Jesus’ Demand for His Disciples (John 21:18-25)

John ends his gospel by describing the way that Peter will die. His Master uses dialogue to address this topic. There is a problem with Peter that must be addressed, a problem that we all have as believers. Comparing ourselves is a serious problem revealed by Peter’s question, “Lord, what about him?” When we compare ourselves, we take our focus off of who Jesus is.

Just over a week ago we celebrated “Good Friday.” Since when does the brutal murder of a 33-year-old Jewish man constitute anything “good”? The betrayal and crucifixion of Jesus Christ was not a good thing. It’s the worst crime ever committed in human history. All of us are guilty of that crime, because our sin put Him on the cross. Yet the betrayal and crucifixion of Jesus Christ was necessary to who Jesus is and what He came to do.

Conventional and Unconventional Wisdom in Transitioning The Pastor-Teacher

Listening to conventional wisdom has not allowed us to hear all that the Bible has to say. Biblical wisdom says that we have a responsibility to train more pastors. In 2 Timothy 2:1-2, Paul instructs Timothy to entrust the things he’s been taught to faithful men. “The things which you have heard from me” -- these things Paul wanted Timothy to pass along to pastor-teachers.

Jesus Will Be Glorified through Suffering.

In John 12:27-36, we come to the end of Jesus’ public ministry. We’ve already talked about the curious Jew worshiping Jesus, the marvelous worshipper Mary, and covetous Judas. As we look at these groups and their responses to Jesus, hopefully we aren’t interested in just calculating what we can get from Jesus like Judas did. Instead, let’s elaborate on how the seed has to die in order to bear fruit.

The heart of a true disciple will trust in Jesus no matter the cost.

Romans 8:28-30 is a favorite passage for many Christians. Sometimes this can be for sentimental reasons which are not bad in and of themselves. It’s important to distinguish what the passage means to us from what the passage actually says, and to get its meaning right. As humans, we need to hear truth repeatedly.

God’s Grace in Difficult Times

The majority of the New Testament writings begin and end with the mention of help from heaven in the form of grace that comes to us by the Spirit of God. Grace saves us, and it is grace that consistently changes us through the glorious agony of sanctification as we live our everyday lives. When grace is our tutor unto Christlikeness, whether things are good or bad, we are pressed to forget those things which are behind and to move forward unto the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. We pursue Christ, allowing His grace to mold us into His image.

Final Thoughts from the Book of Job

Sometimes we endure great difficulty, and like Job, we need to come to the realization that when considering God, some things are too wonderful for us to comprehend (Job 42:3), and that the end, or purpose, of the Lord is always mercy and compassion (James 5:11).

God is Our Safety

Psalm 61 opens with the author, David, not experiencing safety. Different scholars agree that this psalm was written when David was fleeing his son Absalom (2 Sam. 15-17), who not only wanted to overthrow David as king but also desired to kill him. David was far from home and emotionally overwhelmed (Psalm 61:2). This distressing situation was predicted by the prophet Nathan as a consequence to the sin David committed with Bathsheba (2 Sam. 11-12). David is fleeing his own son who is now his enemy (Psalm 61:3). Psalm 61 is a hymn about safety, ‘to the choirmaster: with the stringed instruments,’ for the nation of Israel, who would sing this hymn then and later when in captivity. The understanding of safety is something God’s people should enthusiastically and whole-heartedly affirm.

Job's Restoration with God and Man.

At times, God uses our senses to make His presence known (Psalm 34:8, 1 John 1:1-4). This growth in knowledge of God deepens our relationship with Him. For examples, see Isaiah 6:1-5, Luke 5:8, and 7:6-7. Job has found that theology is only the beginning; it's important, but second to our personal walk with God.

Job's Repentance.

Job’s Friends Speak – Part 2.

These next two cycles of debate can be read in Job 15-33.

Are we trying to get the infinite things of God into our small finite minds? This is the reality of Job as he struggles through his horrific ordeal. As his friends wield accusations, Job seeks to press his mind and heart to know the wonders of the sovereignty of God. He believes it, yet it seems too wonderful for him to fully know. As he struggles through the months of his God-ordained calamity, God’s grace presses him to know and rest in the doctrine of God’s sovereignty.

Job's Friends Speak.

If after a short time of great calamity such as Job experienced – his children killed, his lifestyle and position in the region taken away, and his body suffering like never before – would we be able to say like Job, "Blessed be the name of the Lord"? Could it be said of us that we did not sin with our lips? Job experienced supernatural grace in an hour of agony for those two verses to be written about him (Job 1:21, Job 2:10).

The worst calamity is to be suffering and not to know why.

By Job 2:10, Satan has done his worst to Job and retreated from his life. God is silent and doesn’t make sense, and Job is alone.

Three of Job’s friends come to commiserate with him in Job 2:11-12. They respect his agony and sit with him in silence for 7 days.

In chapter 3, Job speaks. He asks the question “Why?” twenty times in this book, and a few are in this chapter. He asks why he was born (Job 3:3-10), why he is still alive (Job 3:11-19), and why he can’t die now (Job 3:20-26).

Job’s Perspective

Job is a book of wisdom. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom (Psalm 111:10, Proverbs 9:10). Wisdom is not merely knowledge. Wisdom is living the knowledge of God’s will, being able to apply what we know. The genuinely saved person longs to know the will of God and perseveres in living it. Job 1:1 describes Job as blameless and upright, fearing God and turning away from evil, giving us a brief description of the person of Job and his character.

All who are godly do suffer.

Godly people do suffer, sometimes in extreme ways. If we don’t believe that, it can lead to unbiblical assumptions, doctrine, and applications. It is incorrect to assume that all suffering is punishment for sin, or that God owes us prosperity if we obey. We can correct this thinking by getting to know God’s character.

A Study of God in the Book of Job.

We will take several weeks to introduce the book of Job.

The Christian Prayer of Lament.

Did you know that one-third of the Psalms are laments? These honest struggles with difficult circumstances were sung by the congregation of Israel in corporate worship. We don't often pray like that today, especially in a corporate setting. What can we learn from these prayers that were inspired and preserved for us in God's Word?

Why do bad things happen to good people? We know there are no truly good people, but we still wrestle when it seems justice is not being served. We want God to honor people who obey. Jesus addresses this idea of "retribution theology" in today's passage, Luke 13:1-17.