Welcome to Cam’s Reflective Bible Study Journal

Cam’s Reflective Bible Study Journal is a blog/podcast where Cam, one of Reflective Bible Study's founders, shares things he has discovered from his time studying the Bible (usually from one or more of the four gospels).

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Our Future Passover with God: Luke 22:7-23

Published November 9, 2023 in Audio Journal Entries

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As we continue through Luke’s gospel, we come to the night Jesus was betrayed and arrested. However, before this happened, Jesus wanted to eat the Passover meal with His disciples. However, they don’t have a place prepared beforehand to eat this meal.

While this is a problem from our human perspective, God had a plan. Let’s read what happened, and how Jesus solves this challenge.

Our passage is found in Luke’s gospel, chapter 22, and we will read it from the New Century Version. Starting in verse 7, Luke tells us that:

7 The Day of Unleavened Bread came when the Passover lambs had to be sacrificed. 8 Jesus said to Peter and John, “Go and prepare the Passover meal for us to eat.”

9 They asked, “Where do you want us to prepare it?” 10 Jesus said to them, “After you go into the city, a man carrying a jar of water will meet you. Follow him into the house that he enters, 11 and tell the owner of the house, ‘The Teacher says: “Where is the guest room in which I may eat the Passover meal with my followers?”’ 12 Then he will show you a large, furnished room upstairs. Prepare the Passover meal there.”

13 So Peter and John left and found everything as Jesus had said. And they prepared the Passover meal.

Pausing reading briefly, I am amazed that when Peter and John have the dilemma of where to prepare this Passover meal, Jesus simply gives them a very random but specific set of instructions and they find everything exactly as Jesus had described.

This sort of detail tells me that Jesus clearly knew the events of that weekend better than any of the disciples did, and Jesus also knew Judas Iscariot’s betrayal even better than Judas did.

From this passage that draws our attention onto the preparation of Jesus’ last supper prior to His death, we can clearly learn the truth that Jesus knows the future. Jesus knows the future and He is not scared by it. Since Jesus knows the future and He is not scared by it, we can confidently move forward in our own lives with Jesus knowing that He has the solution to the problems we face.

Continuing reading in verse 14, Luke then tells us:

14 When the time came, Jesus and the apostles were sitting at the table. 15 He said to them, “I wanted very much to eat this Passover meal with you before I suffer. 16 I will not eat another Passover meal until it is given its true meaning in the kingdom of God.”

17 Then Jesus took a cup, gave thanks, and said, “Take this cup and share it among yourselves. 18 I will not drink again from the fruit of the vine until God’s kingdom comes.”

19 Then Jesus took some bread, gave thanks, broke it, and gave it to the apostles, saying, “This is my body, which I am giving for you. Do this to remember me.” 20 In the same way, after supper, Jesus took the cup and said, “This cup is the new agreement that God makes with his people. This new agreement begins with my blood which is poured out for you.

21 “But one of you will turn against me, and his hand is with mine on the table. 22 What God has planned for the Son of Man will happen, but how terrible it will be for that one who turns against the Son of Man.”

23 Then the apostles asked each other which one of them would do that.

In Luke’s passage describing this portion of Jesus’ Last Supper with His disciples, two big things stand out to me. While it is tempting to focus on the bread Jesus breaks and on the grape juice that Jesus shares, let’s save looking at those details for another time.

Instead, two different phrases stood out to me. In these two phrases are a promise and a warning. However, even within the warning is a powerful promise that is worth remembering.

The first phrase is a clear promise. Verse 16 records Jesus telling the disciples “I will not eat another Passover meal until it is given its true meaning in the kingdom of God.” This is a promise that we can hold on to because this means that Jesus is waiting in heaven for our arrival before He eats another Passover meal.

Also, while many people believe that the Passover was fulfilled that weekend when Jesus gave up His life, Jesus describes the Passover meal as having future significance. Reading this with you now prompts me to wonder if the great meal we all will eat with God in His kingdom following Jesus’ return will be a meal celebrating the big theme of the Passover. The great theme of the Passover is that God’s people were trapped in slavery, and that an Innocent Being gives up His life to redeem His people.

With this huge theme, we see that the entire story of history is contained within the great Passover truth. When we as Christians celebrate the Lord’s Supper, it seems small when compared with this grand, eternal message. While celebrating the Lord’s Supper is in no way wrong, let’s remember the big picture and what this event points forward to in our own future even while it pointed forward to Jesus’ death.

Also in this passage is a warning. In verse 22, immediately after Jesus reveals that this group of twelve disciples has a betrayer present, Jesus says, “What God has planned for the Son of Man will happen”.

As I read and think about this phrase, perhaps a warning is not the best way to frame it. While it sounds like a warning on one level, we also see the clear picture that Jesus was following God’s plan for His life. Jesus followed God’s plan which lead to and through death, and while there was pain involved in God’s plan for Jesus’ life, we ultimately wouldn’t want it any other way.

When we follow God’s plan, don’t be surprised if our lives include some level of pain. However, know that just like Jesus, when we look back on our lives, on the pain and on the joy, we ultimately would not want our lives to have gone any other way. While our lives on this earth are tainted by pain, sin, and death, the ultimate plan God has for our lives is eternal life with Him in a sinless recreated new heaven and new earth.

Our brand new life with God can start today, and when Jesus returns to bring us home, we will all celebrate the ultimate Passover meal together with God and all of God’s people who He has redeemed!

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, continue seeking God first in your life and choose to let God lead you on His plan. Place your faith, hope, trust, and belief in Jesus and what He accomplished for us on the cross and look forward to the day when we will enter God’s kingdom and eat the ultimate Passover meal with Him and all of God’s people together.

Also, continue praying and studying the Bible for yourself to learn and grow closer to God each and every day. Through prayer and personal study, discover a God who gives up everything to redeem His people out of sin and a God who loves us more than we can even imagine!

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!

Year in Luke – Episode 45: While Luke describes Jesus eating the Last Supper before His betrayal, arrest, and death, we read about Jesus foreshadowing a future meal we will have with God, and how Jesus was willing to follow God’s plan for His life.

Join the discussion. Share your thoughts on this passage.

The Real Truth Zacchaeus Learned: Luke 19:1-10

Published November 8, 2023 in Written Journal Entries
Focus Passage: Luke 19:1-10 (NCV)

 1 Jesus was going through the city of Jericho. 2 A man was there named Zacchaeus, who was a very important tax collector, and he was wealthy. 3 He wanted to see who Jesus was, but he was not able because he was too short to see above the crowd. 4 He ran ahead to a place where Jesus would come, and he climbed a sycamore tree so he could see him. 5 When Jesus came to that place, he looked up and said to him, “Zacchaeus, hurry and come down! I must stay at your house today.”

 6 Zacchaeus came down quickly and welcomed him gladly. 7 All the people saw this and began to complain, “Jesus is staying with a sinner!”

 8 But Zacchaeus stood and said to the Lord, “I will give half of my possessions to the poor. And if I have cheated anyone, I will pay back four times more.”

 9 Jesus said to him, “Salvation has come to this house today, because this man also belongs to the family of Abraham. 10 The Son of Man came to find lost people and save them.”

Read Luke 19:1-10 in context and/or in other translations on BibleGateway.com!

Have you ever had an impression of someone, simply from what other people have said about them, but then found out later that they were not what you had thought? In some cases, the person you meet came as a high recommendation from someone you trust, but you find out after meeting them that they are not as great as you imagined.

In other cases, the rumor mill has run wild and someone has a horrible reputation – whether it is because of their occupation, their friends, or simply because they are in the spotlight – when in reality, they are a much better person than their reputation suggests.

When I read this story of Zacchaeus, I am presented with two sides of a coin. On one side, we have the traditional view, which Zacchaeus being the stereotypical cheat – the reputation that tax collectors had in those parts of the Roman empire. Looking at Zacchaeus from this view is easy and it is what people have done for years.

On the other side of the coin, I am presented with a different picture – one that will take a little bit of math to explain. One morning, as I was reading and studying this passage, this other view changed how I saw Zacchaeus from that point forward.

To begin this shift in thinking, I began with the logical assumption that Zacchaeus was good at math. As someone who was the head tax collector in the region, he would have had ample experience crunching the numbers – whether it was “creatively” doing the math or accurately doing the math.

Next, I looked at Jesus’ positive response, which affirmed Zacchaeus’ response and generosity, and concluded that in Zacchaeus was being genuine and honest in his promise to give his money away. Jesus would not have reacted positively if Zacchaeus did not mean what he was saying, or if the promise was empty.

Then, I crunched the numbers of what Zacchaeus promised. First he starts by allocating half his wealth to go straight to the poor, and then secondly, he promises to repay anyone he cheated four times the amount that was cheated. Let’s do the math:

  • We start at 100% and give 50% away to the poor. We now have 50% left. That is the easy part.

  • With the 50% left, Zacchaeus then promises to repay 4x the amount anyone was cheated by him. Leaving investments and other ways of growing money aside, we must divide the remaining 50% by 4 which leaves us with 12.5%.

The conclusion is that no greater than 12.5% of Zacchaeus’ money was gained through cheating – otherwise he would have bankrupted himself in this request. If Zacchaeus was exaggerating and over-promising in this declaration, I don’t believe Jesus would have responded positively. If Zacchaeus was bad at math, he probably wouldn’t have acquired/kept the money in the first place.

So what does this mean? Where was Zacchaeus spiritually before this encounter – since Jesus’ response implies that salvation was not a part of Zacchaeus’ life before that night?

What I came to realize after doing the math, and analyzing what happened, is that this event is less about the numbers, or even about the generosity, and more about the focus and the heart. The Zacchaeus event was not recorded as a statement that warrants all “rich” people must give away their money, or that all “rich” people obtained their riches dishonestly.

The Zacchaeus event was recorded because it amplifies a temptation we all face: Do we place accumulating (i.e. saving) ahead of giving when it comes to our resources?

Zacchaeus was an excellent saver and investor, but a horrible giver. When his heart changed, his focus changed, and salvation came to his house that very day.

When we let Jesus change our heart, and when we change our focus from what we can get to what we can give, salvation knocks at the door of our hearts as well. Zacchaeus is a model of where we are before Jesus and how our lives and focus change after encountering Him as our Savior.

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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Scared of Jesus: Mark 5:1-20

Published November 7, 2023 in Written Journal Entries
Focus Passage: Mark 5:1-20 (NIV)

1 They went across the lake to the region of the Gerasenes. 2 When Jesus got out of the boat, a man with an impure spirit came from the tombs to meet him. 3 This man lived in the tombs, and no one could bind him anymore, not even with a chain. 4 For he had often been chained hand and foot, but he tore the chains apart and broke the irons on his feet. No one was strong enough to subdue him. 5 Night and day among the tombs and in the hills he would cry out and cut himself with stones.

6 When he saw Jesus from a distance, he ran and fell on his knees in front of him. 7 He shouted at the top of his voice, “What do you want with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? In God’s name don’t torture me!” 8 For Jesus had said to him, “Come out of this man, you impure spirit!”

9 Then Jesus asked him, “What is your name?”

“My name is Legion,” he replied, “for we are many.” 10 And he begged Jesus again and again not to send them out of the area.

11 A large herd of pigs was feeding on the nearby hillside. 12 The demons begged Jesus, “Send us among the pigs; allow us to go into them.” 13 He gave them permission, and the impure spirits came out and went into the pigs. The herd, about two thousand in number, rushed down the steep bank into the lake and were drowned.

14 Those tending the pigs ran off and reported this in the town and countryside, and the people went out to see what had happened. 15 When they came to Jesus, they saw the man who had been possessed by the legion of demons, sitting there, dressed and in his right mind; and they were afraid. 16 Those who had seen it told the people what had happened to the demon-possessed man—and told about the pigs as well. 17 Then the people began to plead with Jesus to leave their region.

18 As Jesus was getting into the boat, the man who had been demon-possessed begged to go with him. 19 Jesus did not let him, but said, “Go home to your own people and tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and how he has had mercy on you.” 20 So the man went away and began to tell in the Decapolis how much Jesus had done for him. And all the people were amazed.

Read Mark 5:1-20 in context and/or in other translations on BibleGateway.com!

In one of the most impressive healings that we can find in the gospels, we also are left with a group of people (not the disciples) that are actually scared of Jesus. After Jesus has cast the legion of demons out of the man living among the tombs in the region of the Gerasenes, Mark tells us that the people living there were scared of Jesus.

In the healing, Jesus had permitted the request of these demons to enter a herd of pigs, and this in itself was an odd thing for Him to do. After the herd of pigs commits mass-suicide by stampeding off of a cliff, Mark tells us that “Those tending the pigs ran off and reported this in the town and countryside, and the people went out to see what had happened. When they came to Jesus, they saw the man who had been possessed by the legion of demons, sitting there, dressed and in his right mind; and they were afraid. Those who had seen it told the people what had happened to the demon-possessed man—and told about the pigs as well. Then the people began to plead with Jesus to leave their region.” (v. 14-17)

What strikes the people the most about the situation they encounter is not that their livestock had just been killed. I wonder if this had happened before. Maybe the demon-possessed man had done something that would have caused the death of earlier herds of pigs. It is not the loss of the pigs that scared the people – it was when the saw they formerly demon-possessed man sitting, dressed, and in his right mind.

Healing this man was something they likely had tried to do many times. Perhaps some of the chains they tried to bind the man with was to get him close to a priest to do a formal exorcism. But the demons were too strong, and none of their plans had worked.

After learning that Jesus was more powerful than the demons living in the man, that it was the demons who recognized this, and that Jesus had granted the demons’ request to enter the pigs instead, their fears were confirmed that Jesus was really more powerful than they had imagined. They were scared of Jesus and pleaded with Him to leave their region.

What could have been the launch of a whole region turning to Jesus was instead undermined by the fear of a group of shepherds and livestock owners. Perhaps this is why Jesus tells the man He had just healed to stay and share what God had done for Him. Maybe this man’s testimony could help shift the perception of those present about whether Jesus is safe.

The big thing this teaches me is that we should be willing to push past our fears to grow closer to Jesus. If being near Jesus scares us, we might want to look into why that is. Everything Jesus did in this event is kind and/or loving. While the pigs died, it was because He was kind to the demons. The demons chose to kill the pigs. In this event, Jesus elevates that value of every human life because that is the reason He came! Jesus came to give His life so that each of us can have a new life in Him. While that may be scary on one hand, it is empowering for those who are ready to join Him.

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!

Subscribe to this blog and never miss an insight.

Flashback Episode — Defending Jesus’ Arrest: Matthew 26:47-56

Published November 6, 2023 in Audio Journal Entries

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In our last episode, we looked at the details of Judas Iscariot deciding and agreeing to betray Jesus. For this episode, we’ll jump forward to the night Jesus was betrayed and arrested. While Matthew includes the stage being set for Jesus’ betrayal and the night Jesus was betrayed next to each other, it is likely that these two events were somewhere around a week apart.

Early on in the night Jesus was betrayed, Jesus shares the Passover meal with His disciples, and part way through this meal, Jesus identifies Judas Iscariot as the betrayer in front of everyone, and tells Judas that it is time for him to set out to do what he had been plotting. While the evening progresses from that point, Judas Iscariot is out collecting a mob of people loyal to the priests and religious leaders who will ultimately come to arrest Jesus.

The passage we will be focusing on in this episode is when Judas Iscariot arrives with the mob to arrest Jesus. Our passage is found in Matthew’s gospel, chapter 26, and we will read from the New Living Translation. Starting in verse 47, Matthew tells us:

47 And even as Jesus said this, Judas, one of the twelve disciples, arrived with a crowd of men armed with swords and clubs. They had been sent by the leading priests and elders of the people. 48 The traitor, Judas, had given them a prearranged signal: “You will know which one to arrest when I greet him with a kiss.” 49 So Judas came straight to Jesus. “Greetings, Rabbi!” he exclaimed and gave him the kiss.

50 Jesus said, “My friend, go ahead and do what you have come for.”

Then the others grabbed Jesus and arrested him. 51 But one of the men with Jesus pulled out his sword and struck the high priest’s slave, slashing off his ear.

52 “Put away your sword,” Jesus told him. “Those who use the sword will die by the sword. 53 Don’t you realize that I could ask my Father for thousands of angels to protect us, and he would send them instantly? 54 But if I did, how would the Scriptures be fulfilled that describe what must happen now?”

55 Then Jesus said to the crowd, “Am I some dangerous revolutionary, that you come with swords and clubs to arrest me? Why didn’t you arrest me in the Temple? I was there teaching every day. 56 But this is all happening to fulfill the words of the prophets as recorded in the Scriptures.” At that point, all the disciples deserted him and fled.

In this passage, we discover some amazing details that people who don’t understand what happened that night either ignore or simply don’t believe. While some people think that Jesus was surprised by this event, the only people who were surprised were the disciples who didn’t pay attention to Jesus’ words. If Jesus did not want to be arrested, He could have avoided this event in any number of ways.

Jesus didn’t have to go to a place where Judas would have easily known where to find Him. Jesus was perfectly aware of Judas being the betrayer, and the easiest way to avoid arrest would be to simply go somewhere where Judas would not have known where to find Him. But Jesus chose intentionally to go to a place where He could be found.

Also, when being confronted by the mob, one of the disciples, who other gospels identify as Peter, grabs a sword to defend their group. Jesus, steps in and stops the violence, saying that if He wanted to avoid or stop this arrest, He could simply ask and have thousands of angels immediately appear to defend them. It’s worth contrasting the detail that one angel appearing at the tomb to roll the stone away when Jesus is resurrected makes the hardened Roman soldiers tremble in fear and act like dead men. All Jesus would have needed to avoid being arrested is ask God for one angel to appear to defend them, and the mob would have fled in fear.

When reading the details of Jesus’ crucifixion, everything in each part of the event points us to the truth that Jesus chose the cross. The cross was not something that God the Father forced onto Jesus. The cross was not something Judas surprised Jesus with. Jesus knew the date and location of His death before Judas even knew He would be the betrayer.

Jesus chose the cross because that is what He had inspired the Old Testament writers to predict. Jesus chose the cross to show us God’s love for each of us as members of humanity. Jesus chose the cross to pay the debt we owed God for our sins when there was no way for us to pay this debt and stay alive.

There are those who don’t believe in God, in sin, or in their need for a Savior. Some of these people openly mock those who do believe this. However, one person’s belief or lack of belief doesn’t change reality. For those who believe in God, we see amazing evidence for His existence and we thank Him for what He has done for us. Those who reject a belief in God are left trying to connect the dots of how we are here with only human logic and human ideas. Without God, life has no ultimate purpose, no hope, and a doomed future.

I see more evidence in the world today supporting the existence of God. While evil seems to be growing in the world, and while people are becoming more polarized and hostile towards one another, God is not responsible for this.

Instead, God is giving His people a picture of what life without Him and His protection is like. If sin isn’t given the opportunity to show how truly evil it is, then there will be the chance it could return in God’s perfect new heaven and new earth. God loves us too much to give us eternity only to let it be tainted by sin, and He loves us too much to force us to obey Him.

God’s character is on trial in the world today. From our perspective, it might look to some as though God has abandoned us. However, God is willing to walk with us through the sin, through the challenges, and through all the evil in this world so we can be together with Him for eternity.

God’s character is on trial. God must punish sin in order to remain just. However, instead of punishing those who are guilty, Jesus volunteered to take our place and to take the punishment we deserved onto Himself. While there are plenty of details in this gift that we don’t understand at this point in earth’s history, the big thing to know and remember is that through Jesus, we are offered a free gift, and this gift is Jesus’ perfect life in exchange for our own.

Jesus chose the cross for you and me, and He willingly faced death knowing that through His death, the way would be opened for us to live with God for eternity.

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 decide to accept Jesus’ gift of His life in exchange for yours. Choose to live a life that is allied to God as a way of saying thank You to Jesus for a gift we could never repay. Thank Jesus for choosing the cross when there were countless ways He could have chosen to avoid it.

Also, pray and study the Bible for yourself to learn what God wants to teach you personally through His Word. While a pastor or podcaster can share ideas with you, only through praying, reading, and studying the Bible personally will you be able to discover God’s truth for yourself. Always choose God’s truth over man-made traditions.

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!

Flashback Episode: Year in Matthew – Episode 45: When Judas Iscariot arrives with the mob to arrest Jesus, you may be surprised to discover who steps in to defend the arrest, and what this defense means for you and me living over 2,000 years later!