Reflective Bible Study

Continuing into the gospel and the parables Jesus shared, we turn our attention to a parable that includes a statement that sounds like the opposite of how we would expect it to be written. As I read the parable for this episode, listen for a verse or idea that seems to be the opposite of what you’d expect it to be, because in this opposite sounding idea, I believe we can discover something amazing about God.

Let’s read this passage and parable together and discover what we can learn about God’s character from what Jesus illustrated for us. Our parable and passage are found in Luke’s gospel, chapter 12, and we will read from the New Century Version. Starting in verse 35, Jesus continued teaching those present saying:

³⁵ “Be dressed, ready for service, and have your lamps shining. ³⁶ Be like servants who are waiting for their master to come home from a wedding party. When he comes and knocks, the servants immediately open the door for him. ³⁷ They will be blessed when their master comes home, because he sees that they were watching for him. I tell you the truth, the master will dress himself to serve and tell the servants to sit at the table, and he will serve them. ³⁸ Those servants will be blessed when he comes in and finds them still waiting, even if it is midnight or later.

³⁹ “Remember this: If the owner of the house knew what time a thief was coming, he would not allow the thief to enter his house. ⁴⁰ So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at a time when you don’t expect him!”

In this passage, did you catch the idea that sounds backwards or opposite of what we’d think. While it might be easy to focus in on how this passage ended, and how we should always be ready because we don’t know when Jesus, the Son of Man, will return, what stood out to me is what Jesus will do when He does come back.

This passage, specifically verse 37, describes the master’s reaction when he returns and finds his servants ready for his return. In verse 37, Jesus tells us that these servants who were ready and watching, “will be blessed when their master comes home, because he sees that they were watching for him. I tell you the truth, the master will dress himself to serve and tell the servants to sit at the table, and he will serve them.”

Picture this scene with me for a moment. It is late at night. All the servants have been up all day and they are tired. They are eagerly waiting the master’s return, but they don’t know when it will be. The master is off at a wedding, and it is anyone’s guess how long that will take. When the master returns at 3am, he is likely just as tired as the servants, but according to Jesus’ description, the master will reward the servants who stayed up for Him by serving them.

This sounds completely backwards in my mind. When the master, owner, or boss of anything comes in, the last thing we would expect is that they would step down and serve the servants, the slaves, or if we modernize the context, the employees. Instead, the boss would thank and praise those who were doing what they were supposed to be doing, but probably not go much further.

Part of me wonders if this is just a nuance of this translation. When comparing versions of the Bible, some translations pull out unique and interesting angles on the text, which might not fit with the interpretation of other ones. If we read verse 37 from the New American Standard Bible, which is one of the more trusted, word-for-word translations, it tells us Jesus said “Blessed are those slaves whom the master will find on the alert when he comes; truly I say to you, that he will gird himself and have them recline and will come up and wait on them.”

In this word-for-word translation, we see the exact same response. In this parable, the master returns and he serves the servants or slaves who were waiting for him.

While this is completely backward thinking for our minds and our culture, we discover that this idea reflects God’s character. When we look at Jesus’ life, there were times when Jesus went away to be alone to rest, and there were times when Jesus attempted to go away to be alone where people found Him who wanted help, healing, and guidance. In every case that I can think of right now, Jesus always adjusted His own plans to help those who came desiring help. When Jesus was tired, He didn’t turn people away. Instead, He kept on serving.

This is Jesus’ model for us. While we shouldn’t neglect rest and down time, we should always remember that when God sends someone into our lives, it is for a reason, and sometimes that reason is because we are to help that person. Other times, the reason is because that person can teach us something about ourselves. Jesus modeled God’s method of serving, and when the Master, Jesus, returns to the earth for His people, while we would be more than happy to serve Him more fully with Him present, He will turn the tables on us and serve us as our reward.

God modeled service through Jesus. When we look at Jesus, we see how God continually stepped down to serve when and where there was a need. He has called us to serve like He served, and when we are serving Him through serving others, we will be doing exactly what He called us to do and we will be ready for His soon return.

As we come to the end of another podcast episode, here are the challenges I will leave you with:

As I always challenge you to do, be sure to intentionally seek God first in your life and to serve Him by serving others. Choose to serve God and others not because we are scared of God’s bad side, but because of what Jesus has already done for us. Choose to serve because you love God, not because you fear some sort of punishment.

Also, always keep praying and studying the Bible for yourself to learn more about God and to grow closer to Him each and every day. While other people can give you ideas to think about, filter everything you learn through the lens of the Bible to determine if it is truly worthwhile from the perspective of eternity. When history is finished, the only thing that will matter is where we have placed our hope, faith, trust and belief, and the only right answer is Jesus!

And as I end every set of challenges by saying in one way or another, never stop short of, back away from, chicken out of, or deviate from where God wants to lead you to in your life with Him!

As John transitions back onto Jesus’ ministry in his gospel, we come to one of the longest events John records. This event focuses in on Jesus having a conversation with a less than reputable Samaritan woman. Let’s read what happened, and in the few minutes we have left after reading our passage, let’s pull one or two details and themes out that are relevant for us living today.

Our passage is found in John’s gospel, chapter 4, and we will read it from the Holman Christian Standard Bible. Starting in verse 1, John tells us:

¹ When Jesus knew that the Pharisees heard He was making and baptizing more disciples than John [the Baptist] ² (though Jesus Himself was not baptizing, but His disciples were), ³ He left Judea and went again to Galilee. ⁴ He had to travel through Samaria, ⁵ so He came to a town of Samaria called Sychar near the property that Jacob had given his son Joseph. ⁶ Jacob’s well was there, and Jesus, worn out from His journey, sat down at the well. It was about six in the evening.

Pausing briefly, I want to draw attention to the detail John tells us that it was six in the evening. John tells us that it was the sixth hour, and from what we can tell, there is uncertainty whether John was using Roman time here, which would place this event in the evening, or if John was using Jewish time, which would place this event happening at around noon.

Regardless of when this was, it is worth noting that what happens next is significant because this woman that comes is alone with Jesus at that well. Continuing in verse 7, John tells us:

⁷ A woman of Samaria came to draw water.

“Give Me a drink,” Jesus said to her, ⁸ for His disciples had gone into town to buy food.

⁹ “How is it that You, a Jew, ask for a drink from me, a Samaritan woman?” she asked Him. For Jews do not associate with Samaritans.

¹⁰ Jesus answered, “If you knew the gift of God, and who is saying to you, ‘Give Me a drink,’ you would ask Him, and He would give you living water.”

¹¹ “Sir,” said the woman, “You don’t even have a bucket, and the well is deep. So where do You get this ‘living water’? ¹² You aren’t greater than our father Jacob, are You? He gave us the well and drank from it himself, as did his sons and livestock.”

¹³ Jesus said, “Everyone who drinks from this water will get thirsty again. ¹⁴ But whoever drinks from the water that I will give him will never get thirsty again—ever! In fact, the water I will give him will become a well of water springing up within him for eternal life.”

¹⁵ “Sir,” the woman said to Him, “give me this water so I won’t get thirsty and come here to draw water.”

¹⁶ “Go call your husband,” He told her, “and come back here.”

¹⁷ “I don’t have a husband,” she answered.

“You have correctly said, ‘I don’t have a husband,’” Jesus said. ¹⁸ “For you’ve had five husbands, and the man you now have is not your husband. What you have said is true.”

¹⁹ “Sir,” the woman replied, “I see that You are a prophet. ²⁰ Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, yet you Jews say that the place to worship is in Jerusalem.”

²¹ Jesus told her, “Believe Me, woman, an hour is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. ²² You Samaritans worship what you do not know. We worship what we do know, because salvation is from the Jews. ²³ But an hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth. Yes, the Father wants such people to worship Him. ²⁴ God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.”

²⁵ The woman said to Him, “I know that Messiah is coming” (who is called Christ). “When He comes, He will explain everything to us.”

²⁶ “I am He,” Jesus told her, “the One speaking to you.”

²⁷ Just then His disciples arrived, and they were amazed that He was talking with a woman. Yet no one said, “What do You want?” or “Why are You talking with her?”

²⁸ Then the woman left her water jar, went into town, and told the men, ²⁹ “Come, see a man who told me everything I ever did! Could this be the Messiah?” ³⁰ They left the town and made their way to Him.

Pausing briefly again, I want to draw our attention onto one powerful truth that Jesus shared with this woman. This truth is not simply that Jesus tells this outcast that He is in fact the Messiah, but that right before this, Jesus tells this woman that God is looking for true worshipers who will worship Him in spirit and truth.

I have heard this phrase used, and perhaps abused, over the years with people self-claiming themselves to be within this group. However, looking at the context tells us that the only way someone can worship God in spirit and truth is if the spirit they worship in is from God and if the truth they worship in is also from God. In other words, God is the only Source of true worship, and if we are not leaning on Him and desiring a connection or relationship with Him, it is unlikely we are bringing Him worship that He desires.

However, while the woman is gone and telling the town about Jesus, John continues by telling us in verse 31:

³¹ In the meantime the disciples kept urging Him, “Rabbi, eat something.”

³² But He said, “I have food to eat that you don’t know about.”

³³ The disciples said to one another, “Could someone have brought Him something to eat?”

³⁴ “My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me and to finish His work,” Jesus told them. ³⁵ “Don’t you say, ‘There are still four more months, then comes the harvest’? Listen to what I’m telling you: Open your eyes and look at the fields, for they are ready for harvest. ³⁶ The reaper is already receiving pay and gathering fruit for eternal life, so the sower and reaper can rejoice together. ³⁷ For in this case the saying is true: ‘One sows and another reaps.’ ³⁸ I sent you to reap what you didn’t labor for; others have labored, and you have benefited from their labor.”

³⁹ Now many Samaritans from that town believed in Him because of what the woman said when she testified, “He told me everything I ever did.” ⁴⁰ Therefore, when the Samaritans came to Him, they asked Him to stay with them, and He stayed there two days. ⁴¹ Many more believed because of what He said. ⁴² And they told the woman, “We no longer believe because of what you said, for we have heard for ourselves and know that this really is the Savior of the world.”

Let’s stop reading here because there is one more big idea Jesus shared that is worth us paying attention to. In my mind, right before the crowd arrives from town, Jesus tells His disciples in the last part of verse 35 to, “Open your eyes and look at the fields, for they are ready for harvest.”

The amazing part of this challenge is that this was while Jesus was alive on earth and this was over 2,000 years ago, Jesus tells His followers that the harvest is ready. It is likely right after this that the entire town shows up to hear Jesus and have their lives transformed.

While we might be tempted to think that there are still four more months left before harvesting is ready, Jesus tells us that the time is not then, it is now. Jesus challenges us to open our eyes to the opportunities God is sending our way in the present, and leave the future to worry about itself.

While it is smart to plan for the future, we should never focus so hard on the future that we forget our lives in the present. In our lives, there is always a tension between focusing heavily on the present or heavily on the future. We must constantly focus on balancing this tension instead of resolving it, because if we ultimately resolve it, the resolution will likely fall outside of God’s ideal for our lives.

Instead, let’s work today within the opportunities God sends our way while also looking forward to and planning for the day when He returns to bring us home!

As we come to the end of another podcast episode, here are the challenges I will leave you with:

Always continue seeking God first in your life and choose to intentionally open your eyes to the harvest that is ready all around us. Choose to work with God within the opportunities He sends your way and depend on Him for the strength to work with Him as well as to worship Him.

Also, continue praying and studying the Bible for yourself to intentionally grow closer to God each and every day. A personal relationship with God begins with personal prayer and study, and a personal relationship with God that begins today will extend into eternity when we place our trust, faith, hope, and belief in Jesus and His sacrifice for our sins!

And as I end every set of challenges by saying in one way or another, never stop short of, back away from, chicken out of, or abandon where God wants to lead you to in your life with Him!

When looking at the parables Jesus shared, it is easy to begin to think that Jesus shared many positive, uplifting, or primarily encouraging parables. Many of the well-known parables end in a positive way. However, there are quite a few parables that do not end positively, and the parable we will be focusing on in this episode is one such parable.

It is interesting to focus on the context of this parable, because while it is relevant to all of humanity, it is likely this parable wouldn’t have been shared if it weren’t for the shouted request of Jesus to do something.

Let’s read what happened and then discuss what we can learn from this event. Our passage is found in the gospel of Luke, chapter 12, and we will use the New American Standard Bible translation to read it. Starting in verse 13, Luke tells us that:

¹³ Someone in the crowd said to Him [referring to Jesus], “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the family inheritance with me.” ¹⁴ But He said to him, “Man, who appointed Me a judge or arbitrator over you?” ¹⁵ Then He said to them, “Beware, and be on your guard against every form of greed; for not even when one has an abundance does his life consist of his possessions.” ¹⁶ And He told them a parable, saying, “The land of a rich man was very productive. ¹⁷ And he began reasoning to himself, saying, ‘What shall I do, since I have no place to store my crops?’ ¹⁸ Then he said, ‘This is what I will do: I will tear down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. ¹⁹ And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years to come; take your ease, eat, drink and be merry.”’ ²⁰ But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your soul is required of you; and now who will own what you have prepared?’ ²¹ So is the man who stores up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.”

This parable and passage are a little depressing and very challenging. While some reading this might conclude that God will immediately demand the life of anyone who is not generous towards Him, this isn’t the key idea behind this parable. Instead, this parable is entirely focused on the captive nature of greed.

Before jumping in to the truth we can learn from this parable, it is worth paying attention to a key idea: Jesus passed on the opportunity to judge people or cases when He came to this world. This strongly suggests that Jesus’ purpose for coming into the world is not to act as a judge. Jesus came with the goal of showing us what God is like, and showing us that God loves us so much that He would die for us, taking the punishment for our sins upon Himself. This truth sets up the foundation for understanding the parable itself.

The context leading up to this message, especially with how Jesus frames this parable, gives us the key ideas. Leading up to this parable, someone in the crowd shouted at Jesus to tell his brother to divide the family inheritance with him. If a parent had recently passed away, then each of the children would receive a portion of the estate. Generally the portions were equal, with the only exception to this being that the first born son would receive a double share because he would be responsible for the family moving forward.

It is unclear from the context if this is the younger brother, older brother, or simply one of many brothers making this request. It is also unclear if the brother making the request is asking for what would be rightfully his, or if what he received didn’t feel fair and that he wanted Jesus to side with him regarding what is fair.

For the sake of our discussion, let’s assume that the brother making the request is the younger of two brothers, is fully grown into adulthood, that he has a family of his own and is earning enough money to support their lifestyle. Nothing in the man’s request speaks of needing the money to survive, but simply wanting the inheritance.

Let’s also assume that this brother also deserved to receive a share of the inheritance, but that his older brother did not want to share it with him. For the purposes of our discussion, let’s basically say there is every reason for this man to receive his fair share of the inheritance, and no good reason for his brother to keep the money from him. We could call this man’s request completely reasonable, and his brother a greedy, spoiled, selfish person.

Even in the most justified scenario, which fits the details we are given in this event, Jesus responds by first passing on the opportunity to be a judge in this situation. Jesus then warns this brother, and everyone present to, “Beware, and be on your guard against every form of greed; for not even when one has an abundance does his life consist of his possessions.”

In this parable and situation, greed disguised itself as fairness. Fairness sounds reasonable, but if fairness is pushed or refuted in an immature way, then greed might be the underlying motivation. While fairness sounds reasonable, greed masking as fairness is never positive and it often will never be satisfied if things are truly fair.

Greed is never positive, and according to this parable, greed only focuses on one possible outcome in the future. The greed in the parable ignored the possibility that said the morning would never come for that man. The greed prompted the man to assume that his life was set because he had been blessed.

It’s worth paying attention to the detail that it was “the land of a rich man” that was productive. The wealth this man had was because God had blessed him, and greed never wants to admit that it doesn’t deserve what it has. Greed focuses on keeping as much as possible, and sharing seems ridiculous for someone who is greedy.

However, Jesus’ finishes this parable by sharing reality with this greedy person. At the end of this man’s life, whether it would be that night or at some point years into the future, someone else would get what this man had tried so hard to keep for himself. In the end, other people get everything of ours, which means that in the end, greed is worthless.

The cure for greed is gratitude and intentional generosity towards God for what He has truly given to us. We push greed away when we give thanks to God for what He has given to us, and when we intentionally return God his portion of what He has blessed us with. Typically, we call this portion a tithe, which simply means a tenth. In the New Testament era, we are not excused from paying tithe, but are called to give above and beyond this because we are so grateful and thankful towards God for what Jesus did for each of us.

Gratitude in our lives starts with recognizing what Jesus did for us, and then living generously towards others because we are grateful and thankful for what Jesus did for us. Gratitude and generosity keep greed from taking over our lives, and a generous gratitude in our lives helps us live like Jesus has called us to live!

As we come to the end of another podcast episode, here are the challenges I will leave you with:

As always, seek God first and be grateful and thankful towards Him for everything He has blessed us with. Remember to thank Jesus for what He accomplished while He was here on this earth, and for giving us the gift of salvation.

Also, remember to always pray and study the Bible for yourself. While learning from other people is good to do, check everything you learn with what the Bible says, and then trust the Bible’s conclusion if it differs from what you were taught. God has preserved the Bible for us as a guide for our lives, and if we trust that He is able to keep us safe for eternity, we can trust that He is more than capable of keeping the Bible safe for a few thousand years.

And as I end every set of challenges by saying in one way or another, never stop short of, back away from, chicken out of, or wander away from where God wants to lead you to in your life with Him!

As we continue moving further into John’s gospel, John the author turns His attention back onto John the Baptist, Jesus’ forerunner in ministry. In this short event, John the Baptist says some amazing things about his ministry pointing people to Jesus, and he gives a profound summary statement regarding eternal life that is worth paying attention to.

Our passage is found in John’s gospel, chapter 3, and we will be reading from the New Century Version of the Bible. Starting in verse 23, John tells us in his gospel that:

²³ John [the Baptist] was also baptizing in Aenon, near Salim, because there was plenty of water there. People were going there to be baptized. ²⁴ (This was before John was put into prison.)

²⁵ Some of John’s followers had an argument with a Jew about religious washing. ²⁶ So they came to John and said, “Teacher, remember the man who was with you on the other side of the Jordan River, the one you spoke about so much? He is baptizing, and everyone is going to him.”

²⁷ John answered, “A man can get only what God gives him. ²⁸ You yourselves heard me say, ‘I am not the Christ, but I am the one sent to prepare the way for him.’ ²⁹ The bride belongs only to the bridegroom. But the friend who helps the bridegroom stands by and listens to him. He is thrilled that he gets to hear the bridegroom’s voice. In the same way, I am really happy. ³⁰ He must become greater, and I must become less important.

³¹ “The One who comes from above is greater than all. The one who is from the earth belongs to the earth and talks about things on the earth. But the One who comes from heaven is greater than all. ³² He tells what he has seen and heard, but no one accepts what he says. ³³ Whoever accepts what he says has proven that God is true. ³⁴ The One whom God sent speaks the words of God, because God gives him the Spirit fully. ³⁵ The Father loves the Son and has given him power over everything. ³⁶ Those who believe in the Son have eternal life, but those who do not obey the Son will never have life. God’s anger stays on them.”

In this passage, as we read it together, a couple of ideas jumped out of these verses at me.

First, the way John the Baptist opens his reply about Jesus taking his followers is amazing. The way John the Baptist frames his ministry in relation to Jesus’ ministry is powerful. John knows that his ministry is entirely preparing people for Jesus, and when Jesus steps into the public eye, John wants people to pay more attention to Jesus than to him. In the first portion of his reply, John says: “A man can get only what God gives him. You yourselves heard me say, ‘I am not the Christ, but I am the one sent to prepare the way for him.’ … He must become greater, and I must become less important.” (verses 27-28, 30)

This is powerful in my mind because it tells me John knew His ministry and influence would shrink as Jesus’ ministry and influence grew. John understood His role as forerunner for Jesus, and he humbly accepts that his time in the spotlight would fade as Jesus becomes more famous. It is also interesting to note that we read about a brief period of time when Jesus and John the Baptist were both baptizing people, and that this happened prior to John the Baptist being thrown into jail.

Part of me wonders if God let John be thrown in jail to symbolize or simply mark the end of John’s ministry in an attempt to help push John’s followers over to Jesus. From how John describes his ministry, John is clear that he is not the Messiah, or the Christ, but that he was sent to point people to the Messiah. Even while not saying it directly in this passage, John focuses attention onto the detail that Jesus is the Messiah, the Christ, who God had sent into the world.

However, in the second portion of John’s response, another idea jumped off the page at me. In verse 36, John tells all his followers, “Those who believe in the Son have eternal life, but those who do not obey the Son will never have life. God’s anger stays on them.” This is a powerful statement. We discover that belief in Jesus brings eternal life, but lack of obedience forfeits eternal life.

Some might be quick to say that their preferred Bible translation does not say the word “obey”. Instead, their translation says something along the lines of: “he who does not believe the Son shall not see life”.

However, before our discussion dives into a debate about translations, the original Greek word in the first portion of this passage is different from the Greek word that is given later. The first word in our passage that is translated as “believe” has a similar but different meaning than the second word, which our passage translated as “obey”.

The first word, which is translated as “believe”, means “to be persuaded of” or “to place confidence in” which we could say is similar to trust. Trusting Jesus leads to having eternal life!

However, the second word, which our passage translated as “do not obey” has a slightly different meaning. While belief is part of its definition, it means not being persuaded, and there is a strong emphasis on the lack of belief leading to a lack of obedience. In my mind, this idea might be similar to apathy. If we are apathetic towards Jesus, and we don’t let the truth of the gospel affect our lives in visible ways, then we will never have life, much less eternal life.

Apathy towards Jesus is probably the worst thing we can do. If we say we believe Jesus, but we are apathetic towards Him, we will forfeit our salvation. Obeying Jesus does not give us eternal life, because when we obey Jesus, the focus can easily turn off of Jesus and onto how well we are obeying Him. Our salvation is not based on anything we can do or have done. We are only saved because of what Jesus accomplished for us.

When we accept Jesus’ gift and we let Him into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, we begin the process of life transformation, or as some religious people describe it: “sanctification”. When we actively move towards Jesus, we are also moving away from sin and away from disobedience. It is our change in direction that prompts us to be saved because we are trusting and believing in Jesus! We are saved when our focus and the direction of our lives is towards Jesus. We lose our salvation when we are apathetic towards Jesus or we outright reject Him.

John the Baptist understood this amazing truth before Jesus had fully stepped into the public spotlight, and his declaration about Jesus, regardless of how popular or unpopular it is, forms the foundation for Jesus’ ministry, Jesus’ life, and Jesus’ death on behalf of you and me!

As we come to the end of another podcast episode, here are the challenges I will leave you with:

As I always challenge you to do, intentionally seek God first in your life and intentionally place your hope, faith, trust, and belief in Jesus and in what Jesus accomplished for us during His time here on earth. Through Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection, we are offered a gift we do not deserve and a gift we cannot earn, and it is up to us whether we will accept this gift, even if it is unpopular, or be apathetic towards both the gift and the Gift-Giver.

Also, continue praying and studying the Bible for yourself to learn, grow, and discover who Jesus is, who God is, and why this matters to us living over 2,000 years after these events happened. Through the pages of the Bible, discover God’s story and let God’s story define your story as we move forward towards eternity!

And as I end every set of challenges by saying in one way or another, never stop short of, back away from, chicken out of, or be apathetic towards where God wants to lead you to in your life with Him!