What is important about the future and why this is a good time to think beyond ourselves.

The early chapters of the book of Genesis tell us about who we are, what is our purpose and why we do things that are wrong. There is also a pointer here to the remedy and how that would come about through the cross.

The final chapters in Scripture, at the end of the book of Revelation, tell us about the future. In these passages we find out about the perfect nation. It is called the holy city and the New Jerusalem. In it we see that God’s grace from the throne and of ‘the Lamb’, Jesus Christ, flows like a river. There will no longer be any curse causing wrongdoing and there will no longer be any night. God is the light who gives illumination.

This is the culmination of the well- known gospel message of John 3:16. All who trust in and turn to Jesus will not perish but have eternal life. It doesn’t get any better than this. The message is for every person in every nation who comes to Him for forgiveness and life. This is the most important matter of life.

 

 

  Jesus is the answer to death.

Death is a well-known fact but is it a solution to suffering and pain? The death of those close to us does bring suffering and pain to the living and this can last for decades. The more important question is one that is sometimes asked at funerals … do you have hope for the future?

In this passage we find that Jesus’ friends, Martha and Mary, looked to him to save their sick brother from death but out of love he took a different course. He allowed Lazarus to die. Martha and Mary were confused. There was however a deeper meaning which would benefit them … death would not be the end. Jesus told them that their brother, Lazarus, had ‘fallen asleep’. This was another way of saying that Lazarus had died.

He told the sisters ‘I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in me will live even if he dies’. Jesus waited four days after Lazarus had died and been placed in the tomb. Lazarus came out of the tomb at Jesus’ command to show that he brings life to both the physically and spiritually dead. We can trust Jesus and his stupendous words because he proved it by his own death on the cross and glorious resurrection.

 

 

There are 3 indicators for us in this: the moral test, the relational test and the truth test.

These passages contain information for us on each of these indicators.  With the moral test we are directed to the keeping of God’s commands and especially Jesus’ words: ‘If you love me you will keep my commands’. This is always in the context of free forgiveness through gospel grace.

The relational test is to do with love. Our first love to God and then to those around us …’Love the Lord your God with all your heart, mind, soul and strength and love your neighbor as yourself’. It is good to ask the question ‘Do I sacrifice what I want to do in order to help someone else’.

Finally, there is the test for correct understanding of the teaching about Jesus. Anyone who denies that Jesus is the Christ does not have the truth in them (Vs22). Being in a right relationship with God means receiving by faith what Jesus has accomplished for us at the cross.

 

 

 This reality is one that can truly shape a person’s life

The West is changing. There are different ideologies emerging. All this flows from different  perceptions of ‘human rights’. People tell us that the world must conform to a certain reality and no-one can challenge their view. This passage, however, shows us that Biblical reality is not one of these many types but reality itself. God reigns as Creator … we need to respond to his rule.

The problem stems from the fact that we suppress this reality and turn to idols instead. The way we live then reflects our view of reality. For the Christian this passage is a reminder that we should not limit God’s rule as the world does.  The Son, Jesus Christ, is the one who keeps this world turning and our hearts beating. This reality is the one that shapes our lives.

The ‘good news’ is that we can know the truth of this because of what Jesus has accomplished at the cross in His death and resurrection. Receiving him by faith sets us fee to enjoy God’s reality forever. Jesus, as the King of Glory points us to the cross where we are assured of being accepted ‘just as if we had never sinned’.

 

 

 The house we all need to be living in.

In this passage we find that King David had come to a time when there was peace in the land. His enemies had been defeated. He then desires to build a house for God. Was it the right time? God says, through Nathan the prophet to David … ‘are you the one to build me a house to dwell in?’ David’s timing is not right.

God’s grace to David, past, present and future would, however, continue. There is a link here to the promise given to Abraham. God says to David … ‘Your house and your kingdom will endure forever before me.’ This was fulfilled in part through David’s son, Solomon, who built the temple in Jerusalem but David’s kingdom should not be limited to just an earthly line. It is fulfilled in the eternal kingdom of Jesus Christ, the perfect son who would never fail.

This kingdom is built in Jesus going to the cross. All that the grace and humility of God represented, and which was shown to David, is fulfilled in Jesus. This is now for us. We become part of this house, not by anything we have accomplished or merit, but simply by trusting in him alone.

 

 

Two rich men and their wealth but with different outcomes.

‘What are you looking for?” Asked the mother of a teenager as he gazed into the stocked refrigerator but then went and took a packet of chips from the cupboard. This is a reminder that instead of seeking frivolous things it is the Lord who should be sought. In these passages we see two rich men who met with Jesus but the outcomes were very different from one another.

The rich young ruler asked ‘what must I do to inherit eternal life?’ Jesus gently shows Him that the young man’s wealth was the thing that stood in his way.  His wealth had become an ‘idol’ which prevented him giving God the first place in his life. Repentance and faith go hand in hand. You cannot cling on to idols with one hand and the cross of Christ with the other.

Zacchaeus, another rich man, sought Jesus and climbed a tree so that he could see him when he passed by. Jesus said to him ‘I must stay at your house today’. Zacchaeus’ response is very instructive. He said that if he had defrauded anyone he would pay them back fourfold and that he would give half his possessions to the poor. Here we see repentance. He was truly trusting in the Lord. Jesus says in response … ‘Today salvation has come to this house.’

 

 

 How do we deal with the age old problem of emptiness?

Emptiness is a problem which people have experienced throughout the ages. The whole idea of employment is to fill the hole which emptiness creates … but what about the emptiness of the heart. In this passage we find that the thing which can fill this emptiness is not from ourselves but comes from the one who provides us with true worship.

Here Jesus and his followers were passing through Samaria even though Samaritans did not get along with Jews because they had different places of worship. Neither Samaritan nor Jew had realized the emptiness of what they were worshiping until a Samaritan woman, who was also suffering from the emptiness of numerous broken relationships, is asked by Jesus for a drink.

Jesus’ request touches a deep seated need in the woman’s heart … her need for ‘living water’. The woman was looking for physical answers to a spiritual problem. She finds the answer to her emptiness, not in multiple ‘husbands’ or false worship, but in the one, Jesus himself, who has provided eternal life, the forgiveness of sins and fulfillment in the true worship of God.

 

 

It is a deception which restricts the understanding to only what can be seen with the naked eye.

The book of Revelation is, for most, very hard to read. It is important to remember two things. Firstly, the sequence in the book is not chronological and it sometimes rewinds. Secondly, it is highly symbolic even though it represents real things which are unseen by eye.

In this passage there is a ‘trinity of evil’. The dragon, the first beast coming out of the sea, and the second beast coming out of the earth. These spiritual forces are the enemies of God and his people. They deceive the inhabitants of the earth and persecute those who love and follow Jesus. They do not, however, succeed. God’s people will always be kept safe and the persecution they suffer only serves to purify them.

There has been much confusion over what is called ‘the number of the beast’ which is 666. This number is not something that has to be decoded. It is the number for man and has reference to the beginning of the earth. The number 6 represents failure and is one short of the number 7 which is God’s number for perfection. The ‘trinity of evil’ can never prevail against God because in both the seen and unseen worlds his purposes are always accomplished. We see this in Jesus’ death on the cross and in Jesus’ resurrection to save all who come to him in faith.

 

 

A deeper perspective on the story of the Good Samaritan.

The story of the Good Samaritan is very well known at a general level. The three questions which follow, however, help us to look deeper to find a most wonderful truth. The first question is: ‘What shall I do to inherit eternal life?’ The passage is really about salvation … not what we have done but what has been done for us.

The second question is: ‘Who is my neighbour?’ The lawyer tries to justify himself by asking this question. Jesus proceeds to tell the story. It is about who really helped the beaten man when those who seemed most likely to show love for him passed him by. The lawyer starts to find that the parable is showing him personally there is nothing he can do to inherit eternal life.

The third question reveals the most important point of the parable: ‘Whose neighbor am I?’ The requirement of love is far greater than mankind is able to perform. We are like the beaten man ourselves … broken down by our sins. We are the ones who need the ‘Neighbour’. Jesus is the one who has paid the enormous price at the cross to bring about our ‘healing’.

 

 

What is true goodness and where can it be found?

When asked about matters of eternal importance many people base their hope of acceptance on being ‘basically a good person’.  We need to know where to look in order to find out whether this is really the case. In this passage Jesus tells three stories which shed light on our supposed ‘goodness’.

The first one is about two men who went to pray. One man, the Pharisee, sought acceptance on the basis of what he had done. The other, the Tax Collector, was ashamed of his sin but asked for mercy … it was he that went home justified. The second story is about little children coming to Jesus. The disciples tried to hinder them but Jesus told the disciples to let them come. He told them that ‘the kingdom of God is of such as these’… child-like trust in Jesus.

The third story concerns a rich young ruler who approached Jesus asking: ‘Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?’ Jesus refers him to some of the Ten Commandments which he says he has kept. Jesus gently shows him his sin … he is trusting in his wealth. Jesus suggests he give it to the poor. He cannot and goes away sad. The final part of the passage reveals Jesus’ complete goodness. His death on the cross, received by faith, would pay the penalty for others’ sins.