Reflective Bible Study Gospel Adventure

The Friend of Christ: John 3:23-36

Published July 31, 2026 in Written Journal Entries

Focus Passage: John 3:23-36 (NCV)

²³John was also baptizing in Aenon, near Salim, because there was plenty of water there. People were going there to be baptized. ²⁴(This was before John was put into prison.)

²⁵Some of John’s followers had an argument with a Jew about religious washing. ²⁶So they came to John and said, “Teacher, remember the man who was with you on the other side of the Jordan River, the one you spoke about so much? He is baptizing, and everyone is going to him.”

²⁷John answered, “A man can get only what God gives him. ²⁸You yourselves heard me say, ‘I am not the Christ, but I am the one sent to prepare the way for him.’ ²⁹The bride belongs only to the bridegroom. But the friend who helps the bridegroom stands by and listens to him. He is thrilled that he gets to hear the bridegroom’s voice. In the same way, I am really happy. ³⁰He must become greater, and I must become less important.

³¹“The One who comes from above is greater than all. The one who is from the earth belongs to the earth and talks about things on the earth. But the One who comes from heaven is greater than all. ³²He tells what he has seen and heard, but no one accepts what he says. ³³Whoever accepts what he says has proven that God is true. ³⁴The One whom God sent speaks the words of God, because God gives him the Spirit fully. ³⁵The Father loves the Son and has given him power over everything. ³⁶Those who believe in the Son have eternal life, but those who do not obey the Son will never have life. God’s anger stays on them.”

Read John 3:23-36 in context and/or in other translations on BibleGateway.com!

If there was anyone who had a great and important mission, it was John the Baptizer. Not only was his mission prophesied about before his birth, he was also “the guy” to prepare the Jewish nation for the Messiah.

And it was a successful mission; perhaps even too successful since people seemed to keep asking him whether he was the messiah.

In this passage, and in my mind’s eye, every time John received this question, he responded in a similar way: “I am not the Christ, but I am the one sent to prepare the way for him.” (v. 28b)

In this passage, after Jesus had began His ministry, John repeatedly directs and points people to Him. He even says, “The bride belongs only to the bridegroom. But the friend who helps the bridegroom stands by and listens to him. He is thrilled that he gets to hear the bridegroom’s voice. In the same way, I am really happy. He must become greater, and I must become less important.” (v. 29-30)

This prompts me to wonder if Jesus’ followers today are called to a similar role. While as a group, we are called the “bride” of Christ, I wonder if we are also called to be friends of the bridegroom as well. In a typical marriage, the bride would ideally be friends with the bridegroom before the marriage, and I hope that the “bride” of Christ is friends with Him before the ceremony or that would be an awkward marriage.

If we are called to be friends of Christ like John was, then it is our responsibility to point people to Him like John did. While Jesus has not returned yet, each of us has an opportunity, like John, to point people to Jesus – and ultimately become part of the church that will be known throughout the universe as Jesus’ “bride”.

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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Forgiving a Rebellious Son: Luke 15:11-32

Published July 30, 2026 in Audio Journal Entries

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In our journey through the gospels looking at Jesus’ parables, we come to one of Jesus’ longer parables, one of Jesus’ most famous parables, and the final parable in a set of three parables that Jesus shared emphasizing how God responds to sinners who repent. While this parable is often referred to as the Parable of the Prodigal Son and this son is the focus of the early portion of the parable, from the way Jesus begins this parable, I think He would want us to focus on a different character.

Let’s read what happened in this parable, and discover what God wants us to discover from it that we can apply into our lives and into our relationship with God.

Our passage and parable is found in Luke’s gospel, chapter 15, and we will read from the New International Version of the Bible. Starting in verse 11, Luke tells us that:

¹¹Jesus continued: “There was a man who had two sons. ¹²The younger one said to his father, ‘Father, give me my share of the estate.’ So he divided his property between them.

¹³“Not long after that, the younger son got together all he had, set off for a distant country and there squandered his wealth in wild living. ¹⁴After he had spent everything, there was a severe famine in that whole country, and he began to be in need. ¹⁵So he went and hired himself out to a citizen of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed pigs. ¹⁶He longed to fill his stomach with the pods that the pigs were eating, but no one gave him anything.

¹⁷“When he came to his senses, he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired servants have food to spare, and here I am starving to death! ¹⁸I will set out and go back to my father and say to him: Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. ¹⁹I am no longer worthy to be called your son; make me like one of your hired servants.’ ²⁰So he got up and went to his father.

“But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him.

²¹“The son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’

²²“But the father said to his servants, ‘Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. ²³Bring the fattened calf and kill it. Let’s have a feast and celebrate. ²⁴For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ So they began to celebrate.

Let’s stop reading here for our episode, because the interaction between the younger son and the father is important for us to pay attention to. As I’m looking at the time, it may be best to save the last portion of this parable for our next episode. This is because I want to emphasize how Jesus opens this parable and how it sets the stage for the interaction between the father and his two sons.

Jesus begins the parable by saying, “There was a man who had two sons.” On the surface, this seems somewhat generic or perhaps even irrelevant, but the way this opening is framed is actually the biggest key to unpacking the meaning of this parable. Jesus emphasizes the father who had two sons, and not two brothers who have a father. The whole parable, while we might reference it by one of the two sons, is actually a parable about a loving father who had two very opposite sons.

This detail matters, because when we look at the context of this parable, and how it comes third in a series of parables that seem to emphasize celebrations when sinners return to God, we discover that the most logical character for the father to represent in this parable is God “the Father”. In this parable, God the Father has two opposite sons.

While those of us who are familiar with this parable don’t like the options of the two sons and we might wish for a third choice, the parable leaves us with only two distinct options. However, the parable also leaves us with the freedom of choice, and through the two sons, we discover something amazing about ourselves.

But I’m jumping ahead of myself here. So far, we’ve only read and paid attention to the younger, rebellious son, who insulted his father by demanding his inheritance early, who ran away, who wasted the money he had inherited, and who ultimately returned home humble, and wishing to simply be one of the father’s servants.

The response the father gives this son is nothing short of amazing. The father hears the apology in the son’s opening of his response, before simply ignoring the rest of it. The father throws a celebration for the younger son’s return. This celebration the father throws for his younger son reminds me of the celebration in heaven when a sinner who is a sheep repents and is found, and the celebration that takes place in heaven when a sinner who is a lost coin is found. When the rebellious son returns, God celebrates in heaven.

This detail brings out the amazing truth that God the Father forgives and accepts the rebellious younger son back even though the younger, rebellious son insulted Him in the worst possible way. When we insult God, when we reject Him, and when we run away, we discover that life without God isn’t as great as we might have imagined it to be. However, through this parable, we discover that God doesn’t give up on us and He doesn’t reject us when we genuinely repent and return to Him.

The first portion of this parable demonstrates for us what repentance looks like, and how repentance only is valuable when given with a humble, sorrowful spirit. When God challenges us to repent and return to Him, we should model the younger, rebellious son when we choose to repent and return to God. The younger son’s attitude when he chose to return is the best attitude we can have when repenting and returning to God.

It looks like we’ve run out of time for this episode, so for our next episode, let’s look at the last portion of this parable when the older son discovers how the father responded to his younger brother’s return.

However, as we come to the end of this episode, here are the challenges I will leave you with:

Always intentionally seek God first in your life and if you have rebelled away from God and are looking to return to Him, choose to model the example of the prodigal son in this parable. Don’t focus on how far you have fallen away from God; instead, come before God and ask for forgiveness with a humble, sorrowful attitude, and trust that God accepts you back. God celebrates when sinners return to Him, and He is willing to accept those who humbly return to Him.

Also, be sure to continue praying and studying the Bible for yourself to learn and grow closer to God each and every day! Through prayer and Bible study, we can grow closer to God and open our hearts to His, and it is through prayer and Bible study that we are able to discover what God wants for each of us. Don’t take my word, or anyone else’s word for it. Discover what God wants to teach you personally through His Word the Bible!

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!

Year of Parables – Episode 31: In one of His most famous parables, Jesus describes how God responds when faced with the return of someone who had rejected, insulted, and ran away from Him. Discover how the focus may be rightly placed on the Father’s response rather than on the son’s repentance.

Join the discussion. Share your thoughts on this passage.

The Master Serves: Luke 12:35-59

Published July 29, 2026 in Written Journal Entries

Focus Passage: Luke 12:35-59 (NCV)

³⁵ “Be dressed, ready for service, and have your lamps shining. ³⁶ Be like servants who are waiting for their master to come home from a wedding party. When he comes and knocks, the servants immediately open the door for him. ³⁷ They will be blessed when their master comes home, because he sees that they were watching for him. I tell you the truth, the master will dress himself to serve and tell the servants to sit at the table, and he will serve them. ³⁸ Those servants will be blessed when he comes in and finds them still waiting, even if it is midnight or later.

³⁹ “Remember this: If the owner of the house knew what time a thief was coming, he would not allow the thief to enter his house. ⁴⁰ So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at a time when you don’t expect him!”

⁴¹ Peter said, “Lord, did you tell this story to us or to all people?”

⁴² The Lord said, “Who is the wise and trusted servant that the master trusts to give the other servants their food at the right time? ⁴³ When the master comes and finds the servant doing his work, the servant will be blessed. ⁴⁴ I tell you the truth, the master will choose that servant to take care of everything he owns. ⁴⁵ But suppose the servant thinks to himself, ‘My master will not come back soon,’ and he begins to beat the other servants, men and women, and to eat and drink and get drunk. ⁴⁶ The master will come when that servant is not ready and is not expecting him. Then the master will cut him in pieces and send him away to be with the others who don’t obey.

⁴⁷ “The servant who knows what his master wants but is not ready, or who does not do what the master wants, will be beaten with many blows! ⁴⁸ But the servant who does not know what his master wants and does things that should be punished will be beaten with few blows. From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded. And from the one trusted with much, much more will be expected.

⁴⁹ “I came to set fire to the world, and I wish it were already burning! ⁵⁰ I have a baptism to suffer through, and I feel very troubled until it is over. ⁵¹ Do you think I came to give peace to the earth? No, I tell you, I came to divide it. ⁵² From now on, a family with five people will be divided, three against two, and two against three. ⁵³ They will be divided: father against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law.”

⁵⁴ Then Jesus said to the people, “When you see clouds coming up in the west, you say, ‘It’s going to rain,’ and it happens. ⁵⁵ When you feel the wind begin to blow from the south, you say, ‘It will be a hot day,’ and it happens. ⁵⁶ Hypocrites! You know how to understand the appearance of the earth and sky. Why don’t you understand what is happening now?

⁵⁷ “Why can’t you decide for yourselves what is right? ⁵⁸ If your enemy is taking you to court, try hard to settle it on the way. If you don’t, your enemy might take you to the judge, and the judge might turn you over to the officer, and the officer might throw you into jail. ⁵⁹ I tell you, you will not get out of there until you have paid everything you owe.”

Read Luke 12:35-59 in context and/or in other translations on BibleGateway.com!

Depending on the translation, the big idea I want to focus on in this journal entry can appear clearly, or it can be vague. Fortunately, the translation we are using states it quite clearly, which is important, because this idea runs very counter-cultural – but perfectly aligned with God’s character:

“I tell you the truth, the master will dress himself to serve and tell the servants to sit at the table, and he will serve them.” (v. 37)

What I see being so amazing about this verse and idea is that God/Jesus (represented by a master who has been gone a long time) serves us when He returns. This is the opposite of what I would expect to see happen.

In today’s culture, if a leader returned from a trip, he would expect his assistants and aids to serve him first. After all, he has just returned from a trip and is probably tired from traveling.

However, this is not the case with God. God travels the length of the universe in order to bring us home to be with Him, and the first thing that happens when He arrives is that He serves us. (Can you see a parallel to this idea in Jesus’ life and ministry?)

With God, it really is “all about us” because He loves us. This doesn’t mean that we are to be all about us (a.k.a. conceited), but instead, we are to love God back with the same selfless love that He has shown us.

God, the master of the universe, is willing to serve us – even when we are the ones who technically should be “serving” Him.

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Planting God’s Church: Matthew 13:31-35

Published July 28, 2026 in Written Journal Entries

Focus Passage: Matthew 13:31-35 (NCV)

³¹Then Jesus told another story: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that a man planted in his field. ³²That seed is the smallest of all seeds, but when it grows, it is one of the largest garden plants. It becomes big enough for the wild birds to come and build nests in its branches.”

³³Then Jesus told another story: “The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and hid in a large tub of flour until it made all the dough rise.”

³⁴Jesus used stories to tell all these things to the people; he always used stories to teach them. ³⁵This is as the prophet said:

“I will speak using stories;
I will tell things that have been secret since the world was made.”

Read Matthew 13:31-35 in context and/or in other translations on BibleGateway.com!

Sometime during the middle of Jesus’ ministry, He shares a series of parables that teach about the kingdom of heaven. Some of these parables were long and detailed, while others were short and simple. However, regardless of the length of each parable, a key spiritual truth is conveyed that we can discover if we look carefully.

Our passage includes two short parables, and while both parables are excellent, one contains a key principle that can help shift our mindset and our focus. This principle is found in the first of these two parables, in the one most commonly known as the parable of the mustard seed: “Then Jesus told another story: ‘The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that a man planted in his field. That seed is the smallest of all seeds, but when it grows, it is one of the largest garden plants. It becomes big enough for the wild birds to come and build nests in its branches.’” (v. 31-32)

From my earlier studies and analysis of Jesus’ parables regarding the kingdom of heaven, I have learned to look for a character or item that represents God from within the parable. In this parable, we have two options that could represent God.

Our first candidate for representing God is the man who planted the mustard seed. In my mind, this makes the most logical sense. I can see God as planting someone, something, or some idea in order to help it grow. From my experience and observation, it seems as though God likes taking people who are otherwise believed to be insignificant and turning their lives and stories into testimonies that have a much larger impact.

Our second candidate for representing God is the mustard seed that was planted. I don’t think this is as logical, however if it were the case, since God is a Creator, His kingdom is always growing and expanding – which means that it did start small and it has grown ever since. In some ways, this conclusion does make sense, especially when we look at how the mustard plant benefits the wildlife around it.

However, what if the mustard seed represented something different? What if the mustard seed that God planted was a small group of disciples?

Running this idea to its conclusion, we see the group of disciples forming the early church (with the help and guidance of the Holy Spirit), and the church has grown ever since. If the mustard seed represents the church then tucked within this parable is a mission and identity for the church – at least the “church” that God planted.

This parable ends by saying that the mustard plant “becomes big enough for the wild birds to come and build nests in its branches.” (v.32b)

With this conclusion, we see that the mustard seed was not planted to produce mustard or because of anything it produces itself. Instead the mustard seed was planted to benefit the creatures that lived near it. The parable specifically mentions wild birds, which could easily mean people who are not God’s followers.

In this parable, I see a mission that says the church should be known as a place that is safe for outsiders to come; I see a mission that says the church should be a place where people can come to grow closer to God and experience His love; I see a mission that says the church should be a place where people realize that people are broken, hurting, and sin-filled, but that together, we are also united by what God has done for each of us through Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross. In this parable, I see a challenge for us to be outward focused and loving like God has loved us.

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