The more I read about Jesus, the more amazed I am at the life He lived, especially during His years of public ministry. It’s easy to frame Him as one of us and forget Who He is when we read the Gospels. He is the One who parted the Red Sea through Moses, breathed life into Adam, and led the Israelites through the wilderness while giving them manna from Heaven.
When He taught, He was teaching the eternal words of the one true God. Not only was He speaking the words of His Father, but He Himself was the Word, as John eloquently tells us. This is precisely why,
“When Jesus finished these sayings, the crowds were astonished at his teaching,
for he was teaching them as one who had authority, and not as their scribes.” (Matthew 7:28-29 ESV).
I often wonder how I would react if God allowed me to be transported to the days when Jesus walked the earth. How would I approach Him? Certainly, He would be able to communicate with me in English or give me the ability to understand Hebrew and Greek. But would I even be able to speak knowing I was standing in the presence of my Creator?
Think about it. Knowing what we know about Jesus, how overwhelmed would we feel knowing we were in the presence of God Almighty? Perhaps we’d crumble into a pile, feeling ten times the weight that Peter felt when he fell down before Jesus and said,
“Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord.” (Luke 5:8b ESV).
But even though people might not have understood all we do about Jesus, those with a tender heart who sought truth and were open to the message Jesus brought knew He was someone special, someone different. And not just the Jews. Many Gentiles recognized that Jesus was more than just an itinerant preacher with a good message. Consider the Centurion in Luke 7.
“Now a centurion had a servant who was sick and at the point of death, who was highly valued by him.
When the centurion heard about Jesus, he sent to him elders of the Jews, asking him to come and heal his servant.” (Luke 7:2-3 ESV).
Unfortunately, I don’t think we can truly understand fully what is going on here like the people of the first century did. What was part of their culture is history for us to study so we can truly understand the power of what we are about to read. What went without being said to them is uncovered to us through a study of their culture. Sure, we can walk away with the eternal truths in Luke 7 just by reading the text, but much of the subtle yet overpowering lessons they walked away with may escape us.
This society had a pecking order that evolved over centuries, and this order made their society work. Everyone knew their place and their role within this society. For our purposes in Luke 7, these roles included patrons, clients, and mediators. Patrons were the ones with power and resources who shared with people who had no means to acquire on their own what they needed. The people who needed things became the clients of the patrons who could provide.
Once a patron/client relationship was created, each had roles and responsibilities to the other. Patron used their resources, influence, and power to provide what their clients needed. The client, then, would look for ways to honor their patron and serve whenever called upon by their patron.
In Luke 7, the Centurion was the patron to the Jews, and the Jews became his clients. So when the Centurion had a sick servant whom he valued very highly, he called in favors to the Jews to bring the Healer to him.
The Jews would then be obligated to act in their patron’s best interest. What the Centurian was asking of his clients is that they mediate between him and Jesus to convince Jesus to come and heal his servant. As Luke writes this story, many things we miss would jump off the page to those living in this society. As we continue with the reading, listen for the societal elements of the patron/client/mediator relationship that play out. When we’re done, we will see an amazing reversal that happens.
“And when they came to Jesus, they pleaded with him earnestly, saying, “He is worthy to have you do this for him,
for he loves our nation, and he is the one who built us our synagogue.” (Luke 7:4-5 ESV).
Can you see these elements of their society coming out in this story already? The Jews praised the Centurion and sought the favor of Jesus for him. They esteem their patron in the eyes of Jesus and plead for Him to do this favor for the Centurion. However, they didn’t approach Jesus as an equal patron but as someone who should also become a client to this Centurion. Jesus owed it to this generous man to serve him in his time of need.
Now, one would think that Jesus would refuse this summons. After all, Jesus is no one’s client. He did not come to be brought under the service of any one man. He came to serve all of mankind by laying His life down for everyone. Yet Jesus surprises us and goes.
“And Jesus went with them. When he was not far from the house, the centurion sent friends, saying to him, “Lord, do not trouble yourself, for I am not worthy to have you come under my roof.” (Luke 7:6 ESV).
It is on the way to the Centurion that we see this reversal happen. It is the patron who places himself as a client of Jesus. The Centurion recognizes the preeminence of Jesus over himself, which was not an easy thing to do for a conquering occupier. Yet he humbly submits to Jesus and recognizes His authority as he goes on to say through his messengers,
“Therefore, I did not presume to come to you. But say the word, and let my servant be healed.
For I too am a man set under authority, with soldiers under me: and I say to one, 'Go,' and he goes; and to another, 'Come,' and he comes; and to my servant, 'Do this,' and he does it.” (Luke 7:7-8 ESV).
As we consider this story, it’s easy for us to see the belief that the Centurion has in Jesus’ ability to heal, even at a distance, as the thing that causes Jesus to have the reaction He has. But I submit that it may be more than that. Jesus saw a man of means, power, and wealth yield himself as a client to Him. It would have been highly irregular for someone in his station to do in this society. Let’s read Jesus’ reaction.
“When Jesus heard these things, he marveled at him, and turning to the crowd that followed him, said, “I tell you, not even in Israel have I found such faith.” (Luke 7:9 ESV).
You see, it’s one thing to believe that Jesus can do things for us. It’s another thing to recognize His preeminence over us so completely that we yield to Him even as we seek His favor. We don’t bargain with the Savior as though we have anything of value that can entice Him to grant our petitions. We approach Him as a client seeking aid from our Patron.
I am convinced that these societal norms would have spoken loudly through this story to those who lived in this society. The people who witnessed this not only would have been amazed that Jesus healed from a distance but that the one who had built a synagogue from his own resources yielded himself up to the One he recognized as the true patron.
Luke finished the account by telling us,
“And when those who had been sent returned to the house, they found the servant well.” (Luke 7:10 ESV).
To me, the greatest lesson we can take from this passage is not that Jesus heals in amazing ways but that in all things, He is the patron we all rely on, and we all approach Him as His clients. He offers the things we cannot get on our own, and because of that, we need Him. When we recognize our need for Him, we will do what the Centurion did when he recognized His need for Jesus. We yield to Him and His authority fully.
When we realize Who the Master is, Jesus will also acknowledge the great faith behind our absolute submission to Him.
I am in the book of Ezekiel in my daily Bible reading. In chapter 18, God says the person who sins will die. The father will not be guilty of the son's sins, and neither the son be guilty of the father's sins.
God says,
“For I have no pleasure in the death of anyone, declares the Lord GOD; so turn, and live.” (Ezekiel 18:32 ESV).
But God makes it clear in this chapter that if the righteous turns from his righteousness, then those acts of righteousness will not be remembered by God, and the person will die.
And if the wicked stops doing his wickedness and practices righteousness, then his wicked acts will not be remembered, but he will live for turning away from his wickedness.
Yet, we tell God that He is not being fair when He acts this way:
“Yet the house of Israel says, 'The way of the Lord is not just.' O house of Israel, are my ways not just? Is it not your ways that are not just?” (Ezekiel 18:29 ESV).
What is God saying in response to man's accusation against Him? Simply, that God is concerned with man's walk. We are quick to expect God to show grace when we turn from sin and walk in righteousness, aren't we? But sometimes, we want God to ignore our current unrighteous acts if we have a history of doing good.
What we learn about God in Ezekiel 18 should bring us comfort. We will not be condemned for anyone else's sins, and no matter how sinful and wicked we have been, if we turn to God, He will never hold those sins against us.
We are never beyond redemption. Yet, we will never be able to bank up righteous deeds that will cover future acts of sins against God.
It is not what we have done in the past that will save or condemn us, but it is what we are doing now that God is looking at. That may not seem fair to us, and we may be tempted to say to God, “Your way is not just.” But God teaches us that this is precisely how His justice and grace work together.
Let us all continue our walk with Him, and when we stumble, turn to Him for aid. Indeed, God is always in our corner. He desires all of us to turn and live. He has no desire for the loss of anyone, including you and me.
Isaiah tells us:
“I am the LORD; that is my name; my glory I give to no other, nor my praise to carved idols.” (Isaiah 42:8 ESV).
But in the book of John, before Jesus died, we read the prayer Jesus made to the Father when He says,
“And now, Father, glorify me in your own presence with the glory that I had with you before the world existed.” (John 17:5 ESV).
When Jesus prays that the Father glorify Him with the glory He had before the world existed, we learn,
Jesus existed before the creation
and
Jesus had glory that belonged to God only, glory that God gives to no other.
The rightful glory of Jesus, and the Father's willingness to give it to Him, is a powerful testimony to the deity of our Lord and King Jesus.
I am in Ezekiel in my daily Bible reading. In chapter 37, Ezekiel recounts his vision of a valley of dry bones. It is an amazing story of restoration.
As God looks out over this valley with Ezekiel, they engage in this conversation:
“And he said to me, “Son of man, can these bones live?” And I answered, “O Lord GOD, you know.” (Ezekiel 37:3 ESV).
What an amazing answer! Most people would look at the situation and say, “No, they cannot live. They are dead, dry bones.” But by now, Ezekiel understands that nothing is beyond God's power.
When we approach God in prayer, do we do so having already determined in our heart what is or is not possible for God? Or do we approach Him with the understanding that God knows what He can, or will, do?
Our God was not only able to do all that He pleased in the past, He can still do all that He pleases. Do we have the faith in God's power today that Ezekiel had when he viewed the valley of bones?
Sometimes learning to live with less enables you to live with more.
“Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content.” (Philippians 4:11 ESV).
If tomorrow, our nation passed a law that said the Bible is hate speech and outlawed the owning, writing, and speaking of Scripture, would your life change much from the way it is today?
What was once unheard of may soon be in the realm of possibilities.
“So they called them and charged them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus.
But Peter and John answered them, “Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you rather than to God, you must judge,
for we cannot but speak of what we have seen and heard.” (Acts 4:18-20 ESV).
What was so amazing about the resurrection of Jesus? Many other people in both the Old and New Testaments were resurrected. But among other reasons, He was the first who rose from the dead and never died again.
“And as for the fact that he raised him from the dead, no more to return to corruption,' ... but he whom God raised up did not see corruption.” (Acts 13:34a, 37 ESV).
Jesus conquered death, paving the way for His faithful servants to do the same. Because His body never saw corruption by dying again, we have hope that when we die, we too will rise, never to die again and see corruption.
I am beginning the book of John in my daily Bible reading. This has to be one of my favorite books in the Bible. John is the most straightforward writer who, through the Spirit, tells us as plainly as possible that Jesus is God Who came to earth to visit His creation.
John said,
“He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him.” (John 1:11 ESV).
As Creator, Jesus owned everything. Even the people He was born into, the Jews, were His chosen people. Yet the Creator was rejected by their Maker.
John lays out his Gospel to show how Jesus was more than a mere prophet. Indeed, our Savior is the Son of God. Chapter One lays out the prism through which we should read the rest of the book.
It will be hard for me to pick out one observation per daily Bible reading. For three days, I get to focus on reading about God, Who visited His people. And for three days I will have to pass up so many rich nuggets to speak on.
My observation today is simply the praise and worship we should give to Jesus, our God, who left it all because He sought His lost sheep and laid down His life for each of us.
I am reading about some of the idols and false gods that people used to worship. I am specifically spending time studying about the worship of Ba'al.
It's amazing to me how quickly people will kneel before a piece of wood or metal and attribute to it things only belonging to the one true God.
While our society has pretty much done away with kneeling before physical idols, it seems to me that the spirit of these idols, Ba'al in particular, is alive and resurgent even today.
It doesn't take a physical idol we can hold to be guilty of worshipping a false god. Our false gods can be invisible and still take the glory that belongs to the one true God.
As our society shifts to worshipping the spirit of idols long-thought extinct, let us not get caught up with those who give glory to the creation and not to the Creator.
I am in John in my daily Bible reading. John gives us a glimpse into Jesus and His deity. On many occasions, Jesus makes claims that force people to take a stand.
Here are a couple of places where Jesus made statements that caused the people to either accept or reject Him, and many chose to reject Him. They found Him worthy of death.
“Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am.”
So they picked up stones to throw at him, but Jesus hid himself and went out of the temple.” (John 8:58-59 ESV).
And
“I and the Father are one.”
The Jews picked up stones again to stone him.” (John 10:30-31 ESV).
Today, Jesus makes claims that many of us do not like. We want Jesus to conform to us rather than us conforming to Him. We are often like the Jews. As long as He is the Messiah we want Him to be, we are fine with Jesus.
But when Jesus forces us to take a stand on something we do not like, are we ready to take up stones against Jesus? Are we only ready to accept Him and His word as long as it's what we want to hear from Him?
Today, the Words of Jesus also make us take a stand. He says He is the only way to the Father. Do we believe Him, or are we ready to take up stones because He is not inclusive enough for us?
He says that we will obey Him if we love Him. Do we believe Him, or are we ready to take up stones because we have the right to do what makes us happy?
Jesus is not politically correct, He is very exclusive, and He expects our obedience and allegiance. Are we ready to submit to Him in all things, or do we, too, take up stones to stone Him because we do not accept what He says?
I just finished John in my daily Bible reading. We could discuss so much about Jesus to be thankful for on this Thanksgiving Day. His willingness to die on the cross, His resurrection, conquering death for us, and His Kingship that gives us an everlasting home with Him.
My observation today comes from Mary's response when she sees Jesus after his resurrection and initially thinks He is the gardener:
“Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?” Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away.” (John 20:15 ESV).
At this point, Jesus opens her eyes and reveals Himself to her:
“Jesus said to her, “Mary.” She turned and said to him in Aramaic, “Rabboni!” (which means Teacher).” (John 20:16 ESV).
He was back! Can you imagine the joy of getting your loved one back after death? What sheer joy! But the problem was that Jesus wasn't back for good. He was only here for a few days, and then He would ascend to take the rightful throne promised to Him by the Father. In this new role as King and High Priest, Jesus would serve us in the most amazing way.
He would be our strong Shepherd-King who keeps every one of us in His hand. He would intercede with the Father for us, using His own blood as the propitiation to appease the Father. And so, He breaks it to Mary that His stay on earth is a short one and not to get too attached to Him here.
“Jesus said to her, “Do not cling to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to my brothers and say to them, 'I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.'“ (John 20:17 ESV).
Today, I am thankful for my Lord and King, who laid down His life for me, took it up again, and then ascended to take His throne so I could have a perfect, divine King who washes away my sins and is my advocate and mediator to the Father.
I am thankful that one day, He will return to take me home to be with Him forever because not one of His sheep will ever slip through the cracks unnoticed by Him. I am thankful because my Savior and King knows my name, and He knows your name, too.
I am reading Galatians and Colossians in my Daily Bible reading. In Colossians, Paul gives family members instructions to ensure that we will always be able to give thanksgiving for the family God has provided to us:
“Wives, submit to your husbands, as is fitting in the Lord.
Husbands, love your wives, and do not be harsh with them.
Children, obey your parents in everything, for this pleases the Lord.
Fathers, do not provoke your children, lest they become discouraged.” (Colossians 3:18-21 ESV).
And in Galatians, Paul reminds us that we cannot fool God. We cannot live one way, against God, and expect that we will somehow fool God into thinking we are something we are not.
“Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap.
For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life.” (Galatians 6:7-8 ESV).
As we consider our family life and all that we do, are we choosing to live to ourselves, or are we living to Jesus? Are we sowing to the Spirit or to the flesh?
We might be able to fool some people, but God always knows exactly what is happening. He will not be mocked. That's something we should never forget.
I am in the book of Daniel in my daily Bible reading. After studying the sovereignty of God, I will never read the first six chapters the same way again.
Everything points to God showing the most powerful man on earth at that time what true sovereignty is and how all authority flows from the Creator, the one true God in heaven.
It culminates in this declaration of praise and humility from the pen of Nebuchadnezzar himself. May we all fall to our knees before the one true God with the same praise and humility that this ancient king gave to God:
“At the end of the days I, Nebuchadnezzar, lifted my eyes to heaven, and my reason returned to me, and I blessed the Most High, and praised and honored him who lives forever, for his dominion is an everlasting dominion, and his kingdom endures from generation to generation;
all the inhabitants of the earth are accounted as nothing, and he does according to his will among the host of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth; and none can stay his hand or say to him, “What have you done?” (Daniel 4:34-35 ESV).
In my opinion, what's worse than refusing to accept Jesus and then standing before Him on the Day of Judgment?
Knowing who He is, planning on coming to Him, but not today, and then having to stand before Him in judgment unprepared because we have yet to give our allegiance to Him.
“For he says, “In a favorable time I listened to you, and in a day of salvation I have helped you.” Behold, now is the favorable time; behold, now is the day of salvation.” (2 Corinthians 6:2 ESV).