Meditate on it

Section 46  JESUS' FEET ANOINTED IN THE HOUSE OF A PHARISEE  (Galilee) LUKE 7: 36-50 I'm embarrassed to admit that it's taken me three days to process this incident and that each day, I've had significant bumps in my understanding.  The first day, I made out the general outline of events, but I didn't grasp their context.  The second day, I asked myself which woman and which anointing are the focus, what is the central point that Christ wishes to convey and to whom? The third day I realized I had assumed too much---the presence of the disciples and of  Simon Peter, failing to recognize that this was a different Simon, Simon the Pharisee.  I feel obtuse.   One disadvantage of reading through the Bible over decades is that its easy to assume I already "know" a text text and to then read it inaccurately. Three days in, the particulars are clearer.  I think I'm prone to broadly villainize  the Pharisees without differentiation.  Simon the Pharisee s

The final passage of this section is distinct from the earlier and warrants its own space. Mat 11:25   At that time Jesus declared, “I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to little children;  Robertson's Word Pictures provides excellent context: "At that season Jesus answered and said (en ekeinōi tōi kairōi apokritheis eipen). Spoke to his Father in audible voice. The time and place we do not know. But here we catch a glimpse of Jesus in one of his moods of worship. “It is usual to call this golden utterance a prayer, but it is at once prayer, praise, and self-communing in a devout spirit” (Bruce). Critics are disturbed because this passage from the Logia of Jesus or Q of Synoptic criticism (Mat_11:25-30; Luk_10:21-24) is so manifestly Johannine in spirit and very language, “the Father” (ho patēr), “the son” (ho huios), whereas the Fourth Gospel was not written till the close

Psalm  21---A psalm of David A psalm by David, the warrior king, exulting in God's strength and trusting in His power.  It incorporates punishing imagery that I'd rather avoid.  David's early life was full of  confrontation, and it forced him to look to God for relief: Psa 21:8  Your hand will find out all your enemies; your right hand will find out those who hate you. Psa 21:9  You will make them as a blazing oven when you appear. The LORD will swallow them up in his wrath, and fire will consume them Psa 21:12  For you will put them to flight; you will aim at their faces with your bows. Aim at their faces--wow! We are blessedly far from the brutal realities that David and his culture faced, but if we were faced with them, we would long for this strong response.  We would feel that need with this intense immediacy. It is our materialism and modernism that puts distance between what many in this world face and what the average American faces.  We fa

Section 44  JESUS RAISES THE WIDOW'S SON (At Nain in Galilee)  LUKE 7:11-17 Jesus' compassion for the mother is highlighted--not his compassion for the boy, who is gone, but for the mother.  His care for mothers and fathers, his concern for those who brought their friends and loved ones to show that he is moved and motivated by our pain and sorrows.  It's a simply told incident, without hype or belaboring--Jesus seeing a need and choosing to meet it. "Gave him to his mother"  Tender way of putting it. “For he had already ceased to belong to his mother” (Bengel). -Robertson's Word Pictures Christ honors the heart of the mother here, restoring her son to her. Section 45  THE BAPTIST'S INQUIRY AND JESUS' DISCOURSE SUGGESTED THEREBY  (Galilee)  MATT. 11:2-30 LUKE 7:18-35 John the Baptist is in prison and sends his disciples to inquire about Jesus's identity.  Jesus responds with the physical evidence of his role--the blind see, the lam

Section 43 HEALING THE CENTURION'S SERVANT (At Capernaum.) MATT. 8:1, 5-13; LUKE 7:1-10. " And I say unto you, that many shall come from the east and the west, and shall sit down with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, in the kingdom of heaven ." Matthew 8:11  "Jesus here predicts the conversion of the Gentiles, since that fact is suggested to him by the faith of this centurion. The east and the west represent the extreme points of the compass in the directions in which the world was most thickly inhabited. But Jesus refers rather to spiritual separation than to geographical distances--Mal. 1:11; Isa. 49:19; Jer. 16:19; Zech. 8:22."--Fourfold Gospel Jon Courson's take on the theological implications: James Tissot, The Centurion "Let us be big people, realizing the kingdom is more expansive and inclusive than what our flavor might be philosophically, or what our theology might be dogmatically. May God give us eyes to see what He's doing i

Highlights and take-aways from Alistair Begg's thoughts on Psalm 19--one thing I appreciate about Begg is that his messages are thoughtfully crafted, including both classic and contemporary examples.  He presents his messages with gravity, a touch of humor, and humility--a winsome spirit. ******************* 2017 was the 500th anniversary of the Reformation. Luther's "conscience was captive to the Word." Begg urges that Luther's introduction to the psalms is worth contemplating in full.  He shares an excerpt from it: "There is no book of the Bible to which I have devoted as much labor as to the Psalms, and yet, I must openly admit that I do not know whether I have the accurate interpretation of the psalms or not. The Spirit reserves much for Himself so we may always remain His pupils.  There is much that He reveals only to lure us on, much that He gives only to stir us up.  I know that a person would be guilty of the more shameless boldness if h

I've been meditating on Psalm 18 for a handful of days now and am certainly not finished mining its depths--what a psalm!  This morning, I've been pulled by the clarity of His promise to David and his offspring: Psa 18:50   Great salvation he brings to his king, and shows steadfast love to his anointed, to David and his offspring forever.  Peter's speech to the Jews is such a clear connection to and extension of this promise:  “Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a man attested to you by God with mighty works and wonders and signs that God did through him in your midst, as you yourselves know—   this Jesus, delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God , you crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men. God raised him up, loosing the pangs of death, because it was not possible for him to be held by it. For David says concerning him, “‘I saw the Lord always before me, for he is at my right hand that I may not be shaken;   the

The context of this psalm is David's thankfulness to the Lord on this day when he was delivered from Saul and his enemies. "And he said, I will love thee, O LORD, my strength." -Psalm 18:1 “I will love thee, O Lord.” With strong, hearty affection will I cling to thee; as a child to its parent, or a spouse to her husband. The word is intensely forcible, the love is of the deepest kind. “I will love heartily, with my inmost bowels.” Here is a fixed resolution to abide in the nearest and most intimate union with the Most High. -Spurgeon's Treasury of David He begins with metaphors that flesh out David's perception of the Lord,  defining Him as his rock, fortress, deliverer, strength in whom he trusts,  buckler, horn of salvation, high tower. Psa 18:2  The LORD is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my buckler, and the horn of my salvation, and my high tower. “My strength.” Our God is the strength of our lif

A prayer of David expressing confidence in the Lord as his Judge in the face of wicked oppressors who prowl about him like  lions. Psa 17:1  A Prayer of David. Hear the right, O LORD, attend unto my cry, give ear unto my prayer, that goeth not out of feigned lips.  "The Psalmist does not say, I am a pure man, without a stain upon the heart or hand. He says, I am a sincere man, the general purpose I have had in view is a purpose marked by honesty." -BI, Joseph Parker Psa 17:2  Let my sentence come forth from thy presence; let thine eyes behold the things that are equal.  "When we do wrong and suffer for it, our own consciences tell us that our punishment is just. But it's another story when our suffering is unrelated to any wrong we have done! This kind of suffering—the "suffering for righteousness sake," as Peter calls it—is a perennial puzzle to the child of God. David knew his share of it. But he also knew what to do about it. He took his case

A Psalm of Safety David acknowledges that all good things come through him.  God is his inheritance and cup.  He has given him pleasant land as an inheritance. God guards all that is his.  His heart instructs him at night, and his body rests in safety. “For in thee do I put my trust, ” -Psalm 16:1 “According to thy faith be it done unto thee,” is a great rule of heaven in dispensing favour, and when we can sincerely declare that we exercise faith in the Mighty God with regard to the mercy which we seek, we may rest assured that our plea will prevail. Faith, like the sword of Saul, never returns empty; it overcomes heaven when held in the hand of prayer."  -Treasury of David "The key to understanding Psalm 16 is found in Act_2:25-28 where Peter quotes verses 8-11a as referring to the Resurrection of Christ."-Believer's Bible "When the Savior said ". . . You will not leave my soul in Sheol," He revealed His foreknowledge that God would not al

David's Psalm 15 begins with a question, "Who shall dwell on your holy hill?"  The rest of the psalm is an answer, listing the qualities of a man which please God. This person: walks blamelessly does what is right speaks truth in his heart does not slander with his tongue does no evil to his neighbor takes up no reproach against his friend despises the vile honors those who fear the Lord swears to his own hurt and does not change does not put out his money at interest does not take a bribe from the innocent From Spurgeon's Treasure of David: "The question is raised, because it is a question. All men have not this privilege, nay, even among professors there are aliens from the commonwealth, who have no secret intercourse with God. On the grounds of law no mere man can dwell with God, for there is not one upon earth who answers to the just requirements mentioned in the succeeding verses." "In perfection this holiness is found only in

Introduction Chesterton begins by stating that this is a follow-up to his papers "Heretics" and an answer to several critics who suggested he needed to state his philosophy with examples.  He will set forth his philosophy in "a set of mental pictures rather than in a series of deductions. His first mental picture is of man who thought he had found an exotic new island in the South Seas, only to realize it was his familiar homeland, England. "I wish to set forth my faith as particularly answering this double spiritual need, the need for that mixture of the familiar and the unfamiliar which Christendom has rightly named romance." "...Nearly all people I have ever met in this western society in which I live would agree to the general proposition that we need this life of practical romance; the combination of something that is strange with something that is secure." "No one can think my case more ludicrous than I think it myself; no reader

Section 42  THE SERMON ON THE MOUNT (A Mountain Plateau not far from Capernaum)  Subdivision J  THE TWO WAYS AND THE FALSE PROPHETS  MATT. 7:13-23 LUKE 6:43-45  Lit., leadeth away, from death, or, perhaps, from the broad road. Note that the gate is not at the end, but at the beginning of the road. -VWS Subdivision K  CONCLUSION AND APPLICATION: TWO BUILDERS MATT. 7:24-29 LUKE 6:46-49   "Jesus here limits the tragedy to a single house. "A single soul is a great ruin in the eyes of God" --------Godet" -Fourfold Gospel 1. True religion is likened to a man’s own house. Every one’s real life is his own home. 2. There are a few persons who are fond of looking at foundations, and questioning whether they rest on the right place; others make the far more vital mistake of not searching into them enough. 3. Foundations are found, after much search, in deep places; certain floating ideas about religion are not enough to build a life upon-such as “He is a k

Section 42 THE SERMON ON THE MOUNT (A Mountain Plateau not far from Capernaum) Subdivision H  CONCERNING PRAYER MATT. 7:7-11 "An objection should be dealt with, which is perhaps oftener felt than expressed—If God knows everything we need, why does he require us to ask? The answer is twofold. 1. If he does require us to ask, there must be reasons for his so doing, in his Divine Fatherhood; and children should obey when they do not understand. 2. We can see that the asking becomes an agency of spiritual culture to us. It nourishes that dependence which takes us out of ourselves, and checks self-confidence." -Pulpit Commentary "Ask your Father! In the Greek language, it's written this way: Keep asking and it shall be given. Keep seeking and you shall find. Keep knocking and it will be opened. The tense used speaks of continual action. When you don't know what to do, keep asking, keep seeking, keep knocking. Now, please bear in mind folk

Section 42 THE SERMON ON THE MOUNT (A Mountain Plateau not far from Capernaum)  Subdivision G  LAW CONCERNING JUDGING  MATT. 7:1-6; LUKE 6:37-42  "Don't pick on people, jump on their failures, criticize their faults—unless, of course, you want the same treatment. That critical spirit has a way of boomeranging. It's easy to see a smudge on your neighbor's face and be oblivious to the ugly sneer on your own.  Do you have the nerve to say, 'Let me wash your face for you,' when your own face is distorted by contempt? It's this whole traveling road-show mentality all over again, playing a holier-than-thou part instead of just living your part. Wipe that ugly sneer off your own face, and you might be fit to offer a washcloth to your neighbor.  "Don't be flip with the sacred. Banter and silliness give no honor to God. Don't reduce holy mysteries to slogans. In trying to be relevant, you're only being cute and inviting sacrilege."   Mat