Reflective Bible Study Gospel Adventure

Never Again: Mark 13:14-23

Published March 3, 2023 in Written Journal Entries

Focus Passage: Mark 13:14-23 (GW)

¹⁴“When you see the disgusting thing that will cause destruction standing where it should not (let the reader take note), those of you in Judea should flee to the mountains. ¹⁵Those who are on the roof should not come down to get anything out of their houses. ¹⁶Those who are in the field should not turn back to get their coats.

¹⁷“How horrible it will be for the women who are pregnant or who are nursing babies in those days. ¹⁸Pray that it will not be in winter. ¹⁹It will be a time of misery that has not happened from the beginning of God’s creation until now, and will certainly never happen again. ²⁰If the Lord does not reduce that time, no one will be saved. But those days will be reduced because of those whom God has chosen.

²¹“At that time don’t believe anyone who tells you, ‘Here is the Messiah!’ or ‘There he is!’ ²²False messiahs and false prophets will appear. They will work miraculous signs and do wonderful things to deceive, if possible, those whom God has chosen. ²³Be on your guard! I have told you everything before it happens.

Read Mark 13:14-23 in context and/or in other translations on BibleGateway.com!

If we ever wondered or worried about a time when we are persecuted, or singled out for our faith, understanding this passage may give some hope to this worry. In this passage, we jump into the middle of a larger message Jesus is sharing with His disciples, warning them of challenges that will come their way, and challenging them to keep their faith and belief in Him.

Matthew, Mark, and Luke all include this warning, but Matthew and Mark focus on a different “hinge event” to trigger this event than Luke does. The hinge event in Matthew and Mark have to do with a “disgusting thing that will cause destruction standing where it should not” (v. 14) while Luke is a little less cryptic when He directs our attention to “When you see armies camped around Jerusalem . . .” (Luke 21:20)

However, while these are the key events that start this event, that is not the promise. The promise is found at the end of a few verses later. After Jesus describes what His followers should do and what they should pray for, He summarizes this time period by saying: “It will be a time of misery that has not happened from the beginning of God’s creation until now, and will certainly never happen again.” (v. 19)

The first part of this summary is pretty depressing, but it ends with a promise: This horrible time of misery “will certainly never happen again”.

There are some Bible commentators who believe that this horrible event was the persecution of the Jesus’ followers in the last portion of the first century, leading up to/through the dark ages. Other commentators believe that while there is reason to believe the start point being the destruction of Jerusalem, so much history and persecution has happened that perhaps this prophecy was not fulfilled at that point in time, and instead, it is still a future event that can hold significance for God’s chosen people.

In the same way, there are those who are expecting and looking for an upcoming horrible “time of trouble” that meets this description, while others look to Jesus’ return being described as “a thief in the night” (1 Thessalonians 5:2) which most likely means that He will return when we least expect it – meaning it may not be in a period of time where there is persecution, because that might prompt some to expect it.

All this is to draw our attention to Jesus’ promise: He will return, and no matter what comes our way, God has promised to protect His people through anything and everything that Satan throws at us. God’s protection might not be the protection we expect, but His protection is from His “eternity perspective”, which means that even if our life on earth ends, we will be given a new life that lasts for eternity!

This thought was inspired by studying the Walking With Jesus “Reflective Bible Study” package. To discover insights like this in your own study time, click here and give Reflective Bible Study a try today!

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Testing Jesus’ Word: Luke 5:1-11

Published March 2, 2023 in Audio Journal Entries

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As we continue in Luke’s gospel, we arrive at a passage describing a miracle that seems spontaneous on the surface, but one that I believe Jesus may have planned earlier. In our last episode, we discovered that Jesus spent a Sabbath afternoon in Simon’s home and that Jesus had healed Simon’s mother-in-law. If Luke’s ordering of events at this point in his gospel is chronological rather than categorical, then it would mean Simon, who was also known as Peter, would have been aware of Jesus’ miracle working ability and Simon’s extended family would have already benefitted from Jesus’ power to heal before the significant event that happens in this passage.

However, some scholars believe this event in Luke happened before Jesus’ visit to Simon’s home, and when we read what happened, it may become clear why.

Our passage for this event is found in Luke, chapter 5, and we will read from the New Century Version of the Bible. Starting in verse 1, Luke tells us that

¹One day while Jesus was standing beside Lake Galilee, many people were pressing all around him to hear the word of God. ²Jesus saw two boats at the shore of the lake. The fishermen had left them and were washing their nets. ³Jesus got into one of the boats, the one that belonged to Simon, and asked him to push off a little from the land. Then Jesus sat down and continued to teach the people from the boat.

⁴When Jesus had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Take the boat into deep water, and put your nets in the water to catch some fish.”

⁵Simon answered, “Master, we worked hard all night trying to catch fish, and we caught nothing. But you say to put the nets in the water, so I will.” ⁶When the fishermen did as Jesus told them, they caught so many fish that the nets began to break. ⁷They called to their partners in the other boat to come and help them. They came and filled both boats so full that they were almost sinking.

⁸When Simon Peter saw what had happened, he bowed down before Jesus and said, “Go away from me, Lord. I am a sinful man!” ⁹He and the other fishermen were amazed at the many fish they caught, as were ¹⁰James and John, the sons of Zebedee, Simon’s partners.

Jesus said to Simon, “Don’t be afraid. From now on you will fish for people.” ¹¹When the men brought their boats to the shore, they left everything and followed Jesus.

From this event, I can understand some scholars believing this happened before Jesus’ trip to Simon Peter’s home when Jesus healed Simon’s mother-in-law. From Simon Peter’s response to Jesus’ miracle, he seems surprised that Jesus’ word could direct the fish into their nets. If Simon had known Jesus’ word to be powerful enough to silence and banish demons and to heal the sick, it seems only logical that Jesus could direct fish into a net.

However, I can also see Luke’s description of this event happening in chronological order. The reason I think this is because I believe Jesus knew Simon Peter’s heart better than anyone else. Simon Peter likely needed some convincing beyond simply seeing something miraculous one time to get him to drop everything to follow Jesus. Because of this, I wonder if Jesus subtly began working on Simon Peter before Simon even realized it. This may have begun on the Sabbath in the synagogue when Jesus healed the demon-possessed man. For Jesus to go to Simon’s home that afternoon, it would only be logical that Simon, or members of Simon’s family were present at that synagogue meeting.

It is even possible they sought Jesus out to invite Him to come with them because they knew Simon’s mother-in-law was sick. If Simon Peter wasn’t present at the synagogue that day, I’m confident he would have been present when Jesus healed his mother-in-law and all the people that evening.

What we read about in our last podcast episode appears to lead directly into this event. If Luke’s order of events is accurate, than this means that Simon Peter knew Jesus and was happy to help Jesus by letting Jesus preach from his boat.

However, Simon Peter was not expecting a miracle that impacted him directly. Leading up to this miracle, we see Simon being content helping others, including Jesus, and being supportive of Jesus helping others, but when Jesus shifts the focus onto helping Simon personally, Simon got uncomfortable.

Like many people living today, Simon had no problem helping other people. However, he had a personality and character that did not like receiving help personally. Simon was more than happy to partner with others, but teaming up is different than accepting miraculous help with no strings attached.

Simon represents someone who is happy being self-sufficient and accepting gifts from others is difficult for someone who is happy and content being self-sufficient.

However, Simon also is willing to test Jesus’ words personally, and this makes him one of the most significant disciples Jesus ever invited. When Jesus told Simon to cast his nets in the water to catch some fish, Simon knew this was the worst time of day to fish, but he responded in verse 5 saying, “Master, we worked hard all night trying to catch fish, and we caught nothing. But you say to put the nets in the water, so I will.”

Simon’s response to Jesus emphasized that the best his team could do was nothing. The team of fisherman that night caught nothing. However, Simon responds that he personally would test Jesus’ words regardless of what the others chose to do. The situation quickly turns into something Simon needs all the help he can get to pull in all the fish that got caught in their net.

Simon Peter recognizes that his life is full of sin and that he is unworthy of Jesus’ help. However, Simon needs to realize the state of his life in order to accept Jesus’ invitation. In the same way, when we are deciding whether to come to Jesus or not, we must understand that a self-sufficient attitude is not as useful to God as an attitude that will test Jesus’ promises and try Jesus’ instructions personally, regardless of whether what Jesus’ asks us to do makes sense on the front-end or not.

Going fishing in the day made no sense whatsoever, but after these fishermen, specifically Simon, tested Jesus’ challenge personally, they realized that Jesus’ way works, even if it doesn’t make sense.

The challenge in this passage for all of Jesus’ followers throughout history is to recognize that God’s way is the best way and be willing to follow Jesus even if it doesn’t make sense at first. We are called to test God’s promises and prove them to be true in our own lives. A self-sufficient skeptic will never come to faith in Jesus because they will have too many reasons to assume Jesus’ way won’t work rather than trying it out personally to realize that it does work.

Like Simon Peter, let’s realize that we are sinners and understand that we need Jesus to help us be the people God created us to be!

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

As I always begin by challenging you, intentionally and purposefully seek God first in your life. Choose to let God lead in your decisions each and every day and test His promises to determine the truth of His word.

Also, continue praying and studying the Bible for yourself to learn and grow closer to God each and every day. Choose to test God’s word in your own life rather than simply taking someone else’s word for it. When eternity is at stake, God’s truth is worth testing for yourself.

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!

Year in Luke – Episode 9: While preaching by the lake one day, Jesus uses a boat to help keep Himself dry. However, this decision leads to a miracle and an invitation. Discover how some of Jesus’ most famous disciples are invited following an amazing miracle that prompts them to pay attention to Jesus.

Join the discussion. Share your thoughts on this passage.

Modeling Jesus in a Messed Up World: Luke 13:22-30

Published March 1, 2023 in Written Journal Entries

Focus Passage: Luke 13:22-30 (NIV)

²² Then Jesus went through the towns and villages, teaching as he made his way to Jerusalem. ²³ Someone asked him, “Lord, are only a few people going to be saved?”

He said to them, ²⁴ “Make every effort to enter through the narrow door, because many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able to. ²⁵ Once the owner of the house gets up and closes the door, you will stand outside knocking and pleading, ‘Sir, open the door for us.’
“But he will answer, ‘I don’t know you or where you come from.’

²⁶ “Then you will say, ‘We ate and drank with you, and you taught in our streets.’

²⁷ “But he will reply, ‘I don’t know you or where you come from. Away from me, all you evildoers!’

²⁸ “There will be weeping there, and gnashing of teeth, when you see Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, but you yourselves thrown out. ²⁹ People will come from east and west and north and south, and will take their places at the feast in the kingdom of God. ³⁰ Indeed there are those who are last who will be first, and first who will be last.”

Read Luke 13:22-30 in context and/or in other translations on BibleGateway.com!

At the close of our passage for this journal entry, we read something interesting: “Indeed there are those who are last who will be first, and first who will be last.” (v. 30)

What surprises me most about this idea is not what it says, but where we find it. This concept is included as the key point for at least one teaching and parable, but what makes it stand out here is that it is given in connection with those who are saved.

Two possible ideas enter my mind regarding how this verse is placed in the gospel of Luke:

Perhaps this has to do with the timeline of history, and those who live in the last days will be first in Heaven, while those who lived earlier in history will be placed in lesser positions.
Or, perhaps this has to do with those who are the lowest and most neglected places in society, and when they reach heaven (much to the surprise of those who are cast out), they are lifted up into the seats of honor, and the last (or lowest) becomes first in God’s Kingdom.

Of these two ideas, I’m most inclined to be in favor of the second option, but even it has its challenges.

The theme that really stands out to me here is not what “rank” certain people will have, but instead, that Heaven’s culture will be one that is based around service and serving. Those who we might call “great” will only be so because of how much they served others.

With this theme and idea, we arrive at our key point: Through acts of humility and service to others, we are able to model Jesus to a messed up world. We can choose to humble ourselves now, and help others, or have ourselves be humbled later.

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Anonymously Famous: Luke 22:7-13

Published February 28, 2023 in Written Journal Entries

Focus Passage: Luke 22:7-13 (NIrV)

⁷Then the day of Unleavened Bread came. That was the time the Passover lamb had to be sacrificed. ⁸Jesus sent Peter and John on ahead. “Go,” he told them. “Prepare for us to eat the Passover meal.”

⁹“Where do you want us to prepare for it?” they asked.

¹⁰Jesus replied, “When you enter the city, a man carrying a jar of water will meet you. Follow him to the house he enters. ¹¹Then say to the owner of the house, ‘The Teacher asks, “Where is the guest room? Where can I eat the Passover meal with my disciples?” ’ ¹²He will show you a large upstairs room with furniture already in it. Prepare for us to eat there.”

¹³Peter and John left. They found things just as Jesus had told them. So they prepared the Passover meal.

Read Luke 22:7-13 in context and/or in other translations on BibleGateway.com!

Sometimes, when I read a passage, I am fascinated by what is said or not said about one or two of the characters in it. A great example of a passage is the one for this journal entry, where there are two characters we know very little about who play very significant roles in the event.

The first of these characters is the servant with the jar of water. It is fully within Jesus’ ability to have seen this event transpire, and for the Holy Spirit to prompt the details surrounding this meeting, but I also wonder if this servant was an angel in disguise. Perhaps a disguised angel would be easier to help describe how the disciples found the perfect home to prepare their Passover meal, but that leads me to another key person we know almost nothing about.

The owner of the home is probably the most fascinating character in this event, because all we know about him is that he is rich enough to have a home with a furnished upstairs room (multi-level house), and he is generous enough to allow a group of strange men access to this guest room using the key questions “The Teacher asks, ‘Where is the guest room? Where can I eat the Passover meal with my disciples?’” (v. 11)

I am sure that Jesus was well known enough for people to recognize Him and want to invite Him over, but these closest followers would not be as easy to spot. Sure, they would be recognizable, but without Jesus next to them, they could easily be missed by those who were not paying attention.

What is amazing is that the disciples don’t even name-drop Jesus to this home owner, and the home owner is still willing to let them use the room. Perhaps he recognized these disciples, or perhaps he was a generous person. Either way, we do know he was generous enough to let these disciples prepare for their Passover meal, and because of this man’s generosity, he has been anonymously famous for centuries since then.

This draws me to the conclusion: We should be ready to be generous with what God has blessed us with. Our blessings (i.e. stuff, time, talents, money, etc.) are best used to help others when God sends opportunities our way. This home owner had no idea his simple act of generosity would be this significant, and this tells us that we should be generous even if we have no idea what will happen as a result of our generosity.

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