John 17:20-26 - The Trinity and God's Love for His People

John 17:20-26
20 “I do not ask on behalf of these alone, but for those also who believe in Me through their word; 21 that they may all be one; even as You, Father, are in Me and I in You, that they also may be in Us, so that the world may believe that You sent Me.
22 The glory which You have given Me I have given to them, that they may be one, just as We are one; 23 I in them and You in Me, that they may be perfected in unity, so that the world may know that You sent Me, and loved them, even as You have loved Me. 24 Father, I desire that they also, whom You have given Me, be with Me where I am, so that they may see My glory which You have given Me, for You loved Me before the foundation of the world.
25 “O righteous Father, although the world has not known You, yet I have known You; and these have known that You sent Me; 26 and I have made Your name known to them, and will make it known, so that the love with which You loved Me may be in them, and I in them.”

Message: The Trinity and God's Love for His People

Time: While John does not admit to have written this gospel, there is ample evidence from others that he did. It was most likely written in Ephesus around 85-95 AD and is the fourth gospel. John provides a Jesus more clearly as the Son of God. John cites Jesus' seven "I Am" statements, mentions many miracles of Jesus, signifying Him as God's Son. He is the Son of Man and atoned for our sins and the Son of God with eternal implications in rising from the dead.

What the Lord is Saying:

This study, on the doctrine of God, has been illuminating to me as I endeavor to better understand the God that loves me - chose me - wants me to be with Him forever. Today, I see that Jesus with the Father has always been. God's love for Jesus has been present before the foundation of the world.  Yesterday the message was often about unity and this message continues today.

For a moment, I pause to look at the words from Matthew Henry about this passage:

Our Lord especially prayed, that all believers might be as one body under one head, animated by one soul, by their union with Christ and the Father in him, through the Holy Spirit dwelling in them. The more they dispute about lesser things, the more they throw doubts upon Christianity. Let us endeavour to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace, praying that all believers may be more and more united in one mind and one judgment. Thus shall we convince the world of the truth and excellence of our religion, and find more sweet communion with God and his saints. Christ, as one with the Father, claimed on behalf of all that had been given to him, and should in due time believe on him, that they should be brought to heaven; and that there the whole company of the redeemed might behold his glory as their beloved Friend and Brother, and therein find happiness. He had declared and would further declare the name or character of God, by his doctrine and his Spirit, that, being one with him, the love of the Father to him might abide with them also. Thus, being joined to Him by one Spirit, they might be filled with all the fulness of God, and enjoy a blessedness of which we can form no right idea in our present state.

There is oneness with the Trinity in these verses that is expected to be present in all believers. I'm noticing, even moreso today than ever, that the world expects complete uniformity in all areas and finds disputes about many things. The church needs to be about more than this and needs to not dispute about lesser things but instead endeavor to keep the unity. That unity is present in the Godhead and Jesus mentions in this passage the unity found in His relationship with the Father. They are one. This oneness is addressed not to all people, but to all believers. As believers, we do all have different flavors of believing but we need to be more of a people of oneness and realize we are all serving our God together and our chief mission together is to reach all with the Gospel. 

I notice that our church often does a good job with this and it is always something that has interested me about our church and the community desire to work together toward the gospel with other churches. As believers we to love one another, bear one another's burdens, and edify one another. As churches, all too often our focus is each body trying to figure out their mission whether than doing it together. O Lord, what would it look like if we were united together? 

Promise: On our own, love is not easy. We tend to focus on our differences rather than our unity. But we can be a people of love toward one another. God's love for us never stops and our love toward one another is to never stop as well. Unite us Lord. 

Prayer: These verses that I read today from John 17 speak Lord of unity. Lord, we need to be a people united. Lord, I think of this and wonder how we could do this and make this work in our community. We are a people with differences obviously in our worship styles, our preaching, our makeup in the churches, but we should be more about the same purpose and working together for that purpose in our community. There needs to be more unity. 

Note: I follow the readings from the Tabletalk Magazine devotional, though I am a little behind and working through 2017 devotionals. 2017 is a study of key biblical doctrines with January being about the doctrine of God.

Ephesians 2:18 - The Trinity and Christian Unity

Ephesians 2:18
for through Him we both have our access in one Spirit to the Father.

Message: The Trinity and Christian Unity

Time: Paul wrote the letter to the Ephesians sometime in AD 60–61, around the same time he wrote Colossians and Philemon. Ephesians deals with topics at the core of being a Christian - faith and practice, no matter the situation.

What the Lord is Saying:

As I have studied previously, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit work inseparably. Every act of God is from the Father through the Son and in the Holy Spirit. Each person of the Trinity has the same divine attributes, but each person acts in a manner fitting to His unique personal properties. Unbegottenness is the unique personal property of the Father, begottenness is the unique personal property of the Son, and procession is the unique personal property of the Holy Spirit.

They have worked inseparably in creation, making the universe out of nothing - in atoning for our sin - in redeeming the Israelites and man in general, and in sanctifying the saints.

Ephesians 2 is the life of a Christian, showing us being dead in our sins, made alive in Christ, and walking on to live our lives in good works. As this verse records it is through Him (Jesus Christ) that we are made alive (Eph 2:5) as we were dead in our transgressions. Whether people recognize it or no in their lives, it is clear they are dead in their sins. In Christ Jesus you who formerly were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ (Eph 2:12). One of Jesus' complaints to the Jewish leaders was they were excluding the Gentiles from access to God. At one point he got upset with them for turning the synagogue and worship area into a market. He spoke of the fig tree and how they were not bearing fruit. The tabernacle had a place that would give access to the Gentiles, but the leaders instead excluded them.

It is through Him we both have our access. What is the meaning of the word 'both?' Ephesians 1:1 says this writing is from Paul to the saints at Ephesus. He speaks and states that Gentiles were formerly excluded: you were at that time separate from Christ, excluded from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God (Ephesians 2:14). God never intended his chosen people Israel to be his only people. In the temple there was an outer court and inner court. Jesus said in Mark 11:17 quoting from Isaiah 56:7 - My house shall be called a house of prayer for all the nations. The temple had a section for the Gentiles to come into and pray to Yahweh but they were not welcome there. Between Jews and Gentiles there was also a division, an inner court and outer court.

I think it is important here to see that God had always had a mission to the Jew and Gentile, to redeem mankind. He chose Israel and they did not allow the Gentile to be included. Jesus came and opened the access for all. It is through Him we both (Jew and Gentile) have our access.

All too often I think I have thought that the Old Testament was about the chosen people, the Jews as God was about only the Jews. Then Jesus came for the Gentiles. Instead, God has always been about saving and grafting in all people - Jew and Gentile. The Jews were really meant to assist the Gentiles towards God. And now in Christ, after we are all made alive - we are all commissioned to take this message to everyone - to all nations. The message is God wants to redeem or save all.

Promise: It is through Him we both have our access in one Spirit to the Father. Our access to the unbegotten Father God is in one Spirit. It is a three-fold union. It is three-fold unity. We come to Father, in the spirit, through Jesus. Both Jew and Gentile come to the Father in one Spirit. There is unity in coming to God.

Prayer: Lord, thank you for showing me the Unity and confirming the truth of your forever gospel message of saving all people - Jew and Gentile - all nations. You love all and you want all to be with you forever in heaven, in paradise.


Note: I follow the readings from the Tabletalk Magazine devotional, though I am a little behind and working through 2017 devotionals. 2017 is a study of key biblical doctrines with January being about the doctrine of God.

Jude 5 - The Trinity and Redemption

Jude 5
Now I desire to remind you, though you know all things once for all, that the Lord, after saving a people out of the land of Egypt, subsequently destroyed those who did not believe.

Message: The Trinity and Redemption

Time: Jude, half-brother of Jesus, not the apostle Jude. His full name is Judas though shortened to Jude due to the problem with the name Judas (the disciple who betrayed Jesus). Jude placed his faith in Jesus after the resurrection and ascension. The book was probably written between AD 67 and 80, though it is difficult to date. Jude in his writing wants to expose false teachers in the Christian Community and encourage followers to stand firm in their faith.

What the Lord is Saying:

I must admit, these concepts at times are a little difficult to understand and write about and I'm not sure I'm doing a very good job at explaining. As a believer of 51, having trusted in Christ 1 month shy of my 15 birthday I'm discovering now in these lessons some doctrinal understandings I never knew. I'm still piecing them together. But, it is good for there are things about God and my understanding of Him that I know I haven't delved into much. I suppose there is a tendency in life to focus on those things that one is most comfortable understanding. Even as I try to understand this it is somewhat non understandable. There is a mystery to it. But that doesn't mean that faith is blind, just more intellectual than we often give it credit.

The primary subject of late is one of the doctrine of inseparable operations. This doctrine says that each person of the Trinity has the same divine attributes, but each person acts in a manner fitting to His unique personal properties. Unbegottenness is the unique personal property of the Father, begottenness is the unique personal property of the Son, and procession is the unique personal property of the Holy Spirit. Each person of the Godhead existed at the same time and has always existed at the same time. Thus there is a unity of essence among the persons of the triune God. Every act of God is from the Father through the Son and in the Holy Spirit. There is togetherness, unity, yet personal.

The doctrine of redemption - God redeeming or saving or rescuing His people - is the thrust of salvation for each person. For me to say that God has saved me is to mean that prior to my salvation, I was in bondage to living a life apart from God, not of God, not pleasing to God, but pleasing to self and sin. And I'm seeing more and more that this idea of redemption or a need to be found is being weeded out more and more in society. I firmly believe that this societal focus on tolerance has made us all think that whatever one thinks about themselves and their own desires, they are fine to think this and we should all move to accept everyone for the way they seem to be. And yet fear and anxiety and depression remain a part of defining many people as there are extreme societal pressures to achieve and succeed.

The statement that every act of God is from the Father though the Son and in the Holy Spirit - is a compelling statement. This verse from Jude 5 will show that the act of God saving His people from Egypt is here spoken of something Jesus had done. The verse states the Lord, after saving a people out of the land of Egypt. The Lord is the Greek word Iēsous which means Jesus or Jehovah is salvation. Thus, Jude states the act of saving a people out of the land of Egypt is something that Jesus did. Deuteronomy 5:6 says - ‘I am the Lord (Yahweh) your God (Elohim) who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.' Thus, in these verses the Lord Yahweh and Jesus are saving people from the land of Egypt. God works from the Father through the Son and in the Holy Spirit. The act of redemption or sanctification is subscribed also to the Holy Spirit like In 2 Thessalonians 2:13 - But we should always give thanks to God for you, brethren beloved by the Lord, because God has chosen you from the beginning for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and faith in the truth. The work therefore of saving and redeeming God's people is performed by God, the triune God.

Promise: God loves his people. But we come to Him in need, not already complete. God saves us through the work of the Father though the Son by the Spirit.

Prayer: God, I praise you for loving me and knowing what I need. You have saved me and I thank you for helping me see my need for you. I'm saddened by the state of our world and how we often think we don't need you. Lord, change hearts and help people to see their sin. Give me patience with people everywhere. Work through the lives of my children. Keep them safe and draw them each to yourself.

Note: I follow the readings from the Tabletalk Magazine devotional, though I am a little behind and working through 2017 devotionals. 2017 is a study of key biblical doctrines with January being about the doctrine of God.

Hebrews 9:13-14 - The Trinity and Atonement

Hebrews 9:13-14
13 For if the blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkling those who have been defiled sanctify for the cleansing of the flesh,14 how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without blemish to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?

Message: The Trinity and Atonement

Time: Hebrews was written to a group of Christians who had suffered in the past and were now threatened with even more suffering. They'd done well years ago, but the author of Hebrews feared that they might now turn away from Christ to avoid further persecution.The opinions on the author of Hebrews has varied.

What the Lord is Saying:

As I have been learning, the co-working of the three persons of the Godhead (Father, Son, and Spirit) is known as the doctrine of inseparable operations. All are identical in their attributes, yet each has distinguishable manifestations. As we study scripture, we must agree it is all God-breathed so it reveals to us things of God.

Romans 8:32 - He (God) who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him over for us all, how will He not also with Him freely give us all things?
Hebrews 9:14 - the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without blemish to God

Both of these texts share parallel ideas. God and God the Son offer up the Son for redemption and they do so in the Spirit (Acts 10:38 - Jesus of Nazareth, God anointed Him with the Holy Spirit). Atonement is from the Father through the Son offering in the Spirit for our salvation. But, only the Son suffered. The Father and the Spirit did not suffer on the cross. Christ suffered as a man but not according to His deity. Christ was able to offer himself because of the spirit in Him while the animals did it according to flesh. The Spirit here is not conclusively the Holy Spirit but could also mention a divine presence as some manuscripts translate this as eternal spirit.

Hebrews 9 is about the regulations imposed by the tabernacle. 9:7 says - the high priest once a year, not without blood, which he offers for himself and for the sins of the people committed in ignorance. The writer talks about this practice but then offers that Christ appeared as a high priest...through the greater and more perfect tabernacle... through His own blood...once for all, having obtained eternal redemption. If the act of the animals was great, how much greater is this act of Jesus (v. 13-14). Jesus obtained for us eternal redemption.

It is not simply that this act by Jesus has a longer reaching permanency, but the sins offered include the conscience as verse 14 says - you conscience cleansed from dead works. The blood of Christ purifies not only outwardly, but inwardly. His sacrifice was without blemish to God. There was no spot or blemish, but it was a perfect offering.

We can only truly serve the Lord if all of our dead works have been paid for by the blood of Christ. Under the law there was no service possible until cleansing was performed, but in Christ the cleansing is eternal and complete.

Promise: Christ suffered as man, but because of the work of the Spirit, cleansed us perfectly and completely from all of our past, present, and future sins. He completely satisfied the wrath of God.

Prayer: Thank you for dying for me Jesus and providing the way for me to have eternal union with God. My eternal home is now secure for all time. I thank you God for your great love for me in delivering Jesus up for me. Thank  you for the work of your spirit in raising Jesus from the dead. Help me to pass this onto others in my life and not be silent.

Note: I follow the readings from the Tabletalk Magazine devotional, though I am a little behind and working through 2017 devotionals. 2017 is a study of key biblical doctrines with January being about the doctrine of God.

Genesis 1:1-2 - The Trinity and Creation

Genesis 1:1-2
1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. 2 The earth was formless and void, and darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was moving over the surface of the waters.

Message: The Trinity and Creation

Time: Genesis is the first book and Moses is credited as authoring. The book spans 2400 years of time. It was originally written in Hebrew.

What the Lord is Saying:

The story of the Gospel is one of being redeemed. I have just finished reading a book called, What is the Gospel? and it was a nice summary statement of the meaning of the Gospel and at its core it is a story of God redeeming people. But people also understand that they need to be redeemed and therefore, they desire to Glorify God following that redemption. Thus the gospel is lost, found, believe, change. It is unfortunate that a book like this needs to be written, but people and the church have somewhat muddied the waters as to what is salvation and so we need to be reminded again what it is that sits at the foundation of our faith.

The Gospel has a beginning - In the beginning God. For one, it is clear that God is beginning. God begins all. Thus, God is already on the scene at the beginning. It is not that God was created, but He already existed and for man the first act we know is God created. The Gospel and the World matter because God created, otherwise we might as well subscribe to the idea that the world just came on the scene for an unknown reason, by itself. God created the heavens and the earth. 

The Gospel writer John also shows that Jesus was with God in the beginning and as such was God eternal: In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The Word or the Son or Jesus was on the scene at the same time of creation, thus Jesus pre-existed creation.

At the time of the creation the Spirit of God was also present. Verse 2 says the earth was formless and void and darkness was over the surface of the deep and the Spirit of God was moving over the surface of the waters. The Spirit of God was over the waters, waiting and ready to minister to the creation. Yesterday in the reading of John 14:26 was the description of the Spirit of God's work He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you. The Spirit of God is ready to be in our lives. God is active and present and ready for His creation.

Any act of God involves all three persons of the Godhead. That doesn't mean that we always read them being on the scene and at times, one may be emphasized over the other(s). Thus, there is a co-working of the three persons of the Godhead and this doctrine is known as inseparable operations. Thus, the three are not cooperating. The eternal operations of God proceed from Father, through the Son, in the Spirit.

There is a unity here in the description of even the work of God. These states of America have been often on a roller coaster of unity. I don't think one could say that right now we are a people united. Instead there is fear, anxiety, distrust, and division. And as such our nation is less and less about God.

Purpose: All three persons of the Trinity work in tandem for one common purpose. Thus, the people of God are to strive for unity.

Prayer: O Lord God, I come to you and thank you for being creator of all. You are perfect and over all. Thank you for showing us the true meaning of unity. How we are a people in need of unity. We are stubborn and divided. We all want peace but we are striving on our own rather than submitting to You first God. Return us to the joy of our salvation. Help me to be defined by unity and embrace the understanding of you God and how you proceeded from the Father, through the Son, in the Spirit. Help me to voice clarity of who you are. I do not want to be ashamed, but instead want to make you known at all times. Forgive me for fear in sharing, my own selfishness. Forgive me God for these things. I want to start anew, afresh with You as Lord and God.


Note: I follow the readings from the Tabletalk Magazine devotional, though I am a little behind and working through 2017 devotionals. 2017 is a study of key biblical doctrines with January being about the doctrine of God.

John 14:26 - Divine Begottenness and Procession

John 14:26
But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you.

Message: Divine Begottenness and Procession

Time: While John does not admit to have written this gospel, there is ample evidence from others that he did. It was most likely written in Ephesus around 85-95 AD and is the fourth gospel. John provides a Jesus more clearly as the Son of God. John cites Jesus' seven "I Am" statements, mentions many miracles of Jesus, signifying Him as God's Son. He is the Son of Man and atoned for our sins and the Son of God with eternal implications in rising from the dead.

What the Lord is Saying:

Today's Tabletalk devotional starts with a discussion about the notion that each person has a human nature that includes a mind, a body, and a will, but each person's nature is different from one another. While we each have a human nature, our individual attributes are distinct. However, in regards to the three persons of the Godhead, the three persons do not have three different minds, but have one identical mind. And this is the same for every other divine attribute.

The question then is what makes each person of the Trinity different. The Bible teaches that (1) the Father is unbegotten, (2) the Son is begotten, and (3) the Holy Spirit is procession.

Regarding the Son, John 1:18 says, No one has seen God at any time; the only begotten God who is in the bosom of the Father, He has explained Him. In John 3:16 Jesus says, “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life."  Begotten and derivatives of the Greek word are used multiple times in Scripture to talk about a special relationship between a Father or Mother and a son or daughter. John is the only Gospel writer to connect the relationship between Jesus and the Father. It talks of one being the only child of another. Yet both the Son and the Father have always existed. Even though He is begotten of the Father, his existence is the same as the Father.

Regarding the Holy Spirit, John 14:26 says the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name. Begottenness is the unique quality of the Son, procession is the unique property of the Spirit. The Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father and the Son. There was a distinctive relationship between the Holy Spirit and the Father and the Son before time began. This passage talks about the special purpose of the Spirit - as a teacher and a reminder of all that Jesus has said. But the Spirit is also said to be sent by Jesus in John 15:26, though this verse speaks still primarily it would seem as coming from the Father. When the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, that is the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father, He will testify about Me. Thus there is debate as to whether the Spirit proceeds from the Son.

The difficult in these explanations is that we use human words or human explanations to explain eternal beings that are infinite, immutable and incomprehensible. Man is a created being and his words are created in order to communicate and they have limitations. I think of the word Love and all that it encompasses. Love can mean so many different things and sometimes the word Love does not convey the entire story. Scripture attempts to describe the relationship between these 3 persons of the Godhead and based upon all of the Words we have there is a natural conclusion to show that they are all divine and all of the same mind and attributes. Yet, as we work on describing this we fall into difficulties of explanation.

Purpose: It is important to study about God and His nature to help give us a further glimpse at who God is. Knowing this moves us to worship Him for His greatness and thus fulfill the purpose for which we were made.

Prayer: Lord, thank you for wisdom from the ages and how people have studied your words and come to conclusions that help me to better understand You. Lord, you have ministered specifically to me and spoken specifically to Me in a way that I struggle defining at times in my life. I don't understand it fully but I knot it to be true in me. I do thank you for these words from various individuals and thank you for breathing life into these words that I read. I continue to trust You and while there are questions that come up in my mind at times I continue to have peace that you are God, that Jesus you are God, that Spirit you are God and my mission on this earth is to glorify and testify of You. You have made me to be a person of relationship. You are eternal and creator and yet there is a closeness with You. Continue to help me to be clear in that understanding and communicating this to others.

Note: I follow the readings from the Tabletalk Magazine devotional, though I am a little behind and working through 2017 devotionals. 2017 is a study of key biblical doctrines with January being about the doctrine of God.

John 14:8-11 - Perichoresis

John 14:8-11
8 Philip *said to Him, “Lord, show us the Father, and it is enough for us.”9 Jesus *said to him, “Have I been so long with you, and yet you have not come to know Me, Philip? He who has seen Me has seen the Father; how can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? 10 Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father is in Me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on My own initiative, but the Father abiding in Me does His works. 11 Believe Me that I am in the Father and the Father is in Me; otherwise believe because of the works themselves.

Message: Perichoresis or the relationship of the three persons of the triune God.

Time:  While John does not admit to have written this gospel, there is ample evidence from others that he did. It was most likely written in Ephesus around 85-95 AD and is the fourth gospel. John provides a Jesus more clearly as the Son of God. John cites Jesus' seven "I Am" statements, mentions many miracles of Jesus, signifying Him as God's Son. He is the Son of Man and atoned for our sins and the Son of God with eternal implications in rising from the dead.

What the Lord is Saying:

It seems that the doctrine of God is really the doctrine of the trinity as the trinity has been the focus so far this month in the passages selected from Tabletalk Magazine. It remains a little bit of a challenge for me to study the Bible like this, using selected passages. This is the way our church now presents messages, doing series rather than books. I prefer book preaching.

But the Trinity is emphasized here probably because it is a doctrine central to Christianity as other religions have been started based upon a different definition of God. The word trinity was first used to explain the Father, Son, and Spirit as persons by a Latin theologian, Tertullian, in the 3rd Century. Today, we look at a Greek term scholars have used to describe the relationship among these three persons and has come about from a study of the Book of John and chapters 14-17.

We go back to the subject of modalism which at times can be what we think of the Trinity.
- seeing God like a man who holds three different roles depending on the context he is in and whom he is relating
- it collapses the distinctions between the three persons proclaiming that the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are identical both in essence and in person
- God is like one person who wears different masks or hats at different times in history
Tritheism is another erroneous view of the Trinity that views God as a collection of individual, separable persons united by a common purpose.

Therefore, the term Perichoresis is used to refer to the mutual indwelling of the three persons of the Godhead. It means that the Father is in the Son is in the Spirit. Again, as discussed earlier, the Father is not the Son and not the Spirit. Jesus speaks of this in John 14:10 - Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father is in Me? Thus, we can distinguish them but we cannot pull them apart. God created and it is not that God created with 3 persons. God created and because the Scripture mentions that God and Jesus created the creation happened at once, not each one have a separate role but it occurring once at the same time and all were present at that happening. The essence is one and cannot be divided or pulled apart.

In this passage Philip *said to Him as Philip comes to Jesus in the same way Thomas came to Him wanting more of an explanation of who Jesus was. We must be thankful that these men had questions of Jesus for because of that we have answers from Jesus. Man has questioned Jesus throughout all time and man will continue to do this. But it is important always to go back to the word of God for explanations. The problem is when we don't do this and instead invent extra-biblical definitions rather than accepting the Word of God. And so he says “Lord, show us the Father, as this in response to Jesus words in verse 7 that says If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also. Philip says then make us understand what you mean and it is enough for us.” Thus, we will be content and satisfied.

Jesus *said to him, “Have I been so long with you, and yet you have not come to know Me, Philip? Though we appreciate questions, Jesus thinks that the disciples should have a better understanding of Him already. Philip has been present with Jesus for some time and so their is still a tone of sadness from Jesus that Philip does not know Jesus as well as he should. Jesus further states - He who has seen Me has seen the Father. Seen is not a visual term because we know God to be a spirit and here we see that the essence of Jesus and the Father are the same. In other words, Jesus is saying, if you know God, you know Me and if you know Me, then you know the Father. We are united; we are one; we are the same.

Jesus then speaks to Philip with a question of almost, "why is this being asked." Jesus has already spoken words and done things many times that only God can do and yet he still says, "Lord, show us the Father." And Jesus says sort of, "What do you think I have been doing all this time with you?" "Why can't you put one and one together." how can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? Our conclusion of him should be clear and yet it is not. And yet we have many religions coming forth with different conclusions still to this day.

All the words here are meant to say that Jesus is having to appeal to the Father because everyone agrees that the Father is divine. There is no question that the Father is divine but He knows that there is a question as to whether He is divine. In my study of Mark, Mark does not go here to these words. It is as if Mark is stating (from Peter) that Jesus said it and as God it needs no more discussion. Yet, John gives us the words that many thought. Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father is in Me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on My own initiative, but the Father abiding in Me does His works. Believe Me that I am in the Father and the Father is in Me; otherwise believe because of the works themselves.

Two things testify of Jesus being God - His words and His works. We have both, if you struggle with one, then look at the other. There is ample evidence. Jesus and His words are enough, but if we still, if they still, have doubt then look to my words. Earlier Jesus said, "I am the way and no one comes to the Father except through me." In other words, you cannot know the Father if you reject me.

And Jesus says, "Believe Me." The words are simple and yet he still knows that many will not so he says, look to my works as well.

Promise: One cannot pull apart the persons of the Trinity. They are all united and the same essence and all one and seeing one is seeing all. We cannot love God and yet not love the Son. Jesus says that seeing Him is seeing God.

Prayer: Lord, forgive me for thinking many times that to understand you is to dance around certain facets of you in the hope that if people can simply see one part then all will make sense to them. Yet, you clearly state that the Word of God testifies that You Jesus are God. Your Words have said it but Your life also testified of it. Lord, help me continue to be a student of Your word and point people to You through these words. Help me to not ever back down but to trust You as You are. You are Holy. You are true. You are God.

Note: I follow the readings from the Tabletalk Magazine devotional, though I am a little behind and working through 2017 devotionals. 2017 is a study of key biblical doctrines with January being about the doctrine of God.

Matthew 28:18-20 - Divine Unity

Matthew 28:18-20
18 And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

Message: Divine Unity

Time: The date of Matthew's composition is anywhere from 55-60 AD probably in Antioch of Syria. The writing is most likely to the Jews. His purpose was to show them that Jesus of Nazareth was the expected messiah and both his genealogy and his resurrection were legitimate proofs of this.

What the Lord is Saying:

As I've been studying the doctrine of God most of the focus of late has been on the Trinity and the relationship between the Father, Son, and Spirit. They have the same essence and yet distinctive, yet united. Yesterday's focus was that all are on the scene at the same time and all are God; all are one God. Yet, the Father is not the Son and the Son not the Spirit and the Father not also the Spirit.

Jesus remarks in what is now called the Great Commission statement that as his disciples (and us his followers) go forth and make disciples, those individuals are to be baptized in the name (singular) of the three (plural). The three share the same name - Yahweh, the covenant Lord of Israel.

All three share the name Yahweh and the divine attributes equally. None is more God or less God than the others.

Previously baptism had been spoken about for repentance, but here Jesus takes into a new level by saying that a person is united to the Godhead. As we are baptized in their name we are to honor each equally.

Albert Barnes remarks on this passage:

The union of these three names in the form of baptism proves that the Son and Holy Spirit are equal with the Father. Nothing would be more absurd or blasphemous than to unite the name of a creature - a man or an angel - with the name of the ever-living God in this solemn rite. If Jesus was a mere man or an angel, as is held by many who deny his divinity, and if the Holy Spirit was a mere "attribute" of God, then it would have been the height of absurdity to use a form like this, or to direct the apostles to baptize people under them. How absurd would be the direction - nay, how blasphemous - to have said, "Baptize them unto God, and unto Paul, and unto the "wisdom or power" of God!" Can we believe that our Saviour would have given a direction so absurd as this? Yet, unless he himself is divine, and the Holy Spirit is divine, Jesus gave a direction substantially the same as this. The form of baptism, therefore, has been always regarded as an unbreakable argument for the doctrine of the Trinity, or that the Son and Holy Spirit are equal with the Father.

Promise: Jesus sometimes says that the Father is greater than He is (John 14:28). But that is not a reference to His divine essence; rather, in taking on our flesh, God the Son submits to the Father as a man, for that is what human beings are to do. 

Prayer: Lord, thank you for continuing to each me your truths. Help me to have a believe that You want me to have and that I submit to You for everything in my life. 

Note: I follow the readings from the Tabletalk Magazine devotional, though I am a little behind and working through 2017 devotionals. 2017 is a study of key biblical doctrines with January being about the doctrine of God.

Psalm 110:1 - Divine Diversity

Psalm 110:1
The Lord says to my Lord:
“Sit at My right hand
Until I make Your enemies a footstool for Your feet.”

Message: Divine Diversity

Time: The psalms were written by many different people across a period of a thousand years in Israel's history. They are thought to have been compiled and put together in their present form by some unknown editor shortly after the captivity ended about 537 B.C.

What the Lord is Saying:

I looked at this passage of Scripture in October as I was studying the book of Mark and Jesus took a moment to quote these words from Psalm 110 as he gave a response to a question from the scribes.

At the time of my reading of it, I was interested in the terminology and what Jesus was saying in these verses, namely that He was offering a defense of Jesus and His relationship to Father God. As this verse states - The Lord says to my Lord - so there are two Lords present in this verse with one speaking to another.

As I continue to look at specifics regarding the doctrine of God and have previously studied that there is only one God. All other gods may be claimed to be gods but there is only one true God and He is one. He is a God to all people everywhere for all time. He is also displayed in 3 persons. He is a singular God but has 3 essences in the God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. There is often confusion in thinking that this somehow means that we Christians worship 3 Gods, but that statement is invalid. God is still one but throughout Scripture comes on the scene in 3 forms or persons and now we want to look at the idea that those 3 forms are distinct.

The Tabletalk reading today wants to make the point that the Bible does not speak of Modalism which says that while there is one God that God manifests itself at different times as the Father, then other times as the Son, then other times as the Spirit and those manifestations are never at the same time. So, God starts out as Father, then comes to earth as Son, then after ascension as the Spirit. Beliefs are interesting because I notice that people will often try to define something that makes the most sense to them and this idea of God is often a challenge for people and so throughout the ages people try to make God out to be something that fits their thinking but it isn't the entire truth and suddenly we have many different belief systems with millions of adherents and all have a little different picture of God:

• Mormons speak of many gods, so Joseph Smith saw the Father, saw the Son, saw the Spirit. They were separate and Mormons speak of man one day becoming a god. Again, Joseph Smith saw a physical representation of God. Perhaps he wanted to see God and so this became His theology. 
• Jehovah Witnesses also wanted to say that God and Jesus are separate. They have decided that Jesus was on the scene during Old Testament times as Michael the archangel. Thus, they seem to recognize Jesus as being there before he came to earth, but they fit him in as the Archangel and then the Holy Spirit as a completely separate force. Unitarianism is also another name or belief system of this. 
• Islam believes the New Testament text has been corrupted and therefore teaches that the scriptures we have about a resurrection are misconstrued and Jesus was actually a really great man and similar to other men called prophets like Moses and even Muhammad. But, they do not believe in a Trinity and instead focus squarely on only one God, not in 3 persons and call their god Allah. 
• Judaism is another monotheistic belief that says there is 1 God, not 3 persons of the Trinity. There are several holy books that speak of this. It speaks of God having a purpose, man inability to follow that purpose and God repeatedly pulling them back or bringing them back to His purpose. But God is always singular and do not believe Jesus is the Messiah. 

Verse 1 of this passage is very interesting. David is in the middle of a conversation between on one side the Lord, Jehovah, and on the other side, Adonai. The Lord (Jehovah) is speaking to his Lord (Adonai).

Jehovah is one of the primary names for God in the Bible. Sometimes it is used for God the Father, sometimes for God the Son, sometimes for God the Holy Spirit and the context of the passage determines which person of the Trinity Jehovah is. Here in this passage Jehovah is God the Father. The word Adonai or who David refers to as my Lord is God's Son. Therefore, Jehovah is speaking to Jesus.

It is also interesting the word says or said is literally an oracle and this word is only used of a direct utterance of God, sometimes a word from a prophet, but it is more common as a word or oracle coming from God.

When Jesus quotes this passage he adds a statement clarifying where David received these words - David himself said in the Holy Spirit. Thus, the message that David records in this passage in Psalm 110 is not his own, but is said in the Holy Spirit. Thus, in a matter of words Jesus is saying David speaks from the Holy Spirit and witnesses THE LORD (YAHWEH) SAYING TO MY LORD (ADONAI) - SIT AT MY RIGHT HAND, UNTIL I PUT YOUR ENEMIES BENEATH YOUR FEET. 

Saint Augustine of Hippo who lived from 354 AD to 430 AD, stated:

Christ is both David's Son, and David's Lord: David's Lord always, David's Son in time: David's Lord, born of the substance of His Father, David's Son, born of the Virgin Mary, conceived by the Holy Ghost...Unless our Lord Jesus Christ has vouchsafed to become man, man had perished. He was made that which He made, that what He made might not perish. Very Man, Very God; God and man, the whole Christ."

The Pulpit Commentary concludes it well:

From this verse (Psalm 110.) our Lord shows that the Messiah, such as he was, was not a mere man, as the Pharisees thought, but that he was God, and therefore David's Lord. The meaning, therefore, is this, "The Lord God said to my Lord," that is, Christ, "Sit thou at my right hand," that is, when, after his cross, his death, and his resurrection, he will exalt him far above all principality and power, and place him next to him in heaven, that he may reign with supreme happiness and power and glory over all creatures. These words show that this is a Divine decree, fixed and irrevocable. Till I make thine enemies thy footstool (ὑποπόδιον τῶν ποδῶν σου); literally, the footstool of thy feet; that is, reign with me in glory until the day of judgment, when I will make the wicked, all opposing powers, subject to thee. The word "till" does not imply that Christ will then cease to reign. "Of his kingdom there shall be no end." But he will then formally deliver up the kingdom to God, even the Father, only that he may receive it again as the second Person of the Godhead.

Thus, there is a clear distinction in the Bible between the persons of the trinity and their existence is that they are present at all time. Our God is personal.

Promise: God is personal and relates to us and is involved in the affairs of human beings. We must accept the God of the Bible instead of working hard to fit God into our own thinking.

Prayer: O God, as I spend more time in Your Word and reading and studying of You, I thank You that I learn more about You. I thank you for the people that have come before me that have gotten into your Word and understand it and You have given them understanding. Help me though to always see You as You are. It is amazing there are so many different beliefs and yet sad at the same time that so many have not been willing to accept You as You are.

Note: I follow the readings from the Tabletalk Magazine devotional, though I am a little behind and working through 2017 devotionals. 2017 is a study of key biblical doctrines with January being about the doctrine of God.

Acts 5:1-11 - God the Holy Spirit

Acts 5:1-11
But a man named Ananias, with his wife Sapphira, sold a piece of property, 2 and kept back some of the price for himself, with his wife’s full knowledge, and bringing a portion of it, he laid it at the apostles’ feet. 3 But Peter said, “Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and to keep back some of the price of the land? 4 While it remained unsold, did it not remain your own? And after it was sold, was it not under your control? Why is it that you have conceived this deed in your heart? You have not lied to men but to God.” 5 And as he heard these words, Ananias fell down and breathed his last; and great fear came over all who heard of it. 6 The young men got up and covered him up, and after carrying him out, they buried him.

7 Now there elapsed an interval of about three hours, and his wife came in, not knowing what had happened. 8 And Peter responded to her, “Tell me whether you sold the land for such and such a price?” And she said, “Yes, that was the price.” 9 Then Peter said to her, “Why is it that you have agreed together to put the Spirit of the Lord to the test? Behold, the feet of those who have buried your husband are at the door, and they will carry you out as well.” 10 And immediately she fell at his feet and breathed her last, and the young men came in and found her dead, and they carried her out and buried her beside her husband.11 And great fear came over the whole church, and over all who heard of these things.

Message: God the Holy Spirit

Time: Clearly written by Luke, this book follows the lives of Peter and then Paul after Jesus' ascension into heaven. The book was completed about 62 AD as Paul sat in prison. It provides an account of the growth of the Church and spread from Jerusalem, from a small group of frightened believers in Jerusalem transformed into an empire-wide movement of people who had committed their lives to Jesus Christ, and it should help us to be bold and have zeal in our walks with God.

What the Lord is Saying:

As I think and study about the doctrine of God, there remains this view of God as exhibited in three persons of the Godhead who share the essence of God. Three persons, not in the same way we think of persons with separate bodies, but three entities that have distinctive roles and yet share the same essence or substance - God the Father, the Son, the Holy Spirit.

In this account in Acts Ananias and Sapphira (members of the Jerusalem church) sell a piece of property and keep back a portion of the proceeds for themselves rather than surrendering the full proceeds to the church. What stands out in this story today is Peter's remark that Ananias has spoken a lie to the Holy Spirit and later also spoken You have not lied to men but to God. Thus, there seems to be a reference here equating the Holy Spirit with God. This is a tragic story as this lie ends up killing Ananias and Sapphira.

There are a couple of other scriptures mentioned in this devotion. 2 Peter 1:21 speaks of how the words of scripture came to be: for no prophecy was ever made by an act of human will, but men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God. Yet, the Old Testament also says that the word of the Lord came from Lord Yahweh. But the Holy Spirit was involved. John 14:16 refers to the Holy Spirit as another helper, a title also given of Jesus. Clearly there are connections here and the Spirit will be studied further.

In my reading of the book, the Forgotten God by Francis Chan I believe the work of the Holy Spirit is more clearly reflected and defined.

Promise: Jesus gave us another Advocate or Helper like Himself to be with us after he ascended to Heaven.

Prayer: Thank you for your revealing yourself God in the works of the Father, Son, and Spirit. Help me to better understand these persons of You and how all of you make up the 1 God. Thank you for these devotions and giving them to me to help me better understand you.

Note: I follow the readings from the Tabletalk Magazine devotional. 2017 is a study of key biblical doctrines with January being about the doctrine of God.

John 1:2 - Not the Father

John 1:2
He was in the beginning with God.

Message: Not the Father

Time: While John does not admit to have written this gospel, there is ample evidence from others that he did. It was most likely written in Ephesus around 85-95 AD and is the fourth gospel. John provides a Jesus more clearly as the Son of God. John cites Jesus' seven "I Am" statements, mentions many miracles of Jesus, signifying Him as God's Son. He is the Son of Man and atoned for our sins and the Son of God with eternal implications in rising from the dead.

What the Lord is Saying:

Tabletalk generally takes a year to do a particular study. In 2014 it was a study of the book of Romans; 2015 was a study of the wisdom literature of Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Lamentations, and 2016 was a study of the Gospel of Mark. Now the focus is on the biblical doctrines emphasized anew or recovered by the Reformers in 2017. The Reformation period or the Protestant Reformation took place in the 16th century (thus about 5 centuries from today), chiefly in the year 1517 was when Luther posted his Ninety-Five Thesis; thus, 500 years ago. Leaders such as Martin Luther and John Calvin, though there were many others, saw a problem with the church of the day which was the Roman Catholic Church. The concern they raised was that the church had become too intertwined with the affairs of the government and political life in Europe. However, the Catholic Church continued to provide a lot of comfort to people, but there had been some things that were of concern. There was concern among many of the imitation of Christ and it not being followed and the doctrines of grace and redemption not being a central focus.

The doctrine of the Trinity continues to be a difficult doctrine for many to wrap their heads around and it seems to remain that way today. Granted, society here in America seems to me to becoming more and more secularized or more focused on appealing to the World and its ways. This doctrine of the Trinity is one that needs to be more clearly understood and taught.

One of the key ideas is there is separation between the Father, Son and the Holy Spirit. They are three separate persons of the Godhead. John here in these early passages of John 1 speaks of a distinction between God the Father and God the Son. Both are equally God and yet the Father is not the Son.

To me that one of the struggling things about faith is there remains in it a shroud of mystery. While there are attempts to explain it the explanations don't always look exactly at what it is. We can know about God, but we cannot know everything about Him and I think this is something that people don't like. In my mind, this is why groups such as Jehovah's Witnesses and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day-Saints are more popular because there doctrines are tight and have answers to every question that is asked. But in traditional Christianity there is still mystery. We believe God and we are confident in Him but we are still getting to know Him. There is still mystery in Him.

So even as we talk about the person of the Godhead there are difficulties in making this translation because our view of a person is not the same as the persons of God. We are all tangible creatures we can touch and feel, but we have only so far seen Jesus and the rest are Spirits. Jesus was given a human body for earth and this helps us put a face to God, but this idea of a Spirit is harder for us to understand at times. I think sometimes by having Jesus in human form we struggle with understanding all three.

But the key in this passage is to show that three are not the same in form, thus they are hypostasis and yet all three are homoousios or of the same essence. Those are Greek words that the Reformers used to describe the differences. As I studied through the Book of Mark I picked up on this mystery. I was attempting to more clearly define Jesus but as I attempted to do this I was still left with mystery. He isn't completely able to be understood. Yet each seems to have a relation to one another. I saw this in the Gospel as Jesus spoke to the Father and then spoke of the Spirit as well (though Mark doesn't mention the Spirit like John does).

Promise: As we talk about God, at times we reach a point where we can say no more. God transcends the limits of our creaturely minds and we cannot fully comprehend Him.

Prayer: Lord, help me to know that I can be in witness of You but I don't need to answer every question. I can be faithful to speak of you and yet I will never have every answer to every question. Help me to be content in this and to trust You and not me nor the world in which I live. Than you for being distinct and yet the same. You are a whole lot different, but a whole lot the same.

Note: I follow the readings from the Tabletalk Magazine devotional. 2017 is a study of key biblical doctrines with January being about the doctrine of God.

John 1:1-18 - God the Son

John 1:1-18
1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being. 4 In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men. 5 The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.
6 There came a man sent from God, whose name was John. 7 He came as a witness, to testify about the Light, so that all might believe through him. 8 He was not the Light, but he came to testify about the Light.
9 There was the true Light which, coming into the world, enlightens every man. 10 He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him. 11 He came to His own, and those who were His own did not receive Him. 12 But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name, 13 who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.
14 And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth. 15 John *testified about Him and cried out, saying, “This was He of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me has a higher rank than I, for He existed before me.’” 16 For of His fullness we have all received, and grace upon grace. 17 For the Law was given through Moses; grace and truth were realized through Jesus Christ. 18 No one has seen God at any time; the only begotten God who is in the bosom of the Father, He has explained Him.

Message: God the Son

Time: While John does not admit to have written this gospel, there is ample evidence from others that he did. It was most likely written in Ephesus around 85-95 AD and is the fourth gospel. John provides a Jesus more clearly as the Son of God. John cites Jesus' seven "I Am" statements, mentions many miracles of Jesus, signifying Him as God's Son. He is the Son of Man and atoned for our sins and the Son of God with eternal implications in rising from the dead.

What the Lord is Saying:

This book opens up not with the story of the nativity scene. Like the Book of Mark, Jesus comes on the scene immediately, but John also takes us back to creation showing that Jesus is not a created one, but was in the beginning as creator and in the beginning with God. This is a text that some beliefs have changed the meaning of as it clearly shows Jesus as God (the Word was God) while those beliefs make it to read Jesus was a god.

John came to prepare the way for the coming of Jesus to get people ready in the belief that Jesus is the Light, sent from God, to witness of Him. It was true that some received Him and some did not. But to receive Him meant that they to would be children of God.

While the Law was duty and keeping commandments, Jesus was about grace and truth. The biblical narrative has always been about redemption. God has redeemed His people. They walk away or turn away and He brings them back. He restores His relationship with them. But, not all believe.

Jesus is God and there are many other examples of this throughout the scripture and gospel writings. For example, Mark 2:1-12 records Jesus claiming the authority to forgive sins. Even in Jude 5, Jesus saved a people out of the land of Egypt. The Old Testament attributes this to Yahweh but Jude attributes it to Jesus. He was God and was with God. While coming to live and walk the earth alongside us Jesus came to redeem and save people. God is still in the work of redemption.

Promise: Only those with hardened hearts ill deny that the Bible reveals Jesus as the Lord God Almighty, worthy of all our love and worship.

Prayer: O God, thank you for redeeming mankind, for continually bridging the gap. Our effort to come to You remain efforts but our attempts our always not sufficient, but you came to earth and saved us. I receive You and want to always receive You. Forgive me when I get to prideful and too concerned with my own name and ways and don't receive You. Thank you for bearing my sin and saving me. Thank you for being the light for all the world. I pray that people would continue to seek You and desire to know you. Help me to communicate that love to others in as many ways as I can.



Note: I follow the readings from the Tabletalk Magazine devotional. 2017 is a study of key biblical doctrines with January being about the doctrine of God.

Exodus 4:22-23 - God the Father

Exodus 4:22-23
22 Then you shall say to Pharaoh, ‘Thus says the Lord, “Israel is My son, My firstborn. 23 So I said to you, ‘Let My son go that he may serve Me’; but you have refused to let him go. Behold, I will kill your son, your firstborn.”’

Message: God the Father

Time: Most likely this book was penned by Moses. The book covers a period of approximately eighty years, from shortly before Moses’s birth (c. 1526 BC) to the events that occurred at Mount Sinai in 1446 BC. The Bible's message of redemption appears in Exodus as well: though the children of Israel were enslaved in a foreign land, God miraculously and dramatically delivered them to freedom, provided the Law, established the system of sacrifice, and gave instructions on building of His tabernacle. God began to fulfill His promises to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

What the Lord is Saying:

As I look at the concept of the Trinity, biblical monotheism is not unitarianism that teaches that God is one, similar to Islam, and Father, Son, and Spirit are not persons of the trinity and therefore not deities; they believe Jesus was a man, was savior, but from the standpoint of exemplifying a life worth emulating. They have other beliefs about scripture itself being subject to human error. But this Tabletalk study that I am doing is focused on studying the Reformation doctrine of God.

Today, the focus is on Father God. Much of the defense of scripture often centers on Jesus being God and the Holy Spirit, but God the Father is also revealed in Scripture as the first person of the Trinity. In Exodus 4:22 and 23, Yahweh (Lord) states that He is the Father of Israel - Thus says the Lord, “Israel is My son." and So I said to you, ‘Let My son go that he may serve Me’. This is the first mention in scripture of Israel's sonship. This is to speak to Pharaoh as each monarch at this time referred to himself as the son of the Sun. Thus the son idea was common in that day for a ruler to refer to himself as having the favor and divine protection of his parent. Thus, there is not a literal Father / Son relationship between God and Israel but the father / son language is given to express the familial relationship between the two and the close relationship between the two.

Here are other examples of Father:
Psalm 103:13
Just as a father has compassion on his children,
So the Lord has compassion on those who fear Him.

Proverbs 3:12
For whom the Lord loves He reproves,
Even as a father corrects the son in whom he delight

Jeremiah 31:9
“With weeping they will come,And by supplication I will lead them;
I will make them walk by streams of waters,
On a straight path in which they will not stumble;
For I am a father to Israel,
And Ephraim is My firstborn.”

Hosea 11:1-4
1 When Israel was a youth I loved him, 
And out of Egypt I called My son.
2 The more they called them,
The more they went from them;
They kept sacrificing to the Baals
And burning incense to idols.
3 Yet it is I who taught Ephraim to walk,
I took them in My arms;
But they did not know that I healed them.
4 I led them with cords of a man, with bonds of love,
And I became to them as one who lifts the yoke from their jaws;
And I bent down and fed them.

Jesus frequently referred to the God of Israel as His Father. As I studied the gospel of Mark, Jesus often stated that only the Father knew things as He was living as the son of Man and in those moments looked to Father God, as we do today. He came alongside us.

Mark 13:32 - But of that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone.

Mark 11:25 - Whenever you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against anyone, so that your Father who is in heaven will also forgive you your transgressions.

Mark 1:9-11 - 9 In those days Jesus came from Nazareth in Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. 10 Immediately coming up out of the water, He saw the heavens opening, and the Spirit like a dove descending upon Him;11 and a voice came out of the heavens: “You are My beloved Son, in You I am well-pleased.”

Promise: An earthly father will do whatever is necessary to protect and provide for their sons and daughters. Our heavenly father is an even better father and nothing can stand in the way of His care for His children.

Pray: Father God, I surrender to You. Thank you for revealing yourself to me and to mankind. You are my forever father and thank you for taking care of me always and protecting me. I see often how much my father cares for me and it is a great picture of your love for me. Thank you for giving me such a great earthly father and using him to show me how You love me.

Note: I follow the readings from the Tabletalk Magazine devotional. 2017 is a study of key biblical doctrines with January being about the doctrine of God.

I Chronicles 16:25-26 - Yahweh and the gods of the peoples

I Chronicles 16:25-26
25 25 For great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised;
He also is to be feared above all gods.
26 For all the gods of the peoples are idols,
But the Lord made the heavens.

Message: Yahweh and the gods of the peoples

Time: 1 Chronicles has a mystery writer and focuses on David's reign though doesn't repeat David's sin with Bathsheba. It was written in the time of Ezra and Nehemiah or 538-333 BC while the Jews were dispersed throughout Persia, some having returned from Israel. The book lists genealogies, priests, Levites, armies, temple officials, and other leaders of various ministries and devotes significant attention to proper worship of Yahweh and adherence to the regulations of the Law. It focuses on obedience that results in God’s blessing, the priority of the temple and priesthood, and the unconditional promises to the house of David.

What the Lord is Saying:

Contrary to other belief systems, Christianity (as well as Judaism and Islam) hold to a belief of one God. But, other religions one God is different from the biblical God. So it begs the question are there other gods? This verse in 1 Chronicles states that the Lord is to be feared above all gods for all the gods of the peoples are idols. It seems that there are other gods that people to try to worship. Idols are images such as wood or a statue that people worship. But these are not to be worshiped as God. It is true that people do recognize other gods but these gods are not real.

I Corinthians 8:4-6 states - Therefore concerning the eating of things sacrificed to idols, we know that there is no such thing as an idol in the world, and that there is no God but one. For even if there are so-called gods whether in heaven or on earth, as indeed there are many gods and many lords, yet for us there is but one God, the Father, from whom are all things and we exist for Him; and one Lord, Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we exist through Him.

It seems clear that on one hand there is only one true God and the other gods mentioned in history are another sort of supernatural being, a pretender to the throne of the Almighty. There may be other gods mentioned but they are not the same as the one God. So if there is only one God and yet these other gods are mentioned then what are these other gods? They are demons. I Corinthians 10:20 - the things which the Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice to demons and not to God; and I do not want you to become sharers in demons. So demons are worshiped under such names as Krishna, Baal, and even Allah. Thus Allah is not God. It may be touted as the same god just with a different name but it is in fact a different god. There is no god equal to the God of the Bible.

While the Bible does acknowledge other gods that man attempts to worship, these gods are not real because they are not the one true God. They are instead impostors and instead demons. The worship of idols is actually the worship of devils. The devil has set up these alternate forms of worship in order to distract people from the one true God. Again, our culture often doesn't view this. In the name of tolerance in our day and age, we therefore think that all of the gods of this world are equally valid and all end up in the same place. But, the God of the Bible is unique and set apart and therefore separate from all other claimed gods and in face those gods are not gods in the same sense because again there is only one God. It's really a sobering truth because I think I have a hard time seeing all of these people and there are millions, if not billions in history that worship these other gods. Even in the world of Catholicism that seems to add physical people and rise them to the level of an idol.

But there is only one creator. And that creator is to be worshiped. People everywhere are caught up in the supernatural. It is a hard line to stand at times because we struggle more and more stating that so many people have false beliefs.

Couched in these verses are the words For great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised and the Lord made the heavens. These verses represent a Psalm of David found here in I Chronicles 16:8-36.

Promise: As Christians we serve the only true God and need never fear the enemy.

Prayer: God, you are it. You are the only God. I give thanks to You and I call upon Your name. Lord, I want to make known your deeds, your work to all. I sing to You and sing Praises to you. What you have done I sing. I glory in Your holy name. I see You and therefore am glad. I see you Lord. You are strong. I look to You continually. Lord, remove the blinders that are on so many people. So many have been trained to think a way that is not true. As I sat in church yesterday I thought of how many came come to church, go through confession and worship and yet never really look inward and see that the Christian is not simply worship but it is admitting a need for life change. We come to You Lord to get a right understanding of who we are. We need You. I need to change. I need daily to be different. Lord, there is such a danger today of people thinking they don't need change. But when we see Love as it is, we see that we are not true people of love. O God, you are the only God and I worship You. Help me be true to Your name as I live in this world.

Note: I follow the readings from the Tabletalk Magazine devotional. 2017 is a study of key biblical doctrines with January being about the doctrine of God.

Isaiah 45:5 - The One and Only God

Isaiah 45:5
“I am the Lord, and there is no other;
Besides Me there is no God.
I will gird you, though you have not known Me."

Message: The One and Only God

Time: Isaiah prophesied from 739–681 BC to a nation that had turned a deaf ear to the Lord. He wanted to see the nation of Judah return to serving God with humility and love for their neighbors. But he was called to pronounce judgments to on a people offering meaningless sacrifices in the Temple and committing injustices throughout the nation. It provides the most prophetic picture of Jesus in the entire Old Testament.

What the Lord is Saying:

Despite some religions like Islam and Judaism claiming otherwise, Christianity stands firmly upon the doctrine of monotheism. For me, it seems the confusion is about people's understanding of the God of the Bible thinking that each person of the Trinity is a separate God. God is a spirit and the names of God are spoken of in the persons of the Godhead - Father, Son, Spirit. The word Trinity originated years after Jesus walked on the earth. But the Bible is clear that God is Father, Son, Spirit;  all share the attributes of the Spirit God and also that God is one. Thus, the doctrine of a monotheistic religion of God is one is different from other monotheistic religions such as Judaism or Islam. But the trinity is grounded in the premise that there is one eternal God.

In the study of God, one arrives at the words in the Bible that are used to define God. In the Hebrew text are words Elohim and Yahweh. In this passage today, Isaiah 45:5, we translate it in the English as "I am the Lord, and there is no other; Besides Me there is no God. I will gird you, though you have not known Me." The Hebrew follows a different order of the word and from the interlinear it says - and though not I will gird you God (elohim). There is no besides Me other and there is no Yahweh I am. 

This verse in Isaiah is pronounced to Cyrus the Great, the King of Persia. But he is a heathen king that is used by God to deliver the Jews from Babylonian captivity. God speaks to him directly here. And this verse declares to Cyrus God is Elohim or deity and God is Yahweh or Lord. Thus, the passage could read, "I, the Lord of Israel is the only deity." God is declaring that He is the only deity or the only God.

[My sidenote here is that often people will say that all religions lead to the same destination. How can this be so when the Lord of Israel, Yahweh, declares that He is the only Elohim or deity. Are there multiple gods mentioned in history? Yes. But this God says He is the only God.]

Back to Cyrus the Great, God speaks to him and will use this heathen God to accomplish His purposes. Whether Cyrus acknowledges him as the only true God does not matter here. Cyrus God is still only Yahweh. Just as all the people of the world only have one God. As this scripture states by God - "though you have not known Me" - meaning though you have not acknowledged Me as the only God and as Your God this doesn't mean that God does not use him because He in fact says -  "I will gird you." They may say otherwise but if this text to be true, Yahweh is the only God.

As I look at the landscape of even our governing bodies, we often have different forms of how that government leads and more often today it is about a group rather than a single person. The dictators in our history have proven to rule in a harmful way, so there is accountability sought. Even in the church this is prescribed by having a group of elders make decisions collectively or putting it to the congregation as a whole. And yet in the realm of deity, we have only one God. He is our one and only leader.

Promise: To believe in the God of the Scripture is to believe in the true God, the one true God - the Lord of Israel. Salvation is only in His name.

Prayer: Lord, in this world of confusion that we live in, there are multiple gods mentioned all the time. Lord, help me to be one that clarifies that the Bible speaks of only one God. He is Yahweh and he is the only one, the only elohim, the only deity. In this world Lord that is focused on tolerance and have different names for God, I need to be that voice speaking that there is only one God. Lord, help me to stand on that mountaintop and declare this without thinking of the consequences.


Note: I follow the readings from the Tabletalk Magazine devotional. 2017 is a study of key biblical doctrines with January being about the doctrine of God.

Mark 16:20 - The Gospel Goes Forth

Mark 16:20
And they went out and preached everywhere, while the Lord worked with them, and confirmed the word by the signs that followed.]

Message: The Gospel Goes Forth

Time: Mark's personal connection with Peter gave him the source material for this book. This book was composed probably between AD 57 and AD 59. It's a book that is on the move, leading to the cross. 39 times is the word 'immediately' used. Mark reveals Jesus as God's servant, reaching into the lives of people and effecting physical and circumstantial change.

What the Lord is Saying:

Preface - The Gospel of Mark records Jesus coming on the scene and preaching a message of "repent and believe." Mark records Jesus' 3 year ministry as he navigates through towns in Judea with His 12 disciples. As Jesus goes many come to follow Him and see Him. Some are there in hopes of being healed while many are also there to listen to Him teach. Along the way also scribes and chief priests question Him at various times and seem to be threatened by Him. Jesus speaks in a way that many are not accustomed to hearing. He talks of His authority and refers to Himself often as the Son of Man, thus living as fully man. But, He also does things like calm the sea, cast out demons, heal paralytics, forgives sin, raises a daughter from the dead. Mark often records brief information about Jesus and often focuses on the people around him and the impact of what Jesus is saying. Jesus talks about his death and resurrection 3 times. He challenges the disciples to do as He does but they struggle with this. The disciples struggle with applying the truths that Jesus asks them to do. Eventually Jesus comes to Jerusalem and prepares to die. The disciples still don't believe it. But Jesus fulfills the prophecies. He says one will betray Him and Jesus does. He is seized by the Jewish leaders at night and then turned over to Pilate with the hope that he will die. Pilate takes it before the people and the pronouncement of crucifixion falls on Jesus. He admits he is the Son of God and the people call Him the king of the Jews, something he does not deny. He is beaten, scourged, spit on, mocked and receives much pain. Mark is specific about the crown of thorns and the pain of those thorns from beatings with a scepter. Eventually Jesus ends up at the cross, already very weak. Even on the cross He is mocked. The area grows dark for 3 hours on Friday with Him on the cross as He seems to deal with God's wrath. He feels God the Fathers rejection and cries out and then dies. He is buried that same day, before the Passover and then appears to Mary Magdalene, and the disciples. It takes the disciples a while to believe He has risen. Jesus confronts their hardened hearts, but then also commissions them to preach the Gospel - the message of believing and being baptized. They will do great things in His name. He ascends to heaven and takes His seat at the right hand of God.

This book has been exciting to study as I come now to the end of it. It's a message from Peter through Mark. I think it's the first time I've really studied one of the Gospels. I've listened to sermons before and read through it several times, but it has been great to study it more completely. I've been trying to discover the message that Mark presents of Jesus. He does speak of Jesus being fully man and fully God, as is evidenced by the many attributes of God. There are some very clear statements about Him being God. I'm not sure if people realized though what was going on and who He was. Some did but Mark doesn't always present many details about these occurrences in the life of Jesus. It seems that it will take Jesus leaving for them to really understand His message. But, it is clear Jesus did what He set out to do - come to earth as man, live it, experience it alongside us but with the authority of God and then died on the cross, experiencing darkness on the cross and rejection and then dying finally. He rose on the 3rd day, but not really 2 full days later. He appeared and then went to heaven.

This final verse now speaks of this going forth of the disciples and their message to the world.

And they went out and preached everywhere - they were obedient to His commission to preach the gospel throughout the world. But the did not go alone as they went while the Lord worked with them. Jesus is gone from walking beside them physically but He is still with them spiritually and with us. They walked and He as Lord worked. Jesus' position now is clear. He is God. He is holy. His is on mission. And He confirmed the word by the signs that followed. Much would occur now in future events. Miracles followed them as they went forth. Whether those same signs still follow us today is unclear. Many would say those signs were only present during the earthly lives of the apostles, thus ending around 100 AD. The thought is the throughout history, miracles have been present at some times, but not present at other times.

At this point there is exuberance by the disciples in taking the message. Again, they are beginning to follow Him now that He is gone in the way Jesus expected while He was with them. The faith has been received now. And much will be different going forward.

Summary - The message of the Gospel now goes forth, everywhere.

Promise: From Tabletalk December 20, 2016 - When God saves His people, He equips them to preach the gospel according to their abilities where they find themselves. The gospel message is not something we can keep to ourselves, but we must proclaim the lordship of Christ to our children, our spouses, our friends, our family, and our communities. Let us pray for boldness to preach the gospel, and let us make disciples where God has called us.

Prayer: O Lord, thank you for being with us as the message of You and Your Gospel goes forth throughout this world. There are signs of You all the time. Give me wisdom to see these. Even as the world continues to be contrary to your message, shine bright through Me and all the Christians of this world who are your true followers. I pray we would love you with all of our heart, soul, mind and strength and then love one another with the same degree of love that each of us loves ourselves. Continue to help me Jesus understand You and Your message and Your gospel. I do want to carry the light. But you must work with me, through me and in me as you have said you would. I pray your light stays visible for me at all times.

Mark 16:19 - Ascension and Session

Mark 16:19
So then, when the Lord Jesus had spoken to them, He was received up into heaven and sat down at the right hand of God.

Message: Ascension and Session

Time: Mark's personal connection with Peter gave him the source material for this book. This book was composed probably between AD 57 and AD 59. It's a book that is on the move, leading to the cross. 39 times is the word 'immediately' used. Mark reveals Jesus as God's servant, reaching into the lives of people and effecting physical and circumstantial change.

What the Lord is Saying:

Preface - Jesus is crucified and then rises again. He appears to a woman first and it is women that first hear of him. He appears later to 2 of the disciples and then the rest and starts out by speaking a work of reproof towards them because they did not believe others. His complaint was over the hardness of their hearts in not even giving others an opportunity to present their evidence. But, he commissions them to preach the gospel, telling them that belief is followed with baptism as unbelief is followed with condemnation. He remarks that a believers life will simply look different and that person will be able to do things, radical things, and have a radical effect on other people's lives.

Jesus had declared that eventually He would sit at the right hand of God. Back in chapter 14 when He was taken before His accusers, Jesus answered the question of whether he was the Christ, the Son of God with I am; and you shall see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of Power, and coming with the clouds of heaven.” Jesus had an eternal position with God. And following His speaking with the disciples the writer here remarks So then, when the Lord Jesus had spoken to them, He was received up into heaven and sat down at the right hand of God. 

Some may have thought that Jesus was appearing to them and now would be with them again and walk with them. But, Jesus clearly has a purpose that goes beyond His time on earth. His crucifixion and resurrection fulfilled His mission on earth - to be offered as the Lamb of God and conquer sin. Jesus bore the wrath of God on the cross. In the end, it killed Him. But, days later He rose. Sin had not defeated Him. It did kill him but it didn't defeat Him for He rose again. The resurrection is central to the gospel message.

I've noticed in our world today that much of life is about living a good life. The message of tolerance has invaded our church to the point that we no longer contrast the sinner and the saved. Our church songs and worship songs are focused more on enjoying God's presence and glorifying God. It is less and less about confronting our culture with the message of the Gospel - that God hates sin, but God loves sinners. Jesus spent much of His time on earth correcting thinking. He challenged the thinking that goodness is found in keeping a set of rules. Instead He preached that we need to embrace the rule-keeper. Our sins must be forgiven and can be forgiven once and for all. Once this happens we are to live for Him which means following Him in however He commissions us.

Jesus would eventually leave earth and go to sit at the right hand of God. Even as He walked on the earth His authority was different. He spoke of it often and he showed His authority in casting out demons, raising people from the dead, walking on the water, calming storms. Today, Jesus still has authority over our lives and wants us to continue to change our world. I'm concerned instead that we are being changed by our world.

In reality, Jesus is presently seating at the right hand of God. He has previously descended to earth but now He takes up His home with God. In the future there will be judgment but for now He resides, as a person of the trinity, with God. Jesus lived on earth to speak to us. It says So then, when the Lord Jesus had spoken to them. The author could have been really only speaking of His most recent conversation with the disciples but in reality Jesus had spent His time on earth speaking to us. God in flesh was speaking to His creation in flesh, walking with them, experiencing what they experience, showing them a different way of living.

He was received up into heaven - He had completed the work on earth. He had lived, been accused, defended Himself, but still declared guilty, received punishment, mocked, crushed, and then received the complete wrath of God and felt the rejection by God in the process, and died. It was over, finished. But then as He predicted He rose again. He commissioned His disciples to now carry on the message. And He was received into heaven. His work was done. As in the creation story, after 7 days there was rest or rather there was the realization that everything had been done. We rest often declaring that there is nothing more that needs to be done. Christ did it all. And we can rest.

He sat down at the right hand of God. What a comfort it is to know that Jesus sits at the right hand of God. He is not shaken or stirred by the events of this world. He is steadfast and firmly planted at the right hand of God. He cried aloud, "It is finished." He remains at the right hand of God now as our intercessor.

Summary - Jesus work on this earth is complete. And witness to this is his ascension into heaven and then a seat at the right hand of the Father.

Promise: Only One deserves unquestioned allegiance - Jesus Christ. Let us resolve in our hearts now that we will serve Him as Lord of all so that we will be prepared to stand if we must ever suffer for our faith.

Prayer: Lord, you came to this earth, not because you had to but you did to walk with us and show us yourself and more clearly what it means to live with God. Emmanuel is God with us and you did that, you came to us. I am forever grateful. I am forever changed. Lord, help me to not acquiesce into this world and become a part of it. It wants to bend me in its direction. And Lord, out of own concern now for safety and comfort, relaxing and entertainment, I find myself often not living a manner that I believe you have called me to live: a radical life. Lord, I want to obey You.

Mark 16:17-18 - Apostolic Signs and Wonders

Mark 16:17-18
17 These signs will accompany those who have believed: in My name they will cast out demons, they will speak with new tongues; 18 they will pick up serpents, and if they drink any deadly poison, it will not hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.”

Message: Apostolic Signs and Wonders

Time: Mark's personal connection with Peter gave him the source material for this book. This book was composed probably between AD 57 and AD 59. It's a book that is on the move, leading to the cross. 39 times is the word 'immediately' used. Mark reveals Jesus as God's servant, reaching into the lives of people and effecting physical and circumstantial change.

What the Lord is Saying:

Preface - Jesus has been crucified but now He lives. He died on Friday and rose on Sunday, appearing first to Mary Magdalene, then 2 disciples followed by the rest of the disciples (minus Thomas) and in the process He reproves the disciples. They were not trusting that He had appeared to others. They trusted only in themselves and He corrects them in this but then He also commissions them to Go and preach the Gospel. This gospel message is believing (in Him) followed by baptism. If one does not believe He will be condemned.

Lord, continue to help me unpack the truths of this message that You are giving to me as I read Your word. The message of the gospel is interwoven in this book and even today it has meaning to people's lives. Help me to know how to communicate that to others. Lord, I don't want to just have an internal understanding and book knowledge, but want to be able to pass this onto others. Not so we just all live successful lives, but saved lives. Thank you for saving my wife, my son, my daughter and her husband and continue to work in my youngest son's life to bring him (and his girlfriend) to salvation. Lord, they need You and need You to be their light.

Jesus is speaking here and he continues to deliver a message to His disciples. He last specifically spoke to them at the Passover and the breaking of bread and drinking of wine as His body, His blood. He has declared that His body has been broken and blood spilled for them. He became the Lamb of God before their eyes. He tells them to preach the gospel and then also tells them this means believing.

It has been clear that His message to His disciples has never simply been a message of gaining information but it has always been about being ministers of the Gospel. We are not placed on this earth simply to gain a different understanding from our peers, but to serve our peers and minister to them. Jesus will now say some radical things about people carrying on His message and doing things in His name. These signs will accompany those who have believed: in My name they will cast out demons, they will speak with new tongues; they will pick up serpents, and if they drink any deadly poison, it will not hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.” The radical look at things that He communicates - cast out demons, speak with new tongues, pick up serpents, drink deadly, lay hands on the sick -- sort of baffles us. On one hand we don't see some of these practices in our world today. Are we supposed to see them exactly as they are said by Jesus or is Jesus rather simply telling us that people will do radical things when they place their faith in Jesus and believe.

As I unpack these words from Jesus and try to figure out what He means, I recognize that in my life as a Christian I have been somewhat trained that these seemingly supernatural situations in the life of a believer do not occur today. They occurred with frequency during the time of the life of the apostles, from the death of Jesus and His commission to them in AD 33 to the time of the last apostles death around AD 100. But, since then they do not occur. Yet, many say they do occur and many ministries have capitalized on this and have a great following because of believing this ongoing ministry.

At first I see that Jesus does say there will be signs that accompany a believer. There are clear evidences therefore of a person that believes and follows Christ. He states clearly that not simply the disciples but believers will cast out demons, speak with new tongues, pick up serpents, lay hands on the sick and the sick will recover. The idea about drinking deadly poison and it not hurting them is an option rather than an prescribed thing. But, to me it also says that they naturally follow in the life of a believer. It is not a manufactured thing. Obviously, I think we must be careful in feeling like these exact things will follow in the life of a believer. My life has not exhibited these things, that I am aware of, but I also don't know the extent of my prayers in laying hands on the sick. Perhaps signs and wonders were needed more at this time of history.

So I'm not quick to necessarily write all of these things off, but I'm still, as a 51 year old man, and a follower of Christ since I was 1 month prior of my 15th birthday, trying to understand what this means to this day. Some clearly have these convictions so I pray for wisdom in not quickly judging them.

Summary - Jesus continues with His people to the disciples and after telling them to go and preach the gospel and that believing results in baptism and not believing, condemnation. He now passes onto them the idea that the believer in Christ is able to do things not previously done in that person's life. Believing in Christ changes us. Now people clearly did radical things then, but does this same practice follow today? I am not sure. The evidence would seem to be - no.

Promise: Signs accompany the believers life. Great things will follow the believer in life. The extent and variety of those signs is uncertain to me. But, I believe in Him.

Prayer: Lord, I pray for your understanding of these words. What is important to me is that a new life in Christ is simply that - a new life in Christ. Continue to train me in being Godly and serving others, for it is clear to me that ministering to others is what you are showing a new believer's life is about.