2019-04-22
Judges 14:8 NIV
One day Samson encountered a lion and slew it. The Bible says, “Some time later, when he went back…he turned aside to look at the lion’s carcass. In it he saw…some honey. He scooped out the honey with his hands and ate as he went along” (vv. 8-9 NIV). There’s a lesson here for you. When you take time to stop and reflect, you discover “honey” in your experiences that you can eat and grow stronger and wiser. When you reflect, you are able to put things into perspective; you gain new appreciation for things you didn’t notice before. Few of us have clear perspective in the heat of the moment. Most of us who have survived a traumatic experience usually avoid similar situations at all costs. This can leave us with unresolved issues that leave us tied up in knots. Reflective thinking enables you to distance yourself from the intense emotions of an experience and see it with fresh eyes. Indeed, this process is one of the first steps to getting rid of our emotional baggage. President George Washington observed, “We ought not to look back unless it is to derive useful lessons from past errors, and for the purpose of profiting by dearly bought experience.” Each of us has been shaped by the experiences, good and bad, that we’ve had in life. What we refuse to deal with deals with us, and often in harmful ways. We “act out” of our unresolved issues. But when we bring them into the light and ask God for the grace to face them squarely, they lose their power over us.
Soul food: Num 3:1-4:33; Mark 1:1-8; Ps 144:9-15; Prov 10:22-23
2019-04-21
John 11:25 KJV
Why is Christ’s resurrection unique? (1) He’s the only one who didn’t die again. In Scripture all others who rose from the dead, died again. Jesus was the glorious exception. Consequently, “He was made a priest…through the power of a life which has no end” (Hebrews 7:16 GNT). His testimony stands: “I was dead…I am alive for ever” (Revelation 1:18 NIV). (2) He alone ascended into Heaven to represent us before God. Other priests died and ceased to serve. But Jesus was “declared…a priest forever” (Hebrews 7:17 NIV). And He’s not sitting around awaiting the second coming; He’s representing us before God. “He entered heaven itself…to appear for us in God’s presence” (Hebrews 9:24 NIV). That means no accusation against us can stand. “Who is he that condemns? Christ Jesus, who died…is at the right hand of God…interceding for us” (Romans 8:34 NIV). (3) He has the power to resurrect you when you die. Jesus comforted His disciples with this awesome promise: “Before long, the world will not see me anymore, but you will see me. Because I live, you also will live” (John 14:19 NIV). And that promise applies to you too! “For the Lord himself will come down from heaven…the dead in Christ will rise first…we who are still alive…will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever” (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17 NIV). What a day that will be!
Soul food: 1 Cor 15; Luke 24:1-53
2019-04-20
Revelation 1:18 NLT
The fact that Jesus arose from the dead isn’t what makes Him unique. The Bible records seven other resurrections. Jesus was number eight (the biblical number for new beginnings). In two amazing ways His resurrection was unlike any other; let’s look at them: (1) His was the only resurrection foretold in advance. David prophesied of Jesus: “For you will not leave my soul among the dead or allow your holy one to rot in the grave” (Psalm 16:10 NLT). And Isaiah foretold life for Him beyond His crucifixion. “When you make His soul an offering for sin…He shall prolong His days” (Isaiah 53:10 NKJV). Jesus actually forecast His resurrection from death. “Jesus began to explain to his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem…be killed and on the third day be raised to life” (Matthew 16:21 NIV). (2) Only Jesus raised Himself from the dead! His enemies deemed Him a helpless victim of their determined efforts to eradicate Him and His mission. But they were wrong on all counts! He said, “No one can take my life from me. I sacrifice it voluntarily. For I have the authority to lay it down when I want to and also to take it up again” (John 10:18 NLT). All of Rome’s might and the hatred of his Jewish persecutors couldn’t eliminate Jesus or nullify His cause. He needed no help. In His death and in His resurrection, He was always at the helm. “Destroy this temple [my body], and in three days I will raise it up” (John 2:19 NLT). And He did! He’s alive forevermore!
Soul food: Num 1-2; Luke 23:50-56; Ps 144:1-8; Prov 10:19-21
2019-04-19
John 19:30 NIV
Calvary was victorious! The cross may look like the triumph of evil over goodness, the powerful over the powerless, but only to those who don’t understand Christ’s mission. Never was courage greater or strength stronger. When He cried, “It is finished” (some translations read “It is completed”), He didn’t mean, “I’m finished, My cause is defeated.” Far from being crushed at Calvary, Jesus triumphed in three ways: (1) He conquered His own human desire to avoid unspeakable suffering: “He…bowed with his face to the ground, praying, ‘My Father! If it is possible, let this cup of suffering be taken away from me. Yet I want your will to be done, not mine'” (Matthew 26:39 NLT). (2) He conquered the demonic powers of darkness. “In this way, he disarmed the spiritual rulers and authorities. He shamed them publicly by his victory over them on the cross” (Colossians 2:15 NLT). (3) He conquered the law’s stubborn demands against sinners. “Christ…brought the Law to an end, so that everyone who believes is put right with God” (Romans 10:4 GNT). At Calvary love triumphed over law, forever freeing us who could never live up to God’s law. “It is finished” was the cry of a victor instead of a victim! It didn’t look that way to the crowd or to His devastated disciples. But it did three days later when the empty tomb proved Jesus had won the victory over death. It all comes down to this: “If you confess that Jesus is Lord and believe that God raised him from death, you will be saved” (v. 9 GNT).
Soul food: Gen 22:1-18; Luke 23:26-49; Ps 22; Isa 53
2019-04-18
Hebrews 9:22 NAS
Third, Calvary was vital! Exactly how vital? As vital as life or death, hope or despair, heaven or hell. It’s our only means of salvation! “There is salvation in no one else! God has given no other name under heaven by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12 NLT). Without Christ’s death, our sins would have separated us from God forever. But for His death we’d be subject to the full penalty of God’s law, pronounced guilty for every sin we’ve ever committed and as condemned sinners, lost forever. Paul writes, “Obviously, the law applies to those to whom it was given, for its purpose is to keep people from having excuses, and to show that the entire world is guilty before God” (Romans 3:19 NLT). No exceptions – “the entire world,” including you, stands guilty in God’s sight. But because Jesus fulfilled every requirement of God’s law on our behalf, we have been forgiven and declared righteous. That’s vital information. And you only have two options when it comes to Jesus: Accept or reject Him! He said, “Anyone who believes and is baptized will be saved. But anyone who refuses to believe will be condemned” (Mark 16:16 NLT). Jesus’ sacrifice resolved the sin question; now it’s up to you to resolve the Son question: “What then shall I do with Jesus who is called Christ?” (Matthew 27:22 NKJV). The answer is simple: Put your trust in Him and be saved.
Soul food: Jam 3-5; Luke 23:13-25; Ps 7:10-17; Prov 10:17-18
2019-04-17
1 Peter 2:24 NLT
Second, Calvary was vicarious, which means “an act undertaken by someone in another’s place.” Seen through the lens of sentiment or superstition, the cross may affect your emotions but it can’t save your soul. But seen as substitution, the cross can save any soul! The apostle Peter writes, “He personally carried our sins in his body on the cross so that we can be dead to sin and live for what is right.” Had Jesus reneged at Calvary, God would have been forced to sentence us to death for our sins. Instead, as our substitute, Jesus suffered our justly-deserved punishment, freeing us and giving us eternal life. Substitution was historically God’s idea to deliver His people from the penalty of their sin. When Adam and Eve sinned, God substituted an animal to cover their iniquity. He accepted Abel’s sacrifice of the “firstlings of his flock” (Genesis 4:4), and Abraham’s ram caught in the thicket in exchange for Isaac’s life (See Genesis 22:13). But without question God’s greatest soul-saving theme – substitution – was once-for-all-time demonstrated when Jesus offered Himself at Calvary. Fully satisfied with Christ’s atoning death, God expunged our record and pronounced us innocent in His sight! God “made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him” (2 Corinthians 5:21 NAS). On the cross Jesus became what we were – sin – so we could become what He was – righteousness! Everything Jesus did from His virgin birth, sinless life, redeeming death, miraculous resurrection, glorious ascension, and priestly ministry in Heaven, He did as a substitute and savior.
Soul food: Jam 1-2; Luke 23:1-12; Ps 7:1-9; Prov 10:16
