Flashback Episode — Saved Till the End: Mark 13:14-23


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As we continue moving through the week leading up to Jesus’ crucifixion, we come to a portion of a larger teaching Jesus shares regarding the end times. While I will be the first to say that what Jesus has predicted may have already happened, I will also be among the first to say that what Jesus describes might still be something we should pay attention and watch for.

Some people might discount this passage as less relevant believing it has already been fulfilled, but personally, I am less certain and hold to a belief that some prophecies may be circular, and they may repeat at certain points of history.

Let’s read this passage and then talk for a few minutes about how this passage may still be applicable for our lives today. Our passage is found in the gospel of Mark, chapter 13, and we will be reading it from the God’s Word translation. Jumping into Jesus’ teaching at verse 14, He continues by saying:

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

Let’s pause reading here to draw our attention onto a phrase Jesus uses in the first part of this passage. This passage opens with Jesus using a phrase to describe this event from the prophetic writings of Daniel. There is lots of speculation over what Jesus calls the “the disgusting thing that will cause destruction” or the “abomination of desolation” which is how this phrase is translated in more classic translations. The impression we learn from how the gospel writers describe this is it is something that we should make note of and pay attention to.

There are three primary viewpoints regarding this phrase. Some people believe it was fulfilled shortly after Daniel’s lifetime when one of the Greek emperors captured Jerusalem and set up an idol to the god Zeus and sacrificed a pig on the altar. Others, believe this prophecy was fulfilled in AD 70 when Jerusalem was captured by the Romans after a Jewish revolt. A similar event occurred where the Romans laid waste to the temple and tried to install an idol on the place where the temple was.

Still another group of people believe this phrase relates to something that hasn’t happened yet. For these people, we still should pay attention and be on the lookout for something like this to happen.

Is it possible for more than one of these interpretations to be correct? Let’s look at what this passage says after this phrase. Reading again from verse 14, Jesus tells us:

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

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

Pausing reading again, we see an indicator that this is a one-time prophecy. Jesus describes this as “a time of misery that has not happened from the beginning of God’s creation until now, and will certainly never happen again”. While I don’t want to diminish anything we see in history, I picture what Jesus describes in this passage as being something that would clearly be visible within the pages of history. While this could be a description of the early church being persecuted by the Romans, the Romans only affected a small portion of the world. I wonder if the time of misery described here will be of a much larger, perhaps even a worldwide, scale.

The conclusion Jesus describes is clear. Verse 20 tells us that “If the Lord does not reduce that time, no one will be saved. But those days will be reduced because of those whom God has chosen.

However, Jesus isn’t finished describing the end. After God has reduced the time of misery for the benefit of His people, Jesus tells us in verse 21:

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

To conclude the portion of this passage we are focusing in on, Jesus describes how we should be on guard for false prophets and false messiahs appearing. Jesus describes a time when we should not believe anyone who tells us that the Messiah has returned and he is somewhere specific. The return of Jesus is something that will be so clear, distinct, and traumatic that it likely will end the world as we know it. Anyone claiming to be God’s messiah with any less significant of an entrance we could call a false messiah.

Jesus also tells us that the false prophets and false messiahs will work miraculous signs and do wonderful things in order to deceive. While I won’t speculate on what these things are, one test that is easy to use is simply asking if the miracle or sign points people back to the Jesus of the Bible. If not, it is not from God. God has told us that He will glorify Jesus, and anything that takes our focus off of the Jesus described in the gospels we are told is the work of the antichrist.

However, with all the talk of the end-times and times of misery, we can know that God is still in control. Just like He cuts the time of misery short because He can, He will be with His people and He will protect His people. While God’s protection might not mean all of His people will be spared from death, it does mean that God’s people are protected and saved for the future new heaven and new earth when sin has been destroyed.

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 and keep your focus on the Jesus of the Bible. It is by keeping our eyes focused on Him that will keep us safe when trouble, trials, and challenges come into our lives.

Also, be sure to always pray and study the Bible for yourself because while a pastor or podcaster can share good ideas, it is always best to stay connected to the Source – and for us living today, the Source is God’s Holy Spirit that we can have through prayer and studying His word.

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 4 – Episode 40: Discover a phrase Jesus borrows from the prophet Daniel, and how we can be ready for the end-time when it comes!

Praising God through Jesus: Luke 17:11-19


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As we move through the miracles in the gospels, we come to the point in Jesus’ miracles where He makes His way towards Jerusalem leading up to the crucifixion. Early on in this trip, we come to an event that is interesting, because in it, those present are healed without Jesus’ presence and after they begin following Jesus’ instructions.

However, one of those present in the group risks everything because he chooses to deviate from Jesus’ instructions in order to do something he feels is more important than finishing the task Jesus had sent him on.

Let’s read about what happened, and discover some things we can apply in our own life from what took place. Our passage is found in the gospel of Luke, chapter 17, and we will be reading it from the New American Standard Bible. Starting in verse 11, Luke tells us that:

11 While He was on the way to Jerusalem, He was passing between Samaria and Galilee. 12 As He entered a village, ten leprous men who stood at a distance met Him; 13 and they raised their voices, saying, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!” 14 When He saw them, He said to them, “Go and show yourselves to the priests.” And as they were going, they were cleansed. 15 Now one of them, when he saw that he had been healed, turned back, glorifying God with a loud voice, 16 and he fell on his face at His feet, giving thanks to Him. And he was a Samaritan. 17 Then Jesus answered and said, “Were there not ten cleansed? But the nine—where are they? 18 Was no one found who returned to give glory to God, except this foreigner?” 19 And He said to him, “Stand up and go; your faith has made you well.”

I am always a little surprised in this event. The implication in what is written is that the other nine former lepers were not thankful, but that is unlikely the case. I’m sure that all ten men were overjoyed at the realization that they were healed. While Luke’s gospel condenses this event to help us see the overall picture, I am a little curious how much time passed between the men being sent by Jesus to Jerusalem, and when the one man ultimately arrived back to thank Jesus.

This could have been hours later, or even days. When I look at a map of New Testament Israel, it is likely that these lepers had to travel about 50 miles on foot from where Jesus met them to ultimately reach Jerusalem. This would have then been at least a two-day journey. I suspect that this Samaritan arrived back to thank Jesus maybe a few hours later. Because while the group hurried towards Jerusalem, I’m pretty sure the Samaritan ran back to find Jesus.

We don’t know if the other lepers ever made it back to thank Jesus. It is possible that they did. It is also possible that they didn’t turn back because they were fearful that any deviation from Jesus’ command to go to show themselves to the priests in Jerusalem would result in the leprosy returning. This Samaritan risked losing his healing in order to thank Jesus.

Another unknown in this event is if the Samaritan then went to finish the mission of seeing a priest. We don’t have any indication of this in the scriptures, but part of me thinks that he did because that would be a smart, safe thing to do, not just because Jesus had told him to do so, but also because the priests were the official gatekeepers who declared the diseased people healed and able to return to society.

In this event, we discover that there is never a bad time to pause and give thanks to God for what He has done for us. While driving might come close to a bad time if it causes us to pay less attention to the road, nothing in giving thanks to God says it has to involve closed eyes or even take more than a few words. This event, and specifically Jesus’ response, highlights the importance of giving thanks for what God has done for us.

However, it is also interesting that when we read this event, the Samaritan returns to Jesus, “glorifying God with a loud voice”. In Jesus’ reply, we see where Jesus focused as well, because Jesus asked the question “Was no one found who returned to give glory to God, except this foreigner?

This distinction is significant in my mind. While the former leper thanks Jesus personally, he is much more interested in giving God the glory and credit for the miracle. While Jesus attributes the healing to the man’s faith, from the man’s praise, we see that his faith was in God and in God blessing Jesus’ ministry.

The other nine former lepers may have ultimately been thankful, but they might have simply attributed their thanks to Jesus and not to God. I wonder how many in the first century, like those living today, believe God the Father is unhappy with them, but that Jesus came to stand between us and an angry God. While there is scattered evidence throughout the Bible that a belief could be created from, this belief runs counter to the broader truth that Jesus’ love for us is the same as the Father’s love for us.

In this event, Jesus didn’t come seeking praise for Himself. Instead, Jesus came to give people the opportunity to give glory to God the Father, and to show the world what the Father is really like. If you or I are ever doubtful of what the Father is like, we don’t need to look any further than Jesus and what Jesus accomplished for us on the cross!

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

Always seek God first and give Him thanks when He brings blessings into your life. If there is a coincidence, a bit of luck, or something that simply went your way when it didn’t have to, give God thanks regardless of whether He was involved or not. When in doubt, it is always better to thank God because we don’t always know what He is up to in our lives.

Also, as I always challenge you to do, keep praying and studying the Bible for yourself to discover what God wants to teach you through the pages of His Word. While you can learn many things from many people, filter everything you see, hear, or read through the filter of the Bible to discover whether it is truth or not. If an idea conflicts with the Bible’s teaching, it is not a worthwhile idea from eternity’s perspective.

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

Year of Miracles – Episode 40: When Jesus sent ten lepers on a mission, only one returned to give thanks. Discover some things we can learn from this amazing miracle, and what the one man risked when he returned to thank Jesus.

Join the discussion. Share your thoughts on this passage.

Flashback Episode — The Question to End the Questions: Matthew 22:41-46


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As I have read the Bible, studied through the gospels and other passages, and prayed for wisdom, not many verses have stumped me on exactly what they mean. However, the passage we are focusing on in this episode is one passage I don’t really understand. In our passage for this episode, which can be found in three of the four gospels, after avoiding trick and trap questions, we find Jesus challenging the religious leaders with a question of His own.

Perhaps it is a matter of how the question and quotation is worded, but for a long time I wasn’t sure what David was describing.

Let’s read Jesus’ question and what happens, before discussing some thoughts about this event. While our event is recorded in three of the four gospels, let’s read Matthew’s version of it for our episode today. Our passage is found in Matthew, chapter 22, and we will be reading from the God’s Word translation. Starting in verse 41, Matthew tells us that:

41 While the Pharisees were still gathered, Jesus asked them, 42 “What do you think about the Messiah? Whose son is he?”

They answered him, “David’s.”

43 He said to them, “Then how can David, guided by the Spirit, call him Lord? David says,

44 ‘The Lord said to my Lord,
    “Take the honored position—the one next to me [God the Father] on the heavenly throne
        until I put your enemies under your control.”’

45 If David calls him Lord, how can he be his son?”

46 No one could answer him, and from that time on no one dared to ask him another question.

For a long time, about the only part of this passage that I understood was the last statement, where Matthew simply describes the detail that no one could answer Jesus’ question and they didn’t ask Him any more questions after this. I think part of my confusion regarding this whole passage and discussion is in the first phrase of Jesus’ quotation. When Jesus quotes David saying, “The Lord said to my Lord”, who are each of the “Lords” that David is referring to.

Since the term “lord” can both refer to God as well as important humans, is David’s statement referring to God the Father, speaking to God the Son, or is David the one being honored with Jesus referring to David as a lord.

This psalm is quoted numerous times throughout the New Testament, which meant that not only was it significant following Jesus’ use of it in our passage, but that those in the first century understood what it meant.

In preparation for this episode, where I would need to come up with at least one theory or idea for us to think about, I decided to switch translations to see if a different translation would help uncover the meaning of this passage, and especially the phrase that was obscure. What I found was that almost every translation worded this event in a very similar way. However, one translation did explain it in a profound way.

The Amplified Bible translation is one hidden gem of a translation because throughout this particular version of the Bible, the translators include additional nuances that the original language has but that isn’t readily able to be translated into English. They do this by including these extras in parenthesis.

When looking at the amplified Bible at this passage, we discover that “The Lord (the Father) said to my Lord (the Son, the Messiah)”. Now we have a frame of reference to use when understanding this passage. David isn’t talking about himself at all, but he is sharing a dialog between the Father and the Son – also known as the Messiah.

This detail is key because of the broader context. The footnotes for this passage from the Amplified Bible share some interesting thoughts on this passage’s significance. This passage immediately follows Jesus being challenged by a key Pharisee about what commandment was the greatest. We learn that the goal of this question was to trap Jesus in His own words, but when we read Jesus’ response, we don’t fully grasp what the trick part of this question is.

When looking at Mark’s version of the Pharisee’s trick question, we discover that Jesus shares the opening lines leading up to the greatest commandment, which the New American Standard Bible translation tells us are “Hear, O Israel! The Lord our God is one Lord;(This is Mark 12:29 quoting Deuteronomy 6:4.)

This detail is significant because it sets up the trick question. With the Pharisees trap, they were going to challenge Jesus based on His claim of being God’s Son because there is only one God and one Lord. Matthew’s gospel, while leaving this opening line of the commandment out, describes how Jesus answered the Pharisees question, but then challenged them on this foundational idea.

When the Pharisees answer Jesus’ question that the Messiah would be David’s descendant, they both speak truthfully, but they also expose the idea that they might believe the Messiah to be simply a human descendant of David and not someone divine.

Knowing that David was a key figure in their history, Jesus pulled their attention and ours onto three Members of the Godhead in how He quotes the psalm in our original passage. Matthew 22, starting in verse 43 says, “Then how can David, guided by the Spirit [also known as the Holy Spirit], call him Lord? David says, ‘The Lord [referencing God the Father] said to my Lord [referencing the Son and the Messiah]…”

In David’s own writings, he describes how the Messiah is honored by God and that the Messiah existed prior to His arrival. David called the Messiah “Lord”, using a term that is generally reserved for God, and with a context that does make it refer to God. By using the word Lord to describe the Messiah, David acknowledged that his descendant would be greater than he was.

In this passage, we discover some amazing ideas, and while I still don’t fully understand all the nuances that were present in this event, I do understand more than I did when I began. In this passage, Jesus pulls our attention onto the detail that David acknowledged the divinity of the Messiah, and that the Messiah is David’s descendant. These two details combined give us the impossible-for-us-to-understand nature of Jesus as both fully God and fully human. Jesus asks the perfect question to stop future questions because the answer to this question is something we cannot understand.

However, just because we cannot understand how this is possible doesn’t mean we cannot believe it. The Bible gives us plenty of evidence we can use to base our faith on, and we can use what the Bible says to know everything we need to know to be saved. It isn’t important for us to know how it was possible for Jesus to be both God and human, but it is important for us to know that God – the Son – died in our place on the cross.

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

Be sure to intentionally seek God first in your life and trust in Him even if we don’t have all the answers to all the tough or perplexing questions we might have. Know that some questions we have can probably never be understood, while others are only able to be understood once we reach heaven.

Also, be sure to pray and study the Bible for yourself so that you can keep your relationship and connection with God strong. A pastor, author, speaker, or podcaster can give you great things to think about, but test everything on the truth of God’s word the Bible. Take your questions to God and let Him lead you to His answers.

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!

Flashback Episode: Year 4 – Episode 39: Jesus faced many trick questions that the religious leaders used to try to trap Him. Discover what happens when Jesus asks a question of His own.

Caught Speechless: Luke 14:1-6


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Not long after the Sabbath miracle we focused on in our last episode, we come to another miracle that Jesus did on the Sabbath. While the last miracle happened while Jesus was at the local synagogue, the miracle we are looking at in this episode likely happened after Jesus had been at the synagogue, and during lunch. Jesus had been invited to eat at the home of a prominent religious leader, and everything about this event suggests that this invitation was a setup.

Let’s read what happened and discover what we can learn from this miracle. Our passage is found in the gospel of Luke, chapter 14, and we will be reading it from the God’s Word translation. Starting in verse 1, Luke tells us that:

On a day of rest—a holy day [most translations simply say “On the Sabbath”] Jesus went to eat at the home of a prominent Pharisee. The guests were watching Jesus very closely.

A man whose body was swollen with fluid was there. Jesus reacted by asking the Pharisees and the experts in Moses’ Teachings, “Is it right to heal on the day of rest—a holy day, or not?” But they didn’t say a thing.

So Jesus took hold of the man, healed him, and sent him away. Jesus asked them, “If your son or your ox falls into a well on a day of rest—a holy day, wouldn’t you pull him out immediately?” They couldn’t argue with him about this.

In how Luke describes the details in this passage, we see plenty of signs that this event is a setup. From the moment Luke tells us at the end of verse 1 that, “The guests were watching Jesus very closely,” we can conclude that they intended to challenge Him about something. We read this detail even before we are introduced to the detail that a man was there who was ill.

However, this miracle is unique. In no other miracle that I can think of does Jesus ask the religious leaders a question. This question is almost like Jesus is asking for permission or approval for helping this man. While everyone is looking intently at Jesus and what He will do in the presence of someone who needs help on the Sabbath, Jesus catches them off guard by asking them the question they had already determined the answer to. Verse 3 tells us this question. Jesus asked the Pharisees and experts in Moses’ teaching whether it was right to heal on the Sabbath or not.

This question is interesting on many levels, because with an answer, Jesus could open a dialog about how He interpreted the Sabbath commandment about rest before healing the man. Instead, Jesus is met with silence as a response. I don’t think these religious leaders were caught off guard with Jesus’ question; instead, it is more likely they had passed judgment on the idea of healing being acceptable while not having an actual scripture to back up this specific belief.

However, the silence was enough of a consent that Jesus healed the man and told him to go home.

While those present likely were preparing to debate Jesus with what was considered work and acceptable behavior on this day of rest, Jesus cuts their breath short by asking them another question, this time a partially rhetorical question. When those present were preparing their case against Jesus’ actions, Jesus speaks first, and in verse 5, He asks the obvious question about if we would help our child or an animal if he, she, or it fell into a well on the Sabbath. Only a heartless person would say no to helping their child because it was a holy day.

Luke concludes by telling us that those present couldn’t argue with Jesus over this detail, and while these religious leaders probably still disliked Jesus, they didn’t have much of a case to call Jesus’ form of healing as “work”.

In this event, we discover a group of people who believed a certain way without scripture to back their belief up. While some beliefs are fine to hold onto in places where the scripture is silent, any belief about God, about Jesus, or about eternity should be grounded in the themes and truths of the Bible. Any belief about God that the Bible speaks in opposition to is a belief that should be discarded in favor of the truth.

This also means that when we are faced with the challenge of whether to follow tradition or Bible truth, we should always follow Bible truth, because traditions change faster than generations do, and what was once a novel idea one day can become a tradition the next, even if there is no scriptural foundation present. If we pick tradition over Bible truth, we will ultimately stand speechless in front of Jesus when He challenges us regarding what we thought was true.

When resolving some tricky passages or beliefs, we would be better served looking closer at the scripture that speak against our position to understand them better. While it is easy to discount, explain away, or simply ignore passages that speak against our chosen belief, whenever we discount any portion of the Bible, we run the risk of missing truth that God wants to teach us. We can learn more from the passages we might disagree with more than the ones we agree with.

By giving greater weight to the passages we are tempted to walk away from, we can minimize the change that Jesus will catch us speechless when He asks a question that we should have an easy answer to. By giving greater weight to the passages we are tempted to walk away from, we can avoid the trap of believing tradition over Bible truth.

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

Always be intentional about seeking God first in your life. Ask Him to lead you into His truth and ask Him to give you the strength, endurance, and open-mindedness to learn what He wants to teach you through His Word.

Then, make regular prayer and Bible study a habit for yourself. Ask God to show you want He wants you to learn and ask Him to help you understand His truth. The Bible is the best spiritual teacher we have, because when we open its pages with a prayerful, humble attitude, expecting to learn from God, the Holy Spirit will come teach us, and challenge us with its words. This has been my experience, and it is why I share insights with you every week! I believe God wants you to have a great study relationship with Him when you open the pages of the Bible to study His Word!

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 ignore where God wants to lead you to in your life with Him!

Year of Miracles – Episode 39: When Jesus accepts the invitation to a Pharisee’s home one Sabbath, we can discover something from this event that might surprise you, though hopefully something that doesn’t leave you speechless.

Join the discussion. Share your thoughts on this passage.