Jesus is a different type of King than what many want. Gospels: Week 10 — Jerusalem, commandment, service, and Supper The Bible App SINCE WE LAST LEFT OFF... Rival factions of the religious establishment in Jerusalem have joined forces seeking to kill Jesus. Word about Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead is spreading like wildfire, so... John 12:10–19 (NASB95) 10 ...the chief priests planned to put Lazarus to death also; 11 because on account of him many of the Jews were going away and were believing in Jesus. 12 On the next day the large crowd who had come to the [Passover] feast, when they heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem, 13 took the branches of the palm trees and went out to meet Him, and began to shout, “Hosanna! Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel.” 14 Jesus, finding a young donkey, sat on it; as it is written, 15 “Fear not, daughter of Zion; behold, your King is coming, seated on a donkey’s colt.” 16 These things His disciples did not understand at the first; but when Jesus was glorified, then they remembered that these things were written of Him, and that they had done these things to Him. 17 So the people, who were with Him when He called Lazarus out of the tomb and raised him from the dead, continued to testify about Him. 18 For this reason also the people went and met Him, because they heard that He had performed this sign. 19 So the Pharisees said to one another, “You see that you are not doing any good; look, the world has gone after Him.” Heidelberg Catechism Q&A 31 Q. Why is he called “Christ,” meaning “anointed”? A. Because he has been ordained by God the Father and has been anointed with the Holy Spirit to be our chief prophet... and priest... and our eternal king who governs us by his Word and Spirit, and who guards us and keeps us in the freedom he has won for us. Q&A 123 Q. What does the second request of the Lord's Prayer mean? A. “Your kingdom come” means, Rule us by your Word and Spirit in such a way that more and more we submit to you. Keep your church strong, and add to it. Destroy the devil’s work; destroy every force which revolts against you and every conspiracy against your Word. Do this until your kingdom is so complete and perfect that in it you are all in all. Summary John is the only gospel writer to report on Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead, and as is evident in the way John slyly tells of the chief priests planning to put Lazarus to death also as he segues into what's often referred to as Jesus' triumphal entry, "it is difficult to overemphasize the impact the raising of Lazarus had on the people who had come to Jerusalem" (source). Israel at this time simmered with national and messianic hopes, much of it fueled by resentment of Roman rule. So when vast numbers of pilgrims come into the city from the surrounding countryside to celebrate the Passover - the festival that more than any other reminded Israel that God had once liberated His people from a foreign oppressor -the scene is set for a potentially explosive situation. No doubt by this point many in this crowd had heard about Jesus' miracles over the last three years - especially since many of those who'd come to Jerusalem for Passover were from the Galilean region that Jesus was from. So as the word spread that Jesus has not just given a blind man sight or simply healed some lepers, but had raised a man four days dead, many were seeking for Jesus, wondering if He would come to the feast (John 11:56). After all, this would be the perfect moment for Jesus to seize the day (carpe diem - to borrow from Roman poetry of the day) and claim His crown. So as Jesus came near Jerusalem, the crowd took the branches of palm trees, just like their ancestors had done to celebrate victories (which you can read about in the apocryphal book of Maccabees), and they began to chant a paraphrase of Psalm 118: “Hosanna [Save us]! Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel.” If Jesus intended to seize an earthly throne, there could hardly have been a better moment. Dig Deeper But John, inspired by the Holy Spirit, and writing from a perspective decades after Jesus was glorified, when he and others remembered the things written of Jesus by the Prophets, uses a different passage to describe Jesus' royal role (as do the other gospel writers), paraphrasing the prophet Zechariah's ninth chapter “Fear not, daughter of Zion; behold, your King is coming, seated on a donkey’s colt.” Commentator D.A. Carson notes the significance of this: Jesus does not enter Jerusalem on a war horse (cf. Is. 31:1–3; 1 Ki. 4:26), which would have whipped the political aspirations of the vast crowds into insurrectionist frenzy, but he chooses to present himself as the king who comes in peace, ‘gentle and riding on a donkey’ (Zc. 9:9) Richard Phillips brings all of this into perspective: Against the backdrop of this well-known prophecy, we see how strongly Jesus’ manner of entry served as a rebuke to Jerusalem’s mood. Little did the Jews appreciate that the kind of Messiah they sought was directly contrary to the Savior whom God had promised to send. What a warning this is to us, as Christians and churches, that our spiritual agenda be the one that God has actually mandated in his Word! AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, who sent a Savior coming in His name; ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Pray that you would be ruled by the Word and Spirit in such a way that more and more you submit to you King; ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED:

Don't miss salvation because you're clinging to the 'places' you have. Gospels: Week 10 — Jerusalem, commandment, service, and Supper CONTEXT: Jesus has just raised Lazarus from the dead, an action which was immediately reported to the religious establishment. John 11:47–57 (NASB95) 47 Therefore the chief priests and the Pharisees convened a council, and were saying, “What are we doing? For this man is performing many signs. 48 If we let Him go on like this, all men will believe in Him, and the Romans will come and take away both our place and our nation.” 49 But one of them, Caiaphas, who was high priest that year, said to them, “You know nothing at all, 50 nor do you take into account that it is expedient for you that one man die for the people, and that the whole nation not perish.” 51 Now he did not say this on his own initiative, but being high priest that year, he prophesied that Jesus was going to die for the nation, 52 and not for the nation only, but in order that He might also gather together into one the children of God who are scattered abroad. 53 So from that day on they planned together to kill Him. 54 Therefore Jesus no longer continued to walk publicly among the Jews, but went away from there to the country near the wilderness, into a city called Ephraim; and there He stayed with the disciples. 55 Now the Passover of the Jews was near, and many went up to Jerusalem out of the country before the Passover to purify themselves. 56 So they were seeking for Jesus, and were saying to one another as they stood in the temple, “What do you think; that He will not come to the feast at all?” 57 Now the chief priests and the Pharisees had given orders that if anyone knew where He was, he was to report it, so that they might seize Him. Canons of Dordt Point II, .Article 9: The Fulfillment of God’s Plan This plan, arising out of God’s eternal love for his chosen ones, from the beginning of the world to the present time has been powerfully carried out and will also be carried out in the future, the gates of hell seeking vainly to prevail against it. As a result the chosen are gathered into one, all in their own time, and there is always a church of believers founded on Christ’s blood, a church which steadfastly loves, persistently worships, and—here and in all eternity—praises him as her Savior who laid down his life for her on the cross, as a bridegroom for his bride. Summary The first word of today's passage - therefore - is one of language's most powerful words, bridging the gap between cause and effect. The raising of Lazarus was Jesus' penultimate miracle - or sign as John refers to them (it wasn't His ultimate miracle, of course; that honor clearly belongs to His own resurrection). But It's not hard to understand how quickly word spread of Jesus commanding a four-day-dead man to walk unaided out of a tomb, resulting in a massive therefore moment for everyone: for some, the effect of this most amazing cause would be to have their belief in Jesus solidified, but for others, the effect was to have their hearts hardened all the more. Those in the Jewish religious establishment found themselves squarely in that second camp. Their hardened hearts finally gave their otherwise fiercely opposed parties - the minority Pharisees and the majority chief priests (the Sadducees) - some common ground: from that day on, they planned together to kill Jesus. Their logic was plain to see: If we let Him go on like this, all men will believe in Him, and the Romans will come and take away both our place and our nation. By place they weren't referring to their homes, the temple, or any other physical location, they were referring to their elevated places of status and authority. Ironically, it was because they valued their places so much that they ended up losing both their place and their nation to the Romans approximately three and a half decades after they had Jesus crucified. All of us have a place of our own that we long to cling to rather than surrender it to Christ. What sort of place are you stubbornly trying to hang onto for yourself? And what sort of therefore is this resulting in for you? Dig Deeper Commentator Robert Mounce has an interesting take on Caiaphas: Caiaphas’ cynical solution to the problem of Jesus, the worker of miracles, was pure utilitarianism—“You don’t seem to grasp the fact that it is in our interest that one man die rather than the entire nation be destroyed." In other words, the welfare of Israel rested on their willingness to do what is necessary to preserve it—i.e., to put this man Jesus to death. The power of the human mind to rationalize a course of action, no matter how devious, is marvelous to behold. Better to kill a single person than to let an entire nation perish. Sounds reasonable, but it makes the fatal mistake of disregarding the rights of the individual. All socialist doctrine fails at its basic premise—i.e., that the good of the masses is to be preferred over the good of the individual. History has shown the vacuity of this deceptive doctrine. It is only when the rights of the individual are protected that the welfare of the group is enhanced. Caiaphas' 'prophecy' would indeed come true: one man would indeed die for the people. But Jesus' death wasn't political in nature, the way Caiaphas had envisioned it. Rather, Jesus died to redeem God's people by atoning for our sin so that we would become, as Peter would go on to describe it, a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God's own possession... The establishment sought to kill Jesus to protect their own sacred turf. But God, in His immense sovereignty, used their sinful logic for your salvation, so that, as Peter's proclamation ends, you may proclaim His excellencies. AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, who "powerfully carries out His will... the gates of Hell seeking vainly to prevail against it." ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Pray that you would surrender all of the places in your life to the Lordship of Christ; ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED:

Good praise music is always theologically based. PSALM 103 A Psalm of David. 1 Bless the LORD, O my soul, And all that is within me, bless His holy name. 2 Bless the LORD, O my soul, And forget none of His benefits; 3 Who pardons all your iniquities, Who heals all your diseases; 4 Who redeems your life from the pit, Who crowns you with lovingkindness and compassion; 5 Who satisfies your years with good things, So that your youth is renewed like the eagle. 6 The LORD performs righteous deeds And judgments for all who are oppressed. 7 He made known His ways to Moses, His acts to the sons of Israel. 8 The LORD is compassionate and gracious, Slow to anger and abounding in lovingkindness. 9 He will not always strive with us, Nor will He keep His anger forever. 10 He has not dealt with us according to our sins, Nor rewarded us according to our iniquities. 11 For as high as the heavens are above the earth, So great is His lovingkindness toward those who fear Him. 12 As far as the east is from the west, So far has He removed our transgressions from us. 13 Just as a father has compassion on his children, So the LORD has compassion on those who fear Him. 14 For He Himself knows our frame; He is mindful that we are but dust. 15 As for man, his days are like grass; As a flower of the field, so he flourishes. 16 When the wind has passed over it, it is no more, And its place acknowledges it no longer. 17 But the lovingkindness of the LORD is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear Him, And His righteousness to children’s children, 18 To those who keep His covenant And remember His precepts to do them. 19 The LORD has established His throne in the heavens, And His sovereignty rules over all. 20 Bless the LORD, you His angels, Mighty in strength, who perform His word, Obeying the voice of His word! 21 Bless the LORD, all you His hosts, You who serve Him, doing His will. 22 Bless the LORD, all you works of His, In all places of His dominion; Bless the LORD, O my soul! Heidelberg Catechism Q&A 56 Q. What do you believe concerning “the forgiveness of sins”? A. I believe that God, because of Christ’s atonement, will never hold against me any of my sins nor my sinful nature which I need to struggle against all my life. Rather, in his grace God grants me the righteousness of Christ to free me forever from judgment. Summary The Psalms are certainly the songbook of Scripture, filled with lyrics fit for every purpose, occasion and situation life brings. But we need not wonder how David felt as he penned these words in Psalm 103! Seven times over (no surprise there... seven is the Biblical number of completion) David issues the command to bless the LORD. The word bless has a huge semantic range. What that means is that the word can mean different things in different contexts. We often ask for the LORD's blessing in our lives, and when we do so, we're asking that God give us the strength and provision we need in the moment. As one Hebrew lexicon puts it, to ask for a blessing can mean to "invoke divine favor, with the intent that the object will have favorable circumstances at a future time." But that's not how David uses the word here in Psalm 103. After all, God doesn't need a blessing from us or anyone else! Instead, David uses the word bless to "extol, thank for greatness/goodness, and speak words of the excellence of an object." This is why the NIV and a few other translations often uses the word praise in place of bless. And once again, notice how theologically based David's praise is - David blesses the LORD for who He is: he pardons iniquities, heals diseases, redeems lives, crowns with lovingkindness, and satisfies us with good things. Look for this sort of theological basis in all of the songs you sing this coming Sunday. To genuinely bless the LORD as you sing, you need to know well Who and What you're blessing! Dig Deeper We've seen often how it is that, just as our songs are divided into verses, psalms are divided into strophes. Psalm 103 has four of them. But whereas the verses to our songs are almost always all the same length and meter, that isn't the case for psalms. It's not always easy to find the breaks between each strophe... every English translation I'm looking at divides them slightly differently as they format Psalm 103! But even though each translation is a bit different, the second strophe is far longer than the other three in all of them. And when we begin to unpack it, it's easy to see why David stretched this strophe out - it's all about how the LORD is compassionate and gracious. David keeps going; our God is slow to anger. It's not that He never gets angry, but that even though even the smallest of our sins deserves His full wrath, He's patient with us, because He abounds in lovingkindness - that is, His ḥěʹ·sěḏ covenant love (mentioned 4x). He doesn't give us what our sins and iniquities deserve, and He has removed our transgressions as far as the east is from the west. Psalm 103 helps put to rest a recurring misunderstanding that so many people have about God - that in the Old Testament, He's full of fury, and somehow in the New Testament, He finally mellowed out. That's not at all the case! Just like His Son is the same yesterday, today and forever, so is our Father! The LORD has always had compassion on those who fear Him. So in all His places of dominion, Bless the LORD, O my soul! AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, the LORD, who has established His throne in the heavens, and His sovereignty rules over all; ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Pray that all that is within you will BLESS the LORD; ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED:

Jesus gives you two key commands about the end times. Gospels: Week 9 — Christ’s authority and coming judgment CONTEXT: Jesus is with His disciples in Jerusalem, just days before He'll be arrested and crucified. Matthew 24:1–14 (NASB95) 1 Jesus came out from the temple and was going away when His disciples came up to point out the temple buildings to Him. 2 And He said to them, “Do you not see all these things? Truly I say to you, not one stone here will be left upon another, which will not be torn down.” 3 As He was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, “Tell us, when will these things happen, and what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?” 4 And Jesus answered and said to them, “See to it that no one misleads you. 5 For many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and will mislead many. 6 You will be hearing of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not frightened, for those things must take place, but that is not yet the end. 7 For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and in various places there will be famines and earthquakes. 8 But all these things are merely the beginning of birth pangs. 9 “Then they will deliver you to tribulation, and will kill you, and you will be hated by all nations because of My name. 10 At that time many will fall away and will betray one another and hate one another. 11 Many false prophets will arise and will mislead many. 12 Because lawlessness is increased, most people’s love will grow cold. 13 But the one who endures to the end, he will be saved. 14 This gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all the nations, and then the end will come. Belgic Confession Article 37: The Last Judgment Finally we believe, according to God’s Word, that when the time appointed by the Lord is come (which is unknown to all creatures) and the number of the elect is complete, our Lord Jesus Christ will come from heaven, bodily and visibly, as he ascended, with great glory and majesty, to declare himself the judge of the living and the dead. He will burn this old world, in fire and flame, in order to cleanse it... Summary This discussion between Jesus and His disciples is often referred to as the Olivet Discourse, simply because it took place on the Mount of Olives. But this is about the only aspect of this passage that everybody agrees on. It's one of a few tricky sections of scripture that good Christians, who otherwise agree on nearly every other point of Biblical doctrine, are going to come to very different conclusions on. It's important to remember that Matthew 24 has fifty-one verses, and that we only read the first fourteen of them here today. The chapter gets more difficult as it goes on. The opening verse contains a critical detail that's easy to sail over: Jesus is coming out from the temple as this discussion begins. The disciples trigger it very unintentionally, as they simply point out the famous and architecturally stunning temple buildings that they're seeing (remember, these are small town guys!). But that little tidbit is more than just an insight as to how impressed the disciples were by the big city. Jesus frames His entire response around it: Do you not see all these things - referring to the temple complex. This helps us understand that the primary subject of Jesus' comments is the well documented destruction of Jerusalem and the temple which would take place in A.D. 70, about 37 years after Jesus spoke these words. Yet at the same time, Jesus is speaking of a much more than just the temple when He explains that not one stone here will be left upon another, which will not be torn down. He's also referring to His coming, and of the end of the age. So nearly every prophecy Jesus makes in this chapter is partially fulfilled in 70 A.D., but will be finally fulfilled when Christ returns. Dig Deeper Reams of paper and oceans of ink have been given to various interpretations of what Jesus says here. But since we (thankfully) only have a few paragraphs left here in this space, we'll focus on the two imperatives (commands) that Jesus gives to His disciples, and by extension, to us. See to it that no one misleads you It's no surprise that Jesus begins His answer to the disciples' curiosity about when will these things happen with this command, since our enemy's entire strategy is to lie and twist the truth. Many will come in My name, Jesus explains, and will mislead many. This means that you need to carefully evaluate every bit of preaching and teaching you hear - both from the pulpit, and even more so from your device - to ensure that it is consistent with the full counsel of God's Word. This is a key reason you need to be reading God's Word each day, so that you can properly evaluate what you hear, for Jesus goes on to warn that many false prophets will arise and will mislead many. See to it that you are not frightened Fear was the first instinct of Adam and Eve when they were mislead, so we read this command over and over again all throughout the pages of Scripture because we continually need to be reminded of it. Every day that you read or watch the news, Jesus warns that although you will be hearing of wars and rumors of wars, you need not be afraid, for those things must take place, but that is not yet the end. It's easy to think that there's a sharp increase in terrible events happening around the world, but it's only because we have instant access to everything that happens. Nations have risen against nations, and kingdoms against kingdoms, and in various places there have been famines and earthquakes all though history, so these bad things happening don't necessarily portend Jesus' sudden return. Remember, our Father is sovereign, and as we remind ourselves here often, That though the wrong seems oft so strong, God is the ruler yet. So hold tight to Jesus' promise here that the one who endures to the end, he will be saved. AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, who through His Spirit will enable His chosen to endure to the end; ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Pray for the strength and wisdom to not be misled and not be frightened; ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED:

Jesus calls us to an attitude of servant leadership. Gospels: Week 9 — Christ’s authority and coming judgment The Bible App CONTEXT: The religious establishment - the Pharisees & Sadducees - have been tightening the screws on Jesus, trying to trap Him in His words. By the end of the week, they'll have convicted Him in their sham trials and talked the Roman authorities into crucifying Him. Matthew 23:1–12 (NASB95) 1 Then Jesus spoke to the crowds and to His disciples, 2 saying: “The scribes and the Pharisees have seated themselves in the chair of Moses; 3 therefore all that they tell you, do and observe, but do not do according to their deeds; for they say things and do not do them. 4 They tie up heavy burdens and lay them on men’s shoulders, but they themselves are unwilling to move them with so much as a finger. 5 “But they do all their deeds to be noticed by men; for they broaden their phylacteries and lengthen the tassels of their garments. 6 They love the place of honor at banquets and the chief seats in the synagogues, 7 and respectful greetings in the market places, and being called Rabbi by men. 8 “But do not be called Rabbi; for One is your Teacher, and you are all brothers. 9 Do not call anyone on earth your father; for One is your Father, He who is in heaven. 10 Do not be called leaders; for One is your Leader, that is, Christ. 11 But the greatest among you shall be your servant. 12 Whoever exalts himself shall be humbled; and whoever humbles himself shall be exalted. Belgic Confession Article 31: The Officers of the Church We believe that ministers of the Word of God, elders, and deacons ought to be chosen to their offices by a legitimate election of the church, with prayer in the name of the Lord, and in good order, as the Word of God teaches. So everyone must be careful not to push one’s self forward improperly, but all must wait until called by God, so that they may be assured of their calling and be certain and sure that it is from the Lord. As for the ministers of the Word, they all have the same power and authority, no matter where they may be, since they are all servants of Jesus Christ, the only universal bishop, and the only head of the church. Summary 'Do what they say, not what they do.' That's what Jesus commands the crowds and His disciples to do in regards to the religious establishment of His day - to do and observe all that they tell you. The problem wasn't their source material - they were teaching God's Law, after all - the problem was they were saying good things but not doing them. This sort of hypocrisy, as Jesus explains, lays heavy burdens on men's shoulders. Perhaps you've heard this phrase before in our own day and age, even though it's often leveled unfairly: some people 'weaponize' God's Law. Just as any good thing - like a hammer - can be used to inflict serious injury, so too can God's Law be used to manipulate, crush and hurt people. The problem, of course, wasn't God's Law. It was the insecurity of those who had been entrusted to teach it. Rather than selflessly pointing people to truth and the beautiful ways that God has designed people to live, these false teachers only promoted themselves. Jesus pointed out that they do their deeds to be noticed by men and that they loved the place of honor at banquets and the chief seats in the synagogues. Their goal wasn't to build up God's covenant people, it was to inflate their own image and prestige. Not only were they hurting people as they did so, but they stole the honor and glory of God for themselves that they should have been sharing with their students. Dig Deeper The lesson here certainly isn't that teaching and instruction must be avoided, for such activities form the very basis for the entire concept of discipleship. Jesus lays down a guiding principal that must govern the attitudes of all who seek to follow Him - especially those who've been called and gifted to guide others into the knowledge of both God's Law, and His Gospel (both of which are mutually dependent upon and inseparable from the other). What Jesus explains is the concept that's come to be known as servant leadership. A servant leader has no desire for fancy titles, such as Rabbi or its more modern equivalents. Nor does such a teacher seek to establish a hierarchy in which some lord it over others. Reformed churches seek to hold the Bible's tension on this topic. On one hand, we honor and respect those ordained to ministry (1 Thess. 5:12-13, 1 Tim. 5:17, Heb. 13:17), but at the same time, as our Confession summarizes what Jesus teaches here in Matthew 23, we understand that ministers all have the same power and authority, no matter where they may be, since they are all servants of Jesus Christ. Of course Jesus' teaching here best explains the attitude that we must all have, whether or not you've been called to teach and lead: the greatest among you must be your servant. Those who exalt themselves will be humbled, Jesus explains, but whoever humbles himself shall be exalted. AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, He who is in heaven; ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Pray that the Holy Spirit will instill an attitude of servant leadership in you; ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED:

Don't spurn your King! Put on the new clothes He's given you and come to the feast! Gospels: Week 9 — Christ’s authority and coming judgment Matthew 22:1–14 (NASB95) 1 Jesus spoke to them again in parables, saying, 2 “The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who gave a wedding feast for his son. 3 And he sent out his slaves to call those who had been invited to the wedding feast, and they were unwilling to come. 4 “Again he sent out other slaves saying, ‘Tell those who have been invited, “Behold, I have prepared my dinner; my oxen and my fattened livestock are all butchered and everything is ready; come to the wedding feast.” ’ 5 “But they paid no attention and went their way, one to his own farm, another to his business, 6 and the rest seized his slaves and mistreated them and killed them. 7 But the king was enraged, and he sent his armies and destroyed those murderers and set their city on fire. 8 “Then he said to his slaves, ‘The wedding is ready, but those who were invited were not worthy. 9 Go therefore to the main highways, and as many as you find there, invite to the wedding feast.’ 10 Those slaves went out into the streets and gathered together all they found, both evil and good; and the wedding hall was filled with dinner guests. 11 “But when the king came in to look over the dinner guests, he saw a man there who was not dressed in wedding clothes, 12 and he said to him, ‘Friend, how did you come in here without wedding clothes?’ And the man was speechless. 13 “Then the king said to the servants, ‘Bind him hand and foot, and throw him into the outer darkness; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’ 14 “For many are called, but few are chosen.” Canons of Dordt Article 8: The Serious Call of the Gospel Nevertheless, all who are called through the gospel are called seriously. For seriously and most genuinely God makes known in his Word what is pleasing to him: that those who are called should come to him. Seriously he also promises rest for their souls and eternal life to all who come to him and believe. Article 9: Human Responsibility for Rejecting the Gospel The fact that many who are called through the ministry of the gospel do not come and are not brought to conversion must not be blamed on the gospel, nor on Christ, who is offered through the gospel, nor on God, who calls them through the gospel and even bestows various gifts on them, but on the people themselves who are called. Summary Remember what a parable is - a shocking story with a spiritual meaning. And Jesus' parable here in Matthew 22 has plenty of both shock value and spiritual insight. The parable begins rather innocuously with a king - who clearly represents God the Father - sending His slaves - that is, prophets, apostles & preachers - to call those who had been invited to a wedding feast for his son - no mystery there as to who the son represents. But the plot thickens when the invitees were unwilling to come. D.A. Carson writes, "They slight the king, whose invitation is both an honor and a command." So the king tries appealing to their appetites, telling them the dinner consisting of fattened oxen and livestock is ready. He follows up with a gentle command reminding them of His authority: come to the wedding feast. But those invited thought they had better things to do. They went their way, one to his farm, another to his business. Then things got really ugly - they seized his slaves and mistreated and killed them. They weren't just blowing off an invitation, they were in outright rebellion. So the king responded appropriately, as a king who seeks to protect his kingdom must. He sent his armies and destroyed those murderers and set their city on fire. Dig Deeper It's at this point that Jesus amps up the shock value even higher. Having shown his justice to the invited nobles who'd rebelliously showed they were not worthy, the king now sends his slaves out to invite as many as you find. God wants His gospel invitation proclaimed loudly to anyone and everyone, both the evil and the good. This time, the wedding hall was filled with dinner guests. But then a new problem gets presented: the king saw a man there who was not dressed in wedding clothes. The king is conciliatory towards the man at first, calling him his friend. Perhaps the man was poor and didn't have the requisite attire, and the king could supply an outfit for him. But the man had no excuse. He didn't even beg for mercy. He was speechless. Like those who spurned their invitation, this man had no respect for his king. The king's response was swift, furious and harsh - but also justified. The man was to be bound and thrown into the outer darkness where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. What Jesus wants us to understand here is that the kingdom of heaven has a serious dress code that will not and can not be relaxed. Perfect righteousness is a must. In Revelation 7, John sees a great multitude which no one could count, from every nation... clothed in white robes. An angel explains to John that they were those who had washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. They had the required righteousness, and it wasn't their own! It came from the bridegroom Himself! You, along with everyone else, have been invited to an eternal feast that you don't deserve to attend. Don't let the busyness of your pursuits - farms and businesses - drag you into rebellion! None of your 'clothes' are good enough, but you've been given the spotlessly white wedding clothes such a feast requires through the blood of your Savior, the King's Son. So don't be found speechless before the king! Jesus closes this shocking story with a shocking statement: many are called, but few are chosen. You can find increasing assurance of God's sovereign choice as you take off your filthy, sinful clothes and put on Christ. AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, the King, who calls many, but chooses few; ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Thank God for calling you, and pray that you would grow in your assurance that He's chosen you as well as you respond to His gracious invitation; ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED:

Church Discipline is an opportunity to gain victory in Jesus. Gospels: Week 9 — Christ’s authority and coming judgment Photo: Jack Sharp via Unsplash Matthew 18:15–20 (NASB95) 15 “If your brother sins, go and show him his fault in private; if he listens to you, you have won your brother. 16 “But if he does not listen to you, take one or two more with you, so that by the mouth of two or three witnesses every fact may be confirmed. 17 “If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector. 18 “Truly I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall have been bound in heaven; and whatever you loose on earth shall have been loosed in heaven. 19 “Again I say to you, that if two of you agree on earth about anything that they may ask, it shall be done for them by My Father who is in heaven. 20 “For where two or three have gathered together in My name, I am there in their midst.” Heidelberg Catechism Q&A 85 Q. How is the kingdom of heaven closed and opened by Christian discipline? A. According to the command of Christ: Those who, though called Christians, profess unchristian teachings or live unchristian lives, and after repeated and loving counsel refuse to abandon their errors and wickedness, and after being reported to the church, that is, to its officers, fail to respond also to their admonition— such persons the officers exclude from the Christian fellowship by withholding the sacraments from them, and God himself excludes them from the kingdom of Christ. Such persons, when promising and demonstrating genuine reform, are received again as members of Christ and of his church. Summary Today's passage may begin with the word if, but this particular if comes with the much stronger force of the word when. In other words, the procedures Jesus unpacks here aren't given just in case, perchance, your brother happens to sin, but in the absolute certainty that your brother will sin. What do you do when you find yourself on the receiving end of your brother's sin? Since most of our readers are upper Midwesterners (and the rest wish they were!), our answer in these situations too often is to do nothing. We look the other way and pretend it never happened. Or we brush it off, saying it wasn't really that big of a deal. But sins are always a big deal; they may not always seem so to us, but they are to the One whose thrice-holy character was deeply offended and injured by it. And truth be told, while we work hard to make it look like the offense bounced right off of us, the pain that sin inflicts tends to simmer and fester within us, giving rise to a whole new set of sins like gossip, bitterness and anger. Silence simply seeds another cycle of sin. So Jesus' command for these all to regular occasions is quite simple: Go. Don't blow it off, don't gripe about it to others, and don't sit around stewing on it. Go and show him his fault in private. Though Jesus doesn't say it, what He does say implies it. Go sooner rather than later. Dig Deeper This passage is simply known as the 'Matthew 18 Principle'. It sets the foundation for discipline within the Church. The second half of the opening sentence frames the goal: to win our brother. Notice it's not to beat our brother (in every sense of the word), but to win him - to bring him back to victory in Jesus. Church discipline must always be focused on restoration, and never retaliation. When the sinner does not listen, discipline becomes a team sport: take one or two with you. Jesus' point here isn't the exact number, but the principle. The group needs to be just big enough so that every fact may be confirmed. If the sinner still refuses to listen, then the team gets bigger - the whole church gets involved. And if the sinner keeps plugging his ears, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector. That is, one who needs to hear and respond to the gospel's command to repent and believe. The final two verses of today's passage often get yanked from their context and forced to carry theological loads they were never intended for, as if our Father shall do anything that is asked, as long as two agree on earth about it. Or the oft repeated sigh at a church function to which only two or three have gathered that at least Jesus is there in our midst - which, of course, is true, even if that's not what this verse is intended to mean. What Jesus means here is that when His gathered Church comes together to seek truth and call sinners to repentance, Jesus blesses their efforts. It's no surprise, then, that Jesus' teaching on church discipline comes right after His parable calling us to seek and save the wandering, lost sheep. So for Jesus, Church discipline isn't something to hide from or be embarrassed about. It must be pursued quickly and often, and not initiated just by church officials, but by those sinned against. It must never be more involved than is necessary, and always provide lots of opportunities to restore the sinner to victory. AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, who blesses the restorative discipline of the Church; ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Pray for the wisdom and grace to confront sinners and win them for Christ; ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED:

Psalm 100 gives seven simple commands for Biblical worship. Psalm 100 A Psalm for Thanksgiving. 1 Shout joyfully to the LORD, all the earth. 2 Serve the LORD with gladness; Come before Him with joyful singing. 3 Know that the LORD Himself is God; It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves; We are His people and the sheep of His pasture. 4 Enter His gates with thanksgiving And His courts with praise. Give thanks to Him, bless His name. 5 For the LORD is good; His lovingkindness is everlasting And His faithfulness to all generations. Heidelberg Catechism Q&A 122 Q. What does the first request of the Lord's Prayer mean? A. “Hallowed be your name” means, Help us to really know you, to bless, worship, and praise you for all your works and for all that shines forth from them: your almighty power, wisdom, kindness, justice, mercy, and truth. And it means, Help us to direct all our living— what we think, say, and do— so that your name will never be blasphemed because of us but always honored and praised. Summary Psalm 100 wasn't just for ancient Israel. Nor is it set aside for God's covenant people in general - either the Hebrews of old or Christians today. Rather, as the opening line makes clear, this short psalm, and the seven commands it contains, are given to all the earth! As Abraham Kuyper, the Dutch theologian / scholar / prime minister / journalist from a century ago (he was a remarkable man!) famously said, "There is not one square inch of creation over which Christ, who is Sovereign over all, does not cry, Mine!” Psalm 100 helps remind us that even though in our time the Church may seem smaller and God's people only comprise a small fraction of the entire population, everything in this universe has been created to glorify God. Although the psalm gives seven commands, one of them stands out as the most important. This is primarily evident in the fact that it's the command in the middle, the spot which so often unpacks the main point in ancient near eastern poetry. For those of us who've been reading the Bible together for some time, we're not at all surprised to see what this key imperative is: We must know. The psalmist lists three critical concepts for us to know: That the LORD Himself is God - This echoes one of the Bible's most central claims: Hear O Israel, the LORD our God, the LORD is one (Deut. 6:4). This, of course, stands in stark contrasts to the world's claim that there is no god except for the those which we've constructed. It is He who made us, and not we ourselves - The primary motivation for our sinful rebellion against God is the idea that we are autonomous and can decide for ourselves what is right and wrong. This is painfully evident in so much of the current cultural zeitgeist, which understands humanity to have evolved from nothing, giving us the authority to define our own reality. But this central claim of Psalm 100 issues a much needed corrective. It reminds us not just that we are fearfully and wonderfully made by the LORD, but also of what we confess in the opening question and answer of the Heidelberg Catechism, that I am not my own, but belong - body and soul, in life and in death - to my faithful Savior, Jesus Christ. We are His people, and the sheep of His pasture - The Bible always conveys our belonging to God in comforting terms. Psalm 100 points back to the most well known of the psalms, which opens with the promise that the LORD is our shepherd, so we lack nothing. Dig Deeper Do you ever wonder why we do what we do in our Sunday services at Reformed churches? Why it is that we follow the same specific liturgical elements week after week? Although there's a wide range of worship practices even among Reformed churches in our day and age, most of us adhere to what has come to be known as the Regulative Principle of Worship. It's best summarized by the Heidelberg Catechism's stipulation that we worship God in no other way than He has commanded in His Word (Q&A 96). In other words, Scripture alone sets our order of worship. And Psalm 100 provides an excellent order of worship for us to follow: God calls us into His presence Shout joyfully to the LORD... Serve the LORD with gladness... Come before Him with joyful singing. Hear God's Word proclaimed Know that the LORD Himself is God - He made us, and we are His. Respond to God's Word with praise Give thanks to Him and bless His name Leave with God's blessing (benediction) His lovingkindness is everlasting, and His faithfulness is to all generations It's Friday! The work week is drawing to a close, and the Lord's Day is once again quickly coming. Psalm 100 reminds you of how critically important corporate worship is to remind you of your prime directive in life: to know that the LORD is God. Make gathering with the saints, joyfully singing, hearing Biblical preaching, and personally experiencing God's grace, mercy and peace a priority as you start a new week. AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, the LORD Himself, is God! ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Choose one of Psalm 100's seven imperatives to pray for in your life, that you would: shout joyfully / serve Him gladly / come before Him / know that the LORD is God / enter His gates / give thanks to Him / bless His name; ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED:

Stay focused on knowing and sharing the gift of God. Gospels: Week 8 — Mercy, repentance, and the Good Shepherd Photo: Kahleed Ashi via Unsplash CONTEXT: As He travelled back to Galilee, Jesus took a shortcut that led Him into Samaria - distant cousins of the Jews who were looked down on. John 4:7–26 (NASB95) 7 There came a woman of Samaria to draw water. Jesus said to her, “Give Me a drink.” 8 For His disciples had gone away into the city to buy food. 9 Therefore the Samaritan woman said to Him, “How is it that You, being a Jew, ask me for a drink since I am a Samaritan woman?” (For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.) 10 Jesus answered and said to her, “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is who says to you, ‘Give Me a drink,’ you would have asked Him, and He would have given you living water.” 11 She said to Him, “Sir, You have nothing to draw with and the well is deep; where then do You get that living water? 12 You are not greater than our father Jacob, are You, who gave us the well, and drank of it himself and his sons and his cattle?” 13 Jesus answered and said to her, “Everyone who drinks of this water will thirst again; 14 but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him shall never thirst; but the water that I will give him will become in him a well of water springing up to eternal life.” Canons of Dordt Point II, Article 5: The Mandate to Proclaim the Gospel to All It is the promise of the gospel that whoever believes in Christ crucified shall not perish but have eternal life. This promise, together with the command to repent and believe, ought to be announced and declared without differentiation or discrimination to all nations and people, to whom God in his good pleasure sends the gospel. Summary You've likely learned before from this famous narrative that it was quite shocking for Jesus to be talking to a woman from such a despised, menial background - one who was such an outcast that she was forced to draw water all by herself at a time when the other women had already finished the chore. These things are true enough, and certainly add some depth to the encounter. But John, as he reports this encounter to us, doesn't seem very fixated upon these ancillary details. You can, if you like, take away a lesson or two about how you should be more open to interact with people far outside of your comfort zone, but that's not really the impetus that John - who's inspired by the Holy Spirit - had for including this conversation in his gospel account. John, as he recounts what Jesus said, wants you to first notice her ignorance. If you knew the gift of God, Jesus explained to her, your attitude would be much different. Outside of God's grace, all she noticed was Jesus' external features - primarily, His Jewish ethnicity and lack of regard for societal norms. When Jesus offers her living water, all she, unable at this point to recognize God's gift, responds with are the physical barriers preventing its access - the fact that the well is deep and that Jesus had nothing to draw with. As the story unfolds, it becomes clear that this Samaritan woman has multiple problems and relationship issues, having been rejected by multiple husbands and now sinfully living with another man who'd likely cast her away some day too. Although Jesus makes reference to these things, they're not His primary concern. It's not that He doesn't care - in fact, this narrative makes His compassion abundantly evident! It's just that Jesus tackles her biggest problem first. She needed to first know the gift of God - salvation by grace alone, through faith alone, because of Christ alone. Dig Deeper You probably know - or at the very least, encounter - lots of people with lots of big problems. Maybe you're the one with the big problems! The Bible brings an abundance of good advice and solutions to the practical and pressing problems people experience. So it only makes sense that the better you know your Bible, the better you'll be equipped to apply it to such issues. That's part of the reason for you to keep reading it everyday! But, like Jesus does here, always be sure to keep the Bible's main thing the main thing. Always first connect people to the gift of God - that is, Jesus - before simply pursuing solutions to their problems. Always do all that you can to point them to this living water which springs up to eternal life, otherwise they'll always thirst again, no matter how valid and Biblical your practical advice may be to them. What Jesus wanted this Samaritan woman to know, and what the Holy Spirit - through the Apostle John - wants you to know is the same conclusion that this woman would soon come to herself: that Jesus is the Christ sent to bring salvation to all who trust in Him. AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, who sent His Son, through whom we've been given living water; ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Pray that you will know the gift of God well and be ready and willing to share it with others; ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED:

Jesus came to seek and to save wee little men like us. Gospels: Week 8 — Mercy, repentance, and the Good Shepherd DailyVerses.net Luke 19:1–10 (NASB95) 1 Jesus entered Jericho and was passing through. 2 And there was a man called by the name of Zaccheus; he was a chief tax collector and he was rich. 3 Zaccheus was trying to see who Jesus was, and was unable because of the crowd, for he was small in stature. 4 So he ran on ahead and climbed up into a sycamore tree in order to see Him, for He was about to pass through that way. 5 When Jesus came to the place, He looked up and said to him, “Zaccheus, hurry and come down, for today I must stay at your house.” 6 And he hurried and came down and received Him gladly. 7 When they saw it, they all began to grumble, saying, “He has gone to be the guest of a man who is a sinner.” 8 Zaccheus stopped and said to the Lord, “Behold, Lord, half of my possessions I will give to the poor, and if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I will give back four times as much.” 9 And Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, because he, too, is a son of Abraham. 10 “For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.” Belgic Confession Article 24: The Sanctification of Sinners We believe that this true faith, produced in man by the hearing of God’s Word and by the work of the Holy Spirit, regenerates him and makes him a “new man,” causing him to live the “new life” and freeing him from the slavery of sin. -- It is impossible for this holy faith to be unfruitful in men, seeing that we do not speak of an empty faith but of what Scripture calls “faith working through love,” which leads a man to do by himself the works that God has commanded in his Word. These works, proceeding from the good root of faith, are good and acceptable to God, since they are all sanctified by his grace. Yet they do not count toward our justification— for by faith in Christ we are justified, even before we do good works... Summary A few weeks ago, we read of Jesus calling Matthew to follow Him. Matthew had been a young tax collector, hated by his fellow countrymen for extracting revenue for the tyrannical foreign oppressors, but also under the unscrupulous thumb of a chief tax collector who ran their territories not unlike a mob boss. Zacchaeus was one of these bosses, and Luke here informs us of the obvious: he was rich. But this powerful big man had a big problem. He was small in stature. So although he desperately was trying to see who Jesus was, he was unable because of the crowd. But as Luke tells us the story, it becomes clear that Zacchaeus had more than just a passing curiosity to see somebody famous. It takes a bigger reason than that for a rich man like Zacchaeus to climb up into a sycamore tree like a little child. The ironic part of this story - and remember, our narrator Luke loves to point out irony - is that it wasn't Zacchaeus who saw Jesus. It was Jesus who saw Zacchaeus. Looking up, Jesus said to him, 'Zacchaeus, hurry and come down, for today I must stay at your house.' So far, we're tracking right along with the song so many of us learned so long ago: Zacchaeus was a wee little man, And a wee little man was he. He climbed up in a sycamore tree For the Lord he wanted to see. And as the Savior passed that way He looked up in the tree, And he said, "Zacchaeus you come down, For I'm going to your house today!" Dig Deeper But the song we sang said nothing of the grumbling that ensued. Luke, somewhat enigmatically, simply reports that they all began to grumble because Jesus had gone to be the guest of a man who is a sinner without telling us who the they refers to. But we don't need any help - it's the same self righteous theys who'd been criticizing Jesus' grace since the beginning. Maybe it seems a bit like these theys got into Zacchaeus' head, as he suddenly realizes his unworthiness and concedes half of his possessions to the poor and to pay pack those he'd defrauded four times as much, as if he could win the crowd's favor by writing a check. But that's not what's going on here. Notice that Zacchaeus doesn't say a word to the gathered crowd. He speaks only to the Lord. So did he purchase his salvation with his new found generosity? After all, no sooner after Zacchaeus makes his financial commitment, Jesus announces that today salvation has come to Zacchaeus' house. No longer, Jesus continues, was this chief tax collector to be considered to be an unclean sinner, but now he, too, is a son of Abraham. Of course not. Zacchaeus' costly change of heart was the evidence of his saving faith, not the cause of it - the same Spirit given faith that drove him to climb that sycamore tree in the first place so that he could see Jesus. And that same faith opened his eyes to see that he needed to repent of his sins, and that in his case, repentance needed to be financially demonstrated. In the end, Jesus makes clear it that Zacchaeus wasn't the instigator of this saving encounter. People never are. It's always our sovereign, Triune God who initiates salvation, for the Son of Man has come, Jesus reports, to seek and save the lost: wee little men like you and me. Oh, and Zacchaeus too. AAA Prayer (About) ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Father, who sent His Son to seek and save the lost; ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Pray that like Zacchaeus, you'll give evidence of your saving faith as well, even if it's costly; ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: