I have been re-reading Thomas Schreiner's book Paul: Apostle of God's Glory in Christ. It is a great book and really makes me think about the deep things of God, missions, salvation, discipleship, ethics, etc. One of the areas I've been reading lately deals with salvation and faith.Schreiner makes a couple of comments that have me thinking and felt I should let you ponder them as well.
"Faith receives what God gives to us instead of laboring to give something to God. Since faith is fundamentally receptive, it accords with grace." What a great picture of the role faith plays in our lives. It is not the passive, cheap grace and mental assent that some want turn faith in to for salvation, but it is not the man-generated, self-centered works salvation that some try to disguise as faith. Real faith recognizes that God has done all that was necessary for salvation through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ and receives the forgiveness of sin through Jesus.
"Faith, in other words, is fundamentally humble, for it acknowledges our inability to save ourselves by our works." This statement is a two-edged sword cutting against two kinds of pride. For those who think they can save themselves, faith says salvation is found only in the work of Christ. At the same time, those who would take pride in their "election" would be wise to recall that there is nothing meritorious to our lives that makes one worthy of salvation. In other words, for the believer, there is nothing there to take pride in except Jesus.
I would encourage you to find a good author like Schreiner and wade into the deep-end of the theological pool from time to time. The spiritual and mental exercise stretches our faith and thinking about God and our walk with Christ.
Wednesday, April 10, 2013
Tuesday, April 02, 2013
The Road to Emmaus: Don't Let Jesus Pass You By
Luke 24:13-35
This account is detailed description of an appearance of Jesus to two disciples (followers of Jesus but not part of the inner circle of apostles.) following the crucifixion and resurrection. There is a lot of interesting things in this passage. Frankly, the temptation is to go through all of the interesting historical and theological points in this passage. I will restrain myself and point towards one particular thing that leads to an application.
It is interesting that these two men, Cleopas and an unnamed person, spent time discussing with one another about what had taken place in Jerusalem when it was "interrupted" by a person who was not recognizable to them. Their discussion demonstrated their love for Jesus and the conflict that was taking place between their belief and their despair. Their description of the events to the unknown man (Jesus) demonstrated that they didn't understand what had happened. Jesus then explains why it happened the way it did from Scripture (our Old Testament.)
It is at this point in the story that the two men reached their destination. Verse 28 tells us that Jesus "acted as though He was going farther." However, at the invitation of the two men, Jesus stopped with them. As they start to share a meal together, Jesus is revealed to these men and they recognize that this man is Jesus, and Jesus disappears miraculously.
What I want to focus upon is the teaching and the invitation. These were not just any followers, but men who were part of that remnant who met together after the crucifixion, so they were devoted to Jesus and devastated by his death. These men had heard Jesus teach before. They had just received a personal lesson from Scripture about Jesus. But it was only after Jesus was invited to stay with them that they recognized Jesus was with them!
Ponder those last two sentences for a moment. We know from verse 32 the teaching they heard was with power, but it was not until they heard Jesus break bread and bless it that they saw him for who he was. What if they had just let Jesus keep walking and not invited him to stay? What if they had said to this person, "What a great lesson. Thanks for walking with us. See you later."? They would of missed knowing that it was Jesus that had been with them.
When we read the Bible or hear a sermon or participate in a Bible study, the Word of God is present among us and it has power. We may sense something important is taking place and may learn something new or important. But too many of us get to the end of the passage/lesson/sermon, we head towards the parking lot, and say, "What a great message. Thanks for teaching us. See you next Sunday." We never invite Jesus to stay with us. We miss out on the relationship and the miraculous.
Friends, we need to stop reading the Bible or listening to a message or a lesson and think we have "done our duty." We need to realize that spending time in the Word is a means to spending time with the Savior. Each time we handle the Word of God, spend time in prayer, or worship, Jesus is waiting for an invitation from us to spend time with Him.
This account is detailed description of an appearance of Jesus to two disciples (followers of Jesus but not part of the inner circle of apostles.) following the crucifixion and resurrection. There is a lot of interesting things in this passage. Frankly, the temptation is to go through all of the interesting historical and theological points in this passage. I will restrain myself and point towards one particular thing that leads to an application.
It is interesting that these two men, Cleopas and an unnamed person, spent time discussing with one another about what had taken place in Jerusalem when it was "interrupted" by a person who was not recognizable to them. Their discussion demonstrated their love for Jesus and the conflict that was taking place between their belief and their despair. Their description of the events to the unknown man (Jesus) demonstrated that they didn't understand what had happened. Jesus then explains why it happened the way it did from Scripture (our Old Testament.)
It is at this point in the story that the two men reached their destination. Verse 28 tells us that Jesus "acted as though He was going farther." However, at the invitation of the two men, Jesus stopped with them. As they start to share a meal together, Jesus is revealed to these men and they recognize that this man is Jesus, and Jesus disappears miraculously.
What I want to focus upon is the teaching and the invitation. These were not just any followers, but men who were part of that remnant who met together after the crucifixion, so they were devoted to Jesus and devastated by his death. These men had heard Jesus teach before. They had just received a personal lesson from Scripture about Jesus. But it was only after Jesus was invited to stay with them that they recognized Jesus was with them!
Ponder those last two sentences for a moment. We know from verse 32 the teaching they heard was with power, but it was not until they heard Jesus break bread and bless it that they saw him for who he was. What if they had just let Jesus keep walking and not invited him to stay? What if they had said to this person, "What a great lesson. Thanks for walking with us. See you later."? They would of missed knowing that it was Jesus that had been with them.
When we read the Bible or hear a sermon or participate in a Bible study, the Word of God is present among us and it has power. We may sense something important is taking place and may learn something new or important. But too many of us get to the end of the passage/lesson/sermon, we head towards the parking lot, and say, "What a great message. Thanks for teaching us. See you next Sunday." We never invite Jesus to stay with us. We miss out on the relationship and the miraculous.
Friends, we need to stop reading the Bible or listening to a message or a lesson and think we have "done our duty." We need to realize that spending time in the Word is a means to spending time with the Savior. Each time we handle the Word of God, spend time in prayer, or worship, Jesus is waiting for an invitation from us to spend time with Him.
Monday, April 01, 2013
The Roman Centurion at the Foot of the Cross
Mark 15:33-39
One of the little "sub-stories" found in the crucifixion story is in Mark. The reason this story fascinates me is the role it plays in the bigger story. If you remember, Jesus' ministry is almost exclusively directed to the Jewish people. He interacts with Gentiles and he commends the faith of those Gentiles who display it, but he repeatedly speaks about, teaches, and ministers to the people of Israel. Near the end of his ministry he laments his rejection by the people of Jerusalem and weeps over the city in Matthew.
Later, it is the Jewish leaders and people who are asking for Jesus to be crucified in front of Pilate, even though they are the people Jesus had been teaching and calling. Jesus is crucified and the leaders are still mocking him. In this passage, you have the words that should have been uttered by the people of Israel coming from the lips of a Gentile, "Truly this man was the Son of God!" This provides the great picture of Jesus' death not being just for the people of Israel, but includes Gentiles as well.
In regards to application, it is a great reminder for people who are religious leaders or think of themselves as spiritually mature to be cautious. The Pharisees had all of the knowledge, but the Roman Centurion truly had eyes to see and ears to hear that Jesus is who he claimed to be. Faith and obedience is not about knowledge but a heart that is teachable and open to God. We should increase in our knowledge and understanding with the purpose of being in closer relationship with Jesus. More importantly, we need to be sensitive to what God is doing around us and respond to him accordingly.
One of the little "sub-stories" found in the crucifixion story is in Mark. The reason this story fascinates me is the role it plays in the bigger story. If you remember, Jesus' ministry is almost exclusively directed to the Jewish people. He interacts with Gentiles and he commends the faith of those Gentiles who display it, but he repeatedly speaks about, teaches, and ministers to the people of Israel. Near the end of his ministry he laments his rejection by the people of Jerusalem and weeps over the city in Matthew.
Later, it is the Jewish leaders and people who are asking for Jesus to be crucified in front of Pilate, even though they are the people Jesus had been teaching and calling. Jesus is crucified and the leaders are still mocking him. In this passage, you have the words that should have been uttered by the people of Israel coming from the lips of a Gentile, "Truly this man was the Son of God!" This provides the great picture of Jesus' death not being just for the people of Israel, but includes Gentiles as well.
In regards to application, it is a great reminder for people who are religious leaders or think of themselves as spiritually mature to be cautious. The Pharisees had all of the knowledge, but the Roman Centurion truly had eyes to see and ears to hear that Jesus is who he claimed to be. Faith and obedience is not about knowledge but a heart that is teachable and open to God. We should increase in our knowledge and understanding with the purpose of being in closer relationship with Jesus. More importantly, we need to be sensitive to what God is doing around us and respond to him accordingly.
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