Inspiration for Today's World

Category: Snapshots (Page 2 of 45)

Our Quest for Hope

Isaiah 11:1-91NIV New International Version Translations

1 A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse; from his roots a Branch will bear fruit. 2 The Spirit of the LORD will rest on him- the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding, the Spirit of counsel and of might, the Spirit of the knowledge and fear of the LORD- 3 and he will delight in the fear of the LORD. He will not judge by what he sees with his eyes, or decide by what he hears with his ears; 4 but with righteousness he will judge the needy, with justice he will give decisions for the poor of the earth. He will strike the earth with the rod of his mouth; with the breath of his lips he will slay the wicked. 5 Righteousness will be his belt and faithfulness the sash around his waist. 6 The wolf will live with the lamb, the leopard will lie down with the goat, the calf and the lion and the yearling together; and a little child will lead them. 7 The cow will feed with the bear, their young will lie down together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox. 8 The infant will play near the cobra’s den, and the young child will put its hand into the viper’s nest. 9 They will neither harm nor destroy on all my holy mountain, for the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the LORD as the waters cover the sea.

Background

God chose to raise up a king from the least likely son of an unlikely father. God did this so that when the king (it would be David) became great, people couldn’t say, “He comes from good stock!”—or “He has good genes.” God wanted to be clear, His hand of the Lord did this. The “shoot” is a symbol of hope and new life. It was a clear contrast to the hopelessness of the then king Ahaz, who’s policies, nearly destroyed the nation. Jesse was David’s father (1 Samuel 16). Jesse was a simple farmer and sheep owner who is remembered today for only one thing, that he was the father of the great king David. David became king, not because of his father’s strength, brilliance or wealth. David became king by the grace of God.

A quick review of the story: The prophet Samuel tells Jesse that God had decided to make one of his sons king, and asked Jesse to bring his sons to Samuel so he could see which one the Lord had chosen. Jesse brought them one by one but the Lord rejected each in turn. Finally, Samuel had to ask Jesse, “Are all your children here (1 Samuel 16:11), and Jesse scratched his head and remembered that his youngest (and least likely) son was out in the fields tending the sheep. Samuel told Jesse to bring this youngest son to him. This, of course, was David, his youngest son who God chose to be king.

The “shoot” that comes out of the root of Jesse (David) will not be dependent on his own strength or his own wisdom. He will be empowered to be and to do more than could be expected of a mere mortal man because he will be empowered by God Himself.  There are two contrasting examples the people would have.  Unlike Solomon, who was celebrated for his wisdom in his younger years (1 Kings 3, 10), but who fell into error as he grew older (1 Kings 11), the spirit of wisdom would rest on the “shoot” of Jesse. And unlike the king of Assyria, who said, “By the strength of my hand I have done it, and by my wisdom; for I have understanding” (10:13), the “shoot” of Jesse will find his strength, wisdom, and understanding through the spirit of the Lord.

People typically judge  on what their eyes see or their ears hear. They seek evidence that can be verified scientifically (to be science it must be observable and repeatable). This scientific approach is good, and has led to improvements in human life. It has not, however, done much to improve the human heart. It has simply placed great power for good in the hands of good people and great power for treachery in the hands of bad people. As a result, one must conclude that science has its limitations. Isaiah tells us that the “shoot” that grows out of the stump of Jesse will not be bound by the limitations of science,  by the rules of evidence or by observation. Because the “shoot” will be able to see the hearts and know the innermost thoughts of men (because of God’s help), his judgments will be correct and justice will be served.

Isaiah reminds us that God has a special place in his heart for those in need. He requires rulers to “judge the people with righteous judgment” and not to distort justice, show partiality, or accept bribes (Deuteronomy 16:18-19; Psalm 83:3; Jeremiah 22:3). A good ruler promises to execute justice for widows and orphans (Deuteronomy 10:18) and to punish those who abuse widows or orphans (Exodus 22:22-24; Deuteronomy 27:19). Jewish law contains a number of provisions to protect those in need (Deuteronomy 14:28-29; 24:17-21; 25:5-8). Humanly speaking, mankind is a failure at these Godly commands. However, the “shoot” that grows out of the stump of Jesse will judge the poor and meek righteously and with equity.

Isaiah now gives us some unlikely examples of peace. The wolf and the lamb; the leopard and the goat; the lion and a calf . We should not take this literally. Isaiah, is using these animals in a poetic way, as symbols of natural enemies that represent the hostilities that exist among people and have existed from the very beginnings of time. Isaiah is drawing us a picture of a world where people live at peace with each other, a world where sin no longer creates hostilities that separate one person or a nation from another. Isaiah’s world is where people are able to acknowledge one another as friends, neighbors, brothers, and sisters without any such thing as labels, affiliations, color, etc..

Now Isaiah says, “and a little child will lead them” (v. 6). It is an obvious reference to God’s plan to work through the youngest and least likely son (David) of an unlikely farmer (Jesse). God is now choosing to work through a child to demonstrate that it is His power that counts, God’s power. Because David will be blessed by the spirit of the Lord (v. 2), this child will accomplish what strong, mature men only dream of accomplishing.

The cow and the bear will graze. Their young ones will lie down together. The lion shall eat straw like the ox” (v. 7). We now find more verses adds two more unlikely pairs, cow/bear and lion/ox. However the emphasis changes.  The bear will graze (eat grass) like a cow, and the lion will eat straw like an ox. This may be indicating how different the next “peaceful kingdom will be.”  And finally a scene that would clearly send shivers up any parents spine:  “The nursing child will play near a cobra’s hole, and the weaned child will put his hand on the viper’s den” (v. 8). To understand this last part, we need to go back to our Biblical roots, when a serpent contributed to the downfall of Adam and Eve that led to their expulsion from the garden of Eden (Genesis 3). Isaiah is telling us that when the “shoot” of Jesse establishes the peaceable kingdom, however, even this original fear and sin will be set aside in the coming kingdom. The curse of Genesis 3:14-15 will be reversed forever. 

“They will not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain“ (v. 9a). This is just another way of expressing the reality of the peaceable kingdom that is to come. There are two mountains that  bear the designation “my holy mountain” in the Old Testament. The first is Mount Sinai, also known as Mount Horeb, (Exodus 3:1; 4:27; 18:5; Numbers 10:33; 1 Kings 19:8). The second is Mount Zion, the location of Jerusalem and the temple (Isaiah 2:3). Because of the reference to Zion in Isaiah 2:3, we can assume that Isaiah has Mount Zion in mind here. Because we know the entire story, we know that it would be through David’s lineage that Jesus would be born and die for us in Jerusalem. Isaiah’s verses contain a promise of a new Kingdom where “The wolf will live with the lamb, the leopard will lie down with the goat, the calf and the lion and the yearling together; and a little child will lead them. The cow will feed with the bear, their young will lie down together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox. The infant will play near the cobra’s den, and the young child will put its hand into the viper’s nest.” This is worth hoping for. Amen.

Items for Discussion

  • God is choosing a leader for the nation of Israel – What do you see in David that God saw?
  • What were the advantages that David brought with him to the job? We know it wasn’t experience.
  • How would you describe Isaiah’s view of peace in the world by today’s contemporary standards?
  • All be it small, are there signs of Isaiah’s peace anywhere in the world?
  • What significance should we gain if we see elements of “Isaiah’s peace?”
  • What is the Christian’s role in Isaiah’s poetic and hopeful prophesy?
  • Do you think our society  tolerates “faith filled” leaders?
  • Why do you think that we no longer care about the “requirements of Deuteronomy such as not distorting justice,  not showing partiality, or not accepting bribes?
  • What signs would you consider significant that we are actually moving toward a world based on “God’s Holy Mountain?”

Discussion Challenge

  • God talks to us every week through Scriptures – What is He telling you this week?
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    NIV New International Version Translations

Standing on the Promise

Exodus 32:1-141NIV New International Version Translations

1 When the people saw that Moses was so long in coming down from the mountain, they gathered around Aaron and said, “Come, make us gods who will go before us. As for this fellow Moses who brought us up out of Egypt, we don’t know what has happened to him.” 2 Aaron answered them, “Take off the gold earrings that your wives, your sons and your daughters are wearing, and bring them to me.” 3 So all the people took off their earrings and brought them to Aaron. 4 He took what they handed him and made it into an idol cast in the shape of a calf, fashioning it with a tool. Then they said, “These are your gods, Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt.” 5 When Aaron saw this, he built an altar in front of the calf and announced, “Tomorrow there will be a festival to the Lord.” 6 So the next day the people rose early and sacrificed burnt offerings and presented fellowship offerings. Afterward they sat down to eat and drink and got up to indulge in revelry. 7 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Go down, because your people, whom you brought up out of Egypt, have become corrupt. 8 They have been quick to turn away from what I commanded them and have made themselves an idol cast in the shape of a calf. They have bowed down to it and sacrificed to it and have said, ‘These are your gods, Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt.’ 9 “I have seen these people,” the Lord said to Moses, “and they are a stiff-necked people. 10 Now leave me alone so that my anger may burn against them and that I may destroy them. Then I will make you into a great nation.” 11 But Moses sought the favor of the Lord his God. “Lord,” he said, “why should your anger burn against your people, whom you brought out of Egypt with great power and a mighty hand? 12 Why should the Egyptians say, ‘It was with evil intent that he brought them out, to kill them in the mountains and to wipe them off the face of the earth’? Turn from your fierce anger; relent and do not bring disaster on your people. 13 Remember your servants Abraham, Isaac and Israel, to whom you swore by your own self: ‘I will make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and I will give your descendants all this land I promised them, and it will be their inheritance forever.’” 14 Then the Lord relented and did not bring on his people the disaster he had threatened.

Background2https://sermonwriter.com/biblical-commentary/exodus-321-14-commentary/

The Golden Calf is a familiar story to us in the Old Testament.  Let’s do a quick review. The Jewish nation fled Egypt in chapter 13 and crossed the Red Sea in chapter 14. God led them in the wilderness by making visible as a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night (13:17-22). God had provisioned them with water (15:22-27; 17:1-7) and food (chapter 16). In chapter 19 the Israelites reached Sinai, where thunder, lightning, a thick cloud on the mountain, a trumpet blast, fire, and smoke signaled the presence of God. At God’s direction, Moses and Aaron went up the mountain to receive the law, (19:16:-25).

Chapters 20-31 tell of the giving of the law on the mountain. There is a transition at chapter 24 where God tells Moses to come up the mountain with Aaron, Nadab, Abihu, and seventy elders of Israel, but only Moses was to come into God’s immediate presence (24:2). The mountain was cloaked with a cloud, out of which God spoke to Moses. “Moses entered into the midst of the cloud, and went up on the mountain; and Moses was on the mountain forty days and forty nights” (24:18).

God gave Moses the law regarding the Tabernacle (chapters 25-27 and chapter 30) and the priesthood (chapters 28-29). God told Moses of particular artisans whom God had chosen to make the Tabernacle tent and its furnishings (chapter 31). God also emphasized keeping the Sabbath and gave Moses the two tablets of the covenant which we now call the Ten Commandments written on them (chapter 31). At this point in history, the Jewish people had a great deal of exposure to God’s presence and providence. They have ample reason to believe that the God who has helped them in recent days will provide for them in the future. 

In our study, Chapter 32, we need this background because we find that in chapters 32-34 comes the story of the Golden Calf, Moses’ intercession in behalf of the people, and the giving of two tablets to replace the ones that Moses had broken when he discovered the people reveling around their golden calf. So what could have caused such a quick turnaround in faith?

Moses has been on the mountain for forty days and forty nights (34:28), a very long time. The people were given no idea when to expect his return, and are clearly upset that he has been gone for so long. In Egypt, the people had been exposed to Egyptian gods, many of which were represented by the image of an animal or a human with an animal-head. They had seen Egyptians worship these gods, and it could be that some Israelites worshiped them as well. Now impatient, they gathered around Aaron, telling him to make gods for them, gods who will assume the leadership role that, because Moses is not with them. While Aaron is Moses’ second-in-command, he had never been a strong leader.

The people want gods (elohim) “who shall go before us”, who will lead them out of the wilderness to a better place. “Elohim” is a generic word for gods that is sometimes used in Hebrew Scripture  but when referring to the one and only God, they typically referred  to God as Yahweh. However, in this case, the people are not asking for Aaron to make Yahweh. They are asking Aaron to make a god like the ones that they had seen in Egypt. This request violates the second commandment. While these people have not yet seen the commandments in written form, Moses had given them the commandments orally, and they had promised to obey them (24:3). Of course, the people already had a great deal of evidence that Yahweh is their real leader and that Yahweh would protect them. 

The people have not seen Yahweh’s face and they want a leader whom they can see with their eyes and feel with their hands. Aaron tells the people to take off the gold earrings from their wives, sons, and daughters but not from the men. He apparently assumes that he can obtain an adequate supply of gold without asking the men to donate their earrings. The artisans cast an “egel“,  a young bull calf, not yet as strong as a mature bull, but strong nevertheless. Aron intends to portray strength rather than weakness. Aaron apparently is feeling uncomfortable with the idolatry in which he is participating and declares a festival dedicated, not to the calf, but to Yahweh., to God Aaron is trying to turn the people from the idolatry of the Golden Calf to the worship of Yahweh. The problem here is that Aron is trying to reconcile idol worship and the worship of God. It is not possible to worship God alongside graven images, because Yahweh, God, has specifically forbidden graven images in the second commandment (20:4).

This is the beginning of Gods pronouncement of judgment on the Israelites. God commands Moses not to interfere with His plans. God says He will destroy the Israelites and start over using Moses, like he promised Abraham. In verse 7, God calls the people “your people”, Moses’ people. Now Moses reverses that by calling them “your people”, God’s, Yahweh’s people. Moses doesn’t tell God that he declines the honor that made in verse 10c, building a kingdom from the heirs of Moses. Instead, he begins this defense of the Israelites. Moses offers the first of three good reasons why God should show mercy to the Israelites. He reminds God that He brought these people out of Egypt “with great power and with a mighty hand.” God has a history with these people. He has an investment in their success. He shouldn’t walk away from them so easily. 

The second good reason why God should change his mind and forgive the people is that God very publicly brought Israel out of Egypt. Everyone, especially the Egyptians, Now know what Yahweh has done. God made it clear that these are His people and He is their God. If God now carries out His plan to destroy the Israelites, the whole world will regard Him as false and fickle. For the third reason (v. 13), Moses brings up Abraham. God had sworn an oath to the patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac, and Israel (Jacob). He has promised to multiply their descendants and to give them the Promised Land. God now has a duty, not only to the patriarchs, but to Himself. He must maintain his integrity by fulfilling the promises made earlier to the patriarchs.

God’s anger may be great in this instance, but His purpose is to save rather than to destroy. If the people will repent of their sins, God will reconsider His judgment. This time, God reverses His intent to destroy the people, but nevertheless brings a plague on the Israelites (32:34-35), a lesser but nevertheless serious judgment. Repentance is always the purpose God seeks for sinful actions and it is repentance that ultimately brings salvation.

Items for Discussion

  • Why do you think that people need to physically see their leaders? 
  • Can you think of examples where leaders who were not very visible caused a lack of faith for their people?
  • Why do you think that people, in general, are impatient?
  • Do you think we have “golden calves” today? What might they be?
  • Why is serving two gods or even serving two masters something that never works out well in the end?

 

Philippians 4:1-9

1 Therefore, my brothers and sisters, you whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, stand firm in the Lord in this way, dear friends! 2 I plead with Euodia and I plead with Syntyche to be of the same mind in the Lord. 3 Yes, and I ask you, my true companion, help these women since they have contended at my side in the cause of the gospel, along with Clement and the rest of my co-workers, whose names are in the book of life. 4 Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! 5 Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. 6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. 8 Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. 9 Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.

Background

The Greek word adelphoi appears several times in this letter (1:14; 3:1, 17). The word is masculine, so a strict translation would be “brothers.” Our NIV translates it as “brothers and sisters.” When Paul first arrived in Philippi, his first congregation was a group of women, and his first convert was Lydia (Acts 16:13-15). In 4:2 he speaks directly to Euodia and Syntyche, two women. Women were an important part of the Philippian church, just as they remain an important part of the Christian church today. These verses are the only place where Euodia and Syntyche are mentioned in the New Testament. Verse 2 tells us that there is a problem, that Euodia and Syntyche are not “of the same mind in the Lord.” Verse three tells us that they have worked closely with Paul (and Clement and others) in the past. That is all we know about them.

First, we must have a definition. What does it mean to “stand firm in the Lord”? In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus said, “Everyone therefore who hears these words of mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man, who built his house on a rock. The rain came down, the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat on that house; and it didn’t fall, for it was founded on the rock”(Matthew 7:24-25). In that instance, standing fast required hearing Jesus’ words and acting on them. For the Philippian Christians, listening to Paul’s words and acting on them could be expected to have much the same effect. 

Paul is careful not to take sides in the disagreement. He pleads with these women individually to move past their conflict so that they might see things the same way and work together in harmony. But there was conflict in the first-century church and that Paul wanted to resolve the conflict so that the Philippian Christians could focus their full energies on promoting the Gospel. That is important for Christians today to understand. Most churches experience conflict of one kind or another. There are at least two reasons for this conflict we are looking at in Scripture:

  • First, people tend to form different opinions—and it is easy for us to believe that we are right and everyone else is wrong.
  • Second, the church is at war with the kosmos, the secular world. The world that is opposed to God. The kosmos world is always trying to subvert the Gospel by persuading Christians to adopt the world’s standards. We are all sinners (Romans 3:23), so sometimes we succumb to worldly values.

This is the fourth time in his letter to the Philippians that Paul has used the “same mind” or “think this way” terminology. He called the Philippian Christians to be “like-minded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind” (2:2). Then he called them to “Have this in your mind, which was also in Christ Jesus” (2:5), who humbled Himself to come down from heaven and be born in earthly form and to die on a cross.

Paul suggests that Euodia and Syntyche are NOT of the same mind at present. They need to deal with their conflict in a positive way so that they can be single-minded in their Christian work. But it isn’t sufficient to resolve conflict by insisting that one or the other person “give in.” Nor is it sufficient to take a vote so that one person wins and the other loses. Paul calls Euodia and Syntyche to “think the same way in the Lord.” If the Lord is at the forefront of each of their minds, they will find themselves facing in the same direction. There work will lead to advocating for the same thing. If the Lord rules their hearts, they will find it much easier to deal gracefully with the differing ideas that surface when they get together to conduct church business. The fact that Paul doesn’t intervene directly suggests that the problems between Euodia and Syntyche are not doctrinal in nature. If they were, Paul would surely give them the correct doctrinal solution. His word as an apostle would carry great authority.

Joy is a common theme in both Old and New Testaments. God’s people give thanks because they have experienced salvation at God’s hands (Isaiah 25:9)—or rejoice in God’s steadfast love (Psalm 90:14) or God’s presence (Psalm 16:9-11). The birth of the Savior was an occasion for joy (Luke 2:10-11). Just as an ordinary person might rejoice at the recovery of a lost sheep or coin or son, so also “there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents, than over ninety-nine righteous people who need no repentance” (Luke 15:7).  Paul models the kind of joy to which he is calling these Philippian Christians. He writes this letter from a prison cell, but he says that he rejoices in the proclamation of the Gospel (1:18). He tells the Philippians that he rejoices with them, and he calls them to rejoice with him (2:17-18).

Paul’s call to the Philippian Christians to rejoice in the Lord always is also his call to the Thessalonian Christians to “Rejoice always. Pray without ceasing. In everything give thanks, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus toward you” (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18). It is significant that Paul doesn’t say “Give thanks FOR all circumstances,” as if we should be thankful for our adversities. Instead, he says, “Give thanks IN all circumstances” knowing that God loves us and is present with us. Paul is suggesting that these two women become like-minded in Christ first so the other problems will not become the central focus of their lives.

Items for Discussion

  • How do you keep your mind and life separated from the kosmos?
  • Where do you see the divisions, the disagreements, the conflicts in the church today? Lets make a short list of the most obvious?
  • How many of these are doctrinal?
  • Now take that list and lets discuss how Christ would handle each?
  • Where is the risk of solving doctrinal issues by vote?
  • Paul is not looking at the “church” as a democracy, a place where we vote and settle disagreements — Yet that is what we do. How would you suggest we all keep our church decisions focused on Christ?

Discussion Challenge

  • Since the very first churches there have been conflicts. It is part of the kosmos, the world. Two people can, given time and not much time, disagree with each other and become enemies. How then can the Church keep itself focused on Christ as Paul suggests?

Soul Food

Luke 13:22-301NIV New International Version Translations

22 Then Jesus went through the towns and villages, teaching as he made his way to Jerusalem. 23 Someone asked him, “LORD, are only a few people going to be saved?” He said to them, 24 “Make every effort to enter through the narrow door, because many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able to. 25 Once the owner of the house gets up and closes the door, you will stand outside knocking and pleading, ‘Sir, open the door for us.’ “But he will answer, ‘I don’t know you or where you come from.’ 26 “Then you will say, ‘We ate and drank with you, and you taught in our streets.’ 27 “But he will reply, ‘I don’t know you or where you come from. Away from me, all you evildoers!’ 28 “There will be weeping there, and gnashing of teeth, when you see Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, but you yourselves thrown out. 29 People will come from east and west and north and south, and will take their places at the feast in the kingdom of God. 30 Indeed there are those who are last who will be first, and first who will be last.”

Background

This lesson falls on World Communion Sunday. Around the globe, Christians have chosen this day to gather around common prayers, shared music and the communion table. Although Christians are scattered, we can all gather around the communion table, to renew  our commitment as a global church, as a worldwide body of Christ. Our Our Gospel lesson for this day is from Luke. It is preceded by the Parable of the Mustard Seed (vv. 18-19) and the Parable of the Yeast (vv. 20-21). Both of those parables compare the kingdom of God to a seemingly insignificant substance (a tiny seed and a bit of yeast) that turns out to have great power. The tiny seed grows into a tree, “and the birds of the sky lodged in its branches” (v. 19), and a pinch of yeast leavens three measures of flour (v. 21). These parables provide the lead-in to the principle question we look at in our study, “Lord, are only a few people going to be saved?” 

Luke is reminding us that Jesus is on his way to Jerusalem, where He will die. He has been on this journey since  v. 9:51 and will continue on it until his Triumphal Entry ( v. 19:28). We are not told who asks Jesus the question, nor is it clear exactly what the person is asking about God’s kingdom. We can only assume that the person asking the question has come concerns: Is it small? Is there enough room for me? Jesus responds by telling them who will be saved through the use of two metaphors using the examples of doors. In the first one (v. 24), the door (to the kingdom or to salvation) is narrow, but allows admittance—at least to those who are spiritually fit. In the second one (v. 25), the door is shut. These are not mutually exclusive metaphors, because a narrow door is to be open for a period of time and then to be shut. The metaphors work together for our message.

However, the two different images—narrow and shut—require us to be careful. Luke uses the words “Make every effort” (agonizesthe) to enter in by the narrow door” (v. 24).  We find elsewhere in the New testament, the Apostle Paul using this same word, agonizesthe, to speak of athletic competition (1 Cor. 9:25), training intensively in Godliness (1 Tim. 4:10), and fighting the good fight (1 Tim. 6:12; 2 Tim. 4:7). While salvation itself is a gift of God, it is clear that God expects us to cherish it the same way an athlete cherishes their victor’s crown.  This suggests that we need the  discipline and determination of an athlete when pursuing the open and narrow door.

The door is narrow, and “many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able to. ” (v. 24). Those  who are spiritually undisciplined cannot expect to make it through the narrow door. To the Jewish audience hearing this story, it would appear to fit with their idea that they have been chosen by God. The door is not for every human on earth but for God’s chosen people. The surprise in Jesus’ reply is not that getting in may be limited, but who gains entry”. In Matt. 7:13-14, Jesus contrasts the narrow gate that leads to life with a wide gate and easy road that lead to destruction. Like physical conditioning, spiritual conditioning requires discipline, and many people are unwilling to work hard enough to go through this door.

With all of our efforts on diversity and co-existence, many people believe that all roads lead to God if we just are loving and kind. There is today a general belief that all efforts to believe in God are equally valid and that it doesn’t matter what you believe in as long as you are sincere. Our Scripture verses, however, teaches something different. Society tempts us with  subtle sins against our God  along with a persuasive argument that our beliefs don’t matter all that much and there is no urgency to the spiritual life.  If we allow ourselves to become convinced that it’s easy to get through that door, to find salvation, we find ourselves on the gentle slope that leads downward to a disappointing conclusion. It is not up to mankind to define what God considers sinful. It is up to us to seek those answers from God through a disciplined life.

God gives us a period of time when we can prepare for His kingdom, then to be followed by a time of judgment. However, Jesus reminds us that once the door shuts, there is no longer room for preparation or negotiation.  Life is not predictable:

  • For some people, death will come suddenly and without warning. At that point, their eternal future will hinge on their spiritual disciplines and the relationship that they forged with Jesus during their lifetimes.
  • There is always the possibility of the Second Coming occurring during our lifetime. Best to be prepared.
  • But there is one last possibility that is less dramatic, but which can be equally conclusive. We are faced daily with temptation. How we respond depends on our spiritual conditioning at the time of our temptation. Often, a minor temptation starts a person down that slippery slope.  Our spiritual conditioning, our relationship with Jesus, is the safety net to avoid succumbing to such temptations. What are the temptations? Anything that pulls us away from a disciplined life with Jesus, anything.

“We ate and drank with you, and you taught in our streets“ (v. 26) is  just a reminder that Jesus demands more than regular church attendance, partaking of Communion and all of those Bible Studies that you have attended. The person who shared a table with Jesus and heard his teaching had been given every opportunity to become His disciple. In the prior chapter of Luke, Jesus warned, “To whomever much is given, of him will much be required; and to whom much was entrusted, of him more will be asked” (12:48). As we partake of the “soul food” on World Communion Sunday, everyone must ask themselves if they are truly a disciple of Christ?

Jesus is now speaking to the Jewish nation, especially to those who believe that because they are “sons of Abraham,” that they have nothing to worry about. Jesus says “and yourselves thrown outside” (v. 28). Jesus warns that some of them will find themselves on the outside looking in at great heavenly banquet. They will see the spiritual greats, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and the prophets, but will not be able to sit at table or converse with them. That has to be even more difficult than never seeing them at all. To be so near and yet so far has to be heartbreaking,  Someone who had considered themselves to be a  shoo-in for salvation will instead find themselves on the outside looking in. Those who make it ( vv. 29-30), will enjoy full fellowship. Verse 29 is an obvious reference to Gentiles. In Luke’s sequel to this Gospel, the Acts of the Apostle, he will record the slow awakening of the church to God’s intent that Gentiles will also be given full admission to the church and entry through the narrow door (see particularly Acts 10).

Items for Discussion

  • What do you find the hardest part of being a disciple of Christ?
  • How would you describe disciplined discipleship?
  • Not all people who believe in God will have eternal life with God. Some will be separated from God forever. How do you feel about that?
  • What are the mistaken attitudes you personally have seen about how hard it is to enter “that door?”
  • What are the “slippery slope” temptations you can think of that are affecting our world today?
  • Why do you think that people who universally love Jesus and celebrate His life and resurrection through communion, can also be divided and hate each other?
  • How do you think God feels about someone who outwardly claims to be part of a religion, takes part in communion but has no regard for Jesus’s commandments to love one another and love them as we would love ourselves?
  • What does Jesus say that happens when you are a good disciple? Is that fair?
  • Why is celebrating communion good for the soul?
  • There are many variants to communion – all celebrate Christ – What parts of communion are the most meaningful to you?

Discussion Challenge

  • If you could, how would you change communion to be more special within the church?
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    NIV New International Version Translations

Focusing On God

Mark 1:35-421NIV New International Version Translations

35 Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed. 36 Simon and his companions went to look for him, 37 and when they found him, they exclaimed: “Everyone is looking for you!” 38 Jesus replied, “Let us go somewhere else-to the nearby villages-so I can preach there also. That is why I have come.” 39 So he traveled throughout Galilee, preaching in their synagogues and driving out demons. 40 A man with leprosy came to him and begged him on his knees, “If you are willing, you can make me clean.” 41 Jesus was indignant. He reached out his hand and touched the man. “I am willing,” he said. “Be clean!” 42 Immediately the leprosy left him and he was cleansed.

Background

Who was the Apostle Mark? He was a relative of Barnabas (Colossians 4:10). Most agree that Mark was the first person to write a *Gospel.” Both Matthew and Luke seem to have used it as the basis for their own Gospels. Mark perhaps completed it in the year 65, soon after Peter’s death. There are some details that are only in Mark’s Gospel. Peter called him ‘Mark, my son’ (1 Peter 5:13). This was probably because Peter had helped Mark to believe in Jesus. The details in Mark’s Gospel show that they probably came from eye-witnesses, possibly Peter himself, who gave Mark the information.

Jesus had been helping crowds of people through His teaching and healing. In our verses, we find Jesus in need of time to pray to God in order to receive new strength and peace of mind. He also needed God’s guidance. Jesus needed to decide whether He should continue His work in Capernaum or move on to other places. Peter and the others with Jesus realized that He had gone off somewhere. The people who were searching for Jesus probably hoped for more healing miracles. Jesus knew that His primary role was to preach. He needed to  take time to invite the people into His kingdom. That was why Jesus had come into the world,  teach as many people as possible about the Kingdom of God.

One person that was searching for Jesus was a man with leprosy.  Since anyone with this disease had to stay away from other people, is is most probable that the man had been following from behind the crowds and then took an opportunity to talk to Jesus when he noticed that  Jesus had gone off to be alone. We need to remember that lepers suffer in two ways: (1) from his disease itself; and (2) from loneliness since lepers were ostracized from society. As the leper approached Jesus, he believed that Jesus had the power to cure him but there must have been more here. Mark 1:41 states that “Jesus was indignant.” In today’s English language, we would conclude that to be “indignant,” Jesus must have been angry or annoyed by the leper. Not so. Jesus was interpreting the man’s request as being unfair, another meaning of the word indignant.

We probably can conclude that because the leper was kept away from society, that he did not know that Jesus also loved the people. The leper did not KNOW Jesus. He was not sure whether Jesus would want to cure him. Jesus’s actions, however, tell the entire story. Jesus clearly had the power to just heal the man.  However, Jesus touched the man to show His love. The society of Jews would have never touched anyone who had such a skin disease. The belief at that time was to touch a leper would make them unholy.  The indignance Mark expressed was that the man did not truly understand the loving nature of Jesus. Jesus was not just a teacher or a healer but truly cared for those around Him.  Jesus had come as their Messiah.

In the verses following our lesson, Jesus  would  obey the Jewish law  and send the man to the priest, and also instruct the man to follow the proper process so that he could reenter society. The priest would examine him and would declare that he was healthy again. After the man had carried out the proper ceremonies, he would be able to mix with other people again (Leviticus 14:1-32). Instead, the man went out and began to talk freely, spreading the news about his healing. As a result, Jesus could no longer enter a town openly but stayed outside in lonely places due to the crowds of people seeking Him.

Items for Discussion

  • The leper had misunderstandings of the true nature of Jesus – How to people make that same mistake today?
  • How do we get to KNOW Jesus?
  • What about God’s character can we learn about Jesus’s interaction with the leper?
  • Jesus told the cured leper to follow the Jewish law – Why do you think that was important? How does that instruction relate to us today?
  • Jesus shows us that there is nothing wrong with seeking quiet time, to be alone to pray, to clear our minds, to refocus our priorities – What are the modern day interferences that keep us from seeking the quiet time with God?
  • Where are your quiet times that you set aside with God?
  • Do you think that the cured leper was wrong not to do as Jesus asked and stay quiet about his healing? Why or Why not?
  • Who are the “modern day lepers” within our society today?
  • Today, we have many misunderstandings about the nature and motives of people – How do we prevent that from happening?
  • We are called to accountability and to repentance – What happens to our ability to love one another when we don’t follow that formula?

Discussion Challenge

  • How does a person focus on God when the world around them is in chaos?
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    NIV New International Version Translations

On Being Lifted Up

Hebrews 12:7-141NIV New International Version Translations

7 Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as his children. For what children are not disciplined by their father? 8 If you are not disciplined—and everyone undergoes discipline—then you are not legitimate, not true sons and daughters at all. 9 Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of spirits and live! 10 They disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, in order that we may share in his holiness. 11 No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it. 12 Therefore, strengthen your feeble arms and weak knees. 13 “Make level paths for your feet,” so that the lame may not be disabled, but rather healed. 14 Make every effort to live in peace with everyone and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord.

Background

Biblical scholars use the term Hebrews to designate the descendants of the patriarchs of the Hebrew Bible (Old Testament)—i.e., Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (also called Israel [Genesis 33:28])—from that period until their conquest of Canaan (Palestine) in the late 2nd millennium BC. The text does not mention the name of its author, but was traditionally attributed to Paul the Apostle. However,  There is controversy about whether Paul was the author. The Letter to the Hebrews is an important letter of the New Testament. It speaks to the Priesthood of Jesus Christ, and His one Sacrifice which redeemed mankind and established God’s New Covenant. Christ took on flesh and blood to save humanity (2:14-17). Our chapter speaks to the difficulties of human life and its meaning when hardships are accepted as God’s discipline (Heb 12:4–13). If Christians persevere in faith to the word in which they have believed, they are assured of possessing forever the unshakable kingdom of God (Heb 12:14–29). The letter concludes with specific moral commandments (Heb 13:1–17).

Chapter 12 starts off with some great advice about how to live as a Christian:

  • Start Well
  • Run Well
    • Run with Endurance
    • Run with a Team
    • Run with your eyes on Jesus
  • End Well

When you begin to think of one’s faith walk as a race, our verses make more sense.  The author of Hebrews starts off with a hard statement to accept, Endure hardships as a discipline.  We all know that with any sport or skill, discipline separates the poor and mediocre performers from the achievers by how disciplined they are in their training.  No difference here. Sticking to the analogy of running, most would agree that “weight,” extra pounds serve no good purpose, just slows you down. In Hebrews, the analogy of pounds would be sin,  While a parent would discipline their children to modify their behavior (like a good coach) a parent can only offer their discipline  while their children are under their care. Children eventually go out into the world on their own and are held to their own accountability. God, too, disciplines us for our own good, in order that we may share in His holiness. With God’s discipline, it is ongoing throughout our life. Now if we were to decide to lose some weight, one might identify the bad habits, the causes of our extra pounds. This works the same way for God but the extra weight usually comes as sin. Each person is called through discipline to identify their sins and distractions that are leading them astray or weakening their faith.

The objective of our verses are to show that afflictions were designed on the part of God to also produce some happy effects in the lives of His people, and that we ought, therefore, to bear them patiently. We are directed to notice that the design of trials are necessary for our welfare, and that they are in fact proof of the paternal care of God, our Father. The choice comes to every person to either listen to or to disregard the messages of God. They may live as if that message is of no importance or as if it is the most important thing in the world. That is our “free will” at work. God’s warnings comes to us in many ways. It may come through conscience; it may come from some direct word of God to our souls; it may come from the advice or the rebuke of some good and godly friend; it may leap out at us from the Bible or challenge us in some sermon. Wherever it comes from, we neglect it at our own peril. William Barclay says, “Most of us live a cautious life on the principle of safety first; but to live the Christian life there is necessary a certain reckless willingness for adventure. If faith can see every step of the way, it is not really faith. It is sometimes necessary for the Christian to take the way to which the voice of God is calling them without knowing what the consequences will be.”

The story of the promise of a son to Abraham and Sarah is told in Gen.17:15-22; Gen.18:9-15; Gen.21:1-8. Its wonder is that both Abraham and Sarah were ninety years old, long past the age of fathering or bearing a child; and yet, according to the old story, that promise was made and came true.  By the grace and the power of God, the impossible became true. There is something here to challenge and uplift the heart of every person. People spend the greater part of their lives putting limitations on the power of God. Faith is the ability to hold onto that grace which is sufficient for all things in such a way that the things which are humanly impossible become divinely possible. With God all things are possible, and, therefore, the word impossible has no place in the vocabulary of the Christian and of the Christian Church. Our God wants to lift each of us to new heights because we are His very own creation and He loves us.

Items for Discussion

  • How would you explain the following as it pertains to the “life of a Christian?”
    • Start Well
    • Run Well
      • Run with Endurance
      • Run with a Team
      • Run with your eyes on Jesus
    • End Well
  • How can we sort out of our world’s crazy events, those things that might be God’s discipline and just bad luck, coincidences or things caused by our own mistakes?
  • Do you believe that all events in life are under God’s control?
  • Is there such a thing as bad luck? 
  • As a parent or from your own parents, what were some of the really hard forms of discipline that you received?
  • How did your parents discipline affect your love for them, your beliefs, your actions in life? 
  • How does unjust discipline work against the purposes that are being explained in Hebrews?
  • When you view God as a parent, how does that affect your view of the circumstances in your life, the “discipline you may have received?”
  • What happens when someone “wins a race” and did not have to work for it? How is their personal growth or satisfaction affected?
  • What is the difference between being judgmental and recognizing God’s discipline of others?

Discussion Challenge

  • What should the role of Christians be in a world under God’s discipline?
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    NIV New International Version Translations

Promise Fulfilled

Joel 2:28-291NIV New International Version Translations

28 “And afterward, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams, your young men will see visions. 29 Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days.

Background

The Book of Joel is part of the Hebrew Bible and our Christian Old Testament. He is one of twelve prophetic books known as the Twelve Minor Prophets. His name, Joel, is mentioned by name only once in the Old Testament, in the introduction to that book, as the son of Pethuel (Joel 1:1). The name Joel combines the covenant name of God, YHWH (or Yahweh), and El (god), and has been translated as “one to whom YHWH is God,” that is, a worshiper of God. He is believed to have lived in the 9th century BC but the dating of his book is still debated.  Some date his writings to 400 BC. Joel is one of the prophets to prophesy the coming of Christ. Joel’s statement that “I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions” was used Peter in his sermon at Pentecost to the events of that day (Acts 2:16-21). Joel’s prophecy was for the coming of Christ. 

To understand these verses, we need to step back and look at what was going on in Israel at that time. First is the years and years of a plague of locusts .You need to imagine the effects of hordes of locusts lasting several years upon people.  In Joel 1:1-2:11, he describes it vividly. Everything, all crops, all food sources were utterly devastated. Food sources disappeared. Livestock together with the entire nation of Israel were on the edge of utter annihilation. Joel urges the people to return to the LORD, to fast, to repent, and to call upon the LORD to spare them (2:12-17). The sin that led to God’s wrath is never specified, but clearly something had gone horribly wrong.

Israel’s problem was the threat of starvation and the lack of those things which make life possible. The question for the modern Christian is what are the resources that keep us alive but might be threatened by one metaphorical locust after another? What would cause our anxious ceaseless worry and fear? What is it that in an instant, the few joys and satisfaction enjoyed by us might be snatched away?  We are no doubt a society that consumes. We acquire. We support political policies and leaders that promise to perpetuate our lifestyle and that promise to do nothing that will force us to reevaluate the consequences of that consumptive lifestyle. The real question at hand is why the people of this world have lost faith in a LORD who promises to provide?

In response to worry about scarcity, the LORD our God promises abundance. Joel says that this is God who gives “rain for your vindication.”  And not just rain!  “Abundant rain the early and later rain” that leads to a superabundance of grain and to vats overflowing with wine and oil. The verses leading up to our study material (Joel 2:25-27) make it clear that the promised abundance is still on the way. Eating, praise, and satisfaction are all promises of the wonders to come, as is the twice repeated promise that “my people shall never again be put to shame” (verses 26, 27). The foolishness of faith will be repaid by God’s generous provision and, more importantly, by God’s presence in the midst of God’s people. In an era like ours, it is difficult to live lives that are  free of anxiety about the future. Nevertheless, believers can and do live freely, hopefully, and generously because we know a secret: the God of abundance has promised to care for us at the “hungry feast” until our longings, and those of the world, are fully and forever satisfied.

Now for our verses. The passage lives today because it was cited by Peter on the first Pentecost. It lives in our New Testament as an interpretation of the work of the Spirit (Acts 2:14-21) and because of the breadth of God’s very own promise:

God’s Spirit is poured upon all flesh, unfettered by considerations of gender, age, or social rank.

This is good news for all who believe themselves to be unqualified somehow. That promise is still ours today.  Of course, as all good prophets do, Joel adds the catch, “Then everyone who calls on the name of the LORD shall be saved.” While  God’s loving kindness is available for all in ways we often cannot imagine or even anticipate, we need to ask our God, to call out to Him, as a person, as a people, as a nation, as a world. This offer by God is also available to everyone, to all people equally. We know this because of the Apostle Paul’s claim in Romans 10:11-15. Paul insists that there is no distinction between Jew and Gentile for “the same Lord is Lord of all and is generous to all who call upon him (Romans 10:12). But how,  Paul asks, will the people hear without someone to proclaim the good news to them? Joel declares that those calling upon the LORD are, in turn, called upon by the LORD (Joel 2:32). Regardless of our status, we are to be “inspired” (in the literal meaning of that word) and  are summoned by God to be the tellers of the good news story of God’s love.

The promise began to be fulfilled on the day of Pentecost, when the Holy Spirit was poured out, and it was continued in the converting grace and miraculous gifts given to both Jews and Gentiles. The judgments of God upon a sinful world will only  come in the last day. For us, calling on God means we have knowledge of Him, faith in Him, a desire for Him,  a dependence on Him, and, as evidence of  our sincerity of all of this, we obey Him. For us, we have the knowledge of His Love for us and that makes all of the difference.

John 14:15-19

15 “If you love me, keep my commands. 16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever- 17 the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you. 18 I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. 19 Before long, the world will not see me anymore, but you will see me. Because I live, you also will live.

Background

These words from Christ come during the Last Supper, and represents Christ’s attempt to prepare the disciples for what is coming. He leads off this chapter in John by emphasizing belief (14:1-14) and then shifts to an emphasis on love (14:15-24).  This is the prophesy of Joel coming alive.  Christ ties love and obedience together. This may very well be the problem in society today. We love, we obey but not loving each other as Christ has commanded us to do. It is always tempting to talk about God’s love without mentioning our duty to obey God.  Christ then promises not to leave us as “orphans.” He promises to give us the Holy Spirit, who will become God’s presence with us on a daily basis in this world. Again we get to see the key connection to love, “If a man loves me, he will keep my word” (v. 23) and “He who doesn’t love me doesn’t keep my words” (v. 24), the mirror. 

By tying love to obedience, our obedience is a sign of our love. In this Gospel, faithfulness to Christ’s words is the defining mark of discipleship. The commandments to love (13:34-35) and to believe (14:1) are open-ended, in contrast to most Torah laws, which are very specific. It is easy to judge whether we have been faithful to the Torah laws, but how can we know whether we have fulfilled the demands of love or the demands of faith? Christ’s’ commandments require us to allow Him to reshape our lives. Remember, He states “Because I live, you also will live.” Our Lord is not a historical figure but our living Savior, ready to interact with each of us. We must never forget that point! And now for the bonus: We are told by Christ, “And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever” Simply stated, each of us who have faith, who obey God will have the benefit of our Savior’s prayers on our behalf, His intersession, along with the Holy Spirit.

Items for Discussion

  • What would cause you to be anxious and to have ceaseless worry and fear?
  • What type of evidence would it take for you to know for sure, to have no doubts, that God has even those fears under control?
  • How would you describe today’s modern metaphors for locusts? What would they be?
  • If we look at the study title, “Promise Fulfilled,” what are God’s promises that He already fulfilled? 
  • Even in Joel’s time, God’s message of love needed sharing — What events, beliefs, behaviors are chipping away at our ability to share the Good News?
    • What should the Christian Church be doing about those things?
  • What makes God’s promises so hard to accept, to embrace? For you, for the world?
  • How should our nation “return to the LORD?” In other words, what behaviors would you like to see changed right away?
  • If you were to share what “God’s Love” is with someone, what would you tell them?
  • What would you tell a young person today about fear and their future?
  • If God has fulfilled His promise by sending us Christ and the Holy Spirit, why do you think so many people are still anxious?

Discussion Challenge

  • How do we teach each other God’s good news story of His love?
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    NIV New International Version Translations

Fruitful Work

1 Corinthians 3:1-91NIV New International Version Translations

1 Brothers and sisters, I could not address you as people who live by the Spirit but as people who are still worldly-mere infants in Christ. 2 I gave you milk, not solid food, for you were not yet ready for it. Indeed, you are still not ready. 3 You are still worldly. For since there is jealousy and quarreling among you, are you not worldly? Are you not acting like mere humans? 4 For when one says, “I follow Paul,” and another, “I follow Apollos,” are you not mere human beings? 5 What, after all, is Apollos? And what is Paul? Only servants, through whom you came to believe-as the LORD has assigned to each his task. 6 I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God has been making it grow. 7 So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow. 8 The one who plants and the one who waters have one purpose, and they will each be rewarded according to their own labor. 9 For we are co-workers in God’s service; you are God’s field, God’s building.

Background

In our verses, Paul makes some not so nice comments about the people in the Church of Corinth. Apparently, they had the wisdom that Christ died for them on the cross but he says that there was more wisdom from God than just the cross. Paul’s rather brash statement is that this wisdom is spoken only by “the mature.” His implication is that the Corinthians are not “mature” so he could not speak to them as spiritual people. Instead, Paul viewed them as people of the flesh, as infants in Christ” (3:1). The most dramatic part of these comments is that the people in the church viewed themselves much different, as wise, mature people.  Paul’s assessment goes contrary to their own self-assessment of how much they really understood about Christ and how they lived in Christ.

The people in the new church in Corinth took tremendous pride in their Spiritual gifts, as we see in 1 Corinthians 12-14. But those gifts themselves were not being used as the Gospel commanded them. Paul tells them later in his letter that to be a Spiritual person, they need to function as if they really are participating in the life of the resurrected Christ (15:44-49). To be “in Christ” is, by definition, is to be a (Holy) Spiritual person. Paul is telling them, bluntly, to grow up.

Paul is careful here not to blame himself for their lack of maturity. He lays the blame clearly at their own feet (3:2-4). Paul brings the Corinthians back to the simple measure of their lives together. “For as long as there is jealousy and quarreling among you, are you not of the flesh?” (3:3). Paul then argues that the heart of our Christian identity must be our oneness in Christ. They should be demanding an end to jealousy and quarreling among themselves. Paul then inserts a new person into his discussion, Apollos is first mentioned as a Christian preacher who had come to Ephesus (probably in AD 52 or 53), where he is described as “being fervent in spirit: he spoke and taught accurately the things concerning Jesus, though he knew only the baptism of John”. Priscilla and Aquila, a Jewish Christian couple who had come to Ephesus with the Apostle Paul, instructed Apollos. Apollos, with his natural gifts, had attracted a following among the church in Corinth, but  their simple admiration was growing into divisiveness. Against Apollos’ wishes, there was a faction in Corinth that claimed him as their spiritual mentor, to the exclusion of Paul and Peter.

Paul proceeds to put his and Apollos’ ministries in proper perspective. Different leaders in the church should not be seen as competing parties, but as co-workers performing complimentary tasks for the achievement of a common goal. In 1:21 Paul had contrasted God’s wisdom with the world’s by saying that God saves by means of the belief that comes when people hear the word of the cross. Now, he urges the Corinthians to see that both he and Apollos are servants through whom the Corinthians have come to such believe (3:5). Their message and goals are the same. Paul places both himself and his competitor Apollos on the same side of God’s wisdom and the gospel. Rather than villainize Apollos, Paul insists that the only way to rightly interpret the work of God in Corinth is to see that both of them have been working together, under God, to build the church.

Paul uses two metaphors to help the Corinthians imagine his and Apollos’ complimentary ministries. He goes on to show the essential folly of their actions with their glorification of human leaders. First, he depicts himself as the one who scattered the seeds and Apollos as the one who cared for them by watering them. However, Paul is quick to state that any growth is only from God. God is the only one in that is worthy of allegiance (3:6-7). If Paul and Apollos are one, united in their work for and with God (3:8-9), where does that leave the Corinthians? They are the field over which the leaders are working (3:9), or the building they are helping construct (3:9-12). The Corinthians need on both of them, and should not be aligning themselves with one against the other. The pressing question then becomes, are the members of the church of Corinth willing to see their own division and quarreling as the fruit of immature spirits rather than of righteous conflict? Do we Christians today fall into that same immaturity. Are we willing to use the the cross as our measure of the world rather than measuring the people of cross against the behavior of the world?

In these verses, Paul is speaking from his personal experience. He was, by necessity, a foundation layer and was always on the move. He stayed for eighteen months in Corinth (Acts 18:11) and for three years in Ephesus (Acts 20:31); but in Thessalonica Paul only stayed less than a month, and that was far more typical of his travels. There was so much ground waiting to be covered; there were so many people who had never heard the name of Jesus Christ; and, if a fair start was to be made with the evangelization of the world, Paul could only lay the foundations and had to move on. It was only when he was in prison that he could stay in the one place. We can think now of Paul as a foundation builder. And what was that foundation based on?

  • Paul found forgiveness for past sins. He found himself in a new relationship to God and suddenly discovered that Apollos is his friend and not his enemy. Paul discovered that God is like Jesus; where once he saw hatred he now sees love, and where once he saw God as distant and aloof,  he now sees God’s tender mercies.
  • Paul found strength for the present. Through the presence and help of Jesus he found courage to cope with life, for Paul was now no longer an isolated unit fighting a lonely battle with an adverse universe. Paul lived a life in which nothing could separate him from the love of God in Christ Jesus his Lord. Paul walked life’s ways and fought its battles with Christ, not alone.
  • Paul found his hope for the future. He no longer lived in a world in which he was afraid to look forward but in one where God was in control and all things worked together for the good of Christ’s Church. Paul lived in a world where death was no longer the end, but only the prelude, the beginning of a journey to greater glory. Paul saw that without the foundation of Christ no one could have none of these things.

Paul saw his work as the foundation others would build upon. This should be our goal and work too. We can be seed planters, we can carry the water, and tend the garden so that when Christ comes again, the harvest will be large and fruit filled.

Items for Discussion

  • Where do you see today’s competition, both in and outside the church that causes division?
  • What would Paul say is the goal for fixing any problems associated with that division?
  • How should the modern day Christian Church organize itself to minimize conflicts like those in the Church of Corinth?
  • If one were Apollos, how could he have behaved differently to minimize the division?
  • What does it mean to use the the cross as our measure of the world rather than measuring the people of cross against the behavior of the world?
  • What are the seeds, be specific, that Paul is asking us to plant?
  • How would you describe “Watering” and “Tending” of those seeds with respect to Paul’s metaphor?
  • Where are the examples within our congregation that we see the planting, watering and tending? 
  • How can we help those areas be more effective in their roles?

Discussion Challenge

  • What can we learn by Paul’s style and method of conflict resolution?
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    NIV New International Version Translations

Zestful Living

Romans 121NIV New International Version Translations

1 Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. 2 Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will. 3 For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you. 4 For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, 5 so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. 6 We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us. If your gift is prophesying, then prophesy in accordance with your faith; 7 if it is serving, then serve; if it is teaching, then teach; 8 if it is to encourage, then give encouragement; if it is giving, then give generously; if it is to lead, do it diligently; if it is to show mercy, do it cheerfully. 9 Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. 10 Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves. 11 Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. 12 Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. 13 Share with the Lord’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality. 14 Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. 15 Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn. 16 Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position. Do not be conceited. 17 Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everyone. 18 If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. 19 Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,” says the Lord. 20 On the contrary: “If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink. In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.”  21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

 

Romans 13

1 Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God. 2 Consequently, whoever rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves. 3 For rulers hold no terror for those who do right, but for those who do wrong. Do you want to be free from fear of the one in authority? Then do what is right and you will be commended. 4 For the one in authority is God’s servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for rulers do not bear the sword for no reason. They are God’s servants, agents of wrath to bring punishment on the wrongdoer. 5 Therefore, it is necessary to submit to the authorities, not only because of possible punishment but also as a matter of conscience. 6 This is also why you pay taxes, for the authorities are God’s servants, who give their full time to governing. 7 Give to everyone what you owe them: If you owe taxes, pay taxes; if revenue, then revenue; if respect, then respect; if honor, then honor. 8 Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for whoever loves others has fulfilled the law. 9 The commandments, “You shall not commit adultery,” “You shall not murder,” “You shall not steal,” “You shall not covet,” and whatever other command there may be, are summed up in this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” 10 Love does no harm to a neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law. 11 And do this, understanding the present time: The hour has already come for you to wake up from your slumber, because our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed. 12 The night is nearly over; the day is almost here. So let us put aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light. 13 Let us behave decently, as in the daytime, not in carousing and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and debauchery, not in dissension and jealousy. 14 Rather, clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not think about how to gratify the desires of the flesh.

Background

This week’s lesson is based on two chapters of the Book of Romans. So we have a challenge on how to pull several chapters into a meaningful Bible Study. Breaking down Romans into parts, we find  the following discussions:

  • Romans 1-8 Paul’s theological discussion
  • Chapters 9-11 are more of a narrative on Israel’s story and history
  • Chapters 12-16 are about the Christian life and how the Roman Christians are supposed to live

Our study material, therefore, is intended to guide the Christian life.

The book of Romans is the Apostle Paul’s masterpiece, a carefully constructed summary of Christian theology. If you had to pick one New Testament writing to guide your life, it would be the book of Romans. Here Paul explains God’s plan of salvation by grace, through faith in Jesus Christ. Divinely inspired, Paul passed on truths that are followed by all believers to this day. Now today, we are a divided people. However, Paul is not talking about our political views, he is talking directly to Christians. He is doing it in a very personal way, through a letter. Let’s look at just a few of the featured points discussed by Paul in our two chapters.

Chapter 12 tells us that we are to be a living sacrifice – Exactly what does that mean?  We are not to be passively conformed to this world. In other words, statisfied wit the status quo. Instead, our transformation is to be positive, transformed by the renewing of our minds. With his “renewing minds” phrase, Paul is telling us that this involves thinking in authentic ways about God and our own place in God’s world. It involves understanding the following:

  • Believers in Christ are called to be holy (1:7)
  • The truth of God’s eternal power and divine status must be continually affirmed by worshiping God rather than any other created thing (1:18-25)
  • All people are prone to sin and stand under God’s judgment (2:1-2, 14-16; 3:9-20)
  • We cannot “boast,” or take credit for our faith (3:27-28)
  • We are to value hardships and live through them in hope. This opens us up to God’s love expressed through Christ even while experiencing hardships (5:3-11)

Paul is challenging his readers to live out their faith in ways appropriate to the amount and type of faith that God has gifted to them. Similarly, different amounts and types of faith may lead people to different roles. One person might have the kind of faith that leads into a career as a missionary, and another may have the sort of faith that leads to work as a corporate accountant and use their expertise to serve others as God provides opportunities. Both life models can be appropriate for people in the church. Paul’s main point about spiritual gifts is that God has given us these gifts as members of the body of Christ. So we are to use the particular gift(s) God has given us to help the body function, not to promote ourselves or show how we as one part of the body are better than another body part.

As Paul continues, he calls for the kind of behavior produced by a renewed mind and states that this is the proper response to the mercies extended to us by God. Love is the overarching theme for the whole passage. Paul echoes Jesus in calling attention to love as the key everyday normal for God’s people. Jesus had said that all the law and the prophets hang on two commands: love God and love your neighbor as yourself (Matthew 22:36-40). Paul echoes something similar in Romans 13:8-10. Here in 12:9, Paul assumes that his audience knows that they are to love; he encourages them to make their love for each other genuine. Paul had begun this section of 12:9-13 with “let love be genuine” (verse 9), and then shows what this love looks like. Generally, true love is summed up like this: Hate what is evil and hold onto what is good (verse 9b). Those who have offered their bodies as a living sacrifice and renewed their minds will be able to discern what is good (verses 1-2).

Paul then goes on to give examples of how to cling to the good (verses 10-13). He uses the word agape for love in v. 9, but then becomes more specific by using phileo in verse 10 to refer to the family love of those living in community. He asks us to “participate in” others’ needs, to give of ourselves and our own resources for the material needs of others, like food, clothing, and shelter.  Paul’s type of true love is fervent, relentless, and practical. Because Paul’s readers have been shown mercy, they are to show mercy by tending to enemies in need, the way they provide for the material needs of their brothers and sisters in Christ.

By treating opponents like family, opponents are shamed (Proverbs 25:21-22a in verse 20): the image of heaping of burning coals on the enemy’s head suggests making them red in the face. Notice that Paul is not asking his audience to simply practice self-control. We are to do more than just refrain from repaying evil; we are to initiate doing good to opponents. In doing so, Christians overcome evil with good, showing that they “cling to what is good,” expressing the definition of true love.

Now for Chapter 13. The Christian religion was designed to extend throughout the world. Christians professed supreme allegiance to the Lord Jesus Christ; he was their Lawgiver, their Sovereign, their Judge. Therefore, a question arose of great importance and difficulty, “what kind” of allegiance they were to render to earthly leaders? The kingdoms of the world were then “pagan” kingdoms. The laws were made by pagans, and were adapted to each type of paganism. Those kingdoms had been generally founded through conquest, and blood, and oppression. Many of the rulers were blood-stained warriors,  unprincipled men; and were not of the best character in either their private, and/or public lives. Whether Christians were to acknowledge the laws of such kingdoms and of such rulers, there was always this serious question. Whom to they follow?

There “were” cases where it was right to “resist” the laws. This is the Christian religion clearly taught; and in cases like these, it was indispensable for Christians to take a stand. When the laws interfered with the rights of conscience; when they commanded the worship of idols, or any moral wrong, then it was their duty to refuse submission. Yet when there was a line to be drawn, early Christians would wrongly “refuse” any and all submission, even when it was proper. Paul was telling them to be a subject and submit. The word submit Paul used denotes the kind of submission which soldiers gave to their officers. It implies “subordination;” a willingness to occupy a proper place, to yield to the authority of someone over us. The word used here does not designate the “extent” of the submission, but merely a general principle to obey in all things which are not contrary to the Law of God.

Paul winds up our chapter 13 with a “wake up call.” This comes in the chapters where he is teaching about mutual love and acceptance in the fellowship of faith (13:8-10; 14:1-15:6); Paul interrupts himself, in his writings, to remind his readers that they all share a common hope, God’s coming day of salvation (vv. 12-13). This hope, our hope is to be the motivator for the new ways of relating to one another that Paul wants the Jewish and Gentile Roman Christians to adopt. As we live in a world whose divisions are growing deeper, Paul’s words bring needed perspective. 

When we wake up, we get dressed. Paul tells us what to wear: “let us put on the armor of light” (v.12); and “put on the Lord Jesus Christ (v. 14). Why the military image of armor? It’s as if we are awakened suddenly from a dream of nighttime proportions, and discover that we are in a military encampment during the hours just before dawn. The camp is busy preparing for imminent battle. The soldiers are busy putting on their armor and grab their weapons. This image is intended to tell us that we’re in the middle of conflict. Instead of fighting each other, we need to unite against the common enemies of our world today.

Items for Discussion

  • What is the hardest part about “renewing one’s mind?”
  • Have you ever taken time to think about your spiritual gifts?
  • What is the hardest part about “loving your enemies?”
  • Paul is pretty explicit on what constitutes overreach of government and leaders. Added to help discussion is Paul’s list:
    • Pay taxes-Are there any taxes that you take issue with?
    • Pay debts-Yours and what about the government?
    • Give respect and honor-Where is society failing today on this issue?
    • Do not commit adultery-What are the pressures on people that even Paul was concerned about?
    • Do not murder-While we may not overtly murder, where do we support murder as Christians today?
    • Do not steal-Of course we have thieves-How does this commandment touch the average Christian?
    • Do not covet-Do we still do this today? Where?
  • What are the issues driving a wedge into the Christian community today?
  • Do you view the survival of Christianity today as a battle? Why or why not?

Discussion Challenge

  • Describe how you would use the church, the Body of Christ, today to solve the problems in our communities and country or even the world?
  • 1
    NIV New International Version Translations

Growing and Reaching

1 Corinthians 13:1-131NIV New International Version Translations

1 If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. 2 If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. 3 If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing. 4 Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5 It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6 Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7 It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. 8 Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. 9 For we know in part and we prophesy in part, 10 but when completeness comes, what is in part disappears. 11 When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put the ways of childhood behind me. 12 For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known. 13 And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.

Background2https://www.workingpreacher.org/preaching.aspx?commentary_id=2595

Paul is writing 1 Corinthians in response to problems in the church in Corinth. Paul declares that love is the greatest power in a church (community) and Corinth seems to be lacking a lot of it. The very placement of 1 Corinthians 13 may be suggesting to us that Paul has ulterior motives. He places this poem in the middle of his discussion about spiritual achievements. In chapter 12, Paul discusses spiritual gifts and presents his famed analogy of the Church as the body of Christ (1 Corinthians 12:27; 1 Corinthians 10:16; Romans 12:5). This body, the church, has many gifts and many functions. All of these makeup one church. Yet, even all of the many gifts and church functions are not enough to sustain the community in Corinth. Paul then takes a turn in direction and in chapter 13, talks about love as the hidden ingredient, the glue that holds the church and its many groups and functions together. He then resumes his discussion of the spiritual life in 1 Corinthians 14:1by saying saying “Follow the way of love and eagerly desire gifts of the Spirit, especially prophecy.” 

Paul does not introduce this passage for the same reasons that it typically is used. As a marriage vow, it is used for reaffirming something already present between two people. Instead, he presents this passage as a way to introduce the Corinth community to a new behavior that is necessary if they are to survive the turmoil caused by differences and disagreements. The Corinthian church was not a homogenous body. Its members were not all of the same kind. When people gathered there, they did not have any uniformity of purpose. The people did not share similar lives, values, and experiences.

The Corinthian fellowship (koinonia, 1 Corinthians 1:9) transcended the conventional social boundaries of ethnicity, gender, age, rank, status, and life situations. There were married and unmarried men and women as well as widows and children among them (1 Corinthians 7:8, 14, 32-40). While most of its members were converted Gentiles (1 Corinthians 12:2). In the church of Corinth were Jews (1 Corinthians 1:23-24) who were rather powerful figures who served as former synagogue leaders, like Crispus (1 Corinthians 1:14; cf. Acts 18:8) and Sosthenes (1 Corinthians 1:1; cf. Acts 18:17). While most of its members, were from the lower classes of society (1 Corinthians 1:26), some were just the opposite. Erastus, for example, was the city treasurer of Corinth and Gaius had enough resources to support Paul and the whole church (1 Corinthians 1:14; cf. Romans 16:23). There were slaves and free people in the community (1 Corinthians 12:13) as well as people with different skill sets and gifts (1 Corinthians 12:28-30).

The diversity within the church of Corinth generated both benefits and challenges. Unfortunately, the diversity among the Corinthians dissolved into discord (1 Corinthians 1:10) and rivalry (1 Corinthians 3:4, 21-23). Members divided into contentious groups. They took sides with some saying they are of one teacher or another (1 Corinthians 1:12; 11:18-19). This was a community fragmented, rather than enriched, by their differences. Yet, Paul remained firm that this diversity is nonnegotiable. God has called this community to be diverse and to get along within it. Paul’s poetic love verses were not written to celebrate the unifying love already accomplished in the community.  It was more of a call to action. It was not a tribute to what is but an intervention to instruct them on what had not yet come to pass.

In Paul’s tribute to love, he starts out by naming human achievement as being temporal and limited (1 Corinthians 13:1-3, 8-12). Up until this point in the letter, much of Paul’s discussion is about speaking in tongues, prophesy, knowledge, and insight as ingredients of Christian worship and life. These are to be goals and achievements are necessary and desirable (1 Corinthians 12:27). In his love poem, Paul makes a decisive shift here, however, to diminish spiritual gifts. Paul says, tongues, prophesy, knowledge, miracles, servanthood to the point of death are important, but they still do not qualify as the “more excellent way” (1 Corinthians 12:31). Love is still the key.

Paul choses to insert love into 1 Corinthians  because it is the spiritual resource the Corinthians lacked most. Paul then goes on to describe “the work of love” in both positive and negative terms. On the positive side, Paul says love is: patient, kind, and selfless. It involves truth-telling, fortitude, constancy, and tolerance (1 Corinthians 13:4-5,7). In terms of what love “is not,” Paul says it is not self-seeking, short-tempered, and offensive. In other words, love does not hurt people.  To be a loving church will not damage their prospects for being an authentic church and community.

If one has love then they never cease to hope. Jesus believed that no man was hopeless. Love bears everything with triumphant fortitude. The Greek verb used here (hupomenein) is one of the great Greek words. It is generally translated to to mean “bear or to endure.” However,  what it really describes is not the spirit which can passively bear things, but the spirit which, in bearing them, can conquer them. It is not an attitude of resignation but an attitude filled with holy joy. Love can bear things, not merely with passive resignation, but with triumphant fortitude, because it knows that “a Father’s hand will never cause His child a needless tear.” When we think of the qualities of this love as Paul portrays them, we can being to see them in the life of Jesus Himself. Paul stresses love’s absolute permanency. When all the things in which men glory have passed away love will still stand. In one of the most wonderfully lyrical verses of scripture The Song of Solomon (SS 8:7) sings, “Many waters cannot quench love, neither can floods drown it.” The one unconquerable thing is love. That is one of the great reasons for believing in immortality. When love is entered into, there comes into life a relationship against which the assaults of time are helpless and which transcends death.

The love Paul is talking about here is not passive and fluffy either. It is a kind of love that is an up at dawn, feet on the ground, tools in hand, a working kind of love.  This love builds communities and nurtures positive social interactions. It does this not just in social networks (which many of us have come to prefer) but in the entire community, the entire church. (Note here: The Church of Corinth was a city church a community church). Paul’s declaration of love unifies people. Love becomes the way by which we talk to each other (1 Corinthians 1:5; 16:20), eat with one another (1 Corinthians 8:13; 10:27; 11:33-34), fellowship together (1 Corinthians 11:20), and affirm (support) all (1 Corinthians 16:15-16, 18). Love transcends our self-imposed caste systems and personal biases. It forms whole and holistic people, who are anchored in the well-being of others. Love will not let us down if we genuinely live in it together (1 Corinthians 16:14). As great as faith and hope are, love is still greater. Faith without love is cold, and hope without love is grim. Love is the fire which kindles faith and it is the light which turns hope into certainty.

Items for Discussion

  • How do you think that our society today is misunderstanding Paul’s kind of love?
  • How does our society today destroy one’s capacity to love as Paul is directing us to do?
  • How does love facilitate the survival of the young and the fulfilment of the old?
  • Do you believe this statement is true?  “Love is a constant of the human condition we are taught to not see” Why or why not?
  • Why do we misunderstand each other?
  • Paul talks about maturing from a child to a man.  Our society has defined maturing as (of an organism) becoming physically mature. What type of maturity do you think Paul was trying to get us to understand?
  • How would you explain to someone that love even transcends death?
  • With respect to discernment, how would you apply these verses to making decisions in life?

Discussion Challenge

  • How does a congregation facilitate Paul’s love even in times of COVID-19?

Go On

Matthew 19:16-221NIV New International Version Translations

16 Just then a man came up to Jesus and asked, “Teacher, what good thing must I do to get eternal life?” 17 “Why do you ask me about what is good?” Jesus replied. “There is only One who is good. If you want to enter life, keep the commandments.” 18 “Which ones?” he inquired. Jesus replied, “‘You shall not murder, you shall not commit adultery, you shall not steal, you shall not give false testimony, 19 honor your father and mother,’ and ‘love your neighbor as yourself.’” 20 “All these I have kept,” the young man said. “What do I still lack?” 21 Jesus answered, “If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.” 22 When the young man heard this, he went away sad, because he had great wealth.

Background

Does the passage about the rich young ruler teach that Christ expect His followers to give up all of their possessions to follow Him? It’s true that Christ told the rich young ruler to give up his wealth and follow Him. On another occasion, Jesus said, “It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.” On other occasions, Christ didn’t rebuke friends who owned property or command them to sell their homes and businesses. In fact, He often ate with people and stayed at their homes. Friends like Mary and Martha or Zacchaeus the publican were clearly not among the poor. He was even buried in the newly excavated tomb of Joseph of Arimathea, a wealthy member of the Sanhedrin. So why, then, did Christ set up what seems to be such a stringent requirement for this particular young man?

Christ knew that covetousness was the sin which most easily troubled this young man. Although he had got everything he had honestly, the young man could not cheerfully part with any of his possessions. The young man was earnest in his request to join Christ. Christ’s own promise to each of us is to make our life decisions as easy as possible and to make our yoke comfortably fit us. Yet in this example, even Christ’s promise was as much a trial of the young man’s faith, as the idea was of his desire to be charitable and obvious contempt he had for the world around him. To follow Christ would require this young man as well as any of us to of us to follow the regulations and laws of society, to strictly follow in Christ’s footsteps, and to cheerfully submit to Christ’s instructions on leaving behind those things that risked his very soul.

The young man was doing his best but realized that there was something missing in his life, something holding him back. Despite all his best efforts, Christ seems not to have encouraged him but, instead, asked him to face the truth. Interestingly, the commandments which Christ recites to the rich young man do not include the first three, which all relate to our relationship with God. Instead, He lists those which address our relationships with each other. The message to us, then is clear – we do not live in isolation. Love for our neighbor is the door to eternal life.

Christ touched on the one thing that the young man was not ready to give up – his money and all that it brought. But, if we are honest, we all have some things we would be very slow to let go of. It might be a good exercise to ask ourselves what would be the most difficult thing for us to give up if Christ asked us to do so. Whatever it is, it probably would be something that is coming between us and our total following of Christ. Is there something that really owns us? Sometimes when we ask a question of God we do not like the answer! When Christ challenges this good young man to let go of the material things that he treasures, he walks away from Jesus, grieving.

Items for Discussion

  • Is there a certain arrogance in the approach of the rich young man? He has tried to be ‘good’, but still feels something lacking – some ’good deed’ which will give him peace. Is the young man trying to manipulate God?
  • How do we try to manipulate God today?
  • How is today’s society “arrogant” about their wealth?
  • How could you either find or tell whether wealth or some other issue in your life is actually a barrier to you in your relationship with God?
  • Would the rich young man have been assured his salvation had he given up all of this wealth to the poor? Why or Why not?
  • What does society fear losing the most?
  • Which fears can we control? How?

Discussion Challenge

  • What is your answer to the world’s problems associated with the wide disparity in wealth? How would your solution fix the world and make it a better place?
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