Fulness and Productivity In Life As We Follow Jesus - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him today and what came to my heart and mind in John 21:3-6,

"'I'm going out to fish,' Simon Peter told them [a half dozen of the other disciples of Jesus], and they said, 'We'll go with you.' So they went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing. Early in the morning, Jesus stood on the shore, but the disciples did not realize that it was Jesus. He called out to them, 'Friends, haven't you any fish?' 'No,' they answered. He said, 'Throw your net on the right side of the boat and you will find some.' When they did, they were unable to haul the net in because of the large number of fish."

John tells us this is the account of the third time Jesus appeared to his disciples following the events of the empty tomb when Jesus appeared to Mary. The first two were in a locked room where the disciples were gathered together. This one took place on the shore of the Sea of Galilee.

The account of it demonstrates that Jesus was still teaching and developing his disciples for their upcoming work in the gospel even after he had been raised from the dead. It is an amazing account and it teaches us all that apart from Jesus Christ and following his lead, life is empty and unproductive. With Jesus, things are fruitful. Pastors will teach that the lesson here is that if the apostles were to be accomplished in their ministry of the gospel ("'Come, follow me,' Jesus said, 'and I will send you out to fish for people.'" Matthew 4:19), they needed to listen and take direction from the Lord. We, likewise, need to do the same.

This account is certainly that and from my perspective, even more. It speaks to life itself, life for each one of us. The empty net, and then the full net at following Jesus' direction is a metaphor for life's outcomes if we follow the Lord. Fulfillment and satisfaction in life are found when we follow him, when we listen to him, when we take our cues from him.

It reminds me of Jesus' teaching of the vine. "I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. This is to my Father's glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples." John 15:5-8.

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!

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Our Friend in the Castle: the Ascended Jesus Christ! - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him today and what came to my heart and mind in John 20:17b,

"I [Jesus] am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God."

These are the words Jesus instructed Mary to take back to his disciples when she first saw him resurrection morning at the empty tomb.

We read of the resurrected Jesus ascending into heaven in Acts 1:9-11, "After he [Jesus] said this, he was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight. They were looking intently up into the sky as he was going, when suddenly two men dressed in white stood beside them. 'Men of Galilee,' they said, 'why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven.'"

Of that account, the NIV Quest Study Bible, answering the question, "Why did Jesus depart so dramatically?" says, "Jesus' ascension into the cloud may have been the final lesson for them; it showed them he was leaving the physical world and returning to the heavenly realms. His extraordinary departure helped the disciples to see Jesus of Nazareth as the Messiah of heaven."

This "Messiah of heaven" can be viewed as our "friend in the castle." He currently resides in heaven and is active on our behalf. Paul says, "If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. Who then is the one who condemns? No one. Christ Jesus who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us." Romans 8:31-34.

The writer of Hebrews notes, "Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has ascended into heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin. Let us then approach God's throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need." Hebrews 4:14-16.

When Jesus spoke to Mary of "my Father and your Father, to my God and your God" he was clearly establishing an intimate and personal link between us and the heavenly environs, and specifically with our heavenly Father. God the Father is Jesus Christ's Father and God as well as each believer's Father and God. We share that with Jesus Christ!

Our arisen, ascended Savior, Jesus Christ, is our "friend in the castle" and our advocate before our Father God. How wonderful is that?!

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!

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Two Pictures of God in Jesus' Death - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him today and what came to my heart and mind in John 19:1-3,

"Then Pilate took Jesus and had him flogged. The soldiers twisted together a crown of thorns and put it on his head. They clothed him in a purple robe and went up to him again and again, saying, 'Hail, king of the Jews!' And they slapped him in the face."

The NIV Quest Study Bible explains what flogging was, "Flogging was a ruthless punishment in which a person was hit with a leather whip comprised of multiple strands that contained sharp bits of bone or metal embedded in the ends. It left the back raw and bleeding, sometimes exposing bones and organs. Floggings occasionally even caused death." If you saw Mel Gibson's movie, "The Passion of the Christ", you saw the flogging dramatized in film. Not something easily forgotten. Absolutely horrific.

Coupled with the humiliation the soldiers heaped on him, a crown of thorns jammed in his head, the beatings and slappings, and finally the crucifixion, it all makes for an appalling and dreadful account. Why did Jesus suffer such a frightful death?

We read in Isaiah 53:4-6, "Surely he [the "servant", Jesus Christ] took up our pain and bore our suffering, yet we considered him punished by God, stricken by him, and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed. We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to our own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all."

From this Isaiah passage, written 700 + years before Jesus Christ came to planet earth, we learn that God takes credit for the punishment that his Son received. When Jesus Christ suffered and died on that cross, it was to pay the penalty for all of mankind's sins, everyone, everywhere for all time. As a righteous and holy God, the Father's court of judgment had to be satisfied for us sinners to gain eternal life with him. Jesus Christ paid that penalty on our behalf. We get the benefit if and when we embrace him in faith. That is all he asks.

The brutal nature of this punishment Jesus Christ received speaks of two very important aspects of God. The first is that God the Father has always been, and still is, a God of justice and righteousness. Having the Son of his love suffer on our behalf (the payment of sins is fungible) displays the horrifying nature of God's judgment. The writer of Hebrews tells us "It is a dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the living God." Hebrews 10:31.

The other aspect of the brutal nature of this punishment is that it speaks of the unbelievable love God the Father has for mankind in not sparing his Son but to provide him on our behalf as an acceptable sacrifice. This he did to satisfy the demands of his justice in making a way for us. It also displays the tremendous love of Jesus Christ in his willingness to suffer such an appalling death so that we might have the opportunity to join his family. "For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God." Hebrews 12:2.

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!

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Peter's Possession and Use of a Sidearm - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him today and what came to my heart and mind in John 18:10,

"Then Simon Peter, who had a sword, drew it and struck the high priest's servant, cutting off his right ear."

When the soldiers and officials from the chief priests came to arrest Jesus, Peter (always impetuous and impulsive) drew his sword and cut off the right ear of Malchus, the high priest's servant. From this I'm guessing Peter was a southpaw. It seems to me that if Peter was right-handed, he would have had to take Malchus' head off to get to his right ear... (just conjecture on my part). In any event, what was Peter doing with a sword?

That question is an important one. Its importance is found in that it illustrates the prevalence of a handicap many people impose upon themselves when they read and study the Scriptures. That handicap is the mistake of reading and studying the Scriptures through the lense of preconceived theology. Rather than allowing the Scriptures to speak for themselves in helping us develop our theology over time, we often form our understanding of the Scriptures by what our preconceived theology dictates. This can often bring both our understanding of the Scriptures and the maturity of our theology to a standstill.

Many think Jesus was a pacifist and condemned any possession or use of weapons and that Peter's possession and use of a sidearm would be wrongful from the get-go.

Take a look at this passage, "Then Jesus asked them [his disciples], 'When I sent you without purse, bag or sandals, did you lack anything?' 'Nothing,' they answered. He said to them, 'But now if you have a purse, take it, and also a bag; and if you don't have a sword, sell your cloak and buy one. It is written: "And he was numbered with the transgressors"; and I tell you that this must be fulfilled in me. Yes, what is written about me is reaching its fulfillment.' The disciples said, 'See, Lord, here are two swords.' 'That's enough!' he replied." Luke 22:35-38.

These swords were the sidearm of the day. Our equivalent today is not a machete or a foil used in fencing, but a Glock or Smith & Wesson, etc. Sounds like Jesus advocated for carrying a sidearm, doesn't it? And to insure it is not just "metaphorical language", we read his disciples laid claim to two of these, which Jesus said would be enough. Enough for what? One of two was used by Peter to whack off Malcus' ear. (Who do you think carried the other one?) Jesus did tell Peter that "all who draw the sword will die by the sword", Matthew 26:52. But, he didn't tell Peter to get rid of his sword, he told him to reholster it, "Put your sword back in its place..."

The wedding in Cana, where Jesus turned water to wine, found in John 2:1-10, is another example of this trap. I clearly recall a professor telling us, "I refuse to believe Jesus provided wine for a drunken brawl in Cana. It was grape juice he turned the water into!" His preconceived theology forced his interpretation of that passage rather than the other way around.

When we enter the sacred ground of Scripture, we need to check our theology at the door as we enter. Let the Scriptures speak for themselves (goodness knows, they don't need any help from me!)

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!

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The Fountain of Joy - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him today and what came to my heart and mind in John 17:13,

"I am coming to you now, but I say these things while I am still in the world, so that they may have the full measure of my joy within them."

Prior to his arrest, Jesus encouraged his disciples as he prepared them for what was to take place. In the previous chapter, verse 22, Jesus told his disciples, "Now is your time of grief, but I will see you again and you will rejoice, and no one will take away your joy." Jesus pointed to the joy his disciples would have when they saw him in his resurrected body. Clearly the anticipated joy Jesus spoke of was in his mind as he spoke with his disciples.

In John 17:13, Jesus spoke of joy again as he prayed to the Father. He wanted his disciples to have the full measure of his own joy beating within their hearts. Real joy and rejoicing is something Jesus anticipates within those who are his.

Paul encouraged the Roman believers, "Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer." Romans 12:12. Joy springs from that hope we have in the resurrection, the hope that is fueled by setting our hearts and minds on things above, Colossians 3:1. Sometimes we miss Paul's point that the kingdom of God is a matter of "righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit", Romans 14:17.

Joy is a natural outcome of the Holy Spirit dwelling within us. You might call it a "supernatural" outcome! "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace..." Galatians 5:22. We are even admonished to celebrate our joy, "Further, my brothers and sisters, rejoice in the Lord!" Philippians 3:1a. In the following chapter, Paul exhorts believers to rejoice, "Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!" Philippians 4:4. In the next verse Paul reminds us, "The Lord is near."

Peter tells us, "Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the end result of your faith, the salvation of your souls." 1 Peter 1:8-9. If we are lacking in our joy, the fountain is found here... reflecting on our Savior and the salvation of our souls!

"Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart." Hebrews 12:1-3. As we fix our eyes on Jesus we find a joy within ourselves that mirrors the full measure of his joy!

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!

If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just reply and let me know.

The Long View - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him today and what came to my heart and mind in John 16:1-4a,

"All this I have told you so that you will not fall away. They will put you out of the synagogue; in fact, the time is coming when anyone who kills you will think they are offering a service to God. They will do such things because they have not known the Father or me. I have told you this, so that when their time comes you will remember that I warned you about them."

We read in John's gospel that the Lord prepared his disciples for his arrest, crucifixion, burial and resurrection before those events took place. There was nothing about the mission of his earthly ministry that he did not execute flawlessly. Preparing his disciples was one of those.

I note he told his disciples that they would be shunned by their community by putting them out of the synagogue. For those of you who are plugged into social media, this was much worse than being banned from Facebook or Twitter as it impacted every area of their lives and was significant in their communities and families.

Worse than that, the Lord said, "the time is coming when anyone who kills you will think they are offering a service to God." Did you catch that? "When anyone kills you..." That happened! He went on to say, "I have told you this, so that when their time comes you will remember that I warned you about them."

When unbelievers were to carry out their nefarious actions against God's people, the Lord didn't say he would keep it from happening. On the contrary, martyrdom was significant in the early church (and right up to today!) For various reasons, the Lord allows suffering on our parts as something he uses to accomplish things in our lives, in the lives of others and for the pursuit of his redemptive activities. Paul said, "I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us." Romans 8:18.

In the context of this conversation Jesus had with his disciples, he was preparing them for the grief they would experience upon his crucifixion. He told them, "Very truly I tell you, you will weep and mourn while the world rejoices. You will grieve, but your grief will turn to joy. A woman giving birth to a child has pain because her time has come; but when her baby is born she forgets the anguish because of her joy that a child is born into the world. So with you: Now is your time of grief, but I will see you again and you will rejoice, and no one will take away your joy." Verses 20-22.

So too for us. We should have that same "long view" today. We may (will) suffer in this life, but our eyes need to be fixed on things above, on the Lord, where we are headed for eternity, where we find our joy. "Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory." Colossians 3:1-4.

Don't believe the hype found in so many churches today, that because God loves us he will keep bad things from our lives. That is a false message. The truth is that many of us believers will see bad things come into our lives. The message should be that the Lord is right there with us, we are not on our own, and as we face them, we take that "long view" and know, "in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose." Romans 8:28.

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!

If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just reply and let me know.

No Excuse For Sin In Rejecting Jesus Christ - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him today and what came to my heart and mind in John 15:22,

"If I had not come and spoken to them, they would not be guilty of sin; but now they have no excuse for their sin."

In a chapter that emphasizes abiding in Jesus Christ in an environment that is to be marked by believers loving one another in the midst of the world hating them, he points to the culpability of those who, in Jesus' words, "do not know the one who sent me." Verse 21.

While he speaks of "the world", meaning the family of mankind that rejects its Creator and Savior, he has in view, specifically, the Jews who had heard and rejected him. Jesus came to the Jews, he proclaimed to them who he was, and authenticated that through fulfillment of prophecy, signs, miracles and wonders. He turned water to wine, he healed the sick, he raised the dead. He told them he had come from the Father and that there was salvation in no one else, save him.

Having accomplished those things among them, those who rejected him demonstrated they did not know the Father and sealed their fate. There was and is no hope for them. No eternal life, only eternal death awaits them as they remain in the guilt of their sin, "they have no excuse for their sin."

So it is today. We look back and recognize that Jesus Christ came, established his bona fides and offered his invitation, "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest." Matthew 11:28. He offered hope for all in this lost and fallen world, "Very truly I tell you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be judged but has crossed over from death to life. Very truly I tell you, a time is coming and has now come when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God and those who hear will live." Matthew 5:24-25. And he also provided his warning, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." John 14:6.

There simply is no excuse for anyone who rejects Jesus Christ: they remain in their sin.

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!

If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just reply and let me know.