God called many mortal servants to his service in their generation. Those who possessed a personal faith in him became an example of Beneficence. All who failed to have personal faith became an example of WARNING. Abraham became the spiritual father of all believers in every age. Pharaoh the man who warns all opponents of God that his wheels of justice grind slowly, but they “grind exceedingly fine.”
All who served well prayed, prepared and pursued their calling—and approximated God’s perfection. Then Jesus came and EMBODIED God’s perfection. It’s no insult to us that our best service will only barely approximate God’s person. It’s an eternal compliment to Jesus that from his first infant cry to his final shouted Calvary confession, “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit” Luke 23:46, Jesus EMBODIED God’s Person. A perfection that deserves adoration, surrender and worship of him as GOD the SON. For him, ALL GLORY. For us, the privilege and pleasure of doing our best to emulate his life, knowing our best, and his all-covering Grace, completes our lives in his will.
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Jesus could be thankful for the CUP because he knew:
Further, he offered thanks for the LOAF because his sacrifice:
Further still, his sacrifice would reveal:
Each time we partake of the Lord’s Supper, appreciate that Jesus could thank God:.
Note: I have published two volumes of communion and offering devotionals. The use of this devotional, presented yesterday, August 6, will be the exception as a blog.
A separate study reveals how often Jesus prayed and returned thanks to God. Luke 6:12, 9:16, 10:21 will get you started. This blog considers the Master’s thanks when instituting the Lord’s Supper from the Passover Meal. See Matthew 26:26, 27 for his thanks to God for both loaf and cup. Though he knew the CUP forecast his:
The last point overlooks what Paul Harvey would call, “The Rest of the Story”, symbolized by the LOAF. While the disciples had acquaintance with blood in the Passover:
However, that knowledge didn’t help the disciples to relate that blood to Christ’s own. His previous references to dying filled them with such dread they refused to consider it or ask for explanation. Luke 9:43-45, Matthew 20:17-19 as examples. Next…consider three reasons why Jesus thanked God for the CUP he would drink. End Part I A 3/2/23 San Diego U-T story related the account of a Colorado woman who celebrated her birthday by injecting herself with black tar heroin. She awakened to desperate efforts seeking to administer naloxone—which reversed the overdose.
The response of liberal lawmakers happened as expected: establish overdose centers where drug users could actually take drugs overseen by specialists in reversing overdoses. Conservatives in law enforcement, ministry and legislatures criticized the practice since it tolerated a deadly plague on humans who voluntarily harmed themselves but sought freedom from responsibility of its consequences. The spiritual issue in the discussion eluded all but those who always investigate human behavior to determine the Biblical principles upheld or ignored. For example, in 2022 the TSA (Transportation Security Administration) confiscated 6542 guns at airport checkpoints. U-T, 2/21/23. When anyone capable of buying an airline ticket KNOWS the RULE: no guns allowed aboard planes. What is there about NO that humanity doesn’t understand? It’s an inherited trait from mother Eve, who arrogantly refused to believe that GOD MEANT NO when he SAID NO—do not eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. For example, liberal governments at all levels are willing to help us not kill ourselves by making bad decisions. Though that effort eliminates personal responsibility for behavior. That logic defies the argument that they’re going to take drugs anyway, and it’s better to keep them alive from a deadly habit than let them die by making bad choices, no questions asked, no demands made. That specious reasoning denies government the power to keep people from being irresponsibly reckless, but assumes care for them when they fail to be responsible. That is why so many people love government and so few love Jesus. He always stands ready to fill life full of the Holy Spirit, thereby preventing the attraction to bad habits, bad companionship and bad decisions that put us in jeopardy. Indeed, the Holy Spirit’s presence prevents the attraction of those evil influences. AND, when we make such choices, the conscience God enlightens won’t let us rest until we have repented. The Spirit empowers us to BE ALL Jesus intends by getting SELF out of the way to let him. Jesus always stands ready to forgive any sin we commit and admit. However, we must admit we have sinned, are responsible for it and deserve to be sent to Hell as a result, and only God’s Grace has saves us from that fate. Leafing through ideas for blogs I have in manila folders, I accessed a note scribbled about Christ’s relationship with Moses. To appreciate Jesus as the Person Moses predicted, read Deuteronomy 18:15. To see its fulfillment in Jesus Christ, see John 5:45-47, Acts 3:17-26, Acts 13:16-43, as examples. When the apostles found Jewish audiences hostile to Christ’s supremacy over Moses, they didn’t alter their message. They DID predict Gentile inclusion in Christ’s victory Acts 13:44-52. And, of course, we have God’s final word after Moses and Elijah had first appeared with Jesus on the Mount of Transfiguration, then departed, leaving Jesus alone, God saying, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!” Matthew 17:5. The last three words a repetition of the last four words of Deuteronomy 18:15.
We’re not surprised that both Mark and Luke opened their Gospels with quotes from Malachi 4:5-6—based on allegiance to Moses. Or that John, seeing Jesus as a continuation of his own ministry of cleansing and judgment would be disturbed by his pacific, pastoral presence Luke 7:18-23. Or that John the Baptist called Israel alive to Moses from dead ceremonialism. In his personal ministry Jesus both broke with Moses and counseled submission to Moses from his audience. See Matthew 5:17-20 as a sample of the latter and Matthew 5:21, 27, 31, 33, 38, 43, and their following teaching as samples of the former. Jesus would personally touch a leper, cleansing him, then send him to a priest for verification. The cleansing, apart from Moses offered Christ’s superiority; while sending the cleansed man to a priest kept him submitted to Moses. When Jesus sent out the Twelve in pairs, he forbade them entering towns of any Gentile Matthew 10:6. Because they were completely ignorant of Christianity’s later spread. Hebrews is the book of Christianity’s superiority, chapter after chapter. The conflict Jesus experienced when healing on the Sabbath—a transgression of Tradition, not Moses—encapsulated the fierce, unrelenting and finally final reason the leaders wanted him dead. Acts 13:38-41 summarizes the conflict, decided by Christianity’s progress in being and Judaism’s failure in continuing to be God’s final revelation to humanity. Moses and Jesus the Jews could tolerate. But never JESUS alone. The latter GOD’s determination, the former Judaism’s forlorn wish. Consider a few examples of MORE where Scripture painstakingly demonstrates Christ’s Godhood in human form. John 3:13, 5:16-23, 8:58, Philippians 2:6-11, Colossians 2:9 and Hebrews 1:3.
However, while Scripture remains the essence of apologetics, NOTHING so powerfully supports, reinforces and substantiates Scripture’s proof of Jesus as his Lifestyle perfectly Consistent with his Teaching, claims and evidences. To make this blog short, THINK of three quick references. First, Jesus always clamed he came from God to perform in history what he personally saw God do in eternity John 5:16 ff—the very reason he came to earth, as Hebrews 10:5-7 underscored. Second, he always depended on God for his overcoming life, as his dependance on Scripture and Prayer demonstrated—not in any order: Luke 4:1-12, 4:42, 5:16, 6:12. Third, like his Father in Heaven, Jesus took extreme spiritual positions, John 3:13, Luke 4:14-30 and Mark 14:55-64 as examples, and never:
In summary, just like His Father, Jesus clearly taught that acceptance of him as God’s Son meant we live forever, John 3:16, Matthew 13:43. Rejecting him meant spiritual condemnation John 3:36, 5:29, Matthew 13:40-42. There’s lots more to be said, but that’s it for this blog and this week. V With irresistible military force Japan invaded the Philippines in early 1942. Appointed Commander when General MacArthur left for Australia, General Wainwright led a hopeless resistance. He continually, but vainly, pleaded for military reinforcement from Washington. In turn, the:
Easy for him to say, sitting in his cushy office chair, guarded by armed personnel. Knowing full well the Japanese assault faced outnumbered, outgunned and un-reinforced Filipino and American soldiers. General MacArthur received the Medal of Honor for being defeated. His army received merciless brutality. Leadership can fail the people it leads, while excusing themselves and seeing the led expendable. Jesus never asked or demanded of his people what he wouldn’t first model. A few of many more examples:
Jesus, the perfect leader, never failed his people. A claim his people can’t make vis à vis Jesus. No way exists that anyone, or any group of someone’s, in any generation, can praise, honor and worship Jesus sufficiently, let alone excessively.
SINCE: God appeared to the generations in turn through his Son, for his Son, to prepare history to reveal his Son—through prophets, priests and kings. SINCE:
SINCE:
SINCE: Jesus consistently and
SINCE:
SINCE:
SINCE:
SINCE:
SINCE:
And on and on in perpetuity. No way exists to qualify, diminish, overrate or otherwise exhaust, or render excessive Glory to Jesus. No way exists for him to be accorded TOO MUCH PRAISE, CREDIT, GLORY, since ANY and ALL ACCLAIM to him remains less then he deserves. He’ll always have greater dimensions to his personality—that await study, exploration and appreciation—and all to the Glory and Delight of his Father Philippians 2:9-11, Ephesians 2:7. This blogger read Louis L’Amour’s autobiography The Education of a Wandering Man. He’s now in possession of, but hasn’t read a biography of, L’Amour by Robert Phillips. However interesting the latter, can it equal in accuracy and depth of insight the great man’s own profile of himself? Can it reveal character traits he didn’t surface? Or explore faults he naturally ignored?
Having acquaintance with the man’s own story, this writer will find it hard to excel. We’ll see. However, and the point of this blog, the life of Jesus Christ has never been more accurately, or in superior depth, limned than in the Four Gospels. Indeed, as acquaintance with second century Christian authors has demonstrated to the writer, nothing IN THEM equals the scintillating dynamics obvious in every New Testament book. How do we account for all that? Since no one could equal Christ’s story as he lived it while here, how did the Four Evangelists succeed in recording his spell-binding nature? It’s simple, really, with a captivating originality: Jesus Christ sent to the writers the SOMEONE exactly like himself as God the Son, and exactly like God the Father…none other but God the Spirit, as John 14:16-21, 25-28, 15:26-27, 16:5-15 reveal. Jesus could use mortal authors to record his STORY, his LIFE, his MEANING by subjecting them to the direction, depth and accuracy of God the Spirit, the SOMEONE exactly like Jesus. Each writer wrote in his God-gifted style, but each in absolute submission to the Spirit’s inspiration and truth. Amen! A Christian friend recently had a water leak in the wall behind her washing machine. She called a plumber after self-efforts to resolve the problem failed. She watched him carefully as he worked to make the necessary repairs. Then paid the exorbitant $450 bill. She mentioned that by following his every step, she could have achieved the same result. Furthermore, it was the very thing she thought needed to be done.
The last point in the subject of this blog. The difference in a professional—meaning a person who achieves the desired outcome in the shortest amount of time—and the person hiring his expertise, exists in the difference between Thinking and Knowing what needs to be done and doing it. The plumber DID and our friend WATCHED. Practical points gleaned. First, whether she could afterwards have followed his skilled steps may be open to question, though possible. But not at the speed he accomplished it. Second, he knew through expertise-gained experience what she only thought should be done. Spiritual points. First, Jesus, the Master Teacher, knew how to pray. The disciples learned HOW by seeing him pray and asking for a lesson Luke 11:1. Which he gave. Which his disciples have followed, finding direction and satisfaction in prayer to God. Second, like our friend with the plumber, the disciples could never have been able to PRAY AS Jesus did in John 17. Only he could pray that way, being privy to the infinity of the Godhead, a point still true. Who, when reading John 17, doesn’t understand the spiritual distance between Jesus and us? Third, consider Simon Peter’s willingness to outdistance the Law by forgiving offenders SEVEN times Matthw 18:21. Only to discover the Master’s goal being unlimited times, Matthew 18:22-35, a matchless parable fortifying his teaching. And so on, Matthew 16:21-23, 26:33-35, two of many more examples. Proving the wisdom of Robert Schuller’s words: when you need an expert, HIRE it, not BE it. Especially in the spiritual realm, where mankind has always instinctively made its own rules. Only to find GOD doesn’t care what our rules are, since he has made HIS OWN, including accepting Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord. No other way exists to enter God’s Presence John 14:6. Therefore, so much for the critics who say the disciples:
That’s another subject. Bye for now. V |
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