Reflective Bible Study Gospel Adventure

Locking Out Evil Spirits: Matthew 12:38-45

Published March 22, 2024 in Written Journal Entries

Focus Passage: Matthew 12:38-45 (GW)

³⁸Then some experts in Moses’ Teachings and Pharisees said, “Teacher, we want you to show us a miraculous sign.”

³⁹He responded, “The people of an evil and unfaithful era look for a miraculous sign. But the only sign they will get is the sign of the prophet Jonah. ⁴⁰Just as Jonah was in the belly of a huge fish for three days and three nights, so the Son of Man will be in the heart of the earth for three days and three nights. ⁴¹The men of Nineveh will stand up with you at the time of judgment and will condemn you, because they turned to God and changed the way they thought and acted when Jonah spoke his message. But look, someone greater than Jonah is here! ⁴²The queen from the south will stand up at the time of judgment with you. She will condemn you, because she came from the ends of the earth to hear Solomon’s wisdom. But look, someone greater than Solomon is here!

⁴³“When an evil spirit comes out of a person, it goes through dry places looking for a place to rest. But it doesn’t find any. ⁴⁴Then it says, ‘I’ll go back to the home I left.’ When it arrives, it finds the house unoccupied, swept clean, and in order. ⁴⁵Then it goes and brings along seven other spirits more evil than itself. They enter and take up permanent residence there. In the end the condition of that person is worse than it was before. That is what will happen to the evil people of this day.”

Read Matthew 12:38-45 in context and/or in other translations on BibleGateway.com!

Perhaps one of the most troubling spiritual pictures Jesus ever gives comes following His response to some religious leaders and Pharisees who request to see a miraculous sign. After responding directly to them, Matthew tells us that Jesus follows up by giving us a picture into the spiritual realm – and this picture is challenging but also powerful when we look at its implications.

Matthew’s gospel tells us that Jesus describes the following scenario: “When an evil spirit comes out of a person, it goes through dry places looking for a place to rest. But it doesn’t find any. Then it says, ‘I’ll go back to the home I left.’ When it arrives, it finds the house unoccupied, swept clean, and in order. Then it goes and brings along seven other spirits more evil than itself. They enter and take up permanent residence there. In the end the condition of that person is worse than it was before. That is what will happen to the evil people of this day.” (v. 43-45)

The first thing we should note is that this is a description of what will happen to evil people. God’s people appear to be excluded from this. While this is great news for those who have placed their faith, hope, trust, and belief in Jesus, the question lingering in the back of my mind when I read this is what makes these “orderly” evil people different from those who are simple-living Godly people? What is the difference between the evil people this illustration describes and God’s people who have been freed from evil spirits?

One word in the description I believe holds the key. When the evil spirit returns, Matthew draws our attention onto Jesus’ description of the person as a house that is “unoccupied, swept clean, and in order.” (v. 44b)

The key word in this description is “unoccupied”. By using this word, Jesus describes a segment of evil people who have focused on cleaning up their lives. These evil people have done a masterful job of emptying their lives of all the negatives and all the bad in them, but by doing so, they leave themselves “empty” or “unoccupied”. This description is of a group of people who have placed a significant amount of time focusing on what to get rid of from their lives, and very little time focusing on what to bring in – in the spiritual sense.

When an evil spirit returns to an evil person who has cleaned up his/her life, the big indicator whether they will be able to capture the person again is whether their lives are “unoccupied”. By only focusing on cleaning the bad from one’s life, an individual only does half of what is necessary to stay clean.

The subtle key and insight I see in this passage separating the evil people Jesus is describing and the righteous people who are excluded from this picture is that those who are righteous will not have empty lives/hearts. This tells me that in order to finish the process of life change and “life cleanup”, I must intentionally choose what to place into my life and heart that will take residence there – making my life look occupied and not empty. The only truly evil spirit-proof One to invite is God – specifically God’s Holy Spirit. With Him in my life and heart, Satan doesn’t have the chance of regaining a foothold in my life.

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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Faith and Doubt in a Famous Miracle: John 6:1-15

Published March 21, 2024 in Audio Journal Entries

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As we continue our journey in John’s gospel, we arrive at one of the very few times John’s gospel includes an event that all three other gospels also include. However, John’s gospel is still significant in this case, because John gives us several additional details that help us understand what happened a little better.

With that said, let’s read what happened, and the miracle Jesus ultimately does to help this tricky situation. Our passage is found in John’s gospel, chapter 6, and we will read it from the New American Standard Bible. Starting in verse 1, John tells us that:

¹ After these things Jesus went away to the other side of the Sea of Galilee (or Tiberias). ² A large crowd followed Him, because they saw the signs which He was performing on those who were sick. ³ Then Jesus went up on the mountain, and there He sat down with His disciples. ⁴ Now the Passover, the feast of the Jews, was near. ⁵ Therefore Jesus, lifting up His eyes and seeing that a large crowd was coming to Him, said to Philip, “Where are we to buy bread, so that these may eat?” ⁶ This He was saying to test him, for He Himself knew what He was intending to do. ⁷ Philip answered Him, “Two hundred denarii worth of bread is not sufficient for them, for everyone to receive a little.” ⁸ One of His disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, said to Him, ⁹ “There is a lad here who has five barley loaves and two fish, but what are these for so many people?”

Let’s pause reading here for a moment. If you are even remotely familiar with the miracles of Jesus, you already know what happens next, but before we go there together, let’s briefly focus on the doubt that is present leading up to the miracle, and let’s also draw our attention onto who actually initiates this miracle.

When we look at how this event opens, Jesus sees the opportunity to teach the disciples about God’s ability to provide. If Jesus hadn’t asked Philip the question about buying bread, then everything that happened next likely wouldn’t have happened. John tells us that Jesus asked this question to test Philip, because He already knew what He was planning to do.

However, there is an interesting shift between Jesus’ question and Philip’s answer. Jesus doesn’t ask Philip how much it would cost for enough bread, and Philip doesn’t answer Jesus where they could go to get enough bread. Jesus was interested in a place, while Philip was focused on the cost. In this subtle shift, we can learn that cost is not a significant issue in God’s eyes. The amount of money needed for something is irrelevant to God. Instead, God’s focus is elsewhere.

After this, Andrew steps in with an answer, but even Andrew doesn’t have much faith that this answer will amount to anything. When stepping into Jesus’ and Philip’s conversation, Andrew says in verse 9: “There is a lad here who has five barley loaves and two fish, but what are these for so many people?”

Andrew’s answer gives a place Jesus can get some bread, but five loaves of bread and two fish were the meal of a small boy, and splitting this up among the huge crowd wouldn’t scratch the surface of anyone’s appetite.

However, what happens next is powerful. On being informed of the boy’s food, let’s continue reading in verse 10:

¹⁰ Jesus said, “Have the people sit down.” Now there was much grass in the place. So the men sat down, in number about five thousand. ¹¹ Jesus then took the loaves, and having given thanks, He distributed to those who were seated; likewise also of the fish as much as they wanted. ¹² When they were filled, He said to His disciples, “Gather up the leftover fragments so that nothing will be lost.” ¹³ So they gathered them up, and filled twelve baskets with fragments from the five barley loaves which were left over by those who had eaten. ¹⁴ Therefore when the people saw the sign which He had performed, they said, “This is truly the Prophet who is to come into the world.”

¹⁵ So Jesus, perceiving that they were intending to come and take Him by force to make Him king, withdrew again to the mountain by Himself alone.

Let’s stop reading at this point in order to focus on this miracle, and on what we can learn from what Jesus did.

In events like this, I always keep my eye open for examples of faith, and whenever we see a miracle, one thing I look for is where faith is present. In this event, I sense a little faith, but a lot more doubt. It’s interesting that John points out that Jesus already knew what He was going to do, which places the faith necessary for this miracle squarely on Jesus’ shoulders because prior to Jesus even asking the question, no one was thinking of bread or of feeding this crowd.

When we look at the disciples for faith in this event, we can see a few small examples, but overall there is much more doubt. The slivers of faith we see in this event from the disciples are when Andrew brings the child with his food to Jesus, and when the disciples obey Jesus’ instruction to have everyone sit down on the grass.

It is interesting that when we look at the disciples’ words and compare their words with their actions, everything the disciples say displays doubt, while everything they do displays faith. Bringing a boy to Jesus and having the crowd sit down demonstrates faith, since these disciples suspect something big is going to happen. However, saying that they don’t have anywhere close to the money needed to buy bread for the people, and that this small boy’s lunch is horribly insignificant shows doubt. The disciples’ words are filled with doubt, while their actions suggest at least a sliver of faith.

Another interesting detail that we don’t often focus on is that before Jesus begins sharing this gift of food, He gives thanks. Jesus demonstrates gratitude, and this is powerful, because it leads us into a huge truth we can learn from this miracle: God is thankful when we bring our gifts, and He is more than willing to multiply a genuine gift that is small into being more than enough for a huge challenge!

Our huge problems are no match for God. When we bring our huge problems to God, He is fully capable of using things that might appear insignificant to solve our problems. Any problem we face is nothing compared to what God can do, and if we doubt God can help us with what we are facing, then our picture of God is much smaller than who God really is.

Jesus took a lunch that looked insignificant, and He turned it into a meal that satisfied the hunger of over five thousand people, with plenty left over. God is fully capable of multiplying our small, seemingly insignificant gifts, into exactly what is needed to solve huge problems.

Taking this truth one step further: Jesus came to this earth as God’s gift to solve the problem of sin, and while many people believed Jesus to be insignificant or unable to do this, through Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection, Satan’s character was exposed, and a way was made for us to be redeemed out of sin.

God gives us a way to be redeemed from this sin-filled world, and it is up to us to accept this gift that He offers to us and begin a new life 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 choose to bring God what you can to help when challenges appear. When we offer up gifts that look insignificant, and when our gifts also contain our heart and a sliver of faith, expect to see God work in amazing ways with the gift we believed to be insignificant. Sometimes God will combine a bunch of insignificant gifts into something greater, while other times He will take the insignificant gift and miraculously allow it to extend further than we believed possible. When we have the tiniest amount of faith that is visible, nothing is impossible with God.

Also, as I always challenge you to do, intentionally pray and study the Bible for yourself, in order to grow your personal relationship with God. While other people can give you things to think about, be sure to never let your relationship with God be dependent on anyone else. God wants a personal relationship with you, and the relationship He wants with you will not be filtered through anyone else.

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

Year in John – Episode 12: When Jesus sees a huge crowd coming His way, discover where we can see faith leading up to one of Jesus’ most famous miracles, and where we can see doubt. Discover how God is more than capable of using insignificant gifts in order to solve unsolvable problems.

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Pointing Upward: Luke 14:7-24

Published March 20, 2024 in Written Journal Entries

Focus Passage: Luke 14:7-24 (GW)

⁷Then Jesus noticed how the guests always chose the places of honor. So he used this illustration when he spoke to them: ⁸“When someone invites you to a wedding, don’t take the place of honor. Maybe someone more important than you was invited. ⁹Then your host would say to you, ‘Give this person your place.’ Embarrassed, you would have to take the place of least honor. ¹⁰So when you’re invited, take the place of least honor. Then, when your host comes, he will tell you, ‘Friend, move to a more honorable place.’ Then all the other guests will see how you are honored. ¹¹Those who honor themselves will be humbled, but people who humble themselves will be honored.”

¹²Then he told the man who had invited him, “When you invite people for lunch or dinner, don’t invite only your friends, family, other relatives, or rich neighbors. Otherwise, they will return the favor. ¹³Instead, when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the handicapped, the lame, and the blind. ¹⁴Then you will be blessed because they don’t have any way to pay you back. You will be paid back when those who have God’s approval come back to life.”

¹⁵One of those eating with him heard this. So he said to Jesus, “The person who will be at the banquet in God’s kingdom is blessed.”

¹⁶Jesus said to him, “A man gave a large banquet and invited many people. ¹⁷When it was time for the banquet, he sent his servant to tell those who were invited, ‘Come! Everything is ready now.’

¹⁸“Everyone asked to be excused. The first said to him, ‘I bought a field, and I need to see it. Please excuse me.’ ¹⁹Another said, ‘I bought five pairs of oxen, and I’m on my way to see how well they plow. Please excuse me.’ ²⁰Still another said, ‘I recently got married, and that’s why I can’t come.’

²¹“The servant went back to report this to his master. Then the master of the house became angry. He told his servant, ‘Run to every street and alley in the city! Bring back the poor, the handicapped, the blind, and the lame.’

²²“The servant said, ‘Sir, what you’ve ordered has been done. But there is still room for more people.’

²³“Then the master told his servant, ‘Go to the roads and paths! Urge the people to come to my house. I want it to be full. ²⁴I can guarantee that none of those invited earlier will taste any food at my banquet.’”

Read Luke 14:7-24 in context and/or in other translations on BibleGateway.com!

This passage is one of the richest passages in the gospels for learning ideas about who God is and what He is like. Most often, we like to jump into the parable and into the heart of what Jesus is revealing about God.

However, in this post, let’s look at how Jesus sets up this parable. He probably was seated in a large room at one of the places of honor, and there were probably many people who were making a mad dash to sit near Him or at other prominent places.

In setting up this illustration, Jesus directs His first words to the guests of this meal: Don’t seek out the places of honor – because you don’t know if someone more honorable is running late. The worst thing you can face as a guest at a banquet is choosing a seat and then being asked to move down in position. That is public humiliation that you brought on yourself. It would be better to take the worst seat in the room, that way when the host sees you, you will get public recognition and be honored to a better place.

Now I don’t know if I have ever witnessed someone being asked to move where they were seated, but I do know that I have set myself up for this type of humiliation. At a special event I attended while in college, I was not asked to move, but I did inch my way into a more prominent seat that what would not normally have happened. Perhaps it was the host wanting to be nice, or the environment that allowed for an extra seat, but in reality, I know I probably should have been asked to move down in status.

However, the truth Jesus is trying to teach is broader than simply seat position. He is teaching us a truth about life. Choose to be humble and let others do the exalting. There is nothing appealing about someone who thinks they are more special than they really are. Those who have figuratively “big heads” are not people who we like being around.

However, those who choose humility and to lift others up are people who we do like to spend time with. They are people who help others be better and who help you feel happier after having spent a few moments together. These people have an inner spirit that is attractive and positive.

I believe Jesus was this type of person. I don’t remember seeing anything that makes me think that He played the position “God”-card in any situation. Satan tempted Him to do so numerous times, but He never fell for this trap.

Instead, Jesus exalted God the Father and the Holy Spirit whenever He was praised. People praised God when they witnessed Jesus perform miracles. Jesus never let the glory rest on Himself; He always pointed it upward.

And this leads us to our own lives. We too should always choose humility over exaltation and forwarding the glory onward and upward. It is what Jesus did, and He called us to be like Him. We should never seek glory for ourselves, but point others to the One who really deserves the glory.

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Two Gifts for His Followers: John 17:1-26

Published March 19, 2024 in Written Journal Entries

Focus Passage: John 17:1-26 (CEV)

¹After Jesus had finished speaking to his disciples, he looked up toward heaven and prayed:

Father, the time has come for you to bring glory to your Son, in order that he may bring glory to you. ²And you gave him power over all people, so that he would give eternal life to everyone you give him. ³Eternal life is to know you, the only true God, and to know Jesus Christ, the one you sent. ⁴I have brought glory to you here on earth by doing everything you gave me to do. ⁵Now, Father, give me back the glory that I had with you before the world was created.

⁶You have given me some followers from this world, and I have shown them what you are like. They were yours, but you gave them to me, and they have obeyed you. ⁷They know that you gave me everything I have. ⁸I told my followers what you told me, and they accepted it. They know that I came from you, and they believe that you are the one who sent me. ⁹I am praying for them, but not for those who belong to this world. My followers belong to you, and I am praying for them. ¹⁰All that I have is yours, and all that you have is mine, and they will bring glory to me.

¹¹Holy Father, I am no longer in the world. I am coming to you, but my followers are still in the world. So keep them safe by the power of the name that you have given me. Then they will be one with each other, just as you and I are one. ¹²While I was with them, I kept them safe by the power you have given me. I guarded them, and not one of them was lost, except the one who had to be lost. This happened so that what the Scriptures say would come true.

¹³I am on my way to you. But I say these things while I am still in the world, so that my followers will have the same complete joy that I do. ¹⁴I have told them your message. But the people of this world hate them, because they don’t belong to this world, just as I don’t.

¹⁵Father, I don’t ask you to take my followers out of the world, but keep them safe from the evil one. ¹⁶They don’t belong to this world, and neither do I. ¹⁷Your word is the truth. So let this truth make them completely yours. ¹⁸I am sending them into the world, just as you sent me. ¹⁹I have given myself completely for their sake, so that they may belong completely to the truth.

²⁰I am not praying just for these followers. I am also praying for everyone else who will have faith because of what my followers will say about me. ²¹I want all of them to be one with each other, just as I am one with you and you are one with me. I also want them to be one with us. Then the people of this world will believe that you sent me.

²²I have honored my followers in the same way that you honored me, in order that they may be one with each other, just as we are one. ²³I am one with them, and you are one with me, so that they may become completely one. Then this world’s people will know that you sent me. They will know that you love my followers as much as you love me.

²⁴Father, I want everyone you have given me to be with me, wherever I am. Then they will see the glory that you have given me, because you loved me before the world was created. ²⁵Good Father, the people of this world don’t know you. But I know you, and my followers know that you sent me. ²⁶I told them what you are like, and I will tell them even more. Then the love that you have for me will become part of them, and I will be one with them.

Read John 17:1-26 in context and/or in other translations on BibleGateway.com!

During the night Jesus would be arrested, He prays a prayer with the disciples and for the disciples as they traveled to the Garden of Gethsemane. In this prayer, which is one of the few that are shared in detail, we see a picture of how Jesus talked with God, and we can see a better picture of His heart and love for His followers.

John shares that in His prayer, Jesus prayed, “Holy Father, I am no longer in the world. I am coming to you, but my followers are still in the world. So keep them safe by the power of the name that you have given me. Then they will be one with each other, just as you and I are one. While I was with them, I kept them safe by the power you have given me. I guarded them, and not one of them was lost, except the one who had to be lost. This happened so that what the Scriptures say would come true.” (v. 11-12)

This portion of Jesus’ prayer is a powerful request for protection. Jesus knows He will be leaving soon, and He asks the Father to keep His followers safe. Jesus acknowledges that He was able to keep them safe while He was on earth, but now that His ministry and location would be changing, He asks God to keep protecting this group of followers and friends.

Jesus also prays for His followers’ unity. Not only does Jesus know that opposition would come from the outside, but equally devastating would be division or separation coming from within. If the disciples lost focus and began to argue with one another, they would lose their mission and the young church would die.

Not every one of Jesus’ core group of twelve disciples accepted this protection and unity. But that didn’t stop Jesus from offering it. While Judas Iscariot ultimately chose to betray Jesus, Jesus still had invited him to be a part of this close group.

Unity and protection are two of the biggest things we can ask God for in our own lives today. Helping His followers be united and protected from Satan and his plots is something that God offered to His followers back then, and it is something that He offers to us as followers today. If Jesus prayed for these two vital things for us as followers, it would be wise for us to accept His offer of help!

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