The First Passover in Jerusalem - I Cleared the Temple

The Story of My Life as told by Jesus Christ

(Seed Sowers Christian Book Publishing House. http://www.seedsowers.com/)

October 25, 2012    The First Passover in Jerusalem - I Cleared the Temple

Page 57        John 2:13-25

 

John the Baptist affirmed that Jesus is “The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29). John is saying that Jesus is the ultimate Passover Lamb. On Jesus’ visit to Jerusalem for Passover, he reveals the desperate need of Israel for the salvation of God. The Temple was the place where God’s presence dwelt among His people. When Jesus speaks of the destruction of the Temple, he is referring to God withdrawing His presence from Israel, because the intended role of the Temple had become corrupt at its core. Jesus demonstrated God’s judgment against the Temple when he cleared out the money changers and peddlers, which effectively shut down the Temple activities.

Remember Jacob’s ladder from John 1? It represents a connection between heaven and earth, and the miracles Jesus performs are heaven and earth coming together in the person of Jesus. In today’s passage, Jesus likened the Temple, the place where heaven and earth came together for the Jews, to his own body.

“On the third day,” Jesus inaugurated his ministry at the wedding in Cana (John 2:1 NRSV). When the religious leaders asked Jesus for a sign he replied, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up” (John 2:19). Later, after his resurrection, Jesus’ disciples remembered these events “and believed both the Scriptures and what Jesus had said.” (John 2:22). Do you see the faith connection? The disciples were not resting their faith on miracles alone. They trusted what Jesus said; they trusted the witness of Scripture.

“So faith comes from hearing, that is, hearing the Good News about Christ” (Romans 10:17).

Sē’lah

<><  <><  <><  <><

What word or phrase in today’s reading attracts your attention?

Reflect on that word or phrase.

What insights come to you?

How does this passage touch your life today?

<><  <><  <><  <><

(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 available by email. Contact me at Amkrom812@gmail.com to be added to the email list.

This BLOG is also available on Amazon Kindle, by subscription

The Story of My Life as told by Jesus Christ

(Seed Sowers Christian Book Publishing House. http://www.seedsowers.com/)

October 26, 2012    My Meeting with Nicodemus        Page 57-58   John 3:1-21

My First Miracle

The Story of My Life as told by Jesus Christ

(Seed Sowers Christian Book Publishing House. http://www.seedsowers.com/)

October 24, 2012    My First Miracle      Page 51        Luke 3:23a; John 2:1-12

In yesterday’s reading Jesus invoked the story of Jacob’s ladder and the connection between heaven and earth. (Genesis 28) Heaven and earth coming together in the person of Jesus was demonstrated through the miracle at the wedding in Cana.

When I visited Cana, our group gathered in a garden chapel, and I had the honor of renewing the wedding vows of my friends Dan and Shelby. Then, Cheryl and I stood together as my friend Pastor Charlie renewed our wedding vows. My visit to the garden chapel reinforces what I see as the most compelling aspect of Jesus’ wedding miracle; the life of Jesus may be made visible in our bodies. (2 Corinthians 4:7-12)

The miracles of Jesus have been recorded in the Gospels “so that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in his name” (John 20:31 NRSV). The thread running through all of Jesus’ miracles is that they all pertain to the normal ebb and flow of life. While some are very dramatic, such as raising the dead, most intersect the normal flow of life, such as weddings. For the followers of Jesus, heaven and earth come together within us: “Christ in you, the hope of glory” (Colossians 1:27 NRSV).

Are you seeing any signs of Jesus the Messiah in the ordinary flow of your life? If so, do these signs cause you to believe, to trust Jesus?

                             

Sē’lah

<><  <><  <><  <><

What word or phrase in today’s reading attracts your attention?

Reflect on that word or phrase.

What insights come to you?

How does this passage touch your life today?

<><  <><  <><  <><

(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 available by email. Contact me at Amkrom812@gmail.com to be added to the email list.

This BLOG is also available on Amazon Kindle, by subscription

The Story of My Life as told by Jesus Christ

(Seed Sowers Christian Book Publishing House. http://www.seedsowers.com/)

October 25, 2012    The First Passover in Jerusalem

I Cleared the Temple          Page 57        John 2:13-25

My Earliest Followers

The Story of My Life as told by Jesus Christ

(Seed Sowers Christian Book Publishing House. http://www.seedsowers.com/)

October 23, 2012    My Earliest Followers         Page 50        John 1:35-51

John the Baptist affirmed the mission of Jesus: “Look! There is the Lamb of God!” (v.36) In  The Story of My Life as told by Jesus Christ, we will see that as the Passover lamb was sacrificed for the sins of an individual, Jesus the Lamb of God will be sacrificed for the sins of the world.

I have long been fascinated with the two disciples’ answer to Jesus’ question, “What do you want?” They replied, “Rabbi, where are you staying?” (v.38). Their answer is pregnant with their desire to not just meet Jesus, but to know him, to become his disciples. When I was ordained, I opened my Bible to the Apostle Paul’s passionate affirmation of this same desire: “I want to know Christ and experience the mighty power that raised him from the dead. I want to suffer with him, sharing in his death, so that one way or another I will experience the resurrection from the dead!” (Philippians 3:10-11).

The depth of Jesus’ mission was revealed when Jesus engaged Nathanael in conversation. Nathanael immediately connected the dots and declared Jesus the Son of God. Jesus responded with a reference to Jacob’s ladder in Genesis 28. Jacob had a dream in which he saw a ladder extending to heaven with angels coming and going on the ladder. He named the place where he had the dream, Bethel, which means House of God. Later, Bethel would become the site of a great sanctuary for God’s people. This belief that God comes to meet his people, to interact with them, finds its fulfillment in the Jews’ understanding of the Temple, where God’s presence dwelled. Jesus told Nathanael that the miracles he will witness are evidence that God’s presence is within Jesus.

Jesus is showing us that when you are with him, you are in God’s house. God’s presence is with you. The disciples of Jesus can experience this truth as they sit quietly in their devotional time, as well as in their sanctuary when they gather with the saints of God for worship.

“God has given me the responsibility of serving his church by proclaiming his entire message to you. This message was kept secret for centuries and generations past, but now it has been revealed to God’s people. For God wanted them to know that the riches and glory of Christ are for you Gentiles, too. And this is the secret: Christ lives in you. This gives you assurance of sharing his glory” (Colossians 1:25-27).

Sē’lah

<><  <><  <><  <><

What word or phrase in today’s reading attracts your attention?

Reflect on that word or phrase.

What insights come to you?

How does this passage touch your life today?

<><  <><  <><  <><

(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 available by email. Contact me at Amkrom812@gmail.com to be added to the email list.

This BLOG is also available on Amazon Kindle, by subscription

The Story of My Life as told by Jesus Christ

(Seed Sowers Christian Book Publishing House. http://www.seedsowers.com/)

October 24, 2012    My First Miracle      Page 51        Luke 3:23a; John 2:1-12

                             

My Cousin John's Testimony Concerning Me

The Story of My Life as told by Jesus Christ

(Seed Sowers Christian Book Publishing House. http://www.seedsowers.com/)

October 22, 2012    My Cousin John's Testimony Concerning Me   

Page 49        John 1:15, 19-34

In Biblical times the nation of Israel lived in anticipation of God doing something mighty to save His people. When the religious leaders heard about a strange man preaching in the wilderness, they were anxious to learn more about him. Was he just another messianic pretender, was he a new prophet of God, was he a former prophet sent back by God? The Christian community today is called by God to live in anticipation of Jesus returning in final victory, just as much as Israel looked to the first coming of the Messiah. When you think about the issues of war, violence, oppression, recessions and depressions, do you look to the politicians to solve our problems, or do you long for the coming again of Jesus in final victory?

Two times John says he did not know Jesus was the one who baptizes with the Holy Spirit. In the light of the Mary and Elizabeth’s exhortations about their babies (Luke 1), doesn’t it seem strange that John did not know Jesus was the one for whom he was preparing the way?

I believe Fred Craddock, former professor of New Testament and Preaching at Candler School of Theology, is one of the best preachers I have ever heard. Countless thousands of lives have been blessed through his ministry. In his autobiography, Reflections on My Call to Preach: Connecting the Dots, (Chalice Press May 2009) he recalls a conversation with his mother when he had completed high school. He told his mother he sensed God calling him to be a preacher. His mother replied, “I know.” She then told Fred, who had been born into the rural poverty of the Great Depression in Tennessee, that when he was a baby he had diphtheria and wasn’t expected to live. When Fred was at his weakest, his mother prayed like Hannah (1 Samuel 1:11); she promised God if He would allow Fred to live she would give Fred to Him. Fred was astonished; this was the first time he had heard this story. “Why didn’t you tell me this before now” he asked his mother. “Because it had to be your decision” she replied.

“But Mary treasured all these words and pondered them in her heart” is how Mary responded to the visit of the Shepherds (Luke 2:19 NRSV). Could it be that Mary and Elizabeth did not tell Jesus and John about the circumstances of their birth and allowed the Holy Spirit the freedom to work, unassisted, in their lives? Are there places in my life, and the lives of those I love, where I could be more patient and allow the Holy Spirit to produce the desire and the power to do what pleases God?

“For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases him” (Philippians 2:13),

Sē’lah

<><  <><  <><  <><

What word or phrase in today’s reading attracts your attention?

Reflect on that word or phrase.

What insights come to you?

How does this passage touch your life today?

<><  <><  <><  <><

(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 available by email. Contact me at Amkrom812@gmail.com to be added to the email list.

This BLOG is also available on Amazon Kindle, by subscription

The Story of My Life as told by Jesus Christ

(Seed Sowers Christian Book Publishing House. http://www.seedsowers.com/)

October 23, 2012    My Earliest Followers         Page 50        John 1:35-51