Christianoi

Meditations on the Book of Galatians

April 16, 2020

Christianoi

But we refused to give in to them for a single moment. We wanted to preserve the truth of the gospel message for you.

Galatians 2:5

Read: Galatians 2:1-5

We live in a hyphenated culture. Seldom is someone referred to by just one defining characteristic. People are referred to as African-Americans or Asian-Americans or Italian-Americans. We also divide ourselves into sub-groups based on schools and universities, states and regions. For instance, I may be a legal resident of North Carolina, but I live in Western North Carolina!

As seriously as some people take these divisions, they pale in comparison to how the Jews in the first century marked their identity through male circumcision. This national, religious and cultural identity ran so deep that the Jews who had accepted Jesus as their Messiah expected all the male followers of Jesus to be circumcised. This was a huge point of contention between the Apostle Paul and those leaders in the Christian movement who tried to require Gentile believers to comply with male circumcision and the Law of Moses. (These leaders were known as Judaizers.)

At one time, the followers of Jesus were known as Christianoi, People of Christ. Over the centuries, we have become Roman Catholics, Methodists, Presbyterians, Baptists, Pentecostals, and Anglicans, etc. This puts us in a dilemma. On one hand, the way churches are organized creates a temptation to think we are right and others, not in our church, are wrong. This creates disunity in the Body of Christ. On the other hand, our churches in their present form are all we have. How can we respond to this dilemma?

The most important thing is to keep our eyes on Jesus. Although Paul loved his heritage as a Jew, he made it very clear in Philippians 3 that the only thing that mattered to him was Jesus. He was more emphatic in what he told the Galatians. Not only was his old life gone, his old identity was dead. He had a new identity as a follower of Christ. (Galatians 2:20)

My Takeaway: The Jews set themselves apart from others through their mono-theistic faith in the Creator God, their male circumcision and their dietary laws. Today, Christianoi, the People of Christ are set apart by their belief in justification by grace through faith in Christ Jesus. Any other form of identification for the followers of Christ is not of God.

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.

Copyright © 2020 by Alex M. Knight

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.

Go!

Meditations on the Book of Galatians

April 15, 2020

Go!

All they knew was that people were saying, “The one who used to persecute us is now preaching the very faith he tried to destroy!”

Galatians 1:23

Read: Galatians 1:18-24

After proclaiming the Gospel in Galatia, Paul had moved on to continue his work. After he left, other Christians who took exception to Paul not requiring Gentile converts to keep the Law of Moses had moved in. The issue of Paul’s credentials, his authority to lead the church, had been called into question. However, by that time, Paul had been completely accepted by the church leaders in Jerusalem, and he had been commissioned as an evangelist to the Gentiles. His authority was undeniable, yet he never relied on that ecclesiastical authority in making his case to the Galatians. As the old adage goes, the proof of the pudding is in the tasting. Paul reported that the Christians in Jerusalem knew that people were saying, “The one who used to persecute us is now preaching the very faith he tried to destroy!” And they praised God because of me” (Galatians 1:23-24).

Paul isn’t teaching us that clergy credentials don’t matter. He is teaching us that while they certainly have their purpose and place, there is something else that is more important. Is there fruit? Is the person’s ministry making disciples for Jesus Christ? Can you see evidence that they are building for the Kingdom of God?

My Takeaway: The nature of my personality is that I am a very private person. It is difficult for me to share my personal feelings. I sometimes cringe when I remember my past before I knew Jesus as my savior. And, I cringe at some of my present failings even though Jesus is my savior. I believe Paul would see my cringing as good fruit of the Spirit and would urge me to press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling me. (Philippians 3:14)

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.

Copyright © 2020 by Alex M. Knight

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.

Jesus Laid Hold of Me

Meditations on the Book of Galatians

April 14, 2020

Jesus Laid Hold of Me

I received my message from no human source, and no one taught me. Instead, I received it by direct revelation from Jesus Christ.

Galatians 1:12

Read: Galatians 1: 10-17

Paul asserts he received his message through a “direct revelation from Jesus Christ.” This isn’t just a personal biographical statement. Paul is affirming what Jesus taught Peter in Matthew 16. Jesus had asked his disciples “who do you say I am?” Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” Jesus then told Peter he didn’t get that answer out of books or from teachers. God in Heaven revealed to Peter that Jesus was the Messiah. (Matthew 16:13-18)

In his letter to the Romans, Paul makes clear that this divine revelation was not limited to just Peter and Paul. This is how Paul expressed this truth in Romans 8: 16, “For his Spirit joins with our spirit to affirm that we are God’s children.” John Wesley’s Aldersgate experience, where he felt his heart strangely warmed and received the assurance his sins had been forgiven, is another example of divine revelation.

My Takeaway: God wants all of his children to experience His divine revelations as He reveals the truth of Jesus Christ to us. We can always be sure of God’s leading through His Holy Spirit because His leading ALWAYS is in perfect alignment with Holy Scripture.

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.

Copyright © 2020 by Alex M. Knight

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.

The Good News

Meditations on the Book of Galatians

April 13, 2020

The Good News

This letter is from Paul, an apostle. I was not appointed by any group of people or any human authority, but by Jesus Christ himself and by God the Father, who raised Jesus from the dead.

Galatians 1:1

Read: Galatians 1: 1-9

Today, on this Monday after Easter, I begin a series of meditations on the book of Galatians. Last year, a president of a leading seminary made the news when she stated that the literal resurrection of Jesus was not a crucial element of the Christian faith. Her statement was not at all surprising in our current age where many people are accommodating Christian doctrine to cultural beliefs. Our reading of Galatians will provide us with an opportunity to check our bearings and make sure we are aligning our faith on Jesus, and Jesus alone.

Paul was writing to a church that had gotten sidetracked from the foundation in Christ he had first laid for them. To help them find their bearings, Paul repeatedly used two terms: Good News, or Gospel, and apostle. It will be helpful to get a clear understanding of what Paul meant by these terms.

The Good News is the announcement that God has won victory over sin and death through the life, death and resurrection of Jesus, the Messiah. The good news about the Good News is that all people, everywhere, may partake of God’s victory over sin and death through faith that Jesus is the Risen Son of God. And when people accept Jesus as God’s Messiah, they are adopted into God’s own family.

The word apostle means a person who is sent to proclaim the Good News. At the time of Paul, the title apostle was reserved for those people who had personally been with Jesus when He was on earth. Some people accused Paul of not being an apostle because Paul was not one of Jesus’ followers before Jesus was crucified. Others suggested Paul was only a ‘junior’ apostle, because he was sent by the real apostles like Peter and John. Paul makes the point in chapter one that he is qualified to be an apostle because he had a personal encounter with Jesus on the road to Damascus, and that it was Jesus who called him to proclaim the Good News.

My Takeaway: Paul made the case that there is only one Gospel, and that he was commissioned by Jesus to proclaim this Gospel. As we read this epistle we will have the opportunity to consider whether we have added to or taken away anything from the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

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.

Copyright © 2020 by Alex M. Knight

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.

This Man Who Was Crucified, Was the Messiah Of God

Holy Week 2020

April 10, 2020

Good Friday

This Man Who Was Crucified,

Was the Messiah Of God

Carrying the cross by himself, he went to the place called Place of the Skull (in Hebrew, Golgotha).

John 19:17

John doesn’t supply insignificant details about Jesus. John’s account of Jesus’ crucifixion and burial is full of details that point to the fulfillment of scripture that Jesus is God’s Messiah. (John 19:17-42)

Fifteen times in this Gospel John mentions Passover -- three times in chapter 19. He mentions the soldiers used hyssop to extend a sponge soaked in wine to Jesus. God commanded the Jews to use hyssop branches to brush the blood of the Passover lamb on their doorposts (Exodus 22), and Hebrews 9 tells us that it was hyssop branches Moses used to confirm the Covenant God made with the Jews. (Exodus 24) John wants us to know that Jesus is the Passover Lamb who takes away the sins of the world. He wants us to know Jesus confirmed the New Covenant by his own blood.

John identifies three people at the foot of the cross. Mary, Jesus’ mother was there. Her sister, Jesus’ aunt was there. John was there. Decades after the crucifixion, groups opposing Jesus’ resurrection claimed that Jesus never died. John provides, by name, five eyewitnesses to Jesus’ death. John tells us that Jesus was pierced in the side and that blood and water flowed from the wound. Jesus was dead. Joseph and Nicodemus, the other two named eyewitnesses, placed Jesus’ dead body in the tomb and used a huge amount of oil and spices, enough for a King’s burial.

When Jesus was crucified, Pilate placed a sign on the cross, proclaiming Jesus as King of the Jews. The sign was in three languages: Hebrew, Latin and Greek. These languages covered a vast part of the known world, fulfilling the prophecy that Israel’s Messiah would be proclaimed to the entire world. The soldiers gambled for Jesus’ clothes. This was prophesied in Psalm 22. Jesus prayed from this same Psalm when he cried out, “My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?”

John wants us to know that this man who was crucified, dead and buried was the Messiah of God, the One the scriptures promised would come to save Israel, save the world.

My Takeaway: Jesus was laid in a tomb so that He could spend the seventh day in a Sabbath rest. But, Jesus wasn’t through. The first day of the new week was coming. Sunday would be the first day of God’s New Creation.

HALLELUJAH!

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.

Copyright © 2020 by Alex M. Knight

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.

But It Was Our Sins That Did That To Him

Holy Week 2020

April 9, 2020

Thursday of Holy Week

But It Was Our Sins That Did That To Him

“. . . it was our pains he carried—

   our disfigurements, all the things wrong with us.

Isaiah 53:4 (MSG)

In the first sixteen verses of John 19, the irony of the conspiracy to murder Jesus increases yet again. Pilate, who has absolute authority over Israel, vacillates. He is indecisive and fearful. At first, he toyed with the priests; if they wanted to crucify Jesus, he would let Jesus go, just to spite them. Then Pilate senses there is more being played out than he understands and wants to distance himself from the proceedings. Enter the ultimate irony. The priests, who were completely under the authority of Pilate, manipulate Pilate to do their bidding. Pilate capitulates, but the cost to the priests and the crowd is expensive beyond measure. They have repudiated their God by claiming they have no king, but Caesar. They have crucified the First Commandment: “I am the Lord your God, who rescued you from the land of Egypt, the place of your slavery. “You must not have any other god but me.” (Exodus 20: 2-3)

Thus the words of the Prophet Isaiah were fulfilled: (Please read this passage from Isaiah slowly, and outloud.)

“. . . it was our pains he carried—

   our disfigurements, all the things wrong with us.

We thought he brought it on himself,

   that God was punishing him for his own failures.

But it was our sins that did that to him,

   that ripped and tore and crushed him—our sins!

He took the punishment, and that made us whole.

   Through his bruises we get healed.

We’re all like sheep who’ve wandered off and gotten lost.

   We’ve all done our own thing, gone our own way.

And God has piled all our sins, everything we’ve done wrong,

   on him, on him.

 He was beaten, he was tortured,

   but he didn’t say a word.

Like a lamb taken to be slaughtered

   and like a sheep being sheared,

   he took it all in silence.

Justice miscarried, and he was led off—

   and did anyone really know what was happening?

He died without a thought for his own welfare,

   beaten bloody for the sins of my people.

They buried him with the wicked,

   threw him in a grave of a rich man,

Even though he’d never hurt a soul

   or said one word that wasn’t true.

(Isaiah 53: 4-9 The Message)

My Takeaway: I’ve got nothing to say. I just need to be still.

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.

Copyright © 2020 by Alex M. Knight

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.

To Know God As Our Strength

Holy Week 2020

April 8, 2020

Wednesday of Holy Week

To Know God As Our Strength

“My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?”

Psalm 22:1

It is not just this opening line that connects this psalm to the crucifixion of Jesus. Throughout this psalm you can see Jesus on the Cross and you can see the people gathered around Jesus. See the crowd scorning the psalmist in v. 6-8 and compare with Matthew 27:39-43; the gambling for garments in v.18 and compare with John 19:23-24. Also consider the psalmist’s cry in v. 15 “My tongue sticks to the roof of my mouth” and Jesus’ cry, “I thirst” in John 19:28. As you read the Gospel accounts of the crucifixion you will see even more parallels. Both Matthew and the writer of Hebrews proclaim that Jesus fulfilled this psalm. Why should that be significant to us today? I can suggest three reasons.

First, all of the Gospel writers want us to know that Jesus, who was crucified, dead and buried, was the Messiah of God, the One the scriptures promised would come and save Israel, save the world. By connecting the events in the life of Jesus to Old Testament prophesies, we can see God at work fulfilling His plan to redeem the world.

Secondly, the psalm points to the coming again of Jesus in final victory. (Psalm 22:27-28) As followers of Jesus, it is important for us to always be mindful that Jesus isn’t finished with his work. He will complete the restoration of God’s Kingdom on earth, and we get to be co-laborers with him in that work.

Lastly, I am writing this meditation in the second week of the Fifteen Day Coronavirus Guidelines, and we have no idea when things will get better. We all are experiencing trials and distress in our lives. In such times, Jesus is our model. As we yield ourselves to him, he will empower us to follow his path that was prophesied in Psalm 22. Like Jesus, we can openly acknowledge to God our sense of despair, to remember God’s past care for our lives, to embrace the reality of our circumstances, and to know God as our strength who comes quickly to our aid.

My Takeaway: Let us proclaim with the psalmist,

“I will praise you in the great assembly.

I will fulfill my vows in the presence

of those who worship you.”

Psalm 22:25

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.

Copyright © 2020 by Alex M. Knight

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.