This is the Living Word Bible Study for Sunday, June 18, 2023, based on the Bible readings followed by both churches and chapels in the interdenominational scheme.
Faith in God is trusting in His partnership
Genesis 18:1-15 — Abraham receives a trinity of heavenly visitors
Matthew 9:35-10:8 — Jesus sends the twelve to proclaim the kingdom
Romans 5:1-8 — Our faith through Jesus has brought us close to God
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Psalm 116
1-2 I love the Lord, for He heard my voice; He heard my cry for mercy. Because He turned His ear to me, I will call on Him as long as I live.
12 What shall I return to the Lord for all His goodness to me?
13-14 I will lift up the cup of salvation and call on the name of the Lord. I will fulfil my vows to the Lord in the presence of all His people.
15 Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of His faithful servants.
16 Truly I am Your servant, Lord; I serve You just as my mother did; You have freed me from my chains.
17-19 I will sacrifice a thank offering to You and call on the name of the Lord. I will fulfil my vows to the Lord in the presence of all His people, in the courts of the house of the Lord — in your midst, Jerusalem. Praise the Lord.
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Genesis 18:1-15 — Abraham receives a trinity of heavenly visitors
• He is careful to show the utmost reverence to the Lord and those with Him
1 The Lord appeared to Abraham near the great trees of Mamre while he was sitting at the entrance to his tent in the heat of the day.
2 Abraham looked up and saw three men standing nearby. When he saw them, he hurried from the entrance of his tent to meet them and bowed low to the ground.
“Three men” — probably best understood as the Lord vv. 1,13,17,20,26,33 and especially v.22, and two angels, 19:1 but with trinitarian overtones.
3-5 He said, “If I have found favour in Your eyes, Lord, do not pass your servant by. Let a little water be brought, and then you may all wash your feet and rest under this tree. Let me get you something to eat, so you can be refreshed and then go on Your way — now that You have come to Your servant.”
“Very well,” they answered, “do as you say.”
“Lord”— the Hebrew text uses ’adonay, the word that is usually reserved for God.
6 So Abraham hurried into the tent to Sarah. “Quick,” he said, “get three seahs of the finest flour and knead it and bake some bread.”
“Three seahs” — three large measures, a more than generous amount of fresh bread.
7-8 Then he ran to the herd and selected a choice, tender calf and gave it to a servant, who hurried to prepare it. He then brought some curds and milk and the calf that had been prepared, and set these before them. While they ate, he stood near them under a tree.
9 “Where is your wife Sarah?” they asked him.
“There, in the tent,” he said.
“Your wife Sarah” — the visitors knew her name.
10 Then one of them said, “I will surely return to you about this time next year, and Sarah your wife will have a son.”
“I will return” — the Hebrew verb carries the meaning of intervening in someone’s life to change their destiny.
10-12 Now Sarah was listening at the entrance to the tent, which was behind him. Abraham and Sarah were already very old, and Sarah was past the age of childbearing. So Sarah laughed to herself as she thought, “After I am worn out and my lord is old, will I now have this pleasure?”
“Sarah laughed to herself” — as she processes what she knows is humanly not possible. Hidden from the men, her response does not go unnoticed by the Lord.
13-14 Then the Lord said to Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh and say, ‘Will I really have a child, now that I am old?’ Is anything too hard for the Lord? I will return to you at the appointed time next year, and Sarah will have a son.”
“Is anything too hard for the Lord?” — see a parallel to this in Gabriel’s appearance to Mary, Luke 1:28-38.
15 Sarah was afraid, so she lied and said, “I did not laugh.”
But He said, “Yes, you did laugh.”
Reflection
SUMMARY the story of Abraham and Sarah receiving unexpected visitors — and confirmation of a long-delayed promise that would be a miracle.
APPLICATION A true relationship with God involves trusting in the way He works and His timescale. It always stretches us, difficult to bear at the time but looking back, we can recognise the growth points. A word from God is where the general expectation of hope moves to faith in what He has said.
QUESTION What apparent impossibility is staring at you — and what is God saying to you about it?
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Matthew 9:35-10:8 — Jesus sends the twelve to proclaim the kingdom
This mission is to heal, deliver and free Jewish inhabitants of Galilee
9:35 Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness.
“Jesus went through” – Galilee, in the preceding section which is bracketed by this verse and similarly-worded Matt. 4:23. Now He is sending the Twelve to proclaim the arrival of the domain of God over sickness.
36 When He saw the crowds, He had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.
“Sheep without a shepherd” – Jesus’ compassion is expressed in pointing out the failure of spiritual leadership that has left the people bereft, Ezekiel 34:5; Zechariah 10:2, 13:7; Mark 6:34.
• For further study, Jesus’ compassion noted in Matthew 14:14, 15:22, 20:34; Mark 1:41, 6:34, 8:2.
37 Then He said to His disciples, “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into His harvest field.”
“The Lord of the harvest” – an allusion to OT texts and rabbinic parables which saw the Lord as master of the harvest at the end-time judgment – so Jesus identifying Himself in this way is making a strong statement about His deity.
• For further study, see Isaiah 18:4-5, 27:12, Hosea 6:11.
10:1 Jesus called His twelve disciples to Him and gave them authority to drive out impure spirits and to heal every disease and sickness.
“Gave them authority” – also implied in “apostles” in the next verse; the word conveys the sense of an envoy sent to bring an area into line with a new rule. Jesus delegating His power in this way was remarkable and without precedent. It underlined His deity.
2-4 These are the names of the twelve apostles: first, Simon (who is called Peter) and his brother Andrew; James son of Zebedee, and his brother John; Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew the tax collector; James son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus; Simon the Zealot and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed Him.
“These are the names” – the lists of apostles always start with Peter but the differences are slight, except ‘the other’ Judas, son of James, called here Thaddeus.
• For further study: Mark 3:16-19; Luke 6:14-16; Acts 1:13.
5-6 These twelve Jesus sent out with the following instructions: “Do not go among the Gentiles or enter any town of the Samaritans. Go rather to the lost sheep of Israel.
“Go… to the lost sheep of Israel” – the priority for the good news of the kingdom was the people of the covenant, staying within Galilee for this mission. After His death and resurrection, Jesus commanded the kingdom message to be taken to all nations, Matthew 28:19.
7-8 “As you go, proclaim this message: ‘The kingdom of heaven has come near.’ Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons. Freely you have received; freely give.”
“Proclaim this message” – by speaking and acting in the name of Jesus, the disciples also confirmed His Messiahship, see Matt. 11:2-6.
Reflection
SUMMARY Jesus has carried out His own mission to villages in Galilee with the disciples assisting. Now they are experiencing a higher level of partnership as they take a lead with His assistance.
APPLICATION The disciples learned what Jesus showed them and now are charged with doing what Jesus had shown them. The next level of partnership, for them and also for us, will be doing the work of Jesus as He directs but unseen, in the power of His Spirit.
QUESTION If we are commanded to pray for workers for the Lord’s harvest, who does He expect us to be part of the answer?
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Romans 5:1-8 — Our faith through Jesus has brought us close to God
We can praise Him in difficult times as He strengthens us through them
1-2 Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we boast in the hope of the glory of God.
“Justified by faith” – summarises the teaching of the first part of the letter, Rom. 1:18-4:25. The believer in Christ has, by God’s grace and Jesus’ action, been pronounced to now have right standing with God. It is a legal status of having been absolved from judgment, and therefore having (not just feeling) peace with God. God confers worth on us, through our faith in Him.
3-5 Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.
“Glory in our sufferings” – the path to eternal glory has rockfalls and other difficulties which God uses to grow our Christian resilience and trust in Him, as we are held by His love. This is not a morbid view of God’s glory because of sufferings, but a joyful one of experiencing God’s majestic, overwhelming presence coming into difficult experiences.
6 You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly.
“Just at the right time” – when we acknowledge our powerlessness and our need of Him, Christ is revealed to us as our Saviour.
7-8 Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous person, though for a good person someone might possibly dare to die. But God demonstrates His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
“Rarely will anyone die for a righteous person” – it is not unknown for even a human to sacrifice themselves, but the point is that when Jesus went to His horrific death for us, we were still in sin’s grip.
Reflection
SUMMARY Partnership with God is another definition of being a disciple — and with His peace in our hearts we can take the rough with the smooth. Christ demonstrated a sacrificial life and partnership with Him will always share that aspect.
APPLICATION When the going gets tough, the tough get going which is the Christian believer’s hope, the confident expectation that the Lord has our backs, and however unseen is working with us. As The Passion Translation puts it, “…This hope is not a disappointing fantasy, because we can now experience the endless love of God cascading into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who lives in us!”
QUESTION If Jesus died for us while we were still in independence and rebellion against Him, how does that knowledge influence how we pray now — and our expectation of experiencing His partnership?
PRAYER Lord, to paraphrase the psalmist, we readily turn to You knowing that You give us a hearing ear and encourage us to call on You. Praise You for that confidence!
When we hear the call to be workers in Your harvest, and need to persevere when it appears difficult, we know that we are Yours, and You are committed to be with us.
Thank You, Jesus, for this new covenant we have in Your death and resurrection, and for the practical empowering and helping partnership of Your Holy Spirit.
We willingly partner with You to both pray and work towards seeing Your kingdom come, all for Your glory. Amen.
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