The Living Word

Bible study on the set readings widely used by various churches and chapels and a weekly storytelling video. Also at www.medium.com/the-living-word and https://thelivingword.substack.com

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Archives for February 2020

March 8: “You must be born again”

February 26, 2020 by Ian Greig Leave a Comment

The Living Word 09A for Sunday, March 8, 2020

Previous week, March 1   Following week, March 15

Theme: How to be completely accepted by Almighty, holy God

Sunday readings from the Revised Common Lectionary. First read the passage in its entirety (NIV text) and let it speak for itself; then, the links below take you to the verse-by-verse commentary.

Genesis 12:1-4a – God promises to make a nation through Abram, who takes God at His word and sets off to the unknown

Genesis verse-by-verse

John 3:1-17 – Jesus tells Nicodemus, ‘the teacher of Israel’, that even he needs to be born again spiritually to enter the kingdom of God

John verse-by-verse

Romans 4:1-5, 13-17 – Like Abraham, we are made right with God by believing Him, not by any merit from our good works

Romans verse-by-verse

Also read: Psalm 121


Genesis 12:1-4a – God promises Abram to make a nation through him

Taking God at His word he set off for a new land

1 The LORD had said to Abram, “Go from your country, your people and your father’s household to the land I will show you.

“The Lord” — Yahweh, explained later in Moses’ encounter, Exodus 3:14-15.
“Go from your country” — God spoke to Abram about leaving “while he was still in Mesopotamia, before he lived in Harran”, Acts 7:2. His name occurs in other ancient texts from 20th-19th centuries B.C.

2-3 “I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.”

I will make… I will bless…” — A sevenfold promise expanding the LORD’s original blessing of the whole human race, Gen. 1:28 into a covenant which is largely just on God’s side (unlike others), and everlasting.

4 So Abram went, as the LORD had told him; and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he set out from Harran.

“Abram went” — with limited understanding of what God was saying; a model of faith which obeys and trusts understanding to follow.

REFLECTION

Believing God is always a step into what we do not know – otherwise it would not be believing. Abram’s willingness to trust God’s purpose absolutely, leaving a settled existence to seek an unknown destination in another land, leaves us wondering how we would respond. God was clear about the outcome of Abram responding in faith – he would know God’s blessing and also become part of God’s blessing to others. But we are left with the sense that Abram understood very little about his unique call. And that’s the point: faith doesn’t seek to understand everything first.

  • Faith is able to trust God to work out the details. “So Abram went, as the LORD had told Him…”.

QUESTION

Do you want God to show you the whole map before you set off on the journey?

MORE

Explaining God’s covenant with Abraham

Page with additional detail and Bible reference links

John 3:1-17 – Jesus tells ‘the teacher of Israel’ even he must be born again

Nicodemus learns that spiritual regeneration is the way into the kingdom

1 Now there was a Pharisee, a man named Nicodemus who was a member of the Jewish ruling council.

“Nicodemus” – an influential, educated and genuine-hearted lay representative of the Jewish religious establishment. A wealthy person of this name is mentioned in other Jewish sources of this period.

2 He came to Jesus at night and said, “Rabbi, we know that You are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the signs you are doing if God were not with Him.”

“He came… at night” –- for privacy and a longer discussion than crowds would allow. John also suggests the double meaning, as he does elsewhere, that there is a spiritual darkness, out of which Nicodemus seeks to escape.

“Rabbi” – remarkable respect from a renowned teacher, v.10 below, to a Galilean not formally trained as a rabbi.

3 Jesus replied, “Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again.”

“See” – perceive, recognise, or simply enter.
“Born again” – also “born from above” e.g. The Message which helps to answer Nicodemus’ question, below. This is a spiritual birth, a faith transaction in which the human spirit is kindled into spiritual life by the Holy Spirit, vv. 5-6.

4 “How can someone be born when they are old?” Nicodemus asked. “Surely they cannot enter a second time into their mother’s womb to be born!”

“How…” – difficult to understand from human perspective and life experience.

5 Jesus answered, “Very truly I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit.

“Born of water and the Spirit” – made clean and made spiritually alive, a spiritual regeneration that comes about only as a result of an intentional decision to trust Christ. In Paul’s letter to Titus is the “trustworthy saying” describing rebirth as washing, Titus 3:4-7. Nicodemus could not have understood this as a reference to baptism. Christian baptism, from Pentecost onwards, is an intentional, symbolic dying to the old life and rising to the new, after receiving Jesus as Saviour and Lord.

6. Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit.

7 You should not be surprised at my saying, ‘You must be born again.’

“You (singular) should not be surprised at My saying, ‘You (plural) must be born again.’ ” – Jesus is saying that Nicodemus and all the Jewish ruling council he represents need spiritual rebirth to see the kingdom of God, and grasp the nature of His call – and applies this to all people.

8 The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.”

“Wind blows wherever it pleases” – Heb. Ruach and Gk pneuma means both wind and Spirit. We cannot control how the wind blows; nor the new birth, which is, in effect, the opposite – relinquishing control to God.

9 “How can this be?” Nicodemus asked.

10 “You are Israel’s teacher,” said Jesus, “and do you not understand these things?

“Do you not understand” – emphasised, because Nicodemus the teacher should have known from Scriptures familiar to him, about new birth allusions in the breath (Spirit) entering the dry bones of Ezekiel 37, and the heart of stone replaced by a new living heart with the Holy Spirit indwelling and enabling,  in both Ezekiel and Jeremiah.

• For further study, see Deuteronomy 30:6, Jeremiah 31:33, Ezekiel 36:26-27, Ezekiel 37.

11 Very truly I tell you, we speak of what we know, and we testify to what we have seen, but still you people do not accept our testimony.

“We speak of what we know” – not hearsay. Jesus focuses on how believing faith, more than intellect, is needed to receive this teaching.

12-13 I have spoken to you of earthly things and you do not believe; how then will you believe if I speak of heavenly things? No one has ever gone into heaven except the one who came from heaven — the Son of Man.

“Gone into heaven… came from heaven” – like Proverbs 30:4, “Who has gone up to heaven and come down… what is His name?” Only Jesus descended from heaven and then returned there (on His ascension, Luke 24:51, Acts 1:9).

14-15 Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, that everyone who believes may have eternal life in Him.”

“Lifted up” – the first of three uses by John of this phrase. Another double meaning: Jesus “lifted up” on the Cross to die for us, and His “lifting” in resurrection and also exaltation to the highest place of honour. The Israelites, afflicted by venomous snakes in the desert, were commanded to look up at the bronze serpent and believe that God would save them; so we are to look at Christ, “lifted up” on the Cross and believe what He has done for us, to gain life spiritually and eternally. A way of understanding the new spiritual birth.

• For further study, read Numbers 21:4-9

16 For God so loved the world that He gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.

“God… loved the world” – a truth at the foundation of Christian faith. God’s love is without condition and extends to “so loving the world”, which must include “whoever” does not know Him, or who opposes Him before they come to believe: He loves us first, 1 John 4:9-10.

17 For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him.

“Not… to condemn the world” – Jewish people believed that the end of the age would bring both judgment and salvation with eternal life. But in Jesus those promises start to take effect, with salvation and new life starting in the present, through new spiritual birth.


REFLECTION

Abram (who became Abraham) came into in right relationship with God, simply by what he believed. Or to put it another way, by trusting God with his life. This is what Jesus encouraged the renowned “teacher of Israel” and wealthy man of business, Nicodemus, to take hold of when he visited Jesus privately. What God is looking for in us is usually a lot less complicated than we want to make it. That was certainly true for Nicodemus, and for Pharisees generally, who maintained an oral tradition of layer upon layer of ‘good practices’ that had been constructed as a way to keep the law perfectly. Except that it missed the point: the Law of Moses was a rule-based way of trying to define a relationship between loving, merciful God and somewhat wayward man. Jesus told this worthy teacher, “You must be born again”. Rules and strict observance cannot change us spiritually – only the Holy Spirit does that. Nicodemus simply needed a new spiritual start to be put in right standing with almighty and holy God. Now that he had met Jesus, he needed to believe, accept and trust who Jesus was.

  • It’s the same for us – we need to meet Jesus, acknowledge what He has done for us that we (like Nicodemus) could never do, and receive Him as Lord. No one else can do that for us – it is simply our decision, to invite Him in.

QUESTION

In what way have you been a good observing person like Nicodemus? Why does that not have the power to bring new life?

MORE

Link page on how Nicodemus was reminded by Jesus of teaching he already knew

Prayer to receive Jesus as Lord


Romans 4:1-5, 13-17 – Like Abraham we are made right with God by faith

The gift of God comes only by believing, not by any merit from good works

1 What then shall we say that Abraham, our forefather according to the flesh, discovered in this matter?

“Abraham, our forefather” – the Father of the Jewish nation is now Father of faith to all believers.

2 If, in fact, Abraham was justified by works, he had something to boast about—but not before God.

“Justified by [good] works” – Over the centuries the faith of the patriarch ancestors had degenerated into a ‘works-righteousness’ where keeping the many rules (like Nicodemus) had taken the place of the faith relationship with God. In Jewish writings familiar to Paul’s contemporaries, Abraham had been wrongly portrayed as someone justified by his good works (e.g. in the non-canonical Apocrypha writings 1 Maccabees 2:52, Sirach 44:19-21).

3 What does Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.”

“Abraham believed God” – Paul quoting Genesis 15:6, where nothing is mentioned about works, Paul shows Abraham to be the example of righteousness to follow, because of his relationship with God. Abraham kept no law, carried out no service and performed no ritual that earned credit to his account with God. His righteousness was awarded simply on the basis of his believing faith, a model now for Christians.

4-5 Now to the one who works, wages are not credited as a gift but as an obligation. However, to the one who does not work but trusts God who justifies the ungodly, their faith is credited as righteousness.

“The one who works… the one who… trusts God” – wages received for work are earned, not a gift. By contrast, what God gives is gracious (unearned and undeserved) and a gift. Therefore people cannot be declared righteous because of their good works.

“Credited”– a financial/legal word much used in this chapter, which means to add to the account something that belongs to another. The implication of these verses is shocking, because in God’s accounting He breaks the world’s rules and grants salvation to, or justifies, His ungodly enemies turning to Him in faith.

13 It was not through the law that Abraham and his offspring received the promise that he would be heir of the world, but through the righteousness that comes by faith.


“Abraham… received the promise” – of Genesis 12:2-3 (above), but not by fulfilling any condition, but by believing and acting on it.

14-15 For if those who depend on the law are heirs, faith means nothing and the promise is worthless, because the law brings wrath. And where there is no law there is no transgression.

“Depend on the law… [depend on] faith” – opposites: believing faith and good works are mutually opposed, because faith trusts in God’s work, rather than relying on ours.

“Law brings wrath” – for ‘wrath’ understand ‘judgment’. The nature of the law (as opposed to grace) is to flag up every transgression for judgment.

16 Therefore, the promise comes by faith, so that it may be by grace and may be guaranteed to all Abraham’s offspring — not only to those who are of the law but also to those who have the faith of Abraham. He is the father of us all.

“By faith… by grace” – faith and grace go together, as do the opposites, law and judgment.

“Of the law… also…those that have the faith of Abraham” – Abraham is the Father of the Jews but also of those (non-Jews) who share his faith but not the law.

17 As it is written: “I have made you a father of many nations.” He is our father in the sight of God, in whom he believed – the God who gives life to the dead and calls into being things that were not.

“Gives life… and calls into being things that were not” – different expressions of the same idea. Isaac’s birth to Abraham and Sarah, a life called out of two people well past childbearing; Christ crucified and dead, then called into being in resurrection. God has the ability to create out of nothing. He has the ability to confer life on those spiritually dead in sin – the new birth, John 3:3, 7, 14-16.

REFLECTION

In his teaching to believers in Rome, Paul addresses the human desire to aspire to righteousness by a “depending on the law”, meaning human striving with expectation of some credit for it. His shocking answer is that God applies that credit to those who clearly have not earned it. Thoroughly undeserving people find salvation by simply trusting God and not doing anything else! The message for us is direct but also a little difficult: we must root out every strand of entitlement, and every every tendency to man-centred righteousness,. It is the lesson of Abraham, of Nicodemus and now taught to the early church by Paul.

  • The promise of new life and eternal life is secured by God’s definition of righteousness, not ours – the righteousness that comes by faith.

QUESTION

Is Christ’s church a gathering of people like us, or is it for us to serve people not like us who are finding their way to faith?

PRAYER

Thank You so much, Father, for making a way for me to be accepted by You in a way I never could have achieved – through believing and accepting Jesus. I hear again Your command to be born of Your Spirit, that I may be counted as being in right standing with you –  by faith, nothing more or less. Once again I surrender my baggage of unbelief and accept Your invitation of grace, gladly Jesus, in Your name. Amen.

Filed Under: Foundational, Lent, Year A

March 1: Choosing to trust God

February 19, 2020 by Ian Greig Leave a Comment

Sunday, March 1, 2020 TLW08A

Previous week, February 23   Following week, March 8

Theme: God presents us with choices, whether or not to rely on Him

Sunday readings from the Revised Common Lectionary. First read the passage in its entirety (NIV text) and let it speak for itself; then, the links below take you to the verse-by-verse commentary.

Genesis verses and commentary
Deception: Adam and Eve are tempted to disobey God
Reflection


Read Genesis 2:15-17; 3:1-7


Read Matthew 4:1-11

Matthew verses and commentary
Test: Satan fails to tempt Jesus into sin
Reflection


Read Romans 5:12-19

Romans verses and commentary
Choice: Receive the gift of God in Jesus
Reflection

Prayer

Also WISDOM READING: Psalm 32

 Genesis 2:15-17; 3:1-7 — The deception: Adam and Eve are tempted to disobey God

Breaking trust with God in the Garden of Eden introduces sin into the world

15-17 The LORD God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it. And the LORD God commanded the man, “You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will certainly die.”

“To work it and take care of it” – humanity’s dignifying occupation, responsibilities later applied to the tabernacle.

• For further study, read Leviticus 8:35; Numbers 3:5-8, 8:26.

“The LORD God commanded the man” – the first covenant decree in the Bible. God bound Himself to provide freely from the park-like garden; the man’s acceptance bound him to the one condition, trusting God’s judgment and provision by not eating the fruit of one particular tree.

“You are free… but…” – Typical words of a covenant in the Bible, where Adam is given a choice leading to a benefit. There is also a condition, a test of obedience.

3:1 Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the LORD God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?”

“The serpent” – part of God’s creation, the talking snake appears without introduction. Its motives are unclear but “crafty”, presenting an alternative source of ‘wisdom’ from dependence on God, Psalm 111:10; Proverbs 9:10. As the story unfolds it becomes clear that this is Satan manifesting as a snake, as Paul and the apostle John later taught.

• For further study, read 2 Cor. 11:3; Revelation 12:9, 20:2.

2-3 The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden, but God did say, ‘You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.’ ”

“Not… the tree… in the middle” – by not naming the tree, the woman skirts round the reason for the ban.

4-5 “You will not certainly die,” the serpent said to the woman. “For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”

“You will not… die” – with this lie the snake denies God’s clear pronouncement. The lie deceived both Eve and Adam into separation from God and hence spiritual death. Jesus called Satan a liar and murderer from the beginning, John 8:44.

6-7 When the woman saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate it. Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realised they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves.

“The fruit was… desirable” – the snake appeals to the woman’s human independence, deceiving her into disobedience. Innocence lost, they now “know” or have experience of evil, and sin is born.


REFLECTION

Here in the Garden of Eden — a place and an event which Scripture treats very seriously — mankind’s ancestor, Adam, faces a test. God has given him the freedom of the garden except for one particular tree and its fruit. Will he stay true to what God has told him, or will the suggestion that nothing is stopping him from doing his own thing prove too attractive? Adam gives in to Satan, loses the life he had, and opens the way for every subsequent generation to experience temptation to sin. We face exactly the same choice – whether to entertain the enemy’s latest lie, or to hold on to the truth from God.

QUESTION 1

How does Satan’s lying, deceiving nature affect us today?

Matthew 4:1-11 — Test: Satan fails to tempt Jesus into sin

Jesus, unlike Israel in the desert, overcomes by declaring God’s word

1-3 Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. After fasting forty days and forty nights, He was hungry. The tempter came to Him and said, “If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.”

“Led by the Spirit… to be tempted by the devil” – “Tempted (tested and tried)” (Amp). “Next Jesus was taken into the wild by the Spirit for the Test. The Devil was ready to give it” (Msg). God’s servants frequently face tests of resolve and character as they enter ministry, allowed by God but carried out by the devil.

“Into the wilderness to be tempted” – Adam and Eve gave in to temptation; their failing the test allowed sin to enter the world. Moses recalls how the Lord led the Israelites in the desert for 40 years “to humble and test you in order to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep his commands.” Jesus, in the desert, is provoked to sin but instead shows Himself the true, or real, Israelite who holds to what God has said to do (below).

4 Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’ ”

“It is written” – Jesus’ testing experience teaches us how to declare Scripture truth to deflect the enemy’s evil attentions. He quotes Deut. 8:3 to assert that what God has said, has a powerful spiritual dynamic.

5-6 Then the devil took Him to the holy city and had Him stand on the highest point of the temple. “If You are the Son of God,” he said, “throw Yourself down. For it is written: “ ‘He will command his angels concerning You, and they will lift You up in their hands, so that You will not strike your foot against a stone.’ ”

“If You are…” – following the temptation of material things, the devil tries the temptation of fame, conveniently omitting the promise “to keep you in all your ways” from Psalm 91:11-12, twisting its meaning to suggest that Jesus could test God in a spectacular way.

7 Jesus answered him, “It is also written: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’

“Jesus answered” – from Deut 6:16, with a principle even higher than trusting God, that of honouring Him. Satan implies God can be called upon to rescue, but Jesus knew that God is trustworthy even when we are suffering. Mocking bystanders observing Jesus on the Cross used Ps. 22:8 to suggest that if God really loved Him He would be rescuing Him. Jesus knew better.

8-9 Again, the devil took Him to a very high mountain and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendour. “All this I will give You,” he said, “if you will bow down and worship me.”

“All this I will give you” – Satan, called the prince or ruler of this world, John 12:31, offers Jesus a shortcut to future kingdom reign without the Cross. But this is the worst of the three demands: exchanging the love of God for the worship of Satan.

“I will give” – Satan can exercise a measure of authority over the present sin-damaged world, but the kingdoms of the world belong to God and are promised to His Son.

• For further study, read Psalm 2:8; Luke 4:6; John 12:31, 14:30, 16:11; 2 Cor. 4:4.

10 Jesus said to him, “Away from me, Satan! For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve Him only.’”

“Away from Me” – Jesus affirms wholehearted worship of the one true God, showing that true worship, expressing love and total submission to God, is a knockout blow in spiritual warfare. As the devil craves our attention, to respond by extolling the goodness of God reverses this strategy.

11 Then the devil left him, and angels came and attended Him.

“Angels… attended Him” – showing Christ’s status as all heaven recognises the significance of His initial victory. The verse Satan had twisted, Ps. 91:11-12 is now fulfilled in God’s way.

REFLECTION

The second account of testing also involves the devil appearing and speaking suggestively. Just as deception led Adam and Eve to act independently of God, so the devil uses the same tactic on Jesus to try to get Him to compromise His demanding mission. If Jesus can be persuaded to go outside what God had decreed, He would no longer be the sinless Son of God uniquely equipped to break the hold of sin in the rest of us. The good news is that when we are tested we can find the power of declaring the word of God, as Jesus did.

QUESTION 2

How do we declare the word of God in common ways we worship?


Romans 5:12-19 — Choice: Receive the gift of God in Jesus


Paul teaches original sin and its remedy, grace that comes from accepting Jesus


12 Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all people, because all sinned –

“Sin entered the world” – Paul teaches the need for the gospel, because of man’s fall through Adam.

13 To be sure, sin was in the world before the law was given, but sin is not charged against anyone’s account where there is no law.

“Before the law” – the period from Adam to Moses, when human independence from God was widespread but not in the sense of individual violations. The rules for righteous and unrighteous behaviour would follow.

14 Nevertheless, death reigned from the time of Adam to the time of Moses, even over those who did not sin by breaking a command, as did Adam, who is a pattern of the one to come.


“Death reigned” – Paul continues from his incomplete sentence of v.12, that the original man’s quest for independence was the root of sin, resulting in human mortality.

15 But the gift is not like the trespass. For if the many died by the trespass of the one man, how much more did God’s grace and the gift that came by the grace of the one man, Jesus Christ, overflow to the many!

“How much more” – a phrase Paul repeats. The reach and extent of God’s grace is immensely greater than even the disaster of Adam’s sin.

16 Nor can the gift of God be compared with the result of one man’s sin: The judgment followed one sin and brought condemnation, but the gift followed many trespasses and brought justification.

“One man’s sin” – through the “one man”, Adam, sin entered the world and with it the condemnation, or punishment due, for that sin. That is the human state we all inherit, regardless of the kind of life we lead.

+ GOOD NEWS FOCUS: God has offered a way out, “the gift” of God, which we “receive”, v.17, by choosing to belong to Jesus.

17 For if, by the trespass of the one man, death reigned through that one man, how much more will those who receive God’s abundant provision of grace and of the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man, Jesus Christ!

“Trespass” – Adam’s offence was an act of trespass, a deliberate going astray. What Jesus Christ did for us was an act of undeserved grace, v.15, allowing us to be counted righteous if we have given our lives to Him.

18-19 Consequently, just as one trespass resulted in condemnation for all people, so also one righteous act resulted in justification and life for all people. For just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous.

“One righteous act… justification… for all people” – condemnation “for all people” represented by Adam – the whole human race. The second “all people” is all who are represented by Christ: not everyone, but all who would believe in Him. The Bible is clear and consistent that salvation comes to those who make their choice to exercise faith in Jesus Christ – not everyone.


• For further study, see Matthew 7:13-14, 23; 25:46; Romans 1:16-17, 3:22, 28, 4:5, 13.

REFLECTION

The story of the talking serpent appearing in the Garden of Eden, and the continuing curse resulting from Adam’s mistake, does not fit with our human ideas of what is believable and logical – spiritual discernment is needed. Yet other Bible writers, including Paul who makes it a mainstay of his doctrinal teaching, treat this encounter with all seriousness. A bit easier for us to believe, Jesus had His own testing encounter with the devil. Unlike Adam and Eve, Jesus proved Himself sinless by responding with what God had said and refusing to entertain any alternative.

Taken together, these passages teach us that:

  • Life is full of tests and choices. The battleground is in our thoughts, rather than played out in a garden or desert, but the enemy of our souls is constantly trying to deceive us and trip us up, to lure us off the path God has marked out.
  • The good choice is always obedience – believing God and honouring Him in our actions.
  • Obedience is more about ‘being’ than ‘doing’. Paul, teaching the early church, only requires us to ‘do’ one thing, which is to believe in Jesus – to receive the gift of grace that is in the one man, the second Adam, Jesus Christ. Jesus in the desert was held by His relationship with His Father. Paul urges us to be living in the gift of righteousness, which comes to us undeserved but as those who are in Christ Jesus – those who have asked Jesus to be Lord of their lives.

We are equipped to recognise the tests and have the confidence to make good choices if we have asked Jesus to be our Lord and invited His Holy Spirit to help us – an obedience not coming from our good deeds or ‘ holy actions’ but the simple consequence of loving the Lord and wanting what He wants.

QUESTION 3

What strategy of the devil, often repeated, comes out from these passages?

QUESTION 4

Paul contrasts two states, being under condemnation or being counted righteous as one who is in Jesus Christ. How does it help to counter the devil’s suggestions, if we know we are accepted by heaven rather than guilty?

PRAYER

Father, this harsh and selfish world can make us feel like helpless aliens – but we are reminded again of Jesus’ victory and how by grace we are allowed to participate in it. In ourselves we have few answers to the wiles of the enemy and His tests, but in Christ Jesus he has little with which to answer us back. We praise You again, Lord God, and thank You for Jesus and His victory. And we join with Him in saying: “Away from me, Satan! For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve Him only.’ ”. Amen.

Filed Under: Foundational, Lent, Year A Tagged With: #choice, salvation

Feb 23: Mountain top encounters

February 12, 2020 by Ian Greig Leave a Comment

TLW07A

The Revised Common Lectionary readings for Sunday, February 23, 2020

Theme: The mountain top encounters which reveal God’s plan for us

Exodus 24:12-18 – God summons Moses to wait on Mt Sinai and meet Him
After six days he hears God call and enters the cloud

Matthew 17:1-9 – God’s voice is heard as Jesus is transfigured
Jesus named as God’s Son gave the disciples confidence about God’s plan

2 Peter 1:16-21 – Jesus will surely come again as Scripture tells us
An eyewitness reminds us to pay attention to the prophetic message

Article: What Jesus’ mountain top encounter with God means for us

Exodus 24:12-18 — God summons Moses to wait on Mount Sinai and meet Him

After six days he hears God call and enters the cloud

12 The LORD said to Moses, “Come up to Me on the mountain and stay here, and I will give you the tablets of stone with the law and commandments I have written for their instruction.”“Come up to Me” — at this time of establishing the first covenant, only Moses could draw near to God.+ Good News for us: By contrast, under the post-resurrection second covenant we are all called to draw near to God, which we are enabled to do through Jesus. Read Matthew 7:7-11, Hebrews 4:4-16, Hebrews 7:19, Hebrews 10:22, James 4:8.

“I will give you the tablets” — first mention of the divine directives inscribed on stone. The custom for ancient Near Eastern treaties was for each party to deposit a copy in the other’s temple, which might explain the two tablets. In this case both God’s copy (tablet) and man’s would be kept in the Ark of the Covenant.

13 Then Moses set out with Joshua his aide, and Moses went up on the mountain of God.

Joshua his aide – first mention of Joshua in this significant role. It appears that Joshua helped Moses on the climb up Mount Sinai but was not ‘cleared’ to come right into the presence of the Lord.

14 He said to the elders, “Wait here for us until we come back to you. Aaron and Hur are with you, and anyone involved in a dispute can go to them.”

“Hur” – previously mentioned in the battle with Amalek when Hur helped Aaron hold up Moses’ hands in praise as the battle below them on the plain proceeded.

15-16 When Moses went up on the mountain, the cloud covered it, and the glory of the LORD settled on Mount Sinai. For six days the cloud covered the mountain, and on the seventh day the LORD called to Moses from within the cloud.

“Six days… seventh” – a possible allusion to creation. Moses and Joshua waited on God in faithful worship, in the tradition of Abraham’s faithfulness. By contrast, the Israelites did not wait as instructed, but broke their vigil and began to worship a golden calf, Exodus 32.

17 To the Israelites the glory of the LORD looked like a consuming fire on top of the mountain.“Glory of the Lord” – a plainly visible and brilliant presence. Moses had seen such a fire in the burning bush, Exodus 3:2.

18 Then Moses entered the cloud as he went on up the mountain. And he stayed on the mountain forty days and forty nights.“Moses entered” – and Joshua stayed outside the cloud while Moses stayed “forty days”, a term meaning a long time rather than an exact duration.

REFLECTION

Moses was tested by a series of difficulties as he prepared to meet God on the mountain.

  • He had met God previously at the burning bush encounter (Exodus 3:6) and that memory of encountering God in His majesty and holiness was a still a frightening one.
  • This mountain ascent was difficult.
  • He would have to leave the rather wayward tribes to their own devices for a time – it turned out to be weeks, not days.
  • He would have to draw on faith, trust and patience in large measure, going where no one else could go, doing what for another person would spell certain death by coming face to face with God Almighty.

God often tests and stretches our faith when we need His direction – He needs to know, and perhaps we need to know, whether we are sincere about seeking Him.

The huge shift from Moses’ time to us now, is that drawing close to God is no longer a privilege restricted to Moses and his priestly family. ANY believer who has submitted to Christ as lord of their lives has become part of His new priesthood, the new order of the post-resurrection New Testament. Anyone who has chosen to submit to Christ as their Lord can freely draw near to God, for themselves – or standing in the gap for others.

QUESTION

Looking back, where has your faith been tested and how have you grown through it?


Matthew 17:1-9 – God’s voice is heard as Jesus is transfigured


Jesus named as God’s Son gave the disciples confidence about God’s plan

1 After six days Jesus took with Him Peter, James and John the brother of James, and led them up a high mountain by themselves.

“After six days” – following Peter’s breakthrough declaration of Jesus being the Christ (or Messiah), Matt. 16:16-17. Luke counts the time as eight days. Matthew, writing for mainly Jewish readers, makes the allusion to Moses waiting six days on Mt Sinai.

2 There He was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and His clothes became as white as the light.

“He was transfigured” – His appearance dramatically changed. “His appearance changed from the inside out, right before their eyes.” (The Message).

“His face shone” – recalling how Moses was transformed as he encountered God’s glory, Exodus 34:29-30, 35.

3 Just then there appeared before them Moses and Elijah, talking with Jesus

“There appeared… Moses and Elijah” – with similarities to Moses’ experience on the mountain, now clearly showing Jesus to be unique and superior to these renowned historic figures who represent the law and the prophets respectively.

4 Peter said to Jesus, “Lord, it is good for us to be here. If you wish, I will put up three shelters – one for You, one for Moses and one for Elijah.”

“Three shelters” – shelters as memorials (NLT) or tabernacles, as in the feast of tabernacles. All Jewish men were used to constructing such tents. Peter simply wanted to preserve and commemorate the moment.

5 While He was still speaking, a bright cloud covered them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is My Son, whom I love; with Him I am well pleased. Listen to Him!”

“A bright cloud” – following the appearance of Moses and Elijah, the presence and the shekinah, visible glory of God, covers them. As in Moses’ encounter, Exodus 24:16, the voice of God comes from the cloud. They hear His voice pronounce the same words as at Jesus’ baptism, Matt. 3:17, with the addition of the command to listen to Him.

“Listen to Him!” – from Deuteronomy 18:15. Jesus, the incarnate Son of God, has come to fulfil a messianic purpose in which He speaks for God. The disciples must hear this.

6 When the disciples heard this, they fell facedown to the ground, terrified.

“Facedown… terrified” – the fear of God is the awesome reality of the reality of God’s presence. This is a scene which would make anyone terrified, but Jesus’ intention is to reveal… and encourage.

7-8 But Jesus came and touched them. “Get up,” he said. “Don’t be afraid.” When they looked up, they saw no one except Jesus.

“They saw no one” – the experience was not to be prolonged.

9 As they were coming down the mountain, Jesus instructed them, “Don’t tell anyone what you have seen, until the Son of Man has been raised from the dead.”

“Don’t tell” – the purpose of the visitation was to reveal Christ for who He was, but an essential part of that, the significance of the His death and resurrection, would be understood by them only later. They could not explain what they did not yet fully understand.

REFLECTION

The problem with the big and often terrifying encounters with God is that we tend to think we need to be invited to meet Him on a mountain.

Mountains can certainly be ‘thin places’ where the curtains of heaven seem more ready to draw back a little, and allow us a glimpse within. But we, as present-day aspiring disciples of Jesus, are charged to be ready for Him at any time — prepared For His return. We should be just as ready and expectant for His everyday fellowship, or to use the older word, communion.

Communion? Again, sharing the cup and breaking the bread with one another is special way to experience the fellowship of the Lord, unseen but present in the gathering. But that’s only one way, a way that is also communion with others of the fellowship, meeting wit h the Lord together. You can meet Him any time. What about being ready to step aside, go somewhere quiet and different, and wait on Him for whatever He will give you? Not because you should, but because you can.

 

QUESTION

God’s word to the frightened disciples was “Listen to Him!” How good or not very good are you, at listening to Jesus and taking on board what He says?

 

2 Peter 1:16-21 – Jesus will surely come again as Scripture tells us

An eyewitness reminds us to pay attention to the prophetic message

 

16 For we did not follow cleverly devised stories when we told you about the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ in power, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty.

“Cleverly devised stories” – literally ‘invented myths’, which was the accusation made by false teachers who were dismissing the promise of Christ’s return and judgment. Peter relates his irrefutable firsthand experience and warns against this heresy, 2 Peter 3:3-4.

“Eyewitnesses of His majesty” – Peter, James and John witnessed the transfiguration, which revealed Jesus as the Son and gave a foretaste of His return as king of His eternal kingdom..

• For further study, see Matt. 17:1-8 (above) and Mark 9:2-8; Luke 9:28-36.

17 He received honour and glory from God the Father when the voice came to him from the Majestic Glory, saying, “This is My Son, whom I love; with Him I am well pleased.”

“The Majestic Glory” – Jews were anxious about using God’s name and ‘The Glory” was a form of words to overcome this; for Jews it would reinforce the connection between Jesus’ transfiguration and Moses’ encounter on Mt Sinai.

18 We ourselves heard this voice that came from heaven when we were with Him on the sacred mountain.

“We ourselves heard this voice” – corrupt and deceiving church leadership was a problem the apostles frequently faced. They had staked their lives on the certainty of the gospel, and their eyewitness status added to their unique call by Jesus as the true authorities of His Church.

19 We also have the prophetic message as something completely reliable, and you will do well to pay attention to it, as to a light shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts.

“Also… the prophetic message” – the Hebrew Scriptures we call the Old Testament. Peter is saying that the written Scriptures are even more authoritative than his personal experience of being with Jesus.

“Completely reliable” – Peter is saying that his first-hand experience of hearing God’s audible voice, something hard to dismiss, gives evidence to what the prophets had said about the Messiah, and His coming as Lord of all, at the end time.

“Until the day dawns… the morning star rises” – Jesus’ kingly return. Peter’s point is to keep going back to the prophetic Scriptures until the Second Coming finally happens.

Link to page What Jesus’ mountain top encounter with God means for us

20-21 Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of Scripture came about by the prophet’s own interpretation of things. For prophecy never had its origin in the human will, but prophets, though human, spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.

“Prophets… spoke from God as… by the Holy Spirit” – Scripture was written by hand of someone anointed and filled with the Holy Spirit. Therefore the understanding of Scripture is not down to human opinion (as with the false teachers) but by the Spirit-filled church as whole.

REFLECTION

God has revealed Himself to Moses and revealed His Son to three of the disciples. The clear and divinely-inspired message of Scripture all points to who Jesus is: the majestic Son of God who came to offer a path of salvation to all who would believe in Him, and who promised to return at the end of the era to rule over a fair and harmonious kingdom.

Who Jesus is and His vital role in our lives and eternal life is revelation that takes place in our hearts as we take the step of faith that says “yes” to Him as a decision of trust. We don’t know Him and then decide to trust Him — we trust Him to know Him. It is like the bright planet Venus heralding the dawn and then light coming into our hearts. Jesus is real, He is the Son of God who rules and reigns in heaven and He will come to earth again to establish His eternal Kingdom.

QUESTION

What is your story about taking the step of faith that says “yes” to trusting God? At what point did you grasp the reality of who Jesus is, and how did that move you to respond to Him?

PRAYER

Dear Father, You may not often call us up a mountain to talk to us, but You do reveal Your plans to us in many ways as we seek you. Enliven us by Your Holy Spirit to hear You, to perceive Your kingdom purpose over and above the conflicts and complexities of life, and to know how we should pray and join You in what you are doing. To the glory of Jesus, Amen.

 

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Welcome to The Living Word

You get a lot more out of the Sunday service readings if they are already speaking to you. TLW is about reading and re-reading these Scriptures with some commentary to bring out what is hidden and make connections with cross references. This is different from liturgy because it is a Bible study, putting the Bible passages in sequence from OT, through the NT gospel era, and then through the lens of the post-resurrection, early church in the power of the Spirit. Enabling this progressive revelation points to a theme.  The translation used is the readable and widely-used 2011 edition of the New International Version (NIV) Bible. Commentary is drawn from a wide range of sources and is Bible-centric and theologically neutral. As we read and reflect and allow the Holy Spirit to help us hear God through His word during the week, we prepare ourselves to hear afresh and receive the Sunday sermon in church or chapel.

For convenience, use the ‘Subscribe’ box below to receive a short email with the Bible passage and notes for each weekday (and that’s all!).

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A little about me and my vision for The Living Word

I live in the Marches, a green and beautiful expanse of hills between England and Wales where churches and chapels share duty to the Christian faithful in every valley, and churchgoing is still part of the community life. However, there are few Bibles to be seen in these buildings, and home-based groups for fellowship and Bible study are rare.

I want to encourage Sunday worshippers in churches and chapels to enjoy reading the Bible during the week, to get used to hearing God for themselves through His word, and to be  spiritually prepared for the message they will hear on Sunday from the lectionary readings they all share. It is no substitute for meeting and worshipping together, nor for Holy Spirit-inspired preaching. It supports both by encouraging the personal growth of church and chapel members of any denomination. It offers faith encouragement for those no longer able to, or no longer wanting to take part in, formal physical church.

My background is not in churches that use the lectionary and I bring a breadth of tradition and spiritual understanding to the writing.  I have pastored a number of churches and been involved in a variety of other missional initiatives with a ‘kingdom of God’ agenda.

As well as The Living Word and its weekly video I also post regularly on www.freshbread.today and www.thelivingword.substack.com with a podcast as well as video and written content. There is also a Facebook page at fb.com/TLWbiblestudy

Revd Ian Greig BD (Hons), DPS

SEE ALSO other Living Word Publications

Substack newsletter and podcast (free subscription) — audio podcast, video and written content all in one place

Fresh Bread Today — the freshest bake, with a bit of a tang, unpackaged and uncut. His word to live by, today.

Believe the Good News – finding the good news and encouragement all through the Bible

GLOW – God’s Love Over Weobley, encouraging prayer and spiritual fellowship. With a local flavour for this NW Herefordshire village.