Reflective Bible Study Gospel Adventure

Keeping Our Foundation Strong: John 12:37-50

Published March 6, 2024 in Written Journal Entries

Focus Passage: John 12:37-50 (GNT)

³⁷Even though he had performed all these miracles in their presence, they did not believe in him, ³⁸so that what the prophet Isaiah had said might come true:

“Lord, who believed the message we told?
To whom did the Lord reveal his power?”

³⁹And so they were not able to believe, because Isaiah also said,

⁴⁰“God has blinded their eyes
    and closed their minds,
so that their eyes would not see,
    and their minds would not understand,
    and they would not turn to me, says God,
    for me to heal them.”

⁴¹Isaiah said this because he saw Jesus’ glory and spoke about him.

⁴²Even then, many Jewish authorities believed in Jesus; but because of the Pharisees they did not talk about it openly, so as not to be expelled from the synagogue. ⁴³They loved human approval rather than the approval of God.

⁴⁴Jesus said in a loud voice, “Whoever believes in me believes not only in me but also in him who sent me. ⁴⁵Whoever sees me sees also him who sent me. ⁴⁶I have come into the world as light, so that everyone who believes in me should not remain in the darkness. ⁴⁷If people hear my message and do not obey it, I will not judge them. I came, not to judge the world, but to save it. ⁴⁸Those who reject me and do not accept my message have one who will judge them. The words I have spoken will be their judge on the last day! ⁴⁹This is true, because I have not spoken on my own authority, but the Father who sent me has commanded me what I must say and speak. ⁵⁰And I know that his command brings eternal life. What I say, then, is what the Father has told me to say.”

Read John 12:37-50 in context and/or in other translations on BibleGateway.com!

Have you ever wanted to do something, but were scared of the consequences or reaction of others?

If so, you have something in common with a group of people in this post’s passage. In verse 42 and 43 we read: “Even then, many Jewish authorities believed in Jesus; but because of the Pharisees they did not talk about it openly, so as not to be expelled from the synagogue. They loved human approval rather than the approval of God.”

What this says about human nature is important. At every moment, we all are prioritizing people and ideas in our minds. At each point of our day, we are choosing to focus on something/someone/some idea and not on others. These Jewish authorities believed in Jesus, but their belief was second to receiving human praise. Their focus on praise was more important than their focus on Jesus.

Immediately following John’s description of this group of authorities, Jesus addresses a category of people in his next paragraph – however, this category at first sounds different. Jesus speaks a challenge towards those who hear His words, but choose to not obey them.

Is a private, personal belief in Jesus important? Yes!

Is a private, personal belief in Jesus the goal – the end place where God wants to take you and I? Nope.

Jesus knows that belief and faith are best lived out from a strong, private + personal foundation, but in a way that is visible to others. Obedience becomes meaningless when it is subjective to the popular opinion of the culture/crowd or when it is so hidden that our lives look identical to those without it.

Human nature pulls us towards conforming to a crowd. It might be a crowd of people who believe they are mainstream, or a crowd of people who think they are being different and challenging the system. It could be a crowd in a church, or a crowd of a large denomination, or a crowd that make up a major worldview. The crowd could be 10 people or 10 million.

But human nature is deceitful in this conformity. Even if we are caught up in a crowd that is leading us along a positive path – a path of making great decisions and growing closer to Jesus – the temptation is to ignore the personal foundation which the crowd cannot help us with. The personal foundation is where we remain personally connected to Jesus, and while it is the part of our relationship that matters the most, it is still just one part.

The Jewish authorities who believed reflect those of us who may at times feel that we better keep our beliefs hidden, for fear of what others may think. It is belief that is looking for the safe road forward, and for the greatest number of people to like us, but in the end, this safe road erodes our personal foundation as we lose ourselves in the crowd we have chosen.

At every moment, we are prioritizing people and ideas in our minds. The tendency is to model the people/ideas we prioritize and give our focus to. It is then up to us to prioritize Jesus – and visible obedience to Him – that keeps the foundation of our lives strong and secure.

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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Being Like Jesus: Matthew 10:16-42

Published March 5, 2024 in Written Journal Entries

Focus Passage: Matthew 10:16-42 (GNT)

¹⁶“Listen! I am sending you out just like sheep to a pack of wolves. You must be as cautious as snakes and as gentle as doves. ¹⁷Watch out, for there will be those who will arrest you and take you to court, and they will whip you in the synagogues. ¹⁸For my sake you will be brought to trial before rulers and kings, to tell the Good News to them and to the Gentiles. ¹⁹When they bring you to trial, do not worry about what you are going to say or how you will say it; when the time comes, you will be given what you will say. ²⁰For the words you will speak will not be yours; they will come from the Spirit of your Father speaking through you.

²¹“People will hand over their own brothers to be put to death, and fathers will do the same to their children; children will turn against their parents and have them put to death. ²²Everyone will hate you because of me. But whoever holds out to the end will be saved. ²³When they persecute you in one town, run away to another one. I assure you that you will not finish your work in all the towns of Israel before the Son of Man comes.

²⁴“No pupil is greater than his teacher; no slave is greater than his master. ²⁵So a pupil should be satisfied to become like his teacher, and a slave like his master. If the head of the family is called Beelzebul, the members of the family will be called even worse names!

²⁶“So do not be afraid of people. Whatever is now covered up will be uncovered, and every secret will be made known. ²⁷What I am telling you in the dark you must repeat in broad daylight, and what you have heard in private you must announce from the housetops. ²⁸Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul; rather be afraid of God, who can destroy both body and soul in hell. ²⁹For only a penny you can buy two sparrows, yet not one sparrow falls to the ground without your Father’s consent. ³⁰As for you, even the hairs of your head have all been counted. ³¹So do not be afraid; you are worth much more than many sparrows!

³²“Those who declare publicly that they belong to me, I will do the same for them before my Father in heaven. ³³But those who reject me publicly, I will reject before my Father in heaven.

³⁴“Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the world. No, I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. ³⁵I came to set sons against their fathers, daughters against their mothers, daughters-in-law against their mothers-in-law; ³⁶your worst enemies will be the members of your own family.

³⁷“Those who love their father or mother more than me are not fit to be my disciples; those who love their son or daughter more than me are not fit to be my disciples. ³⁸Those who do not take up their cross and follow in my steps are not fit to be my disciples. ³⁹Those who try to gain their own life will lose it; but those who lose their life for my sake will gain it.

⁴⁰“Whoever welcomes you welcomes me; and whoever welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me. ⁴¹Whoever welcomes God’s messenger because he is God’s messenger, will share in his reward. And whoever welcomes a good man because he is good, will share in his reward. ⁴²You can be sure that whoever gives even a drink of cold water to one of the least of these my followers because he is my follower, will certainly receive a reward.”

Read Matthew 10:16-42 in context and/or in other translations on BibleGateway.com!

During Jesus’ first big message directed at His closest twelve followers, Jesus shares some interesting ideas. As Jesus’ followers many centuries and generations later, focusing on what Jesus told His first followers has incredible relevance if we want to be as dedicated to Christ as they were after His resurrection.

Matthew, who was present for this big message as one of the twelve, wrote down this message, and included is a really significant statement: “No pupil is greater than his teacher; no slave is greater than his master.” (v. 24)

In every area of life, this principle holds true. Teachers are responsible for their students, employers are responsible for their employees, masters are responsible for their servants/slaves, and parents are responsible for their children. The word “greater” in this context doesn’t necessarily mean that they are just responsible for someone else, but that the nature of each role places one person in a more significant position than another.

This principle sounds obvious, but when we place Jesus in the role of teacher and master, things seem to get tricky. While we are quick to point out the obvious truth that no one can be more important or significant than Jesus, when He tells us things that we don’t agree with, too often we discount or ignore Him as though He doesn’t know what He is talking about. We love the places that Jesus makes us feel good about His acceptance, but we shy away from the places He challenges us to obey and live differently.

Jesus follows this principle up with another statement that helps explain this idea further. Jesus continues by saying, “So a pupil should be satisfied to become like his teacher, and a slave like his master.” (v. 25a)

This statement is the key for this entire concept. If someone called the master a horrible name, those under that master will also get horrible names thrown at them. This simple example emphasizes the point that as “students” and “slaves” of Jesus, there is no way we should think we could be greater than He is. Instead, we should focus on simply becoming like Him.

The role of a disciple was to become like the teacher. By following and living with the teacher, the disciple would learn all the details and nuances of how the teacher lived and incorporate those things into his/her life. Simply modeling Jesus should be enough to satisfy us. While Jesus hinted at His disciples doing even greater works than He did, this shouldn’t be our focus for joining the Christian movement.

Instead, the Christian movement should be filled with students who are simply trying to become more like Jesus, who is our Teacher and our Master – not with people who have a point to prove or a statement to make against someone else. Non-Christ-like actions have no place among those who call themselves Christians, Christ-followers, or disciples. If Jesus loved those who society, religion, and culture have rejected, then we are called to love them as well – regardless of whether they return love towards us. At its core, this is what it means to be like Jesus.

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Flashback Episode — Teaching with Parables: Mark 4:21-34

Published March 4, 2024 in Audio Journal Entries

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As Mark continues to tell us about Jesus, he decides to include more parables and illustrations Jesus shared. In the set of parables that we will focus on for this episode, we will discover how Jesus both explains and challenges those present with His teaching.

Our passage is found in Mark’s gospel, chapter 4, and we will read from the New Century Version. Starting in verse 21:

²¹Then Jesus said to them, “Do you hide a lamp under a bowl or under a bed? No! You put the lamp on a lampstand. ²²Everything that is hidden will be made clear and every secret thing will be made known. ²³Let those with ears use them and listen!

²⁴“Think carefully about what you hear. The way you give to others is the way God will give to you, but God will give you even more. ²⁵Those who have understanding will be given more. But those who do not have understanding, even what they have will be taken away from them.”

Let’s pause briefly here because something Jesus just said jumped out at me. In the challenge Jesus just shared, we see a warning cautioning us to pay attention to what we hear. While this warning makes sense in the context of having understanding, between these two ideas that sound connected is an idea that sounds different. The way the New Century Version translated this distinct idea is: “The way you give to others is the way God will give to you, but God will give you even more.”

If we switch translations and read this phrase from a different one, such as the New International Version, we see this idea translated: “With the measure you use, it will be measured to you—and even more.”

This is one reason why I like having and using many different translations. While I don’t know the original languages of the Bible, having many different translations helps me see new angles on passages such as this one.

If we had simply chosen to use the New International Version, which is likely a little more accurate in this instance, we might have simply jumped to the idea that we are to hold off on judging, stereotyping, or condemning others because if we do this to others, even more of it will be done to us.

This is a huge truth.

However, if we had simply stayed with the New Century Version, we might be tempted to think this was a brief message that we should be generous and give money to the poor so that God will reward us in ways that only He can.

This too is a huge truth.

However, when we put both translations together we see an amazing truth that the way we show grace and forgiveness towards others is the same way we show grace and forgiveness to God, and when we show grace and forgiveness towards others, God shows significantly more grace and forgiveness towards us!

However, Jesus isn’t finished shared. Continuing reading our passage, using the New Century Version, and picking back up in verse 26:

²⁶Then Jesus said, “The kingdom of God is like someone who plants seed in the ground. ²⁷Night and day, whether the person is asleep or awake, the seed still grows, but the person does not know how it grows. ²⁸By itself the earth produces grain. First the plant grows, then the head, and then all the grain in the head. ²⁹When the grain is ready, the farmer cuts it, because this is the harvest time.”

³⁰Then Jesus said, “How can I show you what the kingdom of God is like? What story can I use to explain it? ³¹The kingdom of God is like a mustard seed, the smallest seed you plant in the ground. ³²But when planted, this seed grows and becomes the largest of all garden plants. It produces large branches, and the wild birds can make nests in its shade.”

³³Jesus used many stories like these to teach the crowd God’s message—as much as they could understand. ³⁴He always used stories to teach them. But when he and his followers were alone, Jesus explained everything to them.

From reading this passage, I get the impression that Jesus loved sharing stories and wrapping spiritual truths into stories that everyone could understand. However, we might be tempted to jump over Mark’s summary statement at the end of this verse, but this would be a mistake because in Mark’s summary, we discover two big ideas.

The first idea is within verse 33 and the first part of verse 34. Mark tells us that “Jesus used many stories like these to teach the crowd God’s message—as much as they could understand. He always used stories to teach them.” The big idea I see in this verse is that Jesus structured His stories specifically for His audience. Jesus wanted those in the crowds to understand God’s truth, and He shared God’s truth in ways that those in the crowds could understand it.

The second idea is in the last portion of verse 34, where Mark follows up by saying that “when he and his followers were alone, Jesus explained everything to them.” This tells me that Jesus really wants His followers and His disciples to understand what He taught and shared. While Jesus always used stories and illustrations in public, according to Mark, Jesus explained everything when He and the disciples were alone.

One big truth I see in this idea is that God might be waiting to explain something we are struggling to understand until we are alone with Him. While God sometimes will bring people into our lives to help us understand, other times, He wants to teach us directly as we study the Bible. While not everyone in the crowd would understand all the layers of truth in Jesus’ illustrations, Jesus wanted His disciples to know and understand everything He taught.

Another truth in this set of verses is that Jesus specifically made time to be alone with His followers. While we might get the impression that there was never times where Jesus was not without a crowd of people prior to the night of His arrest, Mark alludes to times of public ministry, as well as times where Jesus would leave the crowds and focus specifically on His group of disciples.

While it would have been amazing to sit at the feet of Jesus while He walked the earth in the first century, we can figuratively do this when we stop and intentionally read what the gospel writers share.

Some might be quick to point out that this isn’t the same, which is true, but this is the best we can do during this stage of history. Sitting and reading the gospels is actually better than you might realize because when we dedicate time to reading and studying the Bible, God’s Holy Spirit is ready and willing to come and help us understand what God wants to teach us. All the Holy Spirit is waiting for is an open mind and an invitation to come. With these two things in place, we are ready to study God’s Word and understand what He wants to teach us with the Holy Spirit’s help!

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

As I always challenge you to do, intentionally seek God first in your life and choose to dedicate time in your life to spend with Him. While it might be easy to jump in and focus on reading and studying, which we should be doing, perhaps the first thing we should do when deciding to spend time with God is to pause, pray, and extend grace to God, similar to what we discovered in the first part of our passage.

When we open our Bibles, we want God to teach us and help us understand, and we should extend God grace because sometimes God will do things that we don’t understand, or things that make us confused. Extending grace to God means that we seek to understand God’s will and actions while also being okay if something doesn’t make sense right now. God is worthy of our trust even if some things He does don’t make sense from our limited perspective.

Speaking of opening our Bibles, always continue to pray and study the Bible for yourself. While it is very easy to simply move through life coasting on the thoughts and ideas of others, you shortchange your spiritual lives by staying dependant on others. Not only do you risk being deceived, you also risk your actual spiritual growth because when you filter your growth through other people, you cannot grow past where that person has grown. God wants more for you than you might realize, and mixed in with all the blessings He wants to give to you, a personal relationship with you is among the most important of these blessings.

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!

Flashback Episode: Year in Mark – Episode 10: Discover some huge truths Jesus shares when we look at a short passage of parables Jesus shares, and see a big truth about how God wants us to understand what Jesus shared through how Mark summarizes this section of his gospel.

Incriminating Yourself: Luke 11:37-54

Published March 1, 2024 in Written Journal Entries

Focus Passage: Luke 11:37-54 (NIrV)

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

³⁹Then 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. ⁴⁰You foolish people! Didn’t the one who made the outside make the inside also? ⁴¹Give freely to poor people to show what is inside you. Then everything will be clean for you.

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.”

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

⁴⁶Jesus 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. ⁴⁸So you show that you agree with what your people did long ago. They killed the prophets, and now you build the prophets’ tombs. ⁴⁹So God in his wisdom said, ‘I will send prophets and apostles to them. They will kill some. And they will try to hurt others.’ ⁵⁰So the people of today will be punished. They will pay for all the prophets’ blood spilled since the world began. ⁵¹I 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.”

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

Read Luke 11:37-54 in context and/or in other translations on BibleGateway.com!

During one of the meals Jesus was invited to with some Pharisees, Luke tells us that the host is surprised (and maybe even a little offended) when Jesus doesn’t ceremonially wash before the meal. In response Jesus challenges several issues that God had with how the Pharisees were living their lives and acting towards others.

However, at this meal were more than just Pharisees. Luke describes another group who were offended with Jesus’ words. “An authority on the law spoke to Jesus. He said, ‘Teacher, when you say things like that, you say bad things about us too.’” (v. 45)

Whether the authority on the law (i.e. a lawyer) expected Jesus to shift His attention onto his group or not, it seems as though this statement extends the invitation to challenge this other group of people present at this meal.

However, while Jesus has a challenge for this group, it is interesting in my mind that simply by speaking up, we see a subtle thing happening in what Jesus was doing. In Jesus’ challenges to the Pharisees, He was convicting those present of the sin in their lives, and He was challenging them all to live to a much higher standard than they were living at that time.

While the challenging statements Jesus made may have sounded mean, they are meant to redirect those present towards God’s ideal rather than simply being insults that have no redeemable characteristics.

In Jesus’ challenge, He opened the door for the Holy Spirit to convict those present of the sin in their lives, and when the lawyer speaks up about how Jesus’ remarks also sound relevant to him, this shows that the Holy Spirit was convicting him of sins that he was holding onto in his heart.

After this meal, Luke tells us that the Pharisees and lawyers set out to trick, trap, and oppose Jesus. Maybe Jesus came on too strong with His words, or maybe the Holy Spirit’s conviction hardened the hearts of these leaders and closed their minds off to the truth about who Jesus came to be.

Reading this event helps remind me that when the Holy Spirit convicts us of sin, we can either choose to reject what the Holy Spirit is showing us (which is what these religious leaders did), or we can choose to reject the sin by repenting and move closer to Jesus. Jesus had intended to help these leaders grow towards God’s ideal, but they instead decided to keep their sin and reject God’s Messiah.

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