Reflective Bible Study

As I read the gospels, I am amazed at how Jesus interacted with people. On one hand, Jesus loved everyone, and He actively helped those who were hurting, sick, and/or needing encouragement. On the other hand, Jesus had some pretty harsh things to say to others, and in every case that I can think of, Jesus’ harshest words were reserved for those who felt they were spiritually superior to others.

However, in the event we are looking at in this episode, I am extra amazed at the audacity Jesus has one Sabbath afternoon. It would seem from reading this event, Jesus doesn’t shy away from speaking the truth to someone, regardless of whether it would be socially acceptable or not, regardless of whether it was framed in a positive or negative way, and regardless of whether He was a guest in that person’s home.

Let’s read this passage, and discover what happens. Our passage comes from the gospel of Luke, chapter 11, and we will be reading it from the New International Reader’s Version. Starting in verse 27, Luke tells us that:

³⁷ Jesus finished speaking. Then a Pharisee invited him to eat with him. So Jesus went in and took his place at the table. ³⁸ But the Pharisee was surprised. He noticed that Jesus did not wash before the meal.

³⁹ Then the Lord spoke to him. “You Pharisees clean the outside of the cup and dish,” he said. “But inside you are full of greed and evil. ⁴⁰ You foolish people! Didn’t the one who made the outside make the inside also? ⁴¹ Give freely to poor people to show what is inside you. Then everything will be clean for you.

Let’s pause briefly, because Jesus has just been invited home by one of the Pharisees who had been at the synagogue that morning. Perhaps, this invitation was because this Pharisee wanted bragging rights with his friends that Jesus came and ate with Him, or perhaps this Pharisee was simply wanting to be nice to a traveling guest.

However, regardless of the reason for the invitation, Jesus accepts it, and then before the meal has even begun, Jesus begins challenging this man regarding his traditions.

But Jesus doesn’t stop with talking about hand washing and being clean. Continuing in verse 42, Jesus continues challenging the Pharisees present by saying:

⁴² “How terrible it will be for you Pharisees! You give God a tenth of your garden plants, such as mint and rue. But you have forgotten to be fair and to love God. You should have practiced the last things without failing to do the first.

⁴³ “How terrible for you Pharisees! You love the most important seats in the synagogues. You love having people greet you with respect in the market.

⁴⁴ “How terrible for you! You are like graves that are not marked. People walk over them without knowing it.”

Jesus’ words and challenges in this passage are shocking in my mind. While I am not shocked that Jesus had these words to say to the Pharisees, it seems crazy in my mind to think that Jesus would wait to be the guest in a home before thoroughly insulting the host and many of the guests.

While Jesus was speaking truth, I am amazed that He chose this time to do it, and that He challenged them in this way. Perhaps, a more diplomatic sharing would not have reached this group of people, or perhaps Jesus spoke the way He did because He wanted to wake these Pharisees up to how they had let their traditions become their expectations for others.

Whatever the case, not only were there Pharisees present, there was another group of people, and they too were offended by what Jesus was saying. Continuing reading in verse 45, Luke tells us that:

⁴⁵ An authority on the law spoke to Jesus. He said, “Teacher, when you say things like that, you say bad things about us too.”

⁴⁶ Jesus replied, “How terrible for you authorities on the law! You put such heavy loads on people that they can hardly carry them. But you yourselves will not lift one finger to help them.

⁴⁷ “How terrible for you! You build tombs for the prophets. It was your people of long ago who killed them. ⁴⁸ So you show that you agree with what your people did long ago. They killed the prophets, and now you build the prophets’ tombs. ⁴⁹ So God in his wisdom said, ‘I will send prophets and apostles to them. They will kill some. And they will try to hurt others.’ ⁵⁰ So the people of today will be punished. They will pay for all the prophets’ blood spilled since the world began. ⁵¹ I mean from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah. He was killed between the altar and the temple. Yes, I tell you, the people of today will be punished for all these things.

⁵² “How terrible for you authorities on the law! You have taken away the key to the door of knowledge. You yourselves have not entered. And you have stood in the way of those who were entering.”

⁵³ When Jesus went outside, the Pharisees and the teachers of the law strongly opposed him. They threw a lot of questions at him. ⁵⁴ They set traps for him. They wanted to catch him in something he might say.

How Luke chose to end this passage does not surprise me, and with what Jesus had challenged the Pharisees and teachers of the law by saying, I am not surprised that these two groups hated Jesus.

I wonder if the Pharisee-host for this meal kicked Jesus out after He said these things, or I wonder if Jesus left before the food was served. If Jesus chose to stay for the meal itself, I wonder if there was awkward silence for the rest of the time Jesus was present. Part of me wonders if Jesus accepted this invitation because He saw it as an opportunity to offend everyone who would be there.

But regardless of the reaction these leaders had towards Jesus’ message, when we look at the message itself, we can see an amazing theme come to light. With everything Jesus describes about both groups, we see the theme that these two groups had used their God-given position to make life more difficult for those around them. These two groups were incredibly detailed and focused on the wrong things.

Instead of being focused on the blessings and love God had for His people, these leaders made God’s love conditional to obedience, and then they increased the standard of obedience past anything that God would have required. When someone failed and broke this high standard of obedience, then these leaders were quick to judge and condemn the person, and they were the first to make an example of how this individual who had broken their high standard was now outside of God’s favor.

Jesus’ challenge to these leaders was that they were given their positions in order to help others. They should have been emphasizing God’s love, His forgiveness, and all humanity’s unworthiness, because there are more examples of God’s grace in the Old Testament than His judgment.

Pride had infected the hearts of these leaders, and because of that, their message and view of God was distorted and they could only see the rules and punishments God gave in the past, and their focus on this minority of examples warped the picture of God they taught to others.

Jesus reserved His harshest words for those who kept people from seeing God’s love, and while these words spoken to this group of religious leaders was harsh, it was Jesus’ best chance to get through to them that their focus on life and their picture of God were flawed.

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

Continue seeking God first in your life. Choose to begin building your foundation with Him on the truth that God is 100% love. Use love as a filter for your reading and studying the Bible, because God does not deviate from this character trait.

Also, choose to always pray and study the Bible for yourself – and specifically pay attention to times where God might not appear loving in the Old Testament. If I claim that God is 100% love, but you discover something in the Bible that makes God appear unloving, wrestle the situation out with God for yourself. The only way you can grow into the person God created you to be is by growing personally with God. Pastors and podcasters can inspire ideas, but only personal study with a prayerful, humble attitude can grow a 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 deviate away from where God wants to lead you to in your life with Him!

As we continue moving through Jesus’ last big conversation with the group of disciples, we discover Jesus shares a powerful message, and an otherwise silent disciple speaks up with a question of his own.

Let’s pick back up where we left off last week and keep reading what Jesus shared. Our passage for this episode is found in the gospel of John, chapter 14, and we will be reading from the God’s Word translation. Starting in verse 15, Jesus continued sharing by saying:

¹⁵ “If you love me, you will obey my commandments. ¹⁶ I will ask the Father, and he will give you another helper who will be with you forever. ¹⁷ That helper is the Spirit of Truth. The world cannot accept him, because it doesn’t see or know him. You know him, because he lives with you and will be in you.

Pausing briefly here, I want to draw our attention onto an unpopular idea. Jesus opened our passage by telling us that our love for Him is displayed through our obedience to His commandments. This means that obeying the commandments, while it might sound legalistic, is actually how Jesus wants us to show our love to Him.

It is interesting in my mind that some Christians immediately think that anything that supports keeping the law is a step towards legalism and away from God’s grace. However, nothing could be further from the truth. Obeying God’s law can be done with a legalistic attitude, or it can be done with a loving attitude. Obedience comes from either legalism or from love. Too many religious leaders in the first century came to obedience through legalism, but God, through Jesus, has called us to obedience through love.

Also, because it is within close proximity, we also could logically conclude that receiving the Holy Spirit into our lives could be at least partially dependant on our obedience, and it’s likely that this is referring to an obedience that is founded on love and not obedience from legalism.

Jesus isn’t finished with His promises to the disciples. After promising the Holy Spirit, Jesus continues in verse 18 by telling His followers:

¹⁸ “I will not leave you all alone. I will come back to you. ¹⁹ In a little while the world will no longer see me, but you will see me. You will live because I live. ²⁰ On that day you will know that I am in my Father and that you are in me and that I am in you. ²¹ Whoever knows and obeys my commandments is the person who loves me. Those who love me will have my Father’s love, and I, too, will love them and show myself to them.”

²² Judas (not Iscariot) asked Jesus, “Lord, what has happened that you are going to reveal yourself to us and not to the world?”

²³ Jesus answered him, “Those who love me will do what I say. My Father will love them, and we will go to them and make our home with them. ²⁴ A person who doesn’t love me doesn’t do what I say. I don’t make up what you hear me say. What I say comes from the Father who sent me.

²⁵ “I have told you this while I’m still with you. ²⁶ However, the helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you everything. He will remind you of everything that I have ever told you.

²⁷ “I’m leaving you peace. I’m giving you my peace. I don’t give you the kind of peace that the world gives. So don’t be troubled or cowardly. ²⁸ You heard me tell you, ‘I’m going away, but I’m coming back to you.’ If you loved me, you would be glad that I’m going to the Father, because the Father is greater than I am.

²⁹ “I’m telling you this now before it happens. When it does happen, you will believe. ³⁰ The ruler of this world has no power over me. But he’s coming, so I won’t talk with you much longer. ³¹ However, I want the world to know that I love the Father and that I am doing exactly what the Father has commanded me to do. Get up! We have to leave.”

Let’s stop reading here and take a few minutes to focus in on what Jesus has promised us in this passage. After promising the disciples the Holy Spirit and that He would return, Jesus describes how obedience is how we are able to see God.

While this is difficult for a skeptic to accept, Jesus challenges everyone who wants to find Him that they must first love Him by being obedient to His commandments in order to see Him show up. If you are skeptical about this claim, the challenge I have for you is to try obedience for a month, and if your life has gone downhill from your choice, nothing is stopping you from going back. If at the end of your test you determine that God isn’t for you, you will have at least made the decision on your own and not because of someone else’s persuasion or attitude.

Jesus promises to move into the hearts and lives of those who love and obey Him and He promises to bring the Father with Him. This is an amazing promise, and in case you are wondering, Jesus tells us that this is God the Father’s promise, not His own, because Jesus then tells us that He doesn’t make up what He says. Jesus tells us He shares the Father’s message. Jesus came as a Messenger from God to share God’s message with the world.

Jesus shared God’s message of love, of compassion, and of mercy through the teaching, through the parables, through the healing, and through giving up His own life for a race of rebellious sinners.

Before wrapping up the part of the passage we are focusing on, Jesus circles around and promises the disciples that the Holy Spirit will remind the disciples what Jesus had shared and that the Holy Spirit will teach them everything.

At the end of our passage, Jesus promises His followers His peace. It’s worth pointing out that this peace should not leave us troubled or cowardly. The peace Jesus offers is a peace that affects our life because we choose to live each day with eternity as our perspective. Think how peaceful life would be if you were 100% certain that God knows and will supply your needs here in this life, and that with whatever happens in the brief time we are alive while sin reigns, that the next thing we know after taking our last breath is a new life in a sinless world.

While a little oversimplified, this truth brings amazing peace if we are willing to let it. If we truly believe that God will keep us safe both today and for eternity, then we are freed to live open, powerful lives pointing people to Him. Jesus called His first disciples to this radical ideal, and He calls His followers today to the same challenge.

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

As always, seek God first and if you haven’t done so, make the commitment to be obedient to Him. Take His challenge and see if He doesn’t step in and transform your life in amazing, positive ways. The biggest promise we can hold onto is that God loves us and that He wants to save us for eternity. With whatever happens in this sin-filled world, we can know and trust that God is preparing for the end of sin and the recreation of the universe.

Also, always pray and study the Bible for yourself. While these truths sound nice, don’t take my word for them. Be sure to pray and study the Bible for yourself and discover what God wants to teach you personally. Through personal prayer and study you are able to grow a personal relationship, and a personal relationship with God today leads to a eternal relationship when Jesus returns.

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!

Part way through Jesus’ ministry, the religious leaders began being extra tricky with their questions. While they could not deny that Jesus was able to work powerfully, they simply did not trust someone who was unwilling to be as judgmental as they were, and they did not believe someone sent from God would surround Himself with people who were the worst in society.

However, part of me wonders if not all the religious leaders were as opposed to Jesus as the stereotype that we often see. While many, perhaps even most, of the leaders did not like Jesus, I am curious if there were many leaders who simply remained secret, or undercover, followers. While I’ll save my thoughts about undercover disciples for another time, with how the gospel of Luke records the passage we are looking at in this episode, it is unclear whether the question being asked of Jesus is a setup for a trap, or if it is simply a religious leader looking for clarification on an idea.

We can find this event in the gospel of Luke, chapter 10, and we will be reading from the Contemporary English Version. Starting in verse 25, Luke tells us that:

²⁵ An expert in the Law of Moses stood up and asked Jesus a question to see what he would say. “Teacher,” he asked, “what must I do to have eternal life?”

²⁶ Jesus answered, “What is written in the Scriptures? How do you understand them?”

²⁷ The man replied, “The Scriptures say, ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, strength, and mind.’ They also say, ‘Love your neighbors as much as you love yourself.’”

²⁸ Jesus said, “You have given the right answer. If you do this, you will have eternal life.”

If the passage and conversation were to have ended right here, this would have been a powerful, but also simple lesson on how we should orient our lives. Even though the conversation moves forward with a follow-up question, too often we get caught focusing on the powerful details of what comes next that we miss the simplicity of what Jesus just confirmed in the religious expert’s words.

Jesus has just described eternal life being possible if one has followed these two principles flawlessly.

However, perhaps the religious expert answered in this way because he had heard Jesus give this answer before, or maybe this religious leader wanted to justify himself regarding who he chose to love. But whatever the reason, Luke continues in verse 29, giving a hint at self-righteousness from this religious expert. Luke tells us:

²⁹ But the man wanted to show that he knew what he was talking about. So he asked Jesus, “Who are my neighbors?”

³⁰ Jesus replied:

As a man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, robbers attacked him and grabbed everything he had. They beat him up and ran off, leaving him half dead.

³¹ A priest happened to be going down the same road. But when he saw the man, he walked by on the other side. ³² Later a temple helper came to the same place. But when he saw the man who had been beaten up, he also went by on the other side.

³³ A man from Samaria then came traveling along that road. When he saw the man, he felt sorry for him ³⁴ and went over to him. He treated his wounds with olive oil and wine and bandaged them. Then he put him on his own donkey and took him to an inn, where he took care of him. ³⁵ The next morning he gave the innkeeper two silver coins and said, “Please take care of the man. If you spend more than this on him, I will pay you when I return.”

³⁶ Then Jesus asked, “Which one of these three people was a real neighbor to the man who was beaten up by robbers?”

³⁷ The teacher answered, “The one who showed pity.”

Jesus said, “Go and do the same!”

In this illustration, Jesus describes a situation that was very believable – well, until you get to the part about the Samaritan helping the man. Actually, this might not be too unbelievable. While the Jews and Samaritans hated each other, the ethnicity of the man who was left dying on the road is open for debate. Perhaps because this man was not clearly of Jewish descent was the reason the priest and temple helper ignored him.

However, the more likely reason was that helping the man who was dying would cause these religious men to be unclean, and it would impact their responsibilities in a negative way. They ignore the situation because it would negatively affect them personally.

On the other hand, the Samaritan was not overly concerned with keeping himself clean. Instead, he saw an opportunity to help and he had the means to do something. Not only did he have something to treat the injured man’s wounds with, he also had money to pay for the care of the man when leaving to continue his journey.

In this event, Jesus defines the role of a neighbor as someone who acts like a neighbor rather than someone who is literally a neighbor. Being a neighbor in God’s eyes is based upon how we act towards someone else and not simply who we happen to live next to.

I have heard speculation that the religious expert answered the way he did at the very end of this illustration because he could not bring himself to say the word Samaritan in a positive light. It is possible, even likely, that this religious leader was among those who were most condescending towards those who were Samaritans, and it is possible that this leader had asked for a definition of neighbor in hopes of getting some type of pass or loophole out of helping those in the social group that he most despised.

But no such response came, and regardless of if the religious leader answered the way he did because he didn’t want to say the word Samaritan or whether there was another reason that we don’t know, the way he does answer is pretty profound in itself. This religious expert’s answer is entirely framed on the notion of practical, active help. Everything Jesus described that the Samaritan did could be summed up in the descriptive phrase “showing pity” and showing pity for those we come in contact with is how we can be neighborly like God intended. “Showing pity for others” as described by Jesus in this illustration, is the same as loving others as we love ourselves because this love is active and it interrupts our plans for the benefit of others.

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

Choose to obey the best you can the two commandments Jesus validated in the religious leader’s response. Intentionally love God with all your heart, soul, strength, and mind, and love others as you love yourself. Choose to act like a neighbor to those who need help regardless of whether you actually are their literal neighbor or not.

Also, continue praying and studying the Bible for yourself, and let God touch your life, open your eyes to the world around you, and give you the love for others you need to be able to be the neighbor He created you to be.

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!

On the night Jesus was betrayed, the gospel of John records Jesus’ last conversation with the disciples before He would be taken from them and ultimately put on a cross. We began looking at this conversation last week, and over the next few episodes, we will move through this conversation and focus in on some of the big things we can learn from it.

For this episode’s portion of this conversation, John records Jesus opening with a promise. Let’s read it together. Our passage is found in the gospel of John, chapter 14, and we will be reading from the Contemporary English Version of the Bible. Starting in verse 1, John tells us that:

¹ Jesus said to his disciples, “Don’t be worried! Have faith in God and have faith in me. ² There are many rooms in my Father’s house. I wouldn’t tell you this, unless it was true. I am going there to prepare a place for each of you. ³ After I have done this, I will come back and take you with me. Then we will be together. ⁴ You know the way to where I am going.”

⁵ Thomas said, “Lord, we don’t even know where you are going! How can we know the way?”

⁶ “I am the way, the truth, and the life!” Jesus answered. “Without me, no one can go to the Father. ⁷ If you had known me, you would have known the Father. But from now on, you do know him, and you have seen him.”

⁸ Philip said, “Lord, show us the Father. That is all we need.”

⁹ Jesus replied:

Philip, I have been with you for a long time. Don’t you know who I am? If you have seen me, you have seen the Father. How can you ask me to show you the Father? ¹⁰ Don’t you believe that I am one with the Father and that the Father is one with me? What I say isn’t said on my own. The Father who lives in me does these things.

¹¹ Have faith in me when I say that the Father is one with me and that I am one with the Father. Or else have faith in me simply because of the things I do. ¹² I tell you for certain that if you have faith in me, you will do the same things that I am doing. You will do even greater things, now that I am going back to the Father. ¹³ Ask me, and I will do whatever you ask. This way the Son will bring honor to the Father. ¹⁴ I will do whatever you ask me to do.

Let’s stop reading here, because what Jesus has just finished sharing is really powerful, and we might miss it if we kept going.

Jesus opened by promising the disciples that He is going to prepare a place for us in His Father’s house, and that when it is ready, He will come and take us home to be with Him. After facing the question about not knowing the way, Jesus reminds and emphasizes that He is the way, the truth, and the life, and that no one can go to the Father without Him.

If you don’t believe in Jesus, then you might think His statement here is incredibly arrogant, selfish, and egotistical. In some ways it is, but it might also be true. If Jesus lied elsewhere in the gospels, you could make a case for this being deceitful, but if Jesus spoke truthfully everywhere else, then it is likely that even with the selfish implications in this statement, Jesus is simply sharing truth.

After then being asked to show the remaining disciples the Father, Jesus then draws their focus onto the oneness of the Son’s and the Father’s relationship. In every way that matters, Jesus showed us the Father. This Oneness leads into probably the biggest promise that Jesus gave to His followers. This promise seems like a blank check for prayer.

Jesus gives us two angles for faith that we can use to have a powerful prayer connection with God. The first angle is faith that Jesus is One with the Father. This might be challenging to wrap our minds around, but if it were easy to understand and see, then not much faith would be needed.

The other angle we can base our faith on is on the things Jesus has done and is doing. Right now, Jesus is in heaven negotiating on our behalf and looking for every possible angle He can use to save us. Jesus paid the penalty for our sins, and when we have faith in Him, He is more than willing to stand in our place and cover our sins with His sacrifice. This is the other foundation we can build our faith on.

Jesus doesn’t seem to make a distinction between which foundation is better or worse, so feel free to pick either or pick both. What matters is that we have faith in Jesus.

Is faith like this the only thing necessary for this blank check for prayer? Almost, but there’s one additional piece of faith hinted at in this passage we must pay attention to.

In the first part of verse 12, Jesus tells His followers that, “I tell you for certain that if you have faith in me, you will do the same things that I am doing.” Once we have based our faith on Jesus using one or both of the foundations He gives to us, we must live this faith in a visible way. We must do the things Jesus would have done. This means loving others, helping those in need, and pointing people towards giving glory to God.

Jesus never lived His life to seek glory from people, but everything He did was to show people God’s love and to give them reasons to give God glory. In Jesus building up to the amazing promise, we have the foundation of faith in Him that leads to living like He would live if He was living on this earth today. When we have these two pieces of the puzzle of faith in place, then He is more than willing to answer our prayers, because what we pray for will be for God’s glory – and Jesus loves giving God the glory.

In this passage, we discover both a blank check for prayer, and the pen we must use to write our request. When we live our faith in Jesus in visible ways, and when we live and love like Jesus lived and loved, we will pray prayers that ask for God to be glorified, and Jesus will always answer huge prayers that point people to God.

All too often, we pray small and selfish prayers, but hopefully this passage has challenged you like it has challenged me to pray differently, and on the foundation of faith in Jesus for who He is, what He is doing, and for what He has given to each of us through His sacrifice 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 live your life in a way that leads people to Jesus and to give God glory. When our lives are pointing people to Jesus, our faith in Him is visible, and He is happy to answer the prayers we pray.

Also, as I always challenge you to do, be sure to always pray and study the Bible for yourself to grow your personal connection and relationship with God. Other people can give you great things to think about, but only you can grow a personal relationship with 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 drift away from where God wants to lead you to in your life with Him!