Reflective Bible Study

It seems like such a long time ago since we began our year focusing on Jesus’ miracles. So much has happened, and we have discovered so much. At this point in our journey, according to most lists of miracles, we have just one miracle left to cover, and this miracle happens to be the only one that is recorded following Jesus’ resurrection and prior to His return to heaven.

This miracle is almost like a repeat miracle, because it is very similar to one of Jesus’ earlier miracles, though this second time around we discover some pretty amazing truths about Jesus’ character and His love for all of us.

After Jesus had been resurrected and had visited the disciples two times in the upper room, we learn that at least half of the disciples returned to Galilee, and while they were there, Jesus appeared to them again.

Let’s discover what happened, and the miracle that Jesus wanted to surprise His followers with. Our passage is found in the gospel of John, chapter 21, and we will read it from the New International Version of the Bible. Starting in verse 1, John tells us that:

¹ Afterward Jesus appeared again to his disciples, by the Sea of Galilee. It happened this way: ² Simon Peter, Thomas (also known as Didymus), Nathanael from Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two other disciples were together. ³ “I’m going out to fish,” Simon Peter told them, and they said, “We’ll go with you.” So they went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing.

⁴ Early in the morning, Jesus stood on the shore, but the disciples did not realize that it was Jesus.

⁵ He called out to them, “Friends, haven’t you any fish?”

“No,” they answered.

⁶ He said, “Throw your net on the right side of the boat and you will find some.” When they did, they were unable to haul the net in because of the large number of fish.

⁷ Then the disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, “It is the Lord!” As soon as Simon Peter heard him say, “It is the Lord,” he wrapped his outer garment around him (for he had taken it off) and jumped into the water. ⁸ The other disciples followed in the boat, towing the net full of fish, for they were not far from shore, about a hundred yards. ⁹ When they landed, they saw a fire of burning coals there with fish on it, and some bread.

¹⁰ Jesus said to them, “Bring some of the fish you have just caught.” ¹¹ So Simon Peter climbed back into the boat and dragged the net ashore. It was full of large fish, 153, but even with so many the net was not torn. ¹² Jesus said to them, “Come and have breakfast.” None of the disciples dared ask him, “Who are you?” They knew it was the Lord. ¹³ Jesus came, took the bread and gave it to them, and did the same with the fish. ¹⁴ This was now the third time Jesus appeared to his disciples after he was raised from the dead.

In this passage and in this miracle, we remember the earlier miracle surrounding the first disciples and their official call into being disciples, or followers, of Jesus. Perhaps Peter and his fishing buddies had heard of Jesus or heard Him speak prior to their first personal encounter with Jesus as He asks to preach from their boat, but the foundation leading up to both the original miracle and this last miracle are the same. In both cases, the disciples had fished all night and caught nothing.

Following the original fishing miracle, Jesus invited Peter, Andrew, James, and John to be His disciples. From this point forward, these four men were among the closest and most well known of the group of disciples. Andrew, more than any other disciple, is portrayed as bringing individuals to Jesus, and the other three disciples formed Jesus’ inner circle of disciples.

Looking at this second fishing miracle, I wonder if these disciples were confused or discouraged. They had spent over three years with Jesus and had expected His kingdom to follow a certain path that the religious leaders had been describing the Messiah to walk for as long as they could remember. They knew Jesus was special and that Jesus was sent by God, but Jesus simply didn’t fit the role they were expecting.

Not only that, but Jesus also had died, and leading up to His death, they all had abandoned Him to the cross. According to the religious leaders, and the expectation of the disciples, the Messiah wouldn’t die and He would last forever. While they got the second part right, those in the first century missed the sacrificial portions of the scripture predicting Jesus’ death. Even the sanctuary service pointed forward to the death of the One God would send.

In this last official miracle, we discover a second chance. Part of me believes that these disciples believed they had failed God beyond what was forgivable. At the one point when Jesus needed them the most, they had run away. While things turned out well for Jesus, they likely wondered if Jesus would forgive them for what they had done. Peter was probably the most discouraged out of the group, because he had been the most vocal about staying by Jesus’ side, and he had fallen exactly like Jesus had predicted he would.

However, while the disciples may have given up hope of being the champions they believed Jesus wanted them to be, Jesus steps up with a surprise. Jesus comes to them and He repeats the miracle that prompted their first invitation. With this miracle, Jesus invites the disciples back into being His followers, and with this miracle, we discover a second chance for all of us.

When we fail God, and when we are tempted to believe that we have turned too far away from God for Him to be willing to take us back, remember that at least we didn’t reject Jesus leading up to the cross like His first followers did. And even with their rejection, Jesus invited them back. This means that no matter how far we have fallen away from God, He is willing to invite us back. No matter how badly we have messed up, while we have breath, we have been given the chance to return. Even if we think God no longer loves us, know that Jesus came to redeem sinners – and that includes whatever you feel you have done that isn’t forgivable. God wants to forgive you, and He is more than willing to invite you back into being one of His followers.

However, we have run out of time for this episode, so next week, leading up to our finale-wrap-up episodes, we’ll expand on where we have left off here, and focus in on probably the greatest miracle we have, which is a gift from God to us. Most people don’t realize the miraculous nature of this gift, and dedicating a whole episode to it seems like the best way to finish off our year of podcasting Jesus’ miracles.

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

Always remember to seek God first and when we mess up, don’t delay returning to Him. The worst thing we can do is to leave God when we feel we don’t deserve forgiveness. It is for people who don’t deserve forgiveness that Jesus came to give forgiveness to. Forgiveness is freely given to those who come back to God and acknowledge their sin and their need for a Savior.

Also, always pray and study the Bible for yourself to grow personally closer to God. While listening to others can be helpful, never let someone else’s experience or relationship with God get in the way of your personal relationship with God. A personal relationship with God is too important to let someone else into.

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 walk away from where God wants to lead you to in your life with Him!

When reading how the gospels describe the morning Jesus rose from the dead, we discover an interesting detail: none of Jesus’ followers expected Him to rise from the dead. While Jesus’ resurrection shouldn’t have surprised any of them, we learn that it surprised every single one of them.

For our episode today, let’s look at how Luke’s gospel described what happened, and then unpack some things we can apply into our own lives. Our passage is found in the gospel of Luke, chapter 24, and we will be reading from the New Century Version. Starting in verse 1, Luke tells us that:

¹ Very early on the first day of the week, at dawn, the women came to the tomb, bringing the spices they had prepared. ² They found the stone rolled away from the entrance of the tomb, ³ but when they went in, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. ⁴ While they were wondering about this, two men in shining clothes suddenly stood beside them. ⁵ The women were very afraid and bowed their heads to the ground. The men said to them, “Why are you looking for a living person in this place for the dead? ⁶ He is not here; he has risen from the dead. Do you remember what he told you in Galilee? ⁷ He said the Son of Man must be handed over to sinful people, be crucified, and rise from the dead on the third day.” ⁸ Then the women remembered what Jesus had said.

⁹ The women left the tomb and told all these things to the eleven apostles and the other followers. ¹⁰ It was Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and some other women who told the apostles everything that had happened at the tomb. ¹¹ But they did not believe the women, because it sounded like nonsense. ¹² But Peter got up and ran to the tomb. Bending down and looking in, he saw only the cloth that Jesus’ body had been wrapped in. Peter went away to his home, wondering about what had happened.

In the chaos of resurrection morning, we discover that the only reason word spreads about a resurrected Jesus is because some of the women who followed Jesus didn’t believe He would return to life. These women head to the tomb with spices they had prepared for Jesus’ body, possibly because they believed that the men who had hastily put Jesus into the tomb two days earlier had not done a very good job. John’s gospel described Joseph and Nicodemus taking Jesus’ body off the cross, placing it in Joseph’s tomb, and using the spices that they had, but whatever the reason, the women also want to prepare Jesus’ body for burial with their own spices.

While probably wondering how they would actually get to Jesus’ body with a huge stone rolled in front of the tomb, the last thing the women expect to find is an empty spot where they saw Jesus’ body lay. Also, the last thing they expected to experience are two angels reminding them of Jesus’ own words, predicting His death and resurrection.

However, after the angels had restated Jesus’ earlier message to them, the women remember Jesus’ words, they believe the angels, and they go tell the remaining disciples what they had experienced.

Now it’s the disciples’ turn for disbelief. Verse 11 describes that the disciples “did not believe the women, because it sounded like nonsense”.

However, according to Luke’s gospel, one disciple pushes past his disbelief. Peter, the disciple who had utterly failed Jesus only a few nights earlier, pushes past the doubts to go check out the situation for himself.

Earlier in His ministry, Jesus had challenged Peter regarding Peter’s disbelief over Jesus’ future death – even going as far as calling Peter Satan. Part of me wonders if Peter remembered this conversation, and if Peter was thinking about it as he ran to the tomb.

Our passage ends with Peter returning home, wondering about what had happened. We don’t see Peter return to validate the women’s testimony, and we don’t see Peter have an encounter with an angel to validate what the women describe.

Instead, Peter is left to put the pieces together of an event that He isn’t sure what to make of. Peter was the most vocal disciple with regard to most things, and Peter was the most vocal about the Messiah not facing death.

In our own lives, we can learn from Peter’s experience that it is better to stop, wait, and pay attention – especially when things don’t make sense. Rushing into the chaos isn’t always the best approach. Peter blinded himself with His beliefs about the Messiah that kept Him from realizing the truth.

However, we can also learn from Peter, because when the rest of the disciples choose to remain doubtful when hearing about a possible resurrection, Peter doesn’t waste any time going to see the tomb for himself. Peter rushes to discover the truth for himself. He finds the tomb empty, which is what the women described, but he doesn’t get the same angelic visitors.

In a way, Peter’s experience models our own. When we have our eyes open to looking for evidence of God, and evidence to support our belief in Jesus, we will find reasons and evidence to support our faith. However, similar to Peter, it is unlikely that angelic visitors will appear as a piece of confirming evidence. In Peter’s experience, he finds enough evidence to support a belief in the resurrection, but not so much evidence that would eliminate the role of faith. Our experience is likely to reflect Peter’s.

God has called us to have faith in Jesus, and to trust in the promises of His word. It is unlikely He will remove all reasons for doubt, but He is more than willing to give us enough evidence that we can base our faith on. Let’s keep our eyes open for the evidence He shares, and walk forward in faith.

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

Be sure to intentionally place your faith in Jesus and keep your eyes open for the evidence God shares. While a skeptical mind is capable of discounting anything and everything, don’t be a skeptic. Choose to accept the evidence God shares and intentionally walk forward in life with Him.

Also, be sure to pray and study the Bible for yourself because prayer and Bible study are the best ways to grow personally closer to God. An author, pastor, or even a podcaster can give you ideas to think about, but only personal study leads to a personal relationship – and God wants a personal relationship with you!

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

In our last episode, we discussed Jesus’ death leading to resurrection and the amazing truth that Jesus is the ultimate Life-Giver. In this episode, we continue this same theme by drawing our attention onto an amazing detail, or should I say, an amazing lack of a specific detail, included in Jesus’ resurrection. While Jesus’ list of miracles doesn’t include this event for some reason, I think this might be one of the most amazing miracles in the entire Bible, and it is definitely the most significant miracle in this world’s history.

Let’s read what happened on resurrection morning, and discover what we can learn about this amazing miracle from what is included and what isn’t. Our passage comes from Matthew’s gospel, chapter 28, and we will read it from the New Century Version. Starting in verse 1, Matthew tells us that:

¹ The day after the Sabbath day was the first day of the week. At dawn on the first day, Mary Magdalene and another woman named Mary went to look at the tomb.

² At that time there was a strong earthquake. An angel of the Lord came down from heaven, went to the tomb, and rolled the stone away from the entrance. Then he sat on the stone. ³ He was shining as bright as lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. ⁴ The soldiers guarding the tomb shook with fear because of the angel, and they became like dead men.

⁵ The angel said to the women, “Don’t be afraid. I know that you are looking for Jesus, who has been crucified. ⁶ He is not here. He has risen from the dead as he said he would. Come and see the place where his body was. ⁷ And go quickly and tell his followers, ‘Jesus has risen from the dead. He is going into Galilee ahead of you, and you will see him there.’” Then the angel said, “Now I have told you.”

⁸ The women left the tomb quickly. They were afraid, but they were also very happy. They ran to tell Jesus’ followers what had happened. ⁹ Suddenly, Jesus met them and said, “Greetings.” The women came up to him, took hold of his feet, and worshiped him. ¹⁰ Then Jesus said to them, “Don’t be afraid. Go and tell my followers to go on to Galilee, and they will see me there.”

In all the chaos surrounding resurrection morning, Matthew has the most detail included about Jesus’ actual resurrection. While all the gospel writers include details of the women being the first to go to the tomb, and that the women who went to the tomb saw angels, Matthew includes extra details about the guards’ experience. Matthew describes what happened by saying in verses 2 through 4: “At that time there was a strong earthquake. An angel of the Lord came down from heaven, went to the tomb, and rolled the stone away from the entrance. Then he sat on the stone. He was shining as bright as lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. The soldiers guarding the tomb shook with fear because of the angel, and they became like dead men.”

There is one detail that is missing that we might think should be included. In this event, nothing is said about the angel greeting Jesus as He steps out of the tomb or that the angel called Jesus out of the tomb when rolling the stone away.

This is significant because nothing in this event indicates that the angel had any role in Jesus’ resurrection other than to disperse the guards and to remove the stone for the women and disciples to examine the place where Jesus lay. The angel also had the privilege of reminding those who came to the tomb how Jesus had repeatedly told them He would die and that He would return to life.

In this event, the angel who came down did not resurrect Jesus.

Instead, John’s gospel records Jesus saying something fascinating that directly ties into this event and this miracle. In John, chapter 10, verses 17 and 18, Jesus tells those present: “The Father loves me because I give my life so that I can take it back again. No one takes it away from me; I give my own life freely. I have the right to give my life, and I have the right to take it back. This is what my Father commanded me to do.”

Jesus has the power to give life and to return it, and this isn’t just the power to do this for other people. In some way that is impossible for us to truly understand, Jesus has this power over His own life as well. The greatest miracle in the entire Bible is Jesus resurrecting Himself from the tomb.

I don’t think it was an accident that earthquakes happened at the moment Jesus died and here at His resurrection. Jesus’ life returning to Him shook the earth just like the earth shook when His life left Him. All this is described before Matthew tells us the angel came. The earthquake was not caused by an angel hitting the ground on arrival, as I have heard some people speculate. Instead, the earthquake was the evidence that Jesus’ life returned to Him, and the angel was simply sent to reveal to the world what had just happened inside the tomb.

Jesus did not need the angel’s help to step out of the tomb. In His resurrected body, Jesus is able to move through objects, as is seen when He appears to the disciples while they have locked themselves in the upper room. The angel was sent for our benefit, so that we could see and know that the tomb really was empty.

The greatest miracle in the entire history of the world is Jesus’ resurrection. Jesus returned to life exactly how He said He would, and Jesus’ resurrection gives us the hope and reassurance that when it is our time to die, He is more than able to resurrect us when it is time for us to be with Him!

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 and place your faith, hope, trust, and belief in Him and in what Jesus accomplished for you. Believe in Jesus and in His resurrection, and trust in the truth that since Jesus stepped out of the tomb alive, we know that there is life awaiting us after death.

Also, always pray and study the Bible for yourself to grow personally closer to God each and every day. While learning from others is okay to do, never let your own personal relationship with God become dependent on someone else to help you grow. A personal relationship with God must be personal, and a personal relationship with God leads us to Jesus and to eternal life.

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 away from where God wants to lead you to in your life with Him!

On the morning He was crucified, after all the trials and sentencing, Jesus is led away to Calvary carrying His cross. On this trip to the hill where He would die, the gospel of Luke records an interesting prediction Jesus makes to some of those who were following the procession out of the city. While most people focus in on the first verse of our passage, the verses that follow are probably more significant for us living today.

Our passage is found in the gospel of Luke, chapter 23, and we will be reading from the New Century Version of the Bible. Starting in verse 26, Luke tells us that:

²⁶ As they led Jesus away, Simon, a man from Cyrene, was coming in from the fields. They forced him to carry Jesus’ cross and to walk behind him.

Pausing briefly, this part of our passage would be very tempting to focus in on. After all, Simon was probably one of the only people who got to experience the shame of carrying a cross without the death that followed. Simon is someone who was both at the worst place at the worst time, or perhaps the best place at the worst time. If it wasn’t for his presence here, he would be an unknown person in the Biblical record.

However, what comes next in Luke’s gospel is fascinating. Continuing in verse 27, Luke tells us that:

²⁷ A large crowd of people was following Jesus, including some women who were sad and crying for him. ²⁸ But Jesus turned and said to them, “Women of Jerusalem, don’t cry for me. Cry for yourselves and for your children. ²⁹ The time is coming when people will say, ‘Blessed are the women who cannot have children and who have no babies to nurse.’ ³⁰ Then people will say to the mountains, ‘Fall on us!’ And they will say to the hills, ‘Cover us!’ ³¹ If they act like this now when life is good, what will happen when bad times come?”

In this passage, we see Jesus predicting worse circumstances in the future when He sees people crying for what was taking place and happening to Him. On one level, this speaks to the amazing compassion Jesus had. While facing some of the worst pain and ridicule imaginable, we see Jesus focusing on others. While what Jesus says isn’t all that comforting when we look at the message, He clearly shifts the focus away from wanting or needing pity.

However, with that said, another level we can see Jesus drawing our attention to in this passage is that excessively focusing on or dwelling on what He went through isn’t productive in the long-term – especially if our focusing on this event causes us to feel sad for Jesus. We shouldn’t be sad that Jesus faced the cross; we should be glad.

While the temptation is present to believe Jesus died too young or too soon, the truth is that Jesus’ death is the only way any of us can hope to experience a life beyond the one we are currently in. When God gave up His life for us, we are able to accept the life He offers in exchange for the one we messed up. This is what Jesus accomplished. We shouldn’t feel sad that Jesus died. Instead, we should feel eternally grateful for what His death accomplished!

Looking at what Jesus describes in His message, we see a prediction of a time when people will look to those who cannot give birth and consider them blessed. I don’t know if a time like this has happened yet, or if Jesus’ prediction is still to be fulfilled, however, what He describes next makes me think Jesus is describing something that will happen immediately prior to His second coming.

When people call out for the mountains to fall on them and the hills to cover them, this sounds like the wicked people of the world realizing they picked the wrong side when Jesus returns as King. Part of me wonders if leading up to this point in history will be a point where humanity loses the ability to reproduce.

I will be the first to say that this is pure speculation. I have no idea what the final months, weeks, or days will be like leading up to Jesus’ return. However, what I do know is that Jesus’ return will catch the wicked people off guard, while being a welcome relief for God’s people.

Jesus closes with an interesting statement. In verse 31, He says, “If they act like this now when life is good, what will happen when bad times come?” Many translations describe this as a green tree verses a dry tree. The New International Version of the Bible describes Jesus’ words as, “For if people do these things when the tree is green, what will happen when it is dry?”

The big challenge I see in Jesus’ closing words is that when times are good and people are ridiculing, abusing, and rejecting Jesus and His followers, how much worse it will be when times in the world are not good. Hinted at here is that prior to Jesus’ return, there will be a time when the world rapidly declines – and when this decline happens, God’s people will be blamed for it.

While I don’t know what will happen, how bad things will get, or how severe the hostility towards God’s people will ultimately be, we can be certain that how they rejected Jesus when times were going good will be nothing when compared to how they will treat His followers when things are bad.

However, as a follower of Jesus, I know that regardless of what happens immediately before His return and how rejected I may be among others, my reward is in heaven and I’d rather focus on the life that is to come without sin than trying to salvage a life that has been messed up by sin.

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

Be sure to always seek God first in your life. Regardless of what happens in this life, remember that Jesus will return triumphant, and His return will signal the end of sin. Remember that Heaven is the reward for God’s people, and that nothing in this life is worth risking our future life and our future reward.

Also, always be sure to pray and study the Bible for yourself because these are the two best ways to grow your relationship with God while also keeping your focus on heaven.

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 let Satan trick you out of where God wants to lead you to in your life with Him!