Tag Archives: God

Your Brother Will Rise Again

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John 11:17–26—On his arrival, Jesus found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb for four days. Now Bethany was less than two miles from Jerusalem, and many Jews had come to Martha and Mary to comfort them in the loss of their brother. When Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went out to meet him, but Mary stayed at home. “Lord,” Martha said to Jesus, “if you had been here, my brother would not have died. But I know that even now God will give you whatever you ask.” Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise again.” Martha answered, “I know he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day.” Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; and whoever lives by believing in me will never die. Do you believe this?”

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Lazarus Is Dead

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John 11:8–16—”But Rabbi,” they said, “a short while ago the Jews there tried to stone you, and yet you are going back?” Jesus answered, “Are there not twelve hours of daylight? Anyone who walks in the daytime will not stumble, for they see by this world’s light. It is when a person walks at night that they stumble, for they have no light.” After he had said this, he went on to tell them, “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep; but I am going there to wake him up.” His disciples replied, “Lord, if he sleeps, he will get better.” Jesus had been speaking of his death, but his disciples thought he meant natural sleep. So then he told them plainly, “Lazarus is dead, and for your sake I am glad I was not there, so that you may believe. But let us go to him.” Then Thomas (also known as Didymus) said to the rest of the disciples, “Let us also go, that we may die with him.”

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Lazarus Became Sick

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John 11:1–7—Now a man named Lazarus was sick. He was from Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha. (This Mary, whose brother Lazarus now lay sick, was the same one who poured perfume on the Lord and wiped his feet with her hair.) So the sisters sent word to Jesus, “Lord, the one you love is sick.” When he heard this, Jesus said, “This sickness will not end in death. No, it is for God’s glory so that God’s Son may be glorified through it.” Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. So when he heard that Lazarus was sick, he stayed where he was two more days, and then he said to his disciples, “Let us go back to Judea.”

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Increase Our Faith!

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Luke 17:1–5—Jesus said to his disciples: “Things that cause people to stumble are bound to come, but woe to anyone through whom they come. It would be better for them to be thrown into the sea with a millstone tied around their neck than to cause one of these little ones to stumble. So watch yourselves. If your brother or sister sins against you, rebuke them; and if they repent, forgive them. Even if they sin against you seven times in a day and seven times come back to you saying ‘I repent,’ you must forgive them.” The apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith!”

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I Was Afraid of You

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Luke 19:20–27—”Then another servant came and said, ‘Sir, here is your mina; I have kept it laid away in a piece of cloth. I was afraid of you, because you are a hard man. You take out what you did not put in and reap what you did not sow.’ His master replied, ‘I will judge you by your own words, you wicked servant! You knew, did you, that I am a hard man, taking out what I did not put in, and reaping what I did not sow? Why then didn’t you put my money on deposit, so that when I came back, I could have collected it with interest?’ Then he said to those standing by, ‘Take his mina away from him and give it to the one who has ten minas.’ ‘Sir,’ they said, ‘he already has ten!’ He replied, ‘I tell you that to everyone who has, more will be given, but as for the one who has nothing, even what they have will be taken away. But those enemies of mine who did not want me to be king over them—bring them here and kill them in front of me.'”

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We Don’t Want This Man to Be Our King

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Luke 19:11–19—While they were listening to this, he went on to tell them a parable, because he was near Jerusalem and the people thought that the kingdom of God was going to appear at once. He said: “A man of noble birth went to a distant country to have himself appointed king and then to return. So he called ten of his servants and gave them ten minas. ‘Put this money to work,’ he said, ‘until I come back.’ But his subjects hated him and sent a delegation after him to say, ‘We don’t want this man to be our king.’ He was made king, however, and returned home. Then he sent for the servants to whom he had given the money, in order to find out what they had gained with it. The first one came and said, ‘Sir, your mina has earned ten more.’ ‘Well done, my good servant!’ his master replied. ‘Because you have been trustworthy in a very small matter, take charge of ten cities.’ The second came and said, ‘Sir, your mina has earned five more.’ His master answered, ‘You take charge of five cities.’

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Rabbi, I Want to See

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Mark 10:46–52—Then they came to Jericho. As Jesus and his disciples, together with a large crowd, were leaving the city, a blind man, Bartimaeus (which means “son of Timaeus”), was sitting by the roadside begging. When he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to shout, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” Many rebuked him and told him to be quiet, but he shouted all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” Jesus stopped and said, “Call him.” So they called to the blind man, “Cheer up! On your feet! He’s calling you.” Throwing his cloak aside, he jumped to his feet and came to Jesus. “What do you want me to do for you?” Jesus asked him. The blind man said, “Rabbi, I want to see.” “Go,” said Jesus, “your faith has healed you.” Immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus along the road.

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Wisdom Is Proved Right by All Her Children

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Luke 7:31-35—To what, then, can I compare the people of this generation? What are they like? They are like children sitting in the marketplace and calling out to each other: ‘We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we sang a dirge, and you did not cry.’ For John the Baptist came neither eating bread nor drinking wine, and you say, ‘He has a demon!’ The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and you say, ‘Here is a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and “sinners.”’ But wisdom is proved right by all her children.”

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He Is the Elijah Who Was to Come

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Matthew 11:7-15—As John’s disciples were leaving, Jesus began to speak to the crowd about John: “What did you go out into the wilderness to see? A reed swayed by the wind? If not, what did you go out to see? A man dressed in fine clothes? No, those who wear fine clothes are in kings’ palaces. Then what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet. This is the one about whom it is written: “ ‘I will send my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way before you.’ Truly I tell you, among those born of women there has not risen anyone greater than John the Baptist; yet whoever is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven has been subjected to violence, and violent people have been raiding it. For all the Prophets and the Law prophesied until John. And if you are willing to accept it, he is the Elijah who was to come. Whoever has ears, let them hear.

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Jesus On The Early Seven Churches

What is the mission of the church today? On one level it is the same as ever: To proclaim Jesus Christ to the world near and far. But is this actually happening? Yes, but the culture in general seems to be disregarding the message. This situation may seem new but it isn’t.

After Jesus gave his commission to “Go and make disciples of all nations,” the effort to build the church got underway. Almost immediately though, Jesus’ followers ran into dangerous conflict both within the ranks of the new church and from the world beyond.

In his last prayer to his disciples Jesus says this: “I have given them (my disciples) your word, and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world… Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth.”(John 17:14-17)

In his revelation to John, Jesus speaks to the seven churches. He points to how they are abiding in the mission of faithfully establishing God’s word in a resistant world, but he also points to ways they have wandered off the path that Jesus established for them.

To the church in Ephesus, Jesus says, “I know you are enduring patiently and bearing for my name’s sake, and you have not grown weary. But I have this against you, that you have abandoned the love you had at first.”(Revelation 2:3-4)

Jesus is saying this to the Ephesians and to all churches through the ages: “Who or what is your first love? Is it your pastor? or the church building? Is it the music or your fellow congregents? If your first love is anyone but me, you have wandered. Come back to me!

To the church in Smyrna, Jesus says, be strong and courageous because the world will come against you with slander, hardship and even prison. “Be faithful unto death, and I will give you the crown of life.”(Revelation 2:10)

The battle of the church from the beginning is this: You are in a life and death struggle. This is an epic battle and the enemy is powerful because ultimately the battle is against “the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.”(Ephesians 6:12)

To the church in Pergamun, Jesus says you have been faithful to my name even under pressure of opposition, but at the same time you have been enticed away by false teachings that serve Satan’s designs to separate you from me.

Timothy warns that false teachings will compromise the integrity of the church: “For a time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions.” (2 Timothy 4:3)

To the church in Thyatira,Jesus says despite “your love and faith and service and patient endurance,” you have let the woman Jezebel into your midst to seduce you with false teaching and worship.She has been permitted to corrupt and compromise all the good you have been doing.

Who is Jezebel? She was the wife of King Ahab and she turned him against Elijah, the prophet of God. She was the embodiment of all the corruption in the world. A church that lets the spirit of Jezebel in is in danger of her spirit subverting the mission of the church itself.

To the church in Sardis, Jesus says “You have a reputation of being alive, but you are dead. Wake up, and strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have not found your works complete in the sight of my God.”

If we think in purely human terms, we will come to believe that the good we do is good enough. Then we are redefining God’s mission for the church to suit our own idea of what that might be. Building the church on the terms Jesus gave us is really the only way.

To the church in Philadelphia, Jesus says that though they have “little power” the church has withstood hostile encroachments from outside forces. He says, “you have kept my word and have not denied my name. Hold fast to what you have so that no one may seize your crown.”

As the church was spreading, enemies of Jesus tried to infiltrate and undermined the witness of the church with deceptive philosophies. But the church in Philadelphia was steadfast in resisting the lies of the enemy. They remained true to Jesus despite outside pressures.

To the church in Laodicea, Jesus issues a rebuke: “I know your works: you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were either cold or hot! So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot not cold, I will spit you out of my mouth.”

Prosperity has damped down the passion for Christ the church once had. “For you say, I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing, not realizing that you are wretched, pitiable, poor blind and naked.” Money is not the enemy of Christ. Complacency, prosperity’s offspring, is.