Seeking the Life in Christ: September 2020

Wednesday, September 30, 2020

Not Far from The Kingdom of God

Meditations of the Gospel of Mark

September 30, 2020

Not Far from The Kingdom of God

Jesus said to him, “You are not far from the Kingdom of God.”

Mark 12:34b

Read: Mark 12: 28-34

Jesus bestowed a blessing on the teacher of religious law when he said to him, “You are not far from the Kingdom of God.” When you substitute the “Age to Come” for “Kingdom of God” the depth of the blessing becomes clearer. What so endeared the teacher to Jesus?

The teacher had connected the dots. He affirmed Jesus’ teaching to love God with all that we are and to love our neighbors as ourselves as the greatest commandments. Then the teacher drew the only appropriate conclusion from living by these ethical standards: “This is more important than to offer all of the burnt offerings and sacrifices required in the law” (verse 33b). The teacher is the first to grasp what Jesus has been pointing to throughout his ministry, especially in those times he was in the Temple. After his resurrection and with the imparting of the Holy Spirit, the followers of Jesus become the temple of God who lives in us. (1 Corinthians 6:19) Therefore, the time of sacrifices in the Temple is replaced with being empowered to live the law of love.

My Takeaway: Living in this pandemic has been a good time for me to see the priorities of my life. Has my life been marked by a complete love of God and neighbor, or by scrambling to find what is best for me?

Sē’lah

<>< <>< <>< <><

(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

These meditations are written by Alex M. Knight as he seeks the life in Christ as his way of life. The meditations are published on the BLOG, http://seekingthelifeinchrist.blogspot.com/ and they are also distributed on the Constant Contact email server. You may subscribe to this email service by sending an email to: amkrom812@gmail.com. The BLOG is also available on Amazon Kindle, by subscription.

Publications by Alex M. Knight:

Seeking the Life in Christ, Meditations on the New Testament and Psalms has been published and is now available at Amazon.com in paperback and Kindle.

The second edition of First Think – Then Pray is available on Amazon Kindle.

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Tuesday, September 29, 2020

Discussion about Resurrection

Meditations of the Gospel of Mark

September 29, 2020

Discussion about Resurrection

So he is the God of the living, not the dead. You have made a serious error.”

Mark 12:27

Read: Mark 12: 18-27

The Sadducees were the religious elite and very conservative. They considered the first five books of the Bible, The Pentateuch, as authoritative and didn’t put much stock in the other Old Testament writings of the time. They didn’t believe in the Age to Come where God would resurrect the faithful. In today’s reading, they concocted a convoluted story as a means to trick Jesus and cause a division among his followers.

Jesus debunked their story and their misunderstanding of God’s plan for restoring His Kingdom. The first error of the Sadducees was their notion that God’s Kingdom to Come will simply be a duplicate of their present life. Just as the Apostle Paul proclaimed “that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!” (2 Corinthians 5:17), Jesus is affirming in the Age to Come everything will be different. The Bible does not give us specific details of life in the Age to Come, but what we do know is more than enough for me:

“Dear friends, we are already God’s children, but he has not yet shown us what we will be like when Christ appears. But we do know that we will be like him, for we will see him as he really is.” (I John 3:2)

Jesus also taught the Bible to the Sadducees. In verse 26, Jesus quoted Exodus 3:6 to show that the only way God could still be the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, who were long dead, is if they would be resurrected in the Age to Come.

My Takeaway: When a person dies, their family and friends are prone to offer all sorts of speculation as to the eternal destiny of the dearly departed. Much of such speculation is more folk tales than scriptural. The Apostle John nails it for me: “we do know that we will be like him.” That’s all I need to know.

Sē’lah

<>< <>< <>< <><

(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

Publications by Alex M. Knight:

Seeking the Life in Christ, Meditations on the New Testament and Psalms has been published and is now available at Amazon.com in paperback and Kindle.

The second edition of First Think – Then Pray is available on Amazon Kindle.

Monday, September 28, 2020

Taxes for Caesar, Myself for God

Meditations of the Gospel of Mark

September 28, 2020

Taxes for Caesar, Myself for God

“Well, then,” Jesus said, “give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar, and give to God what belongs to God.”

Mark 12:17

Read: Mark 12: 13-17

“Still waters run deep” is what I think of when I read Jesus’ encounter with the Pharisees over the issue of paying taxes. At that time, the Jews had lived their entire life under Roman oppression. The Jews hated the Romans. Adding insult to injury, the Roman coin had an inscription of the Roman Emperor with text affirming him as divine and high priest. Because the Jews were forbidden to make an image of their God, just to hold a Roman coin was completely offensive to a devout Jew.

The Jews were burdened with Roman taxes, local taxes, Temple taxes and taxes to King Herod. The Pharisees thought Jesus had no choice but to anger either the Romans or the Jews by his response. However, Jesus’ response went in an unexpected direction.

On the surface, Jesus’ reply seems simple enough; pay your taxes. On a deeper level, it is important for us to grasp what Jesus intended and what he did not.

Jesus was not making a statement about separation of church and state. God never intended for his values, ethics, and principals to be separated from mainstream society. History has an abundance of examples of where humans got it wrong in their attempts to forge a society governed by God’s word. However, there are examples of when they have come closer to getting it right, such as the forging of our Declaration of Independence.

What, then, did Jesus mean other than to simply pay your taxes? Jesus asked the Pharisees whose image was on the coin. Because Caesar’s image was on the coin, Jesus said “give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar.” The image of God is not on a coin, it is within human beings. We are created in the image of God. When Jesus says “give to God what belongs to God” Jesus is teaching us to give ourselves to God.

My Takeaway: Jesus’ teaching today inspires the lines in my favorite prayer:

“I acknowledge you to be my Creator and my God. I render to you the reverence of my being and my life. I am not my own. I am yours. By creation and redemption, I am yours. I will devote myself to your service this day and forever.”

Sē’lah

<>< <>< <>< <><

(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

Publications by Alex M. Knight:

Seeking the Life in Christ, Meditations on the New Testament and Psalms has been published and is now available at Amazon.com in paperback and Kindle.

The second edition of First Think – Then Pray is available on Amazon Kindle.

Friday, September 25, 2020

Parable of the Evil Farmers

Meditations of the Gospel of Mark

September 25, 2020

Parable of the Evil Farmers

The religious leaders wanted to arrest Jesus because they realized he was telling the story against them—they were the wicked farmers. But they were afraid of the crowd, so they left him and went away.

Mark 12:12

Read: Mark 12: 1-12

In Isaiah chapter 5, Israel is presented as a vineyard planted by God. Instead of producing good fruit the vineyard produces only wild grapes. In his parable of the evil farmers, everybody present knew Jesus was talking about the rebellious nature of Israel and the judgment of God against Israel’s sins.

Those present probably recognized John the Baptist as one of the servants killed by the evil farmers. I doubt they recognized Jesus as the vineyard owner’s son who was killed. But in just a week they would.

Jesus ended his parable noting the vineyard owner leases his vineyard to others and with joy proclaims, ‘The stone that the builders rejected has now become the cornerstone.’ (Psalm 118)

My Takeaway: Who are the others who now tend the vineyard? We are! And as our Lord and Savior is our cornerstone, let us be faithful and fruitful as we care for our Master’s vineyard.

Sē’lah

<>< <>< <>< <><

(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

Publications by Alex M. Knight:

Seeking the Life in Christ, Meditations on the New Testament and Psalms has been published and is now available at Amazon.com in paperback and Kindle.

The second edition of First Think – Then Pray is available on Amazon Kindle.

Thursday, September 24, 2020

The Authority of Jesus Challenged

Meditations of the Gospel of Mark

September 24, 2020

The Authority of Jesus Challenged

“I’ll tell you by what authority I do these things if you answer one question,” Jesus replied. “Did John’s authority to baptize come from heaven, or was it merely human? Answer me!”

Mark 11:29-30

Read: Mark 11: 27-33

The Pharisees were hoping Jesus would say something that they could use against him; they were not really looking for truth. Jesus exposes their hypocrisy by refusing to answer their question directly. When Jesus mentioned John the Baptist, Mark wants us to remember that when Jesus was baptized, God anointed him and gave him authority as the Messiah. Therefore, when we, as followers of Jesus, are baptized, we too receive an anointing and authority from God to fulfill our destiny as God’s children. We are the ones God has appointed to be a light to the nations.

In these encounters in Jerusalem, Jesus is modeling for his followers how to use their authority. We are surrounded everyday by scores of opportunities to speak truth into the issues of our times. The economic issues, the political issues, issues of poverty and homelessness, issues of discrimination and bigotry; these permeate our culture. Today and everyday, God is asking, ““Whom should I send as a messenger to this people?” (Isaiah 6:8)

Who will speak for God? We are surrounded by naysayers who cultivate fear and mistrust. Who will share the Christian perspective on the issues of our times?

My Takeaway: God is not looking just to the pulpits for his messengers to speak his word of truth. God is looking for all of his children to speak his word to their neighbors, their children, their grandchildren, and their representatives in government.

The Spirit of Christ within us is calling us to respond, “Here I am. Send me.”

Sē’lah

<>< <>< <>< <><

(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

Publications by Alex M. Knight:

Seeking the Life in Christ, Meditations on the New Testament and Psalms has been published and is now available at Amazon.com in paperback and Kindle.

The second edition of First Think – Then Pray is available on Amazon Kindle.

Wednesday, September 23, 2020

Jesus Curses the Fig Tree & Clears the Temple

Meditations of the Gospel of Mark

September 23, 2020

Jesus Curses the Fig Tree & Clears the Temple

I tell you, you can pray for anything, and if you believe that you’ve received it, it will be yours.

Mark 11:24

Read: Mark 11: 12-25

The way Mark places Jesus clearing the Temple between the two parts of Jesus’ encounter with the fig tree are helpful in understanding the Messiah’s agenda.

Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem was in the early spring time so Jesus would not have expected any fruit to be on the fig tree. Jesus cursed the barren fig tree because it represented Israel which had become barren in fulfilling her mission to be a light to the world. Then he arrives in the Temple area and drives out the people who were performing a service necessary for the Temple functions of making sacrifices and offerings to God. Jesus’s action effectively shut down the Temple activities for a while, which was Jesus’ way of demonstrating God’s judgment against the Temple because the intended role of the Temple had become corrupt at its core.

The key phrase in understanding Jesus’ actions is “‘My Temple will be called a house of prayer for all nations, but you have turned it into a den of thieves.” The Lord intended Israel to be a light to the nations; instead she had become prideful and exclusionary. Interestingly, today at the base of the Mount of Olives, the path Jesus traveled on his way into Jerusalem, stands the Church of All Nations.

Jesus concludes with an instruction on prayer. He begins the instruction with “Have faith in God” and ends with “forgive anyone you are holding a grudge against, so that your Father in heaven will forgive your sins, too.” The inference for me is that my prayers will be answered with the power of God when my prayers reflect the heart of God for His church and His Kingdom.

My Takeaway: Two disciplines help me practice Jesus’ teaching on prayer. First, I begin my daily prayer time with silence as I reflect on Psalm 46:10, “Be still, and know that I am God!” Secondly, before I formulate my prayer requests I contemplate Philippians 2:5, “Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus.”

Sē’lah

<>< <>< <>< <><

(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

Publications by Alex M. Knight:

Seeking the Life in Christ, Meditations on the New Testament and Psalms has been published and is now available at Amazon.com in paperback and Kindle.

The second edition of First Think – Then Pray is available on Amazon Kindle.

Tuesday, September 22, 2020

Jesus’ Triumphant Entry

Meditations of the Gospel of Mark

September 22, 2020

Jesus’ Triumphant Entry

As Jesus and his disciples approached Jerusalem, they came to the towns of Bethphage and Bethany on the Mount of Olives.

Mark 11:1

Read: Mark 11:1-11

On our visit to Israel, we approached Jerusalem from Caesarea on the Mediterranean coast. As we saw the Holy City for the first time, our whole bus joined in singing The Holy City hymn.

"Jerusalem, Jerusalem!

Lift up your gates and sing,

Hosanna in the highest.

Hosanna to your King!"

Jesus and his disciples approached Jerusalem from the opposite direction. They came from Jericho. While only a distance of fifteen miles, they traversed through rugged desert and ascended from eight hundred feet below sea level in Jericho to almost three thousand feet above sea level on the Temple Mount. Even so, their entrance to the Holy City was just as exhilarating as they beheld the trees and blossoms and the extraordinary beauty of Jerusalem and the Temple.

When Jesus entered Jerusalem, the people laid branches in his path and shouted Hosanna. Only one conclusion can be drawn: the people were proclaiming Jesus as their Messiah, King. However, as we will see in the next few days, Jesus, the Messiah, has an altogether different agenda than the popular notions of the people.

My Takeaway: Whenever I read of Jesus’ triumphant entry, I remember that the people who so enthusiastically shouted Hosanna would soon abandon Jesus. Like those people, I want Jesus to come and love me, and provide for me, and to bless me and my people. The triumphant entry reminds me to “Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and (God) will give you everything you need.” (Matthew 6:33)

Sē’lah

<>< <>< <>< <><

(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

Publications by Alex M. Knight:

Seeking the Life in Christ, Meditations on the New Testament and Psalms has been published and is now available at Amazon.com in paperback and Kindle.

The second edition of First Think – Then Pray is available on Amazon Kindle.

Monday, September 21, 2020

Jesus Heals Blind Bartimaeus

Meditations of the Gospel of Mark

September 21, 2020

Jesus Heals Blind Bartimaeus

“What do you want me to do for you?” Jesus asked.

Mark 10:51

Read: Mark 10: 46-52

We all have blind spots in our lives, places where we are still caught up in self-centeredness. Blind Bartimaeus believed Jesus was the Messiah, that’s why he called out to Jesus as Son of David. Bartimaeus knew Jesus could heal his condition. Jesus affirmed his faith and Bartimaeus left his blindness behind him as he followed Jesus to Jerusalem.

What if Jesus is passing by us today. Do we have faith that Jesus is the Messiah sent by God to make us whole? Do we have faith that Jesus, the Messiah sent by God, is calling us to follow him?

When we hear Jesus asking us “What do you want me to do for you?” how will we respond? What will we tell him?

My Takeaway: I can come up with a long list of things I think I need Jesus to do for me, to make me whole, as I understand whole. But today, I sense Jesus simply wants me to witness to the love of God in my community so that those to whom God is a stranger will find in me a generous friend.

Sē’lah

<>< <>< <>< <><

(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

Publications by Alex M. Knight:

Seeking the Life in Christ, Meditations on the New Testament and Psalms has been published and is now available at Amazon.com in paperback and Kindle.

The second edition of First Think – Then Pray is available on Amazon Kindle.

Wednesday, September 30, 2020

Not Far from The Kingdom of God

Tuesday, September 29, 2020

Discussion about Resurrection

Monday, September 28, 2020

Taxes for Caesar, Myself for God

Friday, September 25, 2020

Parable of the Evil Farmers

Thursday, September 24, 2020

The Authority of Jesus Challenged

Wednesday, September 23, 2020

Jesus Curses the Fig Tree & Clears the Temple

Tuesday, September 22, 2020

Jesus’ Triumphant Entry

Monday, September 21, 2020

Jesus Heals Blind Bartimaeus

Seeking the Life in Christ

About Me

Blog Archive

Followers

First Think - Then Pray

Books I Am Reading

Recent Books I Have Enjoyed