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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Giving Light to Our World: John 8:12-20

Published December 8, 2020 in Written Journal Entries
Focus Passage: John 8:12-20 (NCV)

12 Later, Jesus talked to the people again, saying, “I am the light of the world. The person who follows me will never live in darkness but will have the light that gives life.”

13 The Pharisees said to Jesus, “When you talk about yourself, you are the only one to say these things are true. We cannot accept what you say.”

14 Jesus answered, “Yes, I am saying these things about myself, but they are true. I know where I came from and where I am going. But you don’t know where I came from or where I am going. 15 You judge by human standards. I am not judging anyone. 16 But when I do judge, I judge truthfully, because I am not alone. The Father who sent me is with me. 17 Your own law says that when two witnesses say the same thing, you must accept what they say. 18 I am one of the witnesses who speaks about myself, and the Father who sent me is the other witness.”

19 They asked, “Where is your father?”

   Jesus answered, “You don’t know me or my Father. If you knew me, you would know my Father, too.” 20 Jesus said these things while he was teaching in the Temple, near where the money is kept. But no one arrested him, because the right time for him had not yet come.

Read John 8:12-20 in context and/or in other translations on BibleGateway.com!

Part way through Jesus’ ministry, Jesus shared a brief glimpse of His mission with a group of people present with Him. In what Jesus shares, we can learn what Jesus came to do and what He didn’t come to do – which happened to be different from what the religious leaders in that culture believed Jesus was doing.

To set the stage, John’s gospel describes Jesus opening by saying, “I am the light of the world. The person who follows me will never live in darkness but will have the light that gives life.” (v. 12)

While the Pharisees didn’t like the claims Jesus makes in this verse, what Jesus describes here is pretty powerful when we stop to think about it.

The first phrase Jesus says is simply, “I am the light of the world.” While Jesus’ statement is up for debate depending on who you talk to, this phrase is how Jesus describes Himself – which is important. While people throughout that culture had different views of Jesus, when we read this, we see how Jesus preferred to be seen.

To follow this phrase up, Jesus tells those present that “The person who follows me will never live in darkness but will have the light that gives life.” Part of me wonders what Jesus means when He says this. Does following Jesus literally mean that we will never experience dark points in our lives from this point forward?

Answering this question is tricky because there are plenty of cases in all our lives we could call dark or low points. However, I wonder if Jesus spoke this promise to help frame the people who follow Him always having something to look for and forward to. As followers of Jesus, we can always be looking for the ways He is moving in the world today, and we can always look forward to the promise of the second coming and heaven in our future.

Jesus gives light to our world because He came to show us a loving picture of God. By following Jesus and obeying His teachings, we are able to see God through new eyes and we see light where others see darkness – we see hope when others can only see despair.

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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Flashback Episode — Forgiving Others with the Holy Spirit: John 20:19-23

Published December 7, 2020 in Audio Journal Entries

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As the gospel writers conclude the story of Jesus’ life following the resurrection, the gospel of John includes a fascinating description of Jesus when He appears to the remaining disciples the evening after His resurrection.

While the most notable portion of this passage comes immediately after what we are focusing in on, which is when John tells us that Thomas was not with the group of disciples when Jesus first appeared, when we jump forward and focus on that detail, we miss out on what John tells us about this first visit.

Let’s read what happened the first time Jesus appeared to the disciples, this time without Thomas present. Our passage is found in John’s gospel, chapter 20, and we will be reading from the Good News Translation. Starting in verse 19, John tells us that:

19 It was late that Sunday evening, and the disciples were gathered together behind locked doors, because they were afraid of the Jewish authorities. Then Jesus came and stood among them. “Peace be with you,” he said. 20 After saying this, he showed them his hands and his side. The disciples were filled with joy at seeing the Lord. 21 Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father sent me, so I send you.” 22 Then he breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit. 23 If you forgive people’s sins, they are forgiven; if you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven.”

While I don’t know if Jesus disappeared immediately after this last statement, I find it fascinating that John sets the stage by telling us why the disciples were together. The disciples had locked themselves in a secret space because they were afraid of the Jewish authorities. Thomas might have been out getting something for the group when Jesus appeared, or Thomas might have thought it would be better to be out alone and not with the group if the Jews found their hiding place, but whatever the reason, Thomas wasn’t with the disciples.

John does not tell us the disciples were huddled together, praying, and seeking guidance on how to move forward launching the Christian movement. John tells us the disciples were huddled together because they were scared of the Jewish authorities. They might have even been planning how they would leave the city and return to Galilee where many of them were from.

But Jesus appeared to them and confirmed the rumors that He had risen from the dead. Jesus showed them His hands and His side. This detail matters because the new “perfect” body God had in mind for Jesus was not free from defects. Instead, Jesus’ resurrected body carries the scars of His sacrifice.

This might also imply that our new, resurrected bodies, while they will be perfect in every way that matters, may also carry with them evidence of our lives here on earth. I believe that in heaven, we will be as unique and varied as we are here on earth, except that we will all be perfect and focused on helping each other. Here in our sin-filled world, our temptation is to always be looking out for ourselves first, but I doubt that will be a characteristic that carries over into heaven.

After showing the disciples His scarred hands and His side, He commissions them to go. While John’s version of Jesus’ commission isn’t as glamorous or famous as Matthew’s version, it is no less significant. John’s version might even be more significant because of what Jesus does immediately following this challenge.

In verse 22, immediately after challenging the disciples to go, Jesus breathes on them and tells them to “Receive the Holy Spirit.” This sounds great, and it is something the disciples would ultimately receive a little over a month later, but Jesus didn’t stop there. Jesus continues in verse 23 by saying, “If you forgive people’s sins, they are forgiven; if you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven”.

This statement challenges me because it appears to place people between sinners and God. When each of us sins, Jesus has freed us to personally ask for forgiveness. Jesus pushed back at the idea that a person or group of people would be the gatekeepers between God and man. While the Jews were called to fulfill this ideal, they failed to recognize what God had set them apart for, and because of this, the New Covenant was extended to all people.

So then what does Jesus mean when He seems to give the disciples the power to forgive sins? Are the disciples the new gatekeepers?

I don’t believe this to be the case. Instead, I see Jesus giving His followers the ability to release others from the fear of condemnation because of their past sins. Jesus isn’t interested in the disciples withholding forgiveness from anyone, because that doesn’t reflect Jesus’ sacrifice. Instead, I see Jesus commissioning the disciples with the ability to encourage others that their sins have been forgiven.

We can explain this idea by describing someone coming to us who has messed up and sinned, and they are worried that they have messed up too many times for God to forgive them. Will we tell them that they are probably right, and that God cannot forgive them; or will we claim the promise that Jesus tells the disciples in John’s gospel and assure them that their sins have been forgiven. I personally would seek to encourage them, and I’m pretty sure you would too.

When the Holy Spirit is living in our hearts and our lives, we have the authority to forgive someone’s sins. This isn’t something that should make us prideful or arrogant. Instead, this is one of the highest callings a Christian can have, and we are called to forgive responsibly, and in a way that encourages others in their relationship with God.

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

Always be sure to seek God first and to place Him first in your life. Intentionally look for ways you can encourage others in their walk with God and when you see someone struggling spiritually, feel free and empowered to let them know that God loves them and that they are forgiven of their sins!

Also, be sure to always pray and study the Bible for yourself to grow your own relationship with God. A personal relationship with God is incredibly important, and when we dedicate time that we can spend with Him each day, we are more able to walk the path He has called us to.

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

Flashback Episode: Year 4 – Episode 49: While we often focus on a different gospel’s great commission, the gospel of John includes a commission Jesus gives His followers, and this commission might be one of the most important ones Jesus shared.

Praying Together with Jesus: Matthew 18:15-35

Published December 4, 2020 in Written Journal Entries
Focus Passage: Matthew 18:15-35 (NCV)

    15 “If your fellow believer sins against you, go and tell him in private what he did wrong. If he listens to you, you have helped that person to be your brother or sister again. 16 But if he refuses to listen, go to him again and take one or two other people with you. ‘Every case may be proved by two or three witnesses.’ 17 If he refuses to listen to them, tell the church. If he refuses to listen to the church, then treat him like a person who does not believe in God or like a tax collector.

    18 “I tell you the truth, the things you don’t allow on earth will be the things God does not allow. And the things you allow on earth will be the things that God allows.

    19 “Also, I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about something and pray for it, it will be done for you by my Father in heaven. 20 This is true because if two or three people come together in my name, I am there with them.”

    21 Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, when my fellow believer sins against me, how many times must I forgive him? Should I forgive him as many as seven times?”

    22 Jesus answered, “I tell you, you must forgive him more than seven times. You must forgive him even if he wrongs you seventy times seven.

    23 “The kingdom of heaven is like a king who decided to collect the money his servants owed him. 24 When the king began to collect his money, a servant who owed him several million dollars was brought to him. 25 But the servant did not have enough money to pay his master, the king. So the master ordered that everything the servant owned should be sold, even the servant’s wife and children. Then the money would be used to pay the king what the servant owed.

    26 “But the servant fell on his knees and begged, ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay you everything I owe.’ 27 The master felt sorry for his servant and told him he did not have to pay it back. Then he let the servant go free.

    28 “Later, that same servant found another servant who owed him a few dollars. The servant grabbed him around the neck and said, ‘Pay me the money you owe me!’

    29 “The other servant fell on his knees and begged him, ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay you everything I owe.’

    30 “But the first servant refused to be patient. He threw the other servant into prison until he could pay everything he owed. 31 When the other servants saw what had happened, they were very sorry. So they went and told their master all that had happened.

    32 “Then the master called his servant in and said, ‘You evil servant! Because you begged me to forget what you owed, I told you that you did not have to pay anything. 33 You should have showed mercy to that other servant, just as I showed mercy to you.’ 34 The master was very angry and put the servant in prison to be punished until he could pay everything he owed.

    35 “This king did what my heavenly Father will do to you if you do not forgive your brother or sister from your heart.”

Read Matthew 18:15-35 in context and/or in other translations on BibleGateway.com!

While Jesus was teaching the disciples about prayer, forgiveness, and conflict resolution, He shares a powerful promise that relates directly to prayer. However, I believe this promise has been pulled out of context in many situations, and because of this, it might appear as though God does not answer us as quickly. But when we claim the promise Jesus shares with the disciples in our prayer experience, there is no telling how many answers we will discover.

Matthew’s gospel shares Jesus’ promise to His followers: “Also, I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about something and pray for it, it will be done for you by my Father in heaven. This is true because if two or three people come together in my name, I am there with them.” (v. 19-20)

These two verses contain what might appear like a blank check from God. Jesus’ promise sounds like all we must do is find one other person who agrees with us that something must happen, and then pray with them for God to step into the situation in a specific way. But in many cases I can think of, it seems as though all the steps have been followed and an answer does not come – and it may be because we are missing the context and details of this promise.

  1. First, verse 19 begins with the word “Also”. This means that the message/promise Jesus is about to share hinges on what He had just finished saying. Jesus’ earlier statement focuses on God letting His followers determine where they will stand in what we could call “the gray areas of faith”.

    This detail is important because it is unlikely that a prayer going to God that contradicts His character or plan will be answered according to our wishes. But this does mean that in the gray areas of His plan and history, our prayers will make a huge difference in directing God and inviting Him into the situations we have on our hearts.

  2. Next, within these two verses is the secondary promise that if two or three (or more) people come together in Jesus’ name, Jesus will be there with them. The second big detail to remember is that the purpose of the group we form to pray must be unified under Jesus’ name, and we should invite Jesus to pray with us (however odd this might sound). If Jesus says He is with us when we gather together in His name, perhaps we should invite Him to pray with us.

  3. The third detail for us to pay attention to is the focus and context of the verses that immediately follow this. While it might appear like this is a transition in Matthew’s narrative where he finishes one event and then begins another, what follows next is Peter asking Jesus about forgiveness, and even if this is a completely separate event, Matthew intentionally places it right next to Jesus’ promise to be with us when we gather in His name.

    This third detail is important because if we are holding pain in our hearts with an unforgiving spirit, then our hearts are closed off to God and it may keep our prayers from being heard or answered. God wants our hearts above everything else, and forgiveness is the key to freeing our hearts in preparation for our gift to Him.

Together, these details form the best context we can for claiming Jesus’ promise. We must be asking for things within God’s will and plan – and/or within that gray area of faith; we must be united with Jesus while praying together; and we must have a forgiving heart and a humble spirit when we pray together. When we have done all these things, we can pray together in confidence that God will answer our prayers – even if His answer is “wait and see” or “no, but here is something better for you.”

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.

When We Have Given Up: John 21:1-14

Published December 3, 2020 in Audio Journal Entries

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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!

Year of Miracles – Episode 49: After the crucifixion and resurrection, Jesus appears to a group of disciples with a miracle that resembles a miracle leading up to their first invitation to be disciples. Is Jesus giving these disciples a second chance, and if so, do we have a second chance when we have failed or given up hope?

Join the discussion. Share your thoughts on this passage.