Tag: Messiah

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Acts Devotionals 2

Proclaiming Jesus

Messiah, Son of God, Christ, King

Immediately he began proclaiming Jesus in the synagogues: “He is the Son of God”…

But Saul grew stronger and kept confounding the Jews who lived in Damascus by proving that Jesus is the Messiah. (Acts 9:20, 22)

It’s easy to just glance over these verses without a second thought.

But as I’ve mentioned before, one thing that we see in Acts is that the heart of the gospel is “Jesus is Lord.”

We see that in Paul’s messages right from the start.

“Jesus is the Son of God,” “Jesus is the Messiah,” were different ways of saying the exact same thing: “Jesus is God’s anointed King.”

The implication?

“It’s time to submit yourself to your good King’s reign.”

So as we tell people about who Jesus is, yes, it’s important to talk about how he is God who became human and dwelt among us. Yes, it’s important to tell people that he’s our Savior.

But the most important thing to tell them is, “He’s your rightful King. Come back under his good reign.”

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Acts Devotionals 2

The heart of the gospel

Empty tomb

With great power the apostles were giving testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus… (Acts 4:33)

At my church, we’ve recently been rethinking what the message of the gospel is.

And as we have, some passages that have always puzzled me have started to become crystal clear.

For example, why is it that in passages like the above, the death of Jesus on the cross for our sins is skipped? That would seem to be a crucial part of the gospel message.

Certainly, Jesus dying for our sins is true and important. But it seems whenever the cross is mentioned in Acts, the apostles focused instead on how the people rejected their rightful King. (Acts 2:23, 36; 3:14-15; 4:10-12, 25-28; 5:30-31)

Then there’s this famous passage:

If you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. (Romans 10:9)

Again, the cross is completely skipped over in favor of the resurrection? Why?

I think it’s because of what the resurrection means. Paul tells us in at the beginning of Romans,

[Jesus] was appointed to be the powerful Son of God according to the Spirit of holiness by the resurrection of the dead. (Romans 1:4)

We often think of the term “Son of God” in terms of Jesus’ deity. But in Jewish thought, kings were considered “sons of God.” By his resurrection from the dead, Jesus was appointed the ultimate “Son of God”, King of kings and Lord of lords.

So when Paul says, “If you confess with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved,” he’s really saying the same thing twice: Salvation comes as we confess Jesus as Lord, believing that God appointed him as our rightful King through his resurrection from the dead.

We see all this in the first gospel message in Acts where Peter said,

God has raised this Jesus; we are all witnesses of this. Therefore, since he has been exalted to the right hand of God…

Therefore let all the house of Israel know with certainty that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Messiah.” (Acts 2:32-33, 36)

Keep in mind, that “Messiah” and “Christ” both mean God’s anointed King.

What am I trying to say?

The heart of the gospel is not, “God loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life,” true though those words may be.

The heart of the gospel is not, “Jesus died for your sins to save you so that you could go to heaven,” though through Jesus’ death, we now do have the promise of eternal life in his Kingdom.

The heart of the gospel is “Jesus is Lord — your rightful Lord.”

So when we call people to repent, we’re not simply saying, “Tell God you’re sorry for your sins.”

We’re saying, “Come back under his good reign. Be saved from this corrupt generation that has rejected its rightful King.” (Acts 2:23, 36-40; 3:13-15, 19-20)

As we go through this book, look for that theme. Because it will come up time and again, especially in the gospel messages the apostles preached.

For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile—
the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him, for, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” (Romans 10:12-13, NIV)

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Acts Devotionals 2

Not a heavy thing

Journey of faith

Therefore repent and turn back, so that your sins may be wiped out, that seasons of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord, and that he may send Jesus, who has been appointed for you as the Messiah…

You must listen to everything he tells you...

God raised up his servant and sent him first to you to bless you by turning each of you from your evil ways.” (Acts 3:19-20, 22, 26)

Jesus, you have been appointed as our Messiah, our King.

And as our King, we owe you our obedience—in everything.

Yet I choose to believe this is not a heavy thing.

Because in doing so, I am refreshed and find blessing in you.

You are my King.

And I delight in obeying you.

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Luke Devotionals

A good Lord?

Simeon in the temple

Now, Master,
you can dismiss your servant in peace,
as you promised.

For my eyes have seen your salvation.
You have prepared it in the presence of all peoples—
a light for revelation to the Gentiles
and glory to your people Israel. (Luke 2:29-32)

I was thinking on that word, “Master” today.

The underlying Greek word for “Master” gives us our modern English word “despot.”

But back then, it had none of the negative connotations that the word has now.

That being said, it did have the idea of someone who has the right and power to command.

But I think it’s clear that Simon didn’t see this as a bad thing. This “Master” was a good Lord who prepared salvation, not just for the Jews, but for all people.

The shepherds took it the same way. When they heard that the Christ, a new King had been born, they rushed to see him. And after seeing him, they rejoiced, telling everyone they could about him.

The Jews, on the other hand, did not see Caesar Augustus as a good “master.” There was no rejoicing at his reign. There definitely was no joy at being forced to register for tax purposes.

The question for us is how do we see our Lord?

Does it make us uneasy to see him as King, not in name only, but in truth?

Do we balk at the idea that he has the right and power to command?

Unless we truly believe he is a good Lord, a good King, we will never joyfully submit to and follow him.

Instead, it becomes a burden. Something to try to escape. Even something to fear.

How do you see your Lord?

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Mark Devotionals

Who Jesus really is

Mark

Who is Jesus, really?

The disciples should have known. But somehow, they didn’t.

It should have been clear to them after Jesus fed the 5000. But after Jesus calmed the storm, it’s clear that they still didn’t really know. (Mark 6:51-52)

It should have been clear after he fed the 4000. But even after that, it still wasn’t.

When Jesus warned them against the leaven of the Pharisees and Herod, they thought he was referring to the fact that they had no bread.

And so Jesus said,

Why are you discussing the fact you have no bread?

Don’t you understand or comprehend? Do you have hardened hearts? Do you have eyes and not see; do you have ears and not hear? (Mark 8:17-18)

What did they not see, hear, or understand?

That Yahweh himself was in their midst.

The same Yahweh that fed the Israelite bread in the desert (Exodus 16), the same Yahweh that calmed the sea (Jonah 1:13-16, Psalm 107:27-30), the same Yahweh with the shepherd’s heart for his people (Psalm 23, Mark 6:34, 8:2-3) was the same Yahweh who was with them now.

Was it any wonder the joy Jesus felt when Peter finally got it, proclaiming him as the Messiah, the Son of the living God? (Mark 8:29; Matthew 16:16)

But even so, Peter’s comprehension was incomplete and he ultimately tried to contradict his Lord’s words (Mark 8:32-33).

How about us? Do we realize that in Jesus, Yahweh is truly with us?

That when we are in need, he will provide?

That when the storms of life hit, he will bring us through?

That when he speaks, we are to believe and follow no matter what?

Or does he look at us in amazement, and say, “Don’t you understand yet?” (Mark 8:21)

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Colossians Devotionals

A prayer of worship

Colossians

I must admit, I don’t worship nearly enough as I should when I read the Bible. But this time, I couldn’t help myself.

Lord, as I look at this passage, I can’t help but worship you.

Jesus, you are the image of the invisible God. In you, we see Him who is invisible.

Jesus, you are the firstborn, the one who is preeminent over all creation. Why preeminent?

Because you are their creator. You created all things. All things! Visible and invisible. In heaven and on earth. Thrones, dominions, rulers, and authorities, all things! Created through you! And created for you!

You were before all things! And in you, all things hold together!

You are the head of the church.

You are the beginning.

You are the firstborn, preeminent among all those who rose from the dead, because you alone never died again. You alone received a resurrection body upon rising from the grave.

More, all the fullness of the Father was pleased to dwell in you.

And through you, the Father reconciles all things through the blood you shed on  the cross. And by your death, you reconciled me to yourself, in order to present me holy, blameless, and above reproach before the Father.

You are the mystery that was hidden for ages and generations, but now revealed to the saints. And now you dwell in us. You are the hope of glory.

In you, Jesus, the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily, and I…we have been completely filled in you.

You are the head of all rule and authority.

In you, our hearts have now been circumcised, the power of sin cut off away from us. We have been buried with you in baptism, and raised with you through the powerful working of the Father.

I was dead in my trespasses. But now I have been made alive with you. The Father has raised me with you and forgiven my sins, canceling the record of debt that stood against me.

All the things that came before in the ceremonial law, the food laws, the festivals, the Sabbath, they were the shadow. But you, Jesus, are the substance, the reality that all these things pointed to.

You are the one from whom the whole body, the church, is nourished and knit together, growing with a growth that is from God.

Thank you, Jesus, for who you are. Thank you Jesus for all you’ve done.

Amen.

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Acts

A pattern of rejection

Acts

In this passage, we see the church’s first martyr, Stephen. Stephen was one of the seven deacons that had been chosen by the apostles in the first part of chapter 6.

But in preaching the Word of Christ, he came into conflict with the Jewish leaders, and he was hauled before the Sanhedrin, with false witnesses testifying against him.

When asked to give his defense, Stephen went into a detailed account of Israel’s history. His main point? That the Jews, time and again, rejected those God had sent to save them.

They did it with Joseph, sending him to Egypt as a slave, only to have Joseph save their lives later from the famine that had struck their land.

They did it with Moses, not only rejecting him before his encounter with God at the bush, but after he had led them out of Egypt.

This pattern continued even after they entered the land God had promised them as they rejected the words of the prophets and worshiped false idols.

And now, they had rejected the Christ himself. And still they claimed they were God’s people because they worshiped in his temple. But as Stephen said,

The Most High does not live in houses made by men.

As the prophet says: ‘Heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool.’

What kind of house will you build for me? says the Lord. Or where will my resting place be? Has not my hand made all these things? (Acts 7:48-50)

In other words, “The temple means nothing if you have rejected and murdered the one God sent to save you!”

The Sanhedrin’s response? They continued in the pattern of their fathers. They murdered a man sent to warn them to repent.

How about you? What kind of pattern do you have in your life?

You may be religious. You may go to church every week and do a lot of good things. But if you reject Jesus as Lord and Savior and reject those who share the gospel with you, all your religious acts mean nothing to God.

Instead, you will find yourself condemned along with all the others throughout history who have rejected Jesus and those whom Jesus has sent to warn them.

There is only one way of salvation, and that’s through Christ. Won’t you receive him today?

Father, I have sinned. All my life, I have lived my own way and rejected the One you sent to save me. Jesus thank you for dying on the cross to take the punishment for all the wrong things I have done.

Now I accept you as my Lord and Savior. Fill me with your Spirit, and teach me how to follow you each day. In your name I pray. Amen.

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Psalm108-

Our King and Priest

Psalms

Today, we see one of the most famous Messianic psalms. Jesus himself quoted Psalm 110 in posing a puzzle to the Pharisees (Matthew 22:41–45).

And here, Yahweh (the LORD, that is, God the Father) says to the Messiah (David’s Lord),

Sit at my right hand
until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet. (Psalm 110:1)

In ancient times, a victorious king would put his foot on his defeated enemy’s neck. And so God promises victory to Jesus over his enemies, and that his rule would extend throughout the earth, even over those who would rebel against him. (2)

But in verse 4, we see that Jesus is not only a king, but a priest as well.

Jesus, however, is not an Aaronic priest. Rather, God the Father decrees him as a priest in the order of Melchizedek, who was both a king and priest in the time of Abraham.

Although David was a great king, and though at times he did things that priests did (offering sacrifices and blessing people in the name of the Lord) as did his son Solomon, neither were truly priests.

But Jesus is both our King and Priest. And unlike the Aaronic priesthood, his priesthood will last forever because he himself is from everlasting to everlasting (Hebrews 7:24).

In verse 6, it goes on to say that in the last days, he will judge the nations. On that day, each person will have to stand before his throne to be judged.

The good news is that as our high priest, he is also the one interceding on our behalf before the Father. And so we don’t need to come before God with fear. Rather, as the writer of Hebrews puts it,

Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence,
so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need. (Hebrews 4:16)

Lord Jesus, thank you that not only are you my King and Lord, and not only are you my judge, but you are my high priest as well.

Thank you that you intercede for me daily, and that by your blood shed on the cross, my sins have been wiped clean. Thank you for all that you’ve done.

But more than that, thank you for being who you are. In your name I pray, amen.