Reflective Bible Study

Something that I notice when reading the gospels is how the different details that each gospel writer includes helps to change and amplify the story in my mind. It is the case in the event where a Roman officer living in Capernaum requests healing for his servant.

While this event is included in both Matthew and Luke’s gospels, only in the gospel of Luke do we see something that Matthew likely abbreviated to simply save space. In Matthew’s gospel, the Roman officer comes personally, while in Luke, the Roman officer sends Jewish elders from the synagogue.

What really jumps out at me in this unique detail is how these elders frame the officer’s request. Luke tells us that these elders come to Jesus and beg Jesus to come by saying, “This man really deserves your help. He loves our people and he himself built a synagogue for us.” (v. 4b-5)

The officer simply asks for Jesus to come and heal his servant, but the request these elders make is that this officer “deserves” Jesus’ help because he loves the Jewish people and he built their synagogue. Chances are that this was not how the Roman officer wanted his request framed.

Did Jesus bend to the request of these elders because this Roman officer “deserved” God’s help?

It is unlikely, because none of us deserve anything good from God. We have all sinned and broken God’s rules, and we all deserve punishment from God more than blessing. Jesus didn’t accept the officer’s request because of how the elders framed it – He accepted it because of what would happen next.

While on the way to the officer’s home, another message arrives. Perhaps someone had ran ahead and told the officer what had happened and what was said. Not wanting Jesus to really get the wrong idea, or for anyone to think that this request was framed with an immature attitude of entitlement, the officer sends some of his friends with a new message that began by saying, “Sir, don’t trouble yourself. I do not deserve to have you come into my house…” (v. 6b)

While the Jewish elders felt that this officer “deserved” to have Jesus help him as a thank you for what he had done for them, this Roman officer did not feel this way. This officer knew Jesus was different, special, significant, and perhaps even holy, and that he was truly unworthy to have Jesus enter his home.

It is the same way for us today. We might feel as though God owes us something, but if we travel down that path of thought too long, we will end up bitter towards God. God does not have a debt towards us – it is really the other way around. We have a debt called sin that is owed to God. Jesus came to pay that debt for us. Jesus’ sacrifice frees us from the debt and allows us to have a restored relationship with God – a relationship that is not based on feelings of entitlement. Salvation (i.e. God’s help) is a gift we have been offered – not something we are entitled to receive based on what we have done or have not done. The Roman officer understands this, while the Jewish elders missed it.

In today’s journal entry, we are going to tackle an odd pair of statements that Jesus made and see if we can uncover something within them. Within our passage, Jesus shares the following, “Now it is time for the world to be judged. Now the prince of this world will be thrown out.” (v. 31)

Both statements in this verse are related, while at the same time each is very distinct. Jesus shared that now is (maybe was?) the time for the world to be judged. What is He talking about? It has been nearly 2,000 years later, and we are still here. Does this mean that God is still judging the world, or was there something different happening at that point in history?

On the flip side, we read that the prince of this world (identified as Satan), will be thrown out. Thrown out of where? Like the previous statement, it has been 2,000 years later, and from the looking at our world today, people are still being tempted and sin seems to be alive and well – perhaps even increasing dramatically compared with other points in history.

However, this brings us to the one key idea that I see shared in these two statements, which we will unpack in this journal entry: Jesus’ death on the cross is a foretaste of the final judgment, and it sealed Satan’s fate, throwing him out of Heaven forever.

Looking at the first statement, there are two ways that Jesus’ life could have gone. Both ways lead to death, but one had people understanding and glorifying the salvation Jesus’ death meant, while the other had people rejecting the gift and celebrating the fact Jesus had been killed. This statement comes a day or two after Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey, and the crowds had celebrated His arrival. It was clear to the religious leaders that they wanted Jesus dead, but the crowd had not made their decision. The death Jesus suffered was a foretaste of the final judgment, and it was pre-judging the world based on how humanity responded to the Savior.

Looking at the second statement, as well as some passages in the Old Testament, we can concluded that a Satan’s original fall from heaven, he was kicked out of his position, and his rebellion was banished to earth. However, from the story of Job, we can conclude that Satan still had some provisional access to heaven, since he challenges God of Job’s allegiance (Job 1:6-12). It would seem as though Satan had the opportunity to repent prior to Jesus’ sacrifice, though Jesus’ death became the ultimate judgment for Satan, banishing him from heaven, and sealing his fate in the final judgment.

The death Jesus suffered was the death of judgment, the death we deserved, and in that moment, as Jesus took His final breath, all humanity’s sin was taken with Jesus to His grave – giving us the freedom to choose to accept Jesus’ sacrifice on our behalf, allowing us to take part in His future.

Thank You Jesus!

If there is a verse included in the gospels that describe why I write these blog posts and why I push myself to find multiple insights in each event, that verse is tucked away within Matthew’s gospel. The verse is found in a response Jesus gives to His followers when they asked Him why He spoke in parables.

In His response, Jesus says, “To those who listen to my teaching, more understanding will be given, and they will have an abundance of knowledge. But for those who are not listening, even what little understanding they have will be taken away from them.” (v. 12)

This single verse, and the idea it communicates, pushes me to keep writing insights and ideas from the gospels. I’ve been at this for many years, and I know there are many more years of insights awaiting me as I keep looking at events and the details the gospel writers include.

While Jesus was alive on earth, His followers and the crowds had the privilege of being able to listen to Him personally. All you and I have is a collection of events that have been passed down through the centuries and assembled together in a book known as the Bible. When Jesus tells us to “listen” to His teaching, I believe He is telling us to pay attention to it. Sure, we can listen to someone reading it aloud, either in person, or perhaps as an audio recording, but often we can hear something but not really be listening to it.

To listen to someone means that we pay attention to what they are saying, and in this passage, Jesus promises those who pay attention to His teaching more understanding and an abundance of knowledge. For those who don’t listen, even the little understanding will be taken away. This is why I focus on the gospels and on uncovering insights, because the more I do this, the more Jesus promises to show me about Him!

Often times for these journal entries, I draw out an idea from the way a verse or phrase stands out in my mind. However, in our event for this journal entry, to really see the big idea, we must draw from two areas in the gospel of Luke to really catch the implications in Jesus’ words when responding to the religious leaders on the night of His arrest.

When Jesus is pulled in for questioning, they ultimately ask Him the question, “So you’re the Son of God?” (v. 70a)

This question was meant to be a trap question for Jesus because they would immediately use His response to build the claim blasphemy – in this case, it would be making oneself equal to God.

However, before sharing Jesus’ response, let’s bring our attention to Luke’s record of Jesus’ geneaology, which is found in Luke 3:23-38. Luke begins it with Jesus, and then traces it all the way back to God: “Jesus, so people thought, was the son of Joseph, son of Eli, son of Matthat, . . . son of Enos, son of Seth, son of Adam, son of God.” (Luke 3:23b-24a, 38)

In this genealogy, everyone who is a member of the human race can trace their ancestry back to God, which then makes Jesus’ response to the religious leaders even more amazing: “You’re right to say that I am.” (22:70b)

But here is where things get interesting. The religious leaders respond to Jesus’ answer by saying, “Why do we need any more testimony? We’ve heard him say it ourselves.” (v. 71) This tells us that they were closed-minded towards the truth.

While Jesus was born of a virgin and God the Father was His Father in a more direct way, even if Joseph was His actual dad, Jesus could still lay claim to being a descendant of God. Luke’s genealogy points us to the truth that God started it all, and He formed the human race. In this way, God the Father is “the Father” of humanity. By rejecting Jesus’ claim of being God’s Son, the religious leaders also turned their back on God the Father as their Creator, which tells us they have unknowingly sided with God’s enemy.

This truth reminds us that we all can claim royalty as God’s children, but if we choose to share that God is our Father, we would also be wise to act in a way that honors Him.