Reflective Bible Study

On the morning He was crucified, after all the trials and sentencing, Jesus is led away to Calvary carrying His cross. On this trip to the hill where He would die, the gospel of Luke records an interesting prediction Jesus makes to some of those who were following the procession out of the city. While most people focus in on the first verse of our passage, the verses that follow are probably more significant for us living today.

Our passage is found in the gospel of Luke, chapter 23, and we will be reading from the New Century Version of the Bible. Starting in verse 26, Luke tells us that:

²⁶ As they led Jesus away, Simon, a man from Cyrene, was coming in from the fields. They forced him to carry Jesus’ cross and to walk behind him.

Pausing briefly, this part of our passage would be very tempting to focus in on. After all, Simon was probably one of the only people who got to experience the shame of carrying a cross without the death that followed. Simon is someone who was both at the worst place at the worst time, or perhaps the best place at the worst time. If it wasn’t for his presence here, he would be an unknown person in the Biblical record.

However, what comes next in Luke’s gospel is fascinating. Continuing in verse 27, Luke tells us that:

²⁷ A large crowd of people was following Jesus, including some women who were sad and crying for him. ²⁸ But Jesus turned and said to them, “Women of Jerusalem, don’t cry for me. Cry for yourselves and for your children. ²⁹ The time is coming when people will say, ‘Blessed are the women who cannot have children and who have no babies to nurse.’ ³⁰ Then people will say to the mountains, ‘Fall on us!’ And they will say to the hills, ‘Cover us!’ ³¹ If they act like this now when life is good, what will happen when bad times come?”

In this passage, we see Jesus predicting worse circumstances in the future when He sees people crying for what was taking place and happening to Him. On one level, this speaks to the amazing compassion Jesus had. While facing some of the worst pain and ridicule imaginable, we see Jesus focusing on others. While what Jesus says isn’t all that comforting when we look at the message, He clearly shifts the focus away from wanting or needing pity.

However, with that said, another level we can see Jesus drawing our attention to in this passage is that excessively focusing on or dwelling on what He went through isn’t productive in the long-term – especially if our focusing on this event causes us to feel sad for Jesus. We shouldn’t be sad that Jesus faced the cross; we should be glad.

While the temptation is present to believe Jesus died too young or too soon, the truth is that Jesus’ death is the only way any of us can hope to experience a life beyond the one we are currently in. When God gave up His life for us, we are able to accept the life He offers in exchange for the one we messed up. This is what Jesus accomplished. We shouldn’t feel sad that Jesus died. Instead, we should feel eternally grateful for what His death accomplished!

Looking at what Jesus describes in His message, we see a prediction of a time when people will look to those who cannot give birth and consider them blessed. I don’t know if a time like this has happened yet, or if Jesus’ prediction is still to be fulfilled, however, what He describes next makes me think Jesus is describing something that will happen immediately prior to His second coming.

When people call out for the mountains to fall on them and the hills to cover them, this sounds like the wicked people of the world realizing they picked the wrong side when Jesus returns as King. Part of me wonders if leading up to this point in history will be a point where humanity loses the ability to reproduce.

I will be the first to say that this is pure speculation. I have no idea what the final months, weeks, or days will be like leading up to Jesus’ return. However, what I do know is that Jesus’ return will catch the wicked people off guard, while being a welcome relief for God’s people.

Jesus closes with an interesting statement. In verse 31, He says, “If they act like this now when life is good, what will happen when bad times come?” Many translations describe this as a green tree verses a dry tree. The New International Version of the Bible describes Jesus’ words as, “For if people do these things when the tree is green, what will happen when it is dry?”

The big challenge I see in Jesus’ closing words is that when times are good and people are ridiculing, abusing, and rejecting Jesus and His followers, how much worse it will be when times in the world are not good. Hinted at here is that prior to Jesus’ return, there will be a time when the world rapidly declines – and when this decline happens, God’s people will be blamed for it.

While I don’t know what will happen, how bad things will get, or how severe the hostility towards God’s people will ultimately be, we can be certain that how they rejected Jesus when times were going good will be nothing when compared to how they will treat His followers when things are bad.

However, as a follower of Jesus, I know that regardless of what happens immediately before His return and how rejected I may be among others, my reward is in heaven and I’d rather focus on the life that is to come without sin than trying to salvage a life that has been messed up by sin.

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

Be sure to always seek God first in your life. Regardless of what happens in this life, remember that Jesus will return triumphant, and His return will signal the end of sin. Remember that Heaven is the reward for God’s people, and that nothing in this life is worth risking our future life and our future reward.

Also, always be sure to pray and study the Bible for yourself because these are the two best ways to grow your relationship with God while also keeping your focus on heaven.

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 let Satan trick you out of where God wants to lead you to in your life with Him!

As we near the end of our year podcasting through the miracles Jesus did in the gospels, most lists of miracles only have one miracle left, specifically a miracle that John’s gospel includes that happens after Jesus’ crucifixion and resurrection. However, if we held real closely to the standard list of miracles, we’d miss some amazing miracles that are not often thought of as miracles.

The first of these amazing events comes to us in Matthew’s gospel as Jesus takes His last breath. While the idea of God becoming human, and God as a human actually dying is miraculous in itself, what happens when Jesus gives up His life is nothing short of miraculous.

Let’s read about what happened, and about what we can learn from the moment Jesus gave up His life. Our passage is found in the gospel of Matthew, chapter 27, and we will read it from the God’s Word translation. Starting in verse 45, Matthew tells us that:

⁴⁵ At noon darkness came over the whole land until three in the afternoon. ⁴⁶ About three o’clock Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” which means, “My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?” ⁴⁷ When some of the people standing there heard him say that, they said, “He’s calling Elijah.” ⁴⁸ One of the men ran at once, took a sponge, and soaked it in some vinegar. Then he put it on a stick and offered Jesus a drink. ⁴⁹ The others said, “Leave him alone! Let’s see if Elijah comes to save him.”

⁵⁰ Then Jesus loudly cried out once again and gave up his life.

⁵¹ Suddenly, the curtain in the temple was split in two from top to bottom. The earth shook, and the rocks were split open. ⁵² The tombs were opened, and the bodies of many holy people who had died came back to life. ⁵³ They came out of the tombs after he had come back to life, and they went into the holy city where they appeared to many people.

In this passage, at the moment Jesus cried out and gave up His life, the curtain in the temple was split in two from top to bottom, and there was a massive earthquake that split open graves. These things are miraculous, but Matthew then describes the bodies of many holy people returning to life. While it isn’t clear if they were resurrected at the moment Jesus gave up His life or at the moment when Jesus returned to life, there is no denying that those present in the first century would have this date fixed in their minds.

Matthew’s gospel leading up to Jesus’ death isn’t as descriptive as some of the other gospels. Luke’s gospel described how Jesus has a conversation and promise for one of the criminals hanging next to Him. John’s gospel includes details surrounding Jesus connecting His mother with John the disciple. However, Matthew’s gospel includes a powerful theme related to who Jesus is that none of the other gospel writers included here at Jesus’ death.

When we look at what happened on the cross, we see the life of a Life-Giver. When we look at Jesus, we see how His death brings resurrection. Jesus’ death is a source of life. Through the cross, Jesus gives life.

Jesus is the ultimate Life Giver.

Through the Godhead, we have been blessed with this thing called life. We have breath in our lungs because God gave it to us. While some people believe all this happened through random chance, no amount of random chance could result in what we have today. We are alive today because of God, and whether you believe God is simply responsible for starting this thing called life, or whether you believe He is instrumental in every life that is created, God gives life. Because God gives life and because Jesus is a member of the Godhead, there is a strong case that Jesus is responsible for our current life on this earth. As a member of the Godhead, Jesus the Life-Giver gives us our first life.

But Jesus didn’t stop giving. When the first life was messed up with sin, Jesus stepped into our history. Jesus gave up His life in heaven to come to earth as a human. Jesus could have easily recommended that humanity should be abandoned, but that choice is not within God’s character to make. Jesus, the Life-Giver, gave up His heavenly life because He wanted us to know what God truly is like.

However, even after giving up His heavenly life, Jesus didn’t stop giving. In this passage, Jesus continues giving by giving up His life for you and for me. Jesus gave up His life on the cross for us. Because Jesus loved us so much, and because He knew what the consequences of sin are, He chose to come to take the penalty we deserve to give us the opportunity of the reward He deserved. Through the cross, the Life-Giver gives us a second chance because He gave His life for us.

At His death, Jesus the Life-Giver’s death rippled through the earth and supernaturally returned the lives of holy people who had died nearby. We don’t know who, how many, or really anything beyond what Matthew shares with us here, but we cannot escape the amazing theme that Jesus the Life-Giver’s death brings His people new life. As followers of Jesus, we not only have a new life in our current situation, but we also have the promise of a perfect, eternal life when Jesus returns.

With this promise, we look forward to heaven, and with whatever happens between now and then, we can trust that with Jesus, our lives will be saved for eternity!

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

As always, be sure to intentionally seek God first and place your faith, hope, trust, and belief in Jesus and what He accomplished for us on the cross. Jesus is the Giver of life and because Jesus is so focused on giving, we would be wise to accept the gifts that He offers to us. One great way of saying thank you to God is by accepting the gifts that He offers to us.

Also, always pray and study the Bible for yourself to learn and grow closer to Jesus. While a pastor, speaker, author, or podcaster can give you ideas to think about, never let someone get between you and God. God has made a way for us to come to Him, and because of what Jesus accomplished on the cross, we are invited to come before God with our questions and requests directly. Don’t let anyone get between you and God.

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

While none of the 12 disciples grasped Jesus’ statements regarding His upcoming betrayal and crucifixion, one in particular was completely blinded by his preconceived ideas about Jesus that he didn’t realize his role in the process until it was too late. Judas Iscariot, the disciple who had determined to betray Jesus, had seen Jesus outwit and out maneuver the religious leaders more times than he likely could count, and because of this, I imagine Judas believed Jesus would do it again.

However, the only way this belief works is if Judas simply ignored all of Jesus’ statements about His upcoming death while they were headed towards Jerusalem. Even the gift of perfume, which had sparked Judas’ anger when Jesus challenged him on it, was attributed to anointing Jesus for burial. There were so many warnings, signs, and predictions Judas simply discounted or ignored, that when he realized what happened, and what he had done, it was too late.

Matthew’s gospel describes Judas’ response when realizing his mistake. Let’s read this passage together and discover what happened, what Judas tried to do, and what we can learn about the religious leaders at this point of the first century. Our passage is found in the gospel of Matthew, chapter 27, and we will be reading it from the God’s Word translation. Starting in verse 1, Matthew tells us that:

¹ Early in the morning all the chief priests and the leaders of the people decided to execute Jesus. ² They tied him up, led him away, and handed him over to Pilate, the governor.

³ Then Judas, who had betrayed Jesus, regretted what had happened when he saw that Jesus was condemned. He brought the 30 silver coins back to the chief priests and leaders. ⁴ He said, “I’ve sinned by betraying an innocent man.”

They replied, “What do we care? That’s your problem.”

⁵ So he threw the money into the temple, went away, and hanged himself.

⁶ The chief priests took the money and said, “It’s not right to put it into the temple treasury, because it’s blood money.” ⁷ So they decided to use it to buy a potter’s field for the burial of strangers. ⁸ That’s why that field has been called the Field of Blood ever since. ⁹ Then what the prophet Jeremiah had said came true, “They took the 30 silver coins, the price the people of Israel had placed on him, ¹⁰ and used the coins to buy a potter’s field, as the Lord had directed me.”

All throughout this passage, we see prophecy being fulfilled. Whether all the parties involved realized they were fulfilling prophecy at the time is debatable, but at least in the case of the religious leaders, they would have been the ones who clearly should have seen it. The religious leaders set the price of 30 silver coins, and the religious leaders purchased a potter’s field with the money. All of this was written hundreds of years before Jesus walked the earth.

Perhaps the religious leaders didn’t care if they fulfilled some prophecy because they believed Jesus didn’t fulfill all the prophecies. In their minds, 90% of prophecies wasn’t good enough. Only 100% of their interpretation would do. What they didn’t realize is that Jesus didn’t come to fulfill 100% of their interpretation of the Old Testament prophecies. Instead, Jesus came to fulfill the prophecies about the Messiah’s first appearance, and some of the Old Testament prophecies would remain reserved for future fulfillment – specifically when Jesus returns as King.

However, this isn’t the only big thing we see when looking at this passage. It is also interesting that while Judas Iscariot realized the error of his ways, the religious leaders remain completely blinded of their own faults – except that they acknowledge that Judas did in fact betray innocent blood.

Judas returned the money, perhaps hoping that it would free Jesus. Judas acknowledged that he sinned. He confessed to the religious leaders his mistake. If the religious leaders had been living according to God’s will for their position, they might have had sympathy or a more loving response for someone who appeared to be repentant who was asking for forgiveness.

However, the religious leaders respond by saying in verse 4, “What do we care? That’s your problem.”

Judas threw the money back at them, before leaving and committing suicide. This is where the religious leaders are blind on multiple levels. While they don’t acknowledge or care that they use the money to buy a potter’s field to bury strangers in, which had been predicted, they do acknowledge the money was tainted and it shouldn’t be put into the temple treasury. By acknowledging that the money was not clean, the religious leaders incriminate themselves because they were the ones who made the money dirty in the first place by using it to pay for an innocent Man’s betrayal.

Also, the religious leaders ignore the detail that the money likely came out of the temple treasury when they gave it to Judas. Even if the group of religious leaders all contributed a little of their personal wealth, that wealth was probably paid for by the temple treasury, or at least from the offerings of the people. Because of this, we can logically conclude that Jesus’ betrayal was paid for with God’s money.

However, the money not only financed Jesus’ betrayal, but also the purchase of a field to bury strangers who had died. This is fascinating in my mind because in a very subtle way, the two ways the religious leaders use these 30 pieces of silver speak to their ignorance of who Jesus was. The religious leaders use God’s money in preparation for killing Someone they don’t truly know, and they pay for a field to bury those who have died that they don’t really know.

If the religious leaders believed Jesus to have been God’s Messiah, they wouldn’t have betrayed or rejected Him, but they chose to reject Jesus because He didn’t fit their view of God. In a similar way, we should be wary of creating our own picture of who God is.

The religious leaders had a picture of God and of His Messiah that they viewed the world through, and it caused them to miss the true Messiah when Jesus actually came. They missed out because Jesus didn’t fit their picture. If we create a picture of God that we then expect Him to fit Himself into, we will also likely be disappointed if/when He decides to do something contrary to our beliefs or ideas.

Instead, we should intentionally focus on God with an open mind, and let Him lead us on the path He wants us to follow, and if—or when—something happens that we don’t understand, we reserve judgment until we are able to ask God in person when we reach heaven. When we reach heaven, we will better be able to understand what happened in our own lives, and we will be able to get clearer answers for the questions that seemed unanswered in this life.

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

Always intentionally seek God first and put Jesus first in your life. Avoid making a picture, box, or framework that you expect God to fit into, because He is bigger than our thoughts can imagine, and He has a much bigger perspective than we are capable of understanding.

Also, be sure to always pray and study the Bible for yourself in order to grow your own personal relationship with God. While listening to a pastor or a podcast can be helpful, if you aren’t personally reading the Bible regularly, you are missing out on the relationship with God that He wants you to have with Him. Personal study leads to a personal relationship.

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 give up on where God wants to lead you to in your life with Him!