatever He pleased, and that she trusted Him to do what was right. It would be wise for all of us to obey what she said! It is worth noting that it was Jesus, not Mary, who took command and solved the problem; and that Mary pointed, not to herself, but to Jesus. (Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 1, pp. 290–291). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.)
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Our Lord’s miracles were testimonies (John 5: 36, giving evidence of His divine sonship, but they were also tests, exposing the hearts of the people (John 12;37 FF. The same events that opened some eyes only made other eyes that much more blind (John 9: 39-41). (The Bible Exposition Commentary New Testament by Warren W. Wiersbe)
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FROM MY READING:
Preachers Should Be Like Naughty Kids
For every head-scratching page that Robert Capon writes, he pens a a mind-blowingly insightful one. Some of the best paragraphs I’ve ever read on grace come from Capon. As far as I can tell, he holds some wild ideas about the atonement. So, as with anyone, you have to discern the meat from the bones. But it’s worth it. The following paragraph on preaching made me sing: I think good preachers should be like bad kids. They ought to be naughty enough to tiptoe up on dozing congregations, steal their bottles of religion pills…and flush them all down the drain. The church, by and large, has drugged itself into thinking that proper human behavior is the key to its relationship with God. What preachers need to do is force it to go cold turkey with nothing but the word of the cross–and then be brave enough to stick around while [the congregation] goes through the inevitable withdrawal symptoms. But preachers can’t be that naughty or brave unless they’re free from their own need for the dope of acceptance. And they wont be free of their need until they can trust the God who has already accepted them, in advance and dead as door-nails, in Jesus. Ergo, the absolute indispensability of trust in Jesus’ passion. Unless the faith of preachers is in that alone–and not in any other person, ecclesiastical institution, theological system, moral prescription, or master recipe for human loveliness–they will be of very little use in the pulpit. May God raise up a generation of preachers who storm the gates of worldliness with “It is finished.” (Tullian Tchividjian)
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THE APOSTOLIC WITNESS
And we have seen and do testify that the Father sent the Son to be the Savior of the world. Whosoever shall confess that Jesus is the Son of God, God dwelleth in him, and he in God. And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him. 1 John 4:14-16
The apostolic witness is most important. What is it? John, in effect is putting it like this: “The important thing is to know God. But how can I know God? ‘No man hath seen God at any time.’ But we have seen and do testify that Jesus is the Son of God.” That is the statement.
Notice how he puts it. He had not had a vision. What then? Thank God, “we have seen.” He said it all in his introduction: “That which…we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life….That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you,” said John. No man has seen God, but we have seen Jesus, and Jesus said, “He that hath seen me hath seen the Father” (See John 14:9).
In other words, the apostolic vision on which my faith is grounded is this: It is a belief in that which the apostles tell us they saw, and the explanation of their understanding of what they saw is found in the four Gospels. The statements in the Gospels are not simply objective statements; they are statements plus interpretation, and at long last modern man has come back to see that. They used to contrast John with Matthew, Mark, and Luke. They said that John preached, but that Matthew, Mark, and Luke just gave the facts. But they now have to admit that what all four wrote was facts plus interpretation. Like John, the men who wrote the first three Gospels believed and understood that Jesus is the Son of God and the Savior of the world. They saw and testified; in other words, they saw, and they expounded.
A Thought to Ponder: The explanation of the apostles’ understanding of what they saw is found in the four Gospels.
(From The Love of God, p. 125, Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones)
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Philemon 1
Paul urges Philemon to have mercy on his runaway slave, Onesimus, who has become a Christian.
INSIGHT
If anyone is a servant of Christ, he cannot be a tyrant to men. Jesus taught forgiveness, compassion, and gentleness not harshness, anger, and retribution. Paul urges Philemon to forgive, receive, and restore his runaway slave, Onesimus, as a brother in Christ, now that he has become a Christian. The fact that this letter has been preserved indicates Philemon’s favorable response. Although we do not have slaves today, our employees, co-workers, associates, and neighbors deserve respect from us. Service to Christ requires a forgiving spirit. (Quiet Walk)
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NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine has renewed his vow to put astronauts on Mars by as early as 2035. The head of America’s space program says we’ll start by going back to the moon, where we can test the technology necessary to make a much longer voyage to the Red Planet.
But the whole project to put boots on another planet—something incredibly expensive, dangerous, and time-consuming—raises an interesting question: Why should we do this?
Back in the sixties, the obvious answer for why we should go to the moon was to beat the Soviets. The space race, like the nuclear arms race, carried enormous military implications.
And then there was the symbolic victory, which was won when Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin planted the Stars and Stripes on the lunar surface.
But there was a third reason for space exploration back then—which, unlike the other two reasons, still applies now.
In last year’s movie, “First Man,” Neil Armstrong, played by Ryan Gosling, finds himself forced to justify the space program to the public and to public officials, not to mention his own family, as accidents accumulate and the cost lost lives mounts. Pointing beyond practical things like military supremacy, Armstrong, in the film, argues that the ultimate reason for going to space is that it is a worthy undertaking—something human beings were made to do.
“It allows us to see things,” he says, “that maybe we should have seen a long time ago, but just haven’t been able to until now.”
Looking back on pictures from that first lunar landing, especially the photo of Earth rising over the moon’s surface—it’s hard to disagree with him.
His answer reminds me of a scene in “The Voyage of the Dawn Treader,” the fifth Chronicle of Narnia, in which the Dawn Treader’s crew must choose whether to sail on toward an island cloaked in forbidding darkness or turn back to safety.
When one of them asks, “What manner of use would it be ploughing through that blackness?” Reepicheep, the bravest crew member despite being the smallest, rebukes them for their faintheartedness.
“Use?” the mouse replies. “If by use you mean filling our bellies or our purses, I confess it will be no use at all. So far as I know we did not set sail to look for things useful but to seek honour and adventures. And here is as great an adventure as ever I heard of…”
And so, they sail on. If NASA’s plans are realized, so will we. With sincere apologies to Reepicheep the mouse, I think the renewed push to put astronauts on Mars is a sign of something uniquely human. The urge to venture beyond our horizon and discover—even in the face of seemingly impossible obstacles—is a dead giveaway that we’re not like all the other creatures, or even like the robots and rovers we build and hurl into space.
We’re made in the image of God, and His original mandate to take dominion over all of creation still rings in our hearts and in our ears. For most of human history, gravity prevented us from taking dominion over anything beyond this planet. The rest of creation still awaits us.
This urge points to something true about even those who don’t acknowledge or believe in the One whose image they bear. Every scientist who peers through a microscope, every mathematician who solves a seemingly impossible problem, and every astronaut who has slipped the surly bonds of Earth knows how asking what use these things are simply misses the point.
Of course, many human adventures turn out to be useful. But the real question to be asked is not what purpose our discoveries serve, but what purpose we serve. According to Scripture, God placed us here to rule creation, to steward it, to bring it to flourishing, and in the process of witnessing all He has made, to echo His glory back to Him.
You know, whenever people do set foot on Mars, I hope there are some Christians among them. Not because they’ll necessarily be better astronauts, but because they will be able to better appreciate why they’re there. (Break Point)
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In a recent interview, Democratic candidate Pete Buttigieg voiced his belief that the Bible cannot be interpreted literally.
“Jesus speaks so often in hyperbole and parable, in mysterious code, that in my experience, there’s simply no way that a literal understanding of Scripture can fit into the Bible that I find in my hands,” he told Rolling Stone.
The outspoken presidential hopeful has been no stranger to speaking on the Bible and religion. As a frontrunner, Buttigieg has become a microphone for the growing religious left, taking on controversial topics such as abortion, homosexuality, and immigration.
“The Republican Party likes to cloak itself in the language of religion,” he said during the second primary debate. “But we should call out hypocrisy when we see it. And for a party that associates itself with Christianity to say that it is OK to suggest that God would smile on the division of families at the hands of federal agents, that God would condone putting children in cages, [that party] has lost all claim to ever use religious language again.”
In the interview, he explained that he did not grow up in a religious home, though he went to Catholic school. He is more comfortable with the Episcopalian faith, which is liturgically conservative and theologically liberal.
“Well, I think for a lot of us—certainly for me—any encounter with Scripture includes some process of sorting out what connects you with God versus what simply tells you about the morals of the times when it was written, right? For example, the proposition that you should execute your sister by stoning if she commits adultery. I don’t believe that that was right once upon a time, and then the New Testament came and it was gone. I believe it was always wrong, but it was considered right once, and that found its way into Scripture,” he said.
Buttigieg also touched on abortion, affirming the Roe v. Wade decision.
“No matter what you think on where life begins, the question is who gets to decide how to handle this situation,” he said.
In the interview, Buttigieg also placed himself in severe opposition to the “Pences and Falwells of the world” and believes that their “hypocrisy” will eventually fall apart.
“If you find that what you’re being told politically cuts against the idea of compassion, sooner or later that’s going to lead to a reckoning that just might invite people to reconsider their political commitments … But we all are, I think, really on the eve of a reckoning that could lead to something really good in this country.”
(Christian Headlines)
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For Me to Live Is Christ
“For the love of Christ constraineth us; because we thus judge, that if one died for all, then were all dead: And that he died for all, that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto him which died for them, and rose again.” (2 Corinthians 5:14-15)
There are many motivating reasons for serving the Lord. One, of course, is His many merciful blessings on our behalf. “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service” (Romans 12:1).
Then there is the incentive of rewards: “And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be” (Revelation 22:12). There are also many rewards even in this present life for dedicated Christian service: “Godliness is profitable unto all things, having promise of the life that now is, and of that which is to come” (1 Timothy 4:8).
The great need of the lost is also a tremendous motivation for Christian service. This was the burden of Paul: “For though I be free from all men, yet have I made myself servant unto all, that I might gain the more” (1 Corinthians 9:19).
But surely the greatest of all motives is the constraining love of Christ. Not our love for Him, which is poor and weak at best, but His love for us. This is the constraining compulsion that makes us live and love and witness for Him. Because He loved us so much, therefore we no longer live for ourselves but unto Him who died for us.
As our text notes, if Christ died for all, that can only mean that “all were dead,” or more literally, “all died.” Therefore, if we live, it is because we have been “bought with a price” (1 Corinthians 6:20), the terrible price of the never-equaled suffering and the uniquely cruel death of the sinless Son of man. “For to me to live is Christ” (Philippians 1:21). (HMM, The Institute for Creation Research)
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Daily Hope
Today’s Scripture
Psalm 136
Sunday has concluded and I trust it was a day that you set aside to worship and to give praise for all that the Lord has done for you. Our Sunday service concluded with the Lord’s Table and a time of examination so that we might eat and drink of this special observance with a grateful heart. As we examine ourselves, we recognize that His mercy endures forever!
That is the point of this psalm as well! The psalmist draws the reader into the recognition that they are to give praise to the Lord for His unfailing mercy. It is an antiphonal psalm where a group of people would echo or repeat a phrase after the speaker had spoken. In this case the repeated phrase is, “For His mercy endures forever.” In the first three verses, the speaker draws the reader and the congregation into the psalm by identifying the One Whom to praise. The passage then emphasizes the work of God in creation and His wondrous works in earth and heaven (vv.4-9).
Most of the psalm (vv.10-25), is the heralding of God’s work toward the people of Israel and His care for them. The psalmist recounts the Lord’s hand and power in the nation as He directed them from Egypt, through the Red Sea. God continued to lead them through the wilderness and defeated their foes in advance by giving them the land He had promised despite their lowly stature and number. He concludes the psalm as he began with the call for the assembled to give thanks and their antiphonal refrain, “For His mercy endures forever.”
At the beginning of a busy work week as many demands are going to vie for your time and energy, this is a great psalm to consider! Be reminded that His mercy abounds and is new every morning! May we remember, “Through the Lord’s mercies we are not consumed, Because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning; Great is Your faithfulness.” Lamentations 3:22–23.
With an Expectant hope, Pastor Miller
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