Week 13

Monday, March 24

2 Peter 3

         

Commentary

            As Peter closes this letter, he reminds his audience that God’s message has been consistent – he is working in the world now, he will ultimately and finally judge sin, and these things are true despite the continual presence of scoffers and doubters. The false teachers, AKA the scoffers, that Peter’s readers were dealing with, did have an accurate observation– since creation, everything has been fundamentally the same, with no final end to sin. They were onto something with this part – Ecclesiastes makes many of the same points – but they then wrongfully concluded that this means God isn’t actually going to punish sin and we can live however we want. As Peter explained, God is actually delaying his judgement to give sinners the opportunity to repent (see Romans 2:4).

Peter reminds his readers that God has indeed judged the world in the past. He destroyed all life on earth (aside from that in the ark) by the very same mechanisms he used to create the world. And by the same word, God’s perfect, authoritative promise, he is waiting to judge the world. So God is allowing this sinful world to continue a very short period, just long enough for all of his chosen people to come to him, and then he will destroy it, bring the new heavens and earth, and his people will dwell with him forever!

In the Bible, eschatology, teaching on the end times, is never simply (or even primarily) to give a timetable or create a chart of exactly what will happen and when. Instead, eschatology shows us that the Lord is returning to rescue his people and destroy his enemies, and thus we need to live as God’s people, have endurance in trials, and bring the message of salvation and judgement to unbelievers.

 

Application/Discussion

1. The day of the Lord, the day of Jesus’ second coming and his judgement of the world, will come stealthily and unexpectedly and immediately everything will be over. Are you ready for his return? Are you confident you would go to heaven if the final judgement happened right now?

2. What are your biggest concerns in your day-to-day, month-to-month, year to year life? Are things with eternal consequences and spiritual fruit? Are you using the time God has given you the best way you can?

 

Points of Prayer

1. Thank God for the mercy he shows to all of us by withholding our just punishment and giving us the chance to know Christ.

2. Pray for the Holy Spirit’s help in living out our salvation and using our time well.

3. Pray for the salvation of a lost person you know well and ask the Holy Spirit to give you an opportunity to share the gospel.

 

Going Deeper

If you’d like to learn more about this book, you can see the sermon series I preached a few years ago:

·      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o77DTieG92I

 

Tuesday, March 25

Jude 1

 

Commentary

This letter comes from an early church leader named Jude, probably another of Jesus’ half brothers since Jude says he is the brother of James (see Matthew 13:55). Using very similar language to 2 Peter, Jude’s letter addresses false teachers and appeals to God’s past judgement of sin to show he will end have a final judgement for sin. He also emphasizes the responsibility of the church as a whole and individual Christians in staying away from sin and sinful influences.

The false teachers are an expected challenge to the church that need to be dealt with while relying on Christ. The pastors of each local church are to protect their flocks by teaching rightly, correcting (a gentle redirect), and rebuking (a stern condemnation) as appropriate. The individual people in the church are also part of this work, however. We should all be learning and practicing the truth as well as helping pull others away from sin and sinful influences. Ungodly division and distorted priorities can easily take over a church when the church members leave the pastors to do all the work of correcting and rebuking. We are called to serve the Lord and his people by taking a stand against sin in our own lives as well as the lives of those in the church and outside the church. As the closing verses beautifully show, God is certainly able to keep ahold of his people. We must rely on his endless strength and unbreakable promises as we live out our faith and point others to Christ.

 

Application/Discussion

1. What fires encroach on those in your family and church? Perhaps temptations to gossip, relapse in addiction, harbor grudges or prejudices, or neglect the local church are common. How can you encourage and redirect these folks to the truth and godly living?

2. What does this letter, particularly verse 23, tell us about the danger of allowing sinful influences in our lives? What does this letter tell us about how God offers his help to us when we are facing temptations or hardship?

 

Points of Prayer

1. Thank God for being merciful in withholding the final judgement for now, for the forgiveness we can have in Christ, and for the certainty that he will punish evil.

2. Pray for the Holy Spirit’s help in desiring spiritual growth, being a godly example to others, and pointing people to Christ at every opportunity.

3. Pray for the Holy Spirit to help your church members be vigilant about sinful influences in their own lives and humbly help others stay away from sinful influences and to help your pastors teach the truth and protect the church from false teachers.

 

Going Deeper

If you have any questions about this book, check out the notes in your study Bible or this commentary: tgc.org/commentary/

You can learn more about both Jude and James from these GotQuestions articles:

·      https://www.gotquestions.org/Jude-in-the-Bible.html

·      https://www.gotquestions.org/life-James.html

Wednesday, March 26

Mark 1:1-20

 

Commentary

We’re continuing to emphasize the Christian life in our Bible reading as we turn now to Mark’s gospel. Mark’s gospel emphasizes discipleship and concisely tells us the life of Jesus, highlighting Jesus’ work as both the divine Son of God and the self-sacrificing Son of Man. As Mark begins his narrative, he points us to the Old Testament promise of God promised to send a prophet, John the Baptist, to prepare the way for God himself, God the Son, to save his people. Mark is telling us only three verses into his gospel that Jesus is God himself. You simply cannot read the New Testament honestly and escape the divinity of Jesus!

John the Baptist prepares the way for Jesus by urging people to repent of their sins and publicly demonstrate their repentance in baptism. Jesus, though sinless, was baptized so that he could identify with us, obey God’s command to be baptized, and inaugurate his public ministry in the power of the Spirit. The baptism of Jesus is deeply Trinitarian – Jesus is baptized, the Father approves, and the Holy Spirit comes upon Jesus.

Just as we saw Jesus’ deity confirmed in his baptism, we see his humanity shown here in his temptation. Yet Jesus prevailed over Satan during this wilderness temptation and throughout his earthly life, succeeding where we all fail and preparing himself to be the perfect sacrifice for our sins. We also see hid deity in his calling of his first disciples: they immediately left behind everything they knew and loved to follow him. Only God could call with such authority and effectiveness. We, too, are called to put everything in a distant second-place to God– and this is possible through the forgiveness of sins and indwelling of the Holy Spirit made possible through the redemptive work of Christ.

 

Application/Discussion

1. If we get excited when we get a new job or see a movie we love, how much more excited should we be that Jesus offers to bring us from death to life? The gospel is the very best news, are we spreading that news more than the news of these lesser, earthly things?

2. The gospel message really does boil down to “Repent and believe.” What does this mean? Have you truly repented and put your faith in Christ? Do you encourage and pray for those around you to do the same?

 

Points of Prayer

1. Thank God for sending Jesus to be our Savior and for Jesus’ perfect and joyful obedience, his patient endurance in suffering, and victorious resurrection and ascension.

2. Pray for the Holy Spirit’s help in putting God’s kingdom first and strive to live out our faith and share the gospel.

3. Pray for the salvation of a lost person you know by name.

 

Going Deeper

These articles answer some of the questions you may still have about this chapter:

·      https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/article/you-asked-did-mark-fumble-his-opening-quotation/

·      https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/article/jesus-need-baptized/

 

Thursday, March 27

Mark 1:21-45

 

Commentary

Jesus and the disciples went to the northern town of Capernaum. Jesus went to the synagogue, where Jews gathered for learning and worship, and started teaching. In the few centuries between the lasting writings of the Old Testament and the coming of Jesus, many Jewish leaders failed in their responsibility to teach the Scriptures rightly. They taught from the Bible, but usually spoke more about human tradition and the “wisdom” of other Jewish leaders than they spoke about what God authoritatively spoke in his Word. Just like John the Baptist’s baptisms were only ceremonies performed by an imperfect, sinful man and had no spiritual consequence apart from God’s work, the leadership and teaching of these scribes, who were very knowledgeable of the Old Testament law, had no significance without God working through them.

The teaching of Jesus was so profound that the demon inside this man could not stand to hear it. The demon does not call Jesus “the Holy One of God” to worship him or give him any respect. In the ancient world, names were considered sacred and vital to a person’s identity. This spirit uses Jesus’ name to try and have power over him, but of course that cannot work on the Son of God. Jesus did not need any fancy ritual or equipment or even a name; he simply needed his authority and power.

In the healing miracles of Jesus, we see far more than the mere fixing of a worldly health problem; we see pictures of salvation. The sickness of Peter’s mother-in-law kept her from serving the Lord, just as sin keeps us from serving the Lord. Jesus took her sickness away completely, and thus she could immediately serve him with everything she had. The leper was unclean and helpless, Jesus purified and restored him. From sinner to servant, from helpless to heaven-bound, that is the gospel! Jesus did not come into the world to be a doctor, a genie, or a problem-solver. He came to be our Savior and our King.

 

Application/Discussion

1. Jesus’ custom was to be worshipping on the day all of God’s people would gather?

2. Jesus taught with authority. Do we listen and obey?

 

Points of Prayer

1. Thank God for the healing from sin we can receive through Christ and the new creation we will be part of if we know him.

2. Pray for the Holy Spirit’s help in loving and serving others as Christ did.

3. Pray for a few people by name who struggle with chronic health issues or complicated recovery to look to Christ, long for the new creation, and be faithful here in the meantime.

 

Going Deeper

Tim Keller has an excellent sermon series (and book, Jesus the King) on the gospel of Mark that’s been very edifying for me:

·      https://gospelinlife.com/series/king-s-cross-the-gospel-of-mark-part-1-the-coming-of-the-king/

Friday, March 28

Mark 2

 

Commentary

As Mark continues his narrative, we learn more about the authority and the heart of Christ as well as see rising tensions with the Jewish leaders.

The house was so full that the people who were bringing this paralyzed man to be healed could not even get inside the house. Once again, Jesus’ compassion is awesome, because rather than rebuking these four men for breaking the roof, dropping dirt and sticks on him, and interrupting his teaching, he recognized their great faith in his ability to heal their friend. Rather than simply healing this man, Jesus does something with real spiritual consequences. Jesus forgave the paralyzed man of his sins, which is a reflection of the man and his friends’ trust that Jesus could heal him. The Israelites were always taught that the coming Messiah would protect and rule over God’s people, but their Scriptures also taught that only God could forgive sins. Thus, Jesus showed himself not just to be the Savior, but God as well in miracles like these.

Jesus called a tax collector to be a disciple and even more scandalously, he shared a meal with this tax collector and all his sinful friends – the town drunks, sexually immoral people, liars and cheaters, and so on. These folks would have been banned from the synagogue and regarded as moral lost causes, but Jesus loved and pursued them when no one else did. The Pharisees didn’t understand why Jesus was eating with tax collectors and sinners because they had little compassion for people, only zeal for rules and traditions. Jesus tells them that he is not here for those who think are fine without him, he is here for those who know they need him. Jesus came to bring something better than baseless human tradition, arrogant self-righteousness, and rule-stickling. He came to give us true salvation and lasting rest. To God be the glory!

 

Application/Discussion

1. Do our lives make Jesus as big of a deal as he deserves? Or do we put Jesus on the backburner sometimes, or give him only part of our lives? Jesus is our bridegroom, the one we were made to love. Do we give him the love he deserves?

 

Points of Prayer

1. Thank God for seeking and saving us when we are lost in our sin.

2. Pray for the Holy Spirit’s help in being humble, loving, and servant-hearted.

3. Pray for the Holy Spirit’s help for your church’s pastors and teachers, as well as the church as a whole, to be faithful, humble, loving, and evangelistic

Going Deeper

These articles further explain how Jesus is the abiding Sabbath rest of believers:

·      https://www.desiringgod.org/articles/should-christians-keep-the-sabbath

·      https://www.gotquestions.org/Jesus-Sabbath.html

·      https://www.gotquestions.org/Saturday-Sunday.html

Saturday, March 29

Mark 3

 

Commentary

In this chapter, we see further conflict between Jesus and the Pharisees over the Sabbath. Last time, they were mad at Jesus for eating, now they are mad because he heals somebody. Once again, they have missed the point of the Sabbath. The Sabbath was for the good of man, and the good of man includes eating and helping others. Jesus asked them if it was lawful to do good on the Sabbath or not, but they knew either answer would condemn them in some way. Jesus then casts out demons again and once again warns the now free victim to not tell anyone about him. Why? First, he already has enough people crowding him, so many that his sent his disciples to keep a getaway boat ready. Second, Jesus is claiming equality with God, which is blasphemy to the Jews. He did not want to be arrested and crucified prematurely, so minimizing his public exposure sometimes was helpful.

Both the religious leaders and Jesus’ own family think he has gone crazy and Jesus gives a brilliant answer to both concerns. He tells the religious leaders that Satan would not work against himself by casting our demons from other people. He tells the crowd listening to his teaching that his family members are everyone who loves and follows God. This is true of us, too, if we know Christ – we are part of God’s family.

Jesus tells the scribes that by calling him Satan, they were blaspheming against the Holy Spirit. As we said when looking at Matthew’s account of this interaction, the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit is not some sleeper agent code that you might accidentally say and damn yourself with. To blaspheme is to greatly disrespect or misrepresent the identity of God. Looking at God in the flesh and saying he is powered by the devil is a sure-fire way to guarantee you’ll never want to trust him and if you never do, then of course you will not be forgiven of your sins and go to Hell. May this lifelong unbelief not be true of any of us!

 

Application/Discussion

1. Have you put your trust in Jesus as your Savior, or are you still in complete unbelief or thinking things over? Ask God for help and guidance in terms of your salvation.

2. Be thankful for openly sinful, rebellious, messy people who can remind us to share the gospel with everyone around us.

 

Points of Prayer

1. Thank God for the salvation that is offered to us thanks to the sacrifice and resurrection of Christ.

2. Pray for the Holy Spirit to help you understand if you have genuine faith in Christ and to either live out that faith or come to genuine faith.

3. Pray for the salvation of two lost people you know by name.

 

Going Deeper

·      You can learn more about the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit by reading these excellent articles:

·      https://www.desiringgod.org/interviews/can-a-christian-blaspheme-the-holy-spirit

·      https://www.gotquestions.org/blasphemy-Holy-Spirit.html

Sunday, March 30

Mark 4

 

Commentary

This chapter has one of the main parable sections in Mark’s gospel. Parables are stories about everyday life that Jesus told to convey spiritual wisdom. Jesus did not say everything in crystal clear language because he was speaking to his spiritual family he was talking about in the last chapter. Most others were not even interested in actually learning from him. Now Jesus explains why he is teaching in parables. First, he tells the crowd “whoever has ears to hear, let them hear.” Jesus is no hiding his meaning totally. The people have the responsibility to listen, learn, and ask questions. Some time after he was teaching, Jesus was with his disciples and other followers, not the unbelieving religious leaders, and they asked him what the parable meant. Once again, we see Jesus’ followers wanting to know what he taught and everyone else having no interest. Even when Jesus spoke clearly, most people did not listen to him. What is the difference in speaking with or without parables then? His followers would see their need for God’s help and learn, and at least the other people might be too confused to kill him prematurely.

Now, we’re probably all still wondering what exactly the first parable meant, about the farmer and the seeds. Luckily, Jesus tells us. The last group was the only group that was really saved. A lot of people can pretend to be a follower of God for a while, but real faith will shine through even in the tough times. We cannot produce true, lasting faith on our own, God must cultivate this within us. As we grow in the Lord, we should be fruitful and part of fruitfulness is evangelism. These parables are a great encouragement in our evangelism – the seed of the gospel will surely grow in those who are called by God to see it and be saved. Do not worry about how much God will harvest from your labors, he will harvest just as much as he intended to from before time began. Just go out and sow!

 

Application/Discussion

1. If you know the Lord, but don’t tell others about him, how strong is your faith? If you really believe that Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life, the only way to peace with God, then how could you stand to not share it?

 

Points of Prayer

1. Thank God that Christ has purchased our salvation by his blood and that God calls us out of our sin and darkness even while we are helpless to do so ourselves.

2. Pray for the Holy Spirit’s help in growing in the faith, being engaged in your church, and sowing the seeds of the gospel around you.

3. Pray for the Holy Spirit help in understanding God’s Word, blessing your devotional time, and increasing in love for God and his Word.