166. The Need For People To Repent Of Their Sins. Sermon Outline On Luke 3:7-18. (The Gospel For Advent 3)

Posted on November 28, 2015 by Jim Holbeck

“I certainly don’t need to repent!” That was probably the thinking in the minds of many who heard John the Baptist preaching. He was calling people to repent in order to be forgiven, and then baptising those who responded to his message. This was a prophet like the prophets of the Old Testament, with their call to change behaviour.

Others might have felt that it was all right for him to speak to the Gentile unbelievers like that, but how dare he challenge the Jewish people as well! What arrogance to preach that they should repent of their sins and make changes to their lives! As people came forward confessing their sins, he baptised both the Gentiles and the Jews who responded to his message. In other words he expected everyone to admit their sins before God. John had come as a fore-runner to prepare the way for the coming of the Christ, the Messiah. The preparation needed by the people, was the change in attitude firstly towards God and secondly towards their sins.

A).   The Meaning Of Repentance

Let’s look at what repentance is not.

i.  It is not just feeling sorry for our sins. People can feel sorry that they were caught, without repenting of the act itself. We may feel sorry that our actions or words caused hurt to other people, without really repenting of the inner anger that made us do what we did or said. The inner anger may come from a refusal to forgive, or from a desire to harbour resentment.

ii.  It is not just feeling deep remorse. Judas Iscariot betrayed Jesus, and was filled with remorse knowing that he had betrayed innocent blood. When he couldn’t undo the damage he had done, he took his own life. But that wasn’t repentance. Paul writes in 2 Corinthians 7:10 “Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death.” Judas had only worldly sorrow, deep though it may have been.

iii. It is not just rationalising our sins. That is, giving rational reasons (or excuses) for why we behaved as we did. Often associated with rationalising our sin is the process of projection where we project our guilt on to other people rather than admitting we were wrong. Eve projected her guilt onto the serpent and Adam projected his guilt onto Eve and perhaps onto God Himself, Gen 3:12 The man said, “The woman whom you gave to be with me, she gave me fruit of the tree, and I ate.” If we sin in any way we are accountable.

 What then is repentance? The Greek word is (metanoia) which means a change of mind accompanied by a change in behaviour. It involves a change of mind towards God and my relationship with God. It means a change of mind about my sins so that I adopt God’s attitude to them. The words to “confess” our sins before God, has the meaning to “say the same as” (Greek word is homologeō which is made up of homo = same  and logeo = to say). As we confess our sins, we are saying the same thing about them that God has said about them in His word. In other words we are agreeing with God’s verdict on our sins as declared in His word. Eg., 1Jn 1:9  If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

 Judas Iscariot didn’t repent. He didn’t turn back to God for His forgiveness. He tried to destroy his guilt by destroying himself. But there’s only one way to remove guilt and that is by repentance and by receiving forgiveness in Christ. He is the only One who can remove sin and the guilt of sin.

B).  Repentance Means A Change In Behaviour.

John the Baptist was very strong in stressing the need for repentance to be lived out through a changed life-style. It wasn’t enough to see oneself belonging to the people of God, and being unwilling to change. So in verses 7 to 9 he challenges them, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? Produce fruit in keeping with repentance. And do not begin to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I tell you that out of these stones God can raise up children for Abraham.”

When the people asked him what changes they needed to make, he replied with specific commands that were appropriate for each group of people who asked him. Generally there was the need to follow the Old Testament teaching to love one’s neighbour as oneself, so that “the man with two tunics should share with him who has none, and the one who has food should do the same.” When Tax collectors also came to be baptised, and asked him what they should do, he replied, “Don’t collect any more than you are required to.” That was appropriate because they had a reputation for taking more than was required and putting the excess into their own pockets. When some soldiers asked him, “And what should we do?” He replied, “Don’t extort money and don’t accuse people falsely ‑‑be content with your pay.” That is, don’t misuse your privileged position of power to get money for yourselves by force or extortion.

In all these practical examples of how penitent people should behave, John is taking them back to the word of God, because the Old Testament teaching, especially the ten commandments, had already prohibited the sinful practices that John now condemned. “You shall not steal”, “you shall not give false testimony against your neighbour”, “you shall not covet”, summarises what John told them. As repentant people they were to be living out the word of God in their lives.

C).  Repentance Means A Deepening Relationship With Jesus Christ

John could have enjoyed all the notoriety of being a great preacher, and attracting crowds of followers who would continue to hang on his every word. But he was the fore-runner to the Messiah, not the Messiah. So he began to turn people away from himself to look forward to the coming Messiah, whom we know to be Jesus of Nazareth. He said, “I baptise you with water. But one more powerful than I will come, the thongs of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie. He will baptise you with the Holy Spirit and with fire. His winnowing fork is in his hand to clear his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his barn, but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.”

John’s mission was to get people ready to meet Jesus, and to put their trust in Him. John’s baptism was symbolic as a sign that sins could be washed away as people repented and responded to the message. But when Jesus came, He would baptise with the reality of the person and power of the Holy Spirit. It would be the real thing. Those who would accept Jesus would be purified as by fire, and also be strengthened by the indwelling Holy Spirit. John couldn’t provide this inward reality, only Jesus could. But people needed to become open to receive His message, by repenting of their sin, and by God’s grace living by the word of God in Scripture.

Change? Who? Me?

None of us like to admit that we need to change, because sometimes we are quite happy to remain where we are in life. For those who have never put their trust in Christ, we see here the need to come in repentance, confessing their sins, especially the sins of unbelief and rebellion against Christ, and asking for His forgiveness. Asking Him to baptise them with the Holy Spirit and with fire.

Why did I stress these things in a Healing Service as I have done on numerous occasions? Because all of us need more spiritual, physical and emotional healing. If I refuse to admit my sin before God, it exacts a heavy physical and emotional toll on me, as David declared in Psalm 32, “When I kept silent, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long. For day and night Your hand was heavy upon me… Then I acknowledged my sin to You, and did not cover up my iniquity, I said, ‘I will confess my transgressions to the Lord’ – and You forgave the guilt of my sin.” I can only know the release and freedom of forgiveness if I am willing to open up my sins to Him in genuine confession and ask for His forgiveness. God covers over the sins that we uncover before Him. (That is the meaning of the atonement).

My prayer is that as we read or preach these words from Luke 3 the Holy Spirit will minister to each of us and to others, to show us areas where we may need to be forgiven. As we confess them and ask God’s forgiveness in Jesus, His healing power can come upon us, to bring us more physical, emotional and spiritual healing. Mind you, our primary motivation in repenting of our sin is to please Him by obeying Him and not simply to get more healing!

Blog No.166. Posted by Jim Holbeck. Saturday 28th November 2015

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165. God As King Of The Universe And A Friend To His People

Posted on November 23, 2015 by Jim Holbeck

I once saw a cartoon that pictured a mother chastising her young daughter for something she had done. The little girl obviously didn’t like her mother speaking to her in that way. So she said to the mother, “You’re not my friend anymore!” Her mother, to make a point, replied, “I’m not your friend! I’m your mother!” It didn’t mean of course that the mother wasn’t going to be friendly towards her daughter. It simply meant that her daughter had to recognise that her mother had authority to correct her when necessary. Indeed the daughter would learn to recognise eventually that in normal families there can be a no greater human friend in a girl’s life than her mother.

GOD AS ALMIGHTY GOD AND AS A “FRIEND” IN THE OLD TESTAMENT
It is quite amazing to read in the Old Testament that God as the ultimate authority was nevertheless willing to be seen as a friend to His people. For example in Job 29 we have these words, (1) “And Job again took up his discourse, and said:(2) “Oh, that I were as in the months of old, as in the days when God watched over me,(3) when his lamp shone upon my head, and by his light I walked through darkness,(4) as I was in my prime, when the friendship of God was upon my tent, (5) when the Almighty was yet with me, when my children were all around me” (ESV). The phrase “the friendship” is a Hebrew word (sod) and means intimacy or confidentiality. Job recognised that God had been a friend to him in caring for him. That is seen also in the Greek version of the Old Testament which has the word (epískopos) meaning oversight or a reference to God visiting or covering His people for good.

In Psalm 25:14 we have these words, “The friendship of the LORD is for those who fear him, and he makes known to them his covenant.” Again this is the word for intimacy (sod) seen above in Job 29:4. As Keil and Delitzsch comment on this verse, “He opens his mind without any reserve, speaks confidentially with those who fear Him.” Here is the sense of God’s friendship in speaking openly and making known the truth of the covenant. In the Greek version however the word comes from (krataioō) which means to be strong or made strong. So various translations have these words, (HCSB) The secret counsel of the LORD is for those who fear Him, and He reveals His covenant to them. (NASB) The secret of the LORD is for those who fear Him, And He will make them know His covenant. (NIV) The LORD confides in those who fear him; he makes his covenant known to them. (NRSV) The friendship of the LORD is for those who fear him, and he makes his covenant known to them. The over-riding thought is that God, as the friend of David, expresses His friendship in caring for David and revealing to him the secrets of His covenant.

God is seen as a personal friend in Exodus 33:11, ”Thus the LORD used to speak to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend”. In the Greek version of the Old Testament the word for “friend” is (philos). We find that the same word is also in used in the Greek New Testament to describe various types of friends.

GOD AS A “FRIEND” IN THE NEW TESTAMENT
In the New Testament the word for “friend” (philos) is used in a number of ways in referring to Jesus.
1). It Was Used By Jesus’ Enemies To Describe Him As Being A Friend Of Sinners
Mat 11:19 The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Look at him! A glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’ (Also Lk 7:34)

2). It Was Used By Jesus To Describe His Sacrificial Death For His Friends
John 15:13 Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.14 You are my friends if you do what I command you.

3). It Was Used By Jesus To Describe The Close Relationship He Had To His Followers.
Jesus said that His disciples were His friends. Luke 12:4 “I tell you, my friends, do not fear those who kill the body, and after that have nothing more that they can do.”
Jesus saw Lazarus as His friend. John 11:11 After saying these things, he said to them, “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I go to awaken him.”
Jesus saw that His disciples were not just His servants. They were also His friends. John 15:15 “No longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you.”

4). It Was Used To Describe Abraham As A Friend Of God. James 2:23 “and the Scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness”—and he was called a friend of God.”

OTHER EXPRESSIONS THAT SHOW THAT GOD (AND JESUS) IS A FRIEND TO HIS PEOPLE
“Beloved”. It should not be surprising to us that the followers of Jesus are described as the “friends” of God and of Jesus. They are God’s “beloved”, the same term that is used of Jesus as God’s “beloved” Son. For example Paul used the word (agapētos = beloved) to describe believers in Rom 1:7 “To all those in Rome who are loved (beloved) by God and called to be saints.” He used it to describe those Gentiles who would trust in Christ and become members of the same family of God as Jewish believers, Rom 9:25 “As indeed he says in Hosea, “Those who were not my people I will call ‘my people,’ and her who was not beloved I will call ‘beloved.'” (The Jews who refused to believe in Jesus were still loved by God as part of His covenant people. Rom 11:28 As regards the gospel, they are enemies for your sake. But as regards election, they are beloved for the sake of their forefathers.)

Paul also challenged those who had become the children of God by faith in Jesus, to respond to God’s love by imitating Him. They were “beloved children” and needed to show their gratitude for His love by living in the way He wanted them to live, Eph 5:1 “Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children.” There is a similar injunction in Colossians 3:12 where Paul describes his readers as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved. “Beloved” here comes from a similar word, the verb form (agapaō). Those chosen by God to belong to him, set apart for him and loved by him were to respond by putting on compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness and patience. Col 3:12.

In 2Thess 2:13 we see God’s initiative at work in the lives of the Thessalonian believers. Paul describes them as brothers who are “beloved by the Lord”. This is the same word as in Colossians 3:12 (agapaō). The evidence of that love is seen in the fact that God chose them as the firstfruits to be saved. He did it by sanctifying them by the Spirit and by setting them apart to belong to Him. They took hold of what He was offering in love as they believed in the truth about Him. Another reference to that same word (agapaō) is to to be found in Jude 1:1 “Jude, a servant of Jesus Christ and brother of James, To those who are called, beloved in God the Father and kept for Jesus Christ.” Again we see God’s initiative at work in calling them to Himself and keeping them safe for Jesus Christ.

Children of God. It is a wonderful thing when people act in a friendly way towards us and even become our friends. But how many of those friends would be willing to adopt us as their own children? Probably very, very few! But God did! His welcoming love is described in 1John 3:1 “See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are.” God’s love was seen in His offering of His Son Jesus to be our Saviour. We responded to His love by receiving His gift, John 1:12 “But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, 13 who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.”

God’s love is sacrificial. It is far deeper than even the very best of our friends can extend to us. As John writes, 1Jn 4:10 “In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins,11 Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.”

There are other terms we could investigate to show that God is a friend to His people. Jesus has told us in no uncertain terms that His followers are His friends. But it is also true that we are to regard Jesus not simply as some nice “buddy” or “pal” we can have a chat to at any time, (though we can!). Rather we are to see Him as a Friend who has done for us what no other friend could ever have done. And to see Him as One who can do in and through us what He longs to do to help fulfil His purposes in the world He created and came to redeem.
As Paul reminds us about our obligation to be a true friend to Him, 2Cor 5:15 “he died for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised.” As Jesus told us, Joh 15:14 “You are my friends if you do what I command you.”
Jesus the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords, says to us as believers, “You are My friends”.
Blog No.165. Jim Holbeck. Posted on Monday 23rd November 2015

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No.164. The Person of Jesus. Session 4 of 4. JESUS THE “JUDGE”

Posted on November 9, 2015 by Jim Holbeck

We can’t ignore the topic of judgment if it’s in the Bible. In fact in the English Standard Version there are over 450 references to “judge” or “judgment”. Many of them are associated with God’s judgment on people in the past or in the future. There are many references to Jesus being the judge of all the earth at the end of human history. So it is a topic we cannot ignore.

This is the fourth of 4 sessions given at an all-day seminar at Port Macquarie Australia, on the Person of Jesus as 1 Creator, 2 Saviour, 3 Lord and 4 Judge. The audio talks given at the seminar are to be found under the same headings on You Tube under “Jim Holbeck”. The material below is adapted from the handout notes distributed at the Seminar. The notes below are best utilised whilst listening to the talks on You Tube but can be downloaded and used for personal or group study.

1). GOD’S JUDGMENT IS ALWAYS JUST AND THOROUGH
Gen 18:25 … Shall not the Judge of all the earth do what is just?”
Psa 9: 8 and he judges the world with righteousness… with uprightness.
Ecc 12:14 For God will bring every deed into judgment, with every secret thing, whether good or evil.

2). JESUS ACTS AS GOD’S AGENT IN JUDGMENT
(Joh 5:22) The Father judges no one, but has given all judgment to the Son,
Joh 5:27 And he has given him authority to execute judgment,
(Joh 8:16) …it is not I alone who judge, but I and the Father who sent me.
(Act 17:31) because he has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed;
(Rom 2:16) on that day when, according to my gospel, God judges the secrets of men by (dia = through) Christ Jesus.

3). EVERYONE WILL STAND BEFORE THE JUDGMENT SEAT OF GOD
Rom 14:10 …For we will all stand before the judgment seat of God; …12 So then each of us will give an account of himself to God.
1Co 4:5 … the Lord comes, who will bring to light the things now hidden in darkness and will disclose the purposes of the heart.
2Co 5:10 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, .. good or evil.
(2Ti 4:1) Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead,
Heb 9:27 … it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment,

4). THE BASIS OF JUDGMENT
I). One’s Attitude To Jesus
Joh 3:18 … whoever does not believe is condemned already,
Joh 5:26-29, For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son also to have life in himself.(27) And he has given him authority to execute judgment, because he is the Son of Man.(28) Do not marvel at this, for an hour is coming when all who are in the tombs will hear his voice (29) and come out, those who have done good to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil to the resurrection of judgment.
2Th 1:7 … when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with his mighty angels 8 in flaming fire, inflicting vengeance on those who do not know God and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus.
II). The rejection of Jesus and His words
(Joh 12:48) The one who rejects me and does not receive my words has a judge; the word that I have spoken will judge him on the last day.
III). Ungodly Behaviour And Speech
Mat 7: 23 … depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’
Heb 13:4 … God will judge the sexually immoral and adulterous.
Jud 1:14 …Behold, the Lord comes … 15 to execute judgment on all and to convict all the ungodly of all their deeds of ungodliness … and of all the harsh things that ungodly sinners have spoken against him.”
Rev 20:12-13 … the dead were judged by what was written in the books, according to what they had done.
IV). Refusal to repent
People in Chorazin, Bethsaida and Capernaum. Mat 11:20 Then he began to denounce the cities where most of his mighty works had been done, because they did not repent.,
Rom 2:5 But because of your hard and impenitent heart you are storing up wrath for yourself on the day of wrath when God’s righteous judgment will be revealed.
Rom 2:8 but for those who … obey unrighteousness, there will be wrath and fury.
Act 17:30 God … commands all people everywhere to repent,.

5). WHAT HAPPENS IN GOD’S JUDGMENT?
I). SEPARATION OF GOOD AND EVIL
Jesus’ illustration about the sheep and the goats, and people’s failure to care.
The “sheep” are rewarded for caring Mat 25:40, and the “goats” are punished for not caring. Mat 25:45 as you did not do it to one of the least of these
II). PUNISHMENT ON THE UNREPENTANT WICKED
2 Th 1:8 inflicting vengeance on those who do not know God and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. 9 will suffer the punishment of eternal destruction, away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his might,
III). REWARDS FOR THOSE WHO TRUST AND OBEY
1Co 3:14 If the work that anyone has built on the foundation survives, he will receive a reward
(2Ti 4:8) Henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that Day,

6). HOW TO AVERT JUDGMENT
Through repentance and trusting and obeying Jesus Christ. Joh 5:24 .. whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life. He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life.
Rom 8:1, there is therefore no condemnation for those in Christ Jesus.
Joh 5:28 … those who have done good to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil to the resurrection of judgment.

7). DOES GOD WANT PEOPLE TO FACE HIS JUDGMENT?
2Pe 3:9 The Lord is .. patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.
Jn 3:16, he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.

8). JESUS TO BE THE JUDGE THEN, WANTS TO BE OUR FRIEND NOW
I). We become friends by trusting and obeying God
(Jas 2:23) “Abraham believed God, ..and he was called a friend of God.
(Joh 15:15) Jesus. “ No longer do I call you servants… but I have called you friends”
II). Jesus can help us as no other friend can. Mat 11:28 Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest
III). Jesus wants to be our close friend. (Joh 15:7) If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. AND (Joh 15:9) As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love.
IV). We can be confident when He comes. (1Jn 2:28) And now, little children, abide in him, so that when he appears we may have confidence and not shrink from him in shame at his coming.

JESUS IS (CREATOR-SAVIOUR-LORD-JUDGE). But He wants to be OUR FRIEND and we can become His friends by repenting of our sins and trusting in what He has done for us on the cross.

Blog No.164. Posted by Jim Holbeck. Monday 9th November 2015

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No.163. The Person of Jesus. Session 3 of 4. JESUS THE “LORD”

Posted on November 9, 2015 by Jim Holbeck

THE SIGNIFICANCE OF THE FACT THAT JESUS IS “LORD”
The New Testament word “Kurios” can mean Lord, master, owner. It is also used as the New Testament Greek equivalent for the Old Testament Hebrew word “Jehovah” or “Yahweh”. It was used for a person who owned or controlled property, people or the state (eg., the Roman Emperor). It was also used as a title of respect in greetings. It was used of Jesus in New Testament as “Lord”, or “Lord Jesus”, or “Lord Jesus Christ.”

The outline below is adapted from a handout on this topic at an all-day seminar at Port Macquarie, Australia. This is the third of 4 sessions on Jesus as 1 the Creator, 2 the Saviour, 3 the Lord and 4 the Judge. The audio recordings of all the sessions are to be found under the same titles on You Tube under “Jim Holbeck.” These notes are suitable for downloading for use individually or in groups whilst listening to the audio talks on You Tube.

1). JESUS IS LORD OF THE UNIVERSE
I). JESUS SUSTAINS THE UNIVERSE HE CREATED
1Cor 8:6 yet for us there is one …. Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all things and through whom we exist.
Col 1:17 … And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together.
Heb 1:3 …he upholds the universe by the word of his power.

II). JESUS CONTROLS THE POWERS OF DARKNESS
Col 1:13 He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, 14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
Col 2:15 He disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them in him.

III). JESUS IS UNITING ALL THINGS IN HIS UNIVERSE IN HIMSELF
Col 1:19, For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, 20 and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross.
Eph 1:9 making known to us the mystery of his will, according to his purpose, which he set forth in Christ 10 as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth. (HCSB,-to bring everything together in the Messiah, both things in heaven and things on earth in Him).
• “Unite” is ἀνακεφαλαίομαι (anakephalaiomai) or the process is called (anakephalaiosos) or “recapitulation.” It means to sum up, gather together in one, or literally unite under one head.

IV). JESUS IS WAITING FOR PEOPLE TO REPENT BEFORE HE RETURNS
2Pet 3:8 But do not overlook this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. 9 The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.

V). JESUS IS RETURNING TO THIS WORLD. “Coming ready or not!” 2Pet 3:10 But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, …

2). JESUS IS LORD OF THE CHURCH
I). THE CHURCH IS BUILT ON THE TRUTH THAT JESUS IS “The Christ, the Son of the Living God”. Peter recognised who Jesus was, Mat 16:16 Simon Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” Jesus accepted that description of Himself as a God-given revelation, 17 And Jesus answered him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven.
He then used the declaration of this God-revealed truth to describe it as the truth on which the church would be established. Mat 16:18 (Mat 16:18) … you are Peter (Petros), and on this rock (petra) I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. 19 I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.”20 Then he strictly charged the disciples to tell no one that he was the Christ.

II). THE CHURCH WAS ESTABLISHED ON JESUS’ SACRIFICE ON THE CROSS
(Act 20:28) … care for the church of God, which he obtained with his own blood
(Eph 5:23) ..Christ is the head of the church, his body, and is himself its Savior.
(Eph 5:25)… as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her

III). ITS PEOPLE ARE COMMITTED TO CHRIST AS HEAD OF THE CHURCH
Jesus IS the head of the church
(Eph 1:22) And he put all things under his feet and gave him as head over all things to the church.
(Col 1:18) And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent.
Leaders and all believers must submit to Jesus as the head of the church
(Act 9:31) …. And walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, it multiplied.
(Act 14:23) And when they had appointed elders for them in every church, with prayer and fasting they committed them to the Lord in whom they had believed.
(1Cor 1:2) To the church of God that is in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints together with all those who in every place call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, both their Lord and ours:

3). JESUS IS LORD (OR MUST BECOME LORD) OVER ALL INDIVIDUALS
I). WE MUST PERSONALLY SUBMIT TO HIS LORDSHIP OVER US
2Cor 5:15 and he died for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised.

II). THAT SUBMISSION MUST BE IN EVERY AREA OF LIFE
Col 3:23 Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, 24 knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ.

III). SUBMISSION TO HIM AS LORD, TRANSFORMS US
As we maintain our focus on Him. 2Cor 3:16 But when one turns to the Lord, the veil is removed. 17 Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. 18 And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.
As we present all we are to Him. Rom 12:1 …. present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. 2 Do not be conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that you may prove what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.
As we ask Him to fill us with His Spirit. Eph 5:18 … be filled with the Spirit, 19 addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart, 20 giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, 21 submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ.

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No.162. The Person of Jesus. Session 2 of 4. JESUS “THE SAVIOUR”

Posted on November 8, 2015 by Jim Holbeck

In this second session we look at Jesus as the Saviour of the world.

The brief outline below is a copy of the handout to participants at the seminar. The audio teaching from the seminar  is to be found with this title on You Tube under “Jim Holbeck”

Jesus is described as the “Saviour of the world”.
The Meaning Of “Salvation”
1) The Noun. (Sōtēria). Means salvation, preservation, freedom from sin, wholeness.
2) The Verb. (Sōzō). Means to save, heal, make more whole, preserve, restore.
3) The Noun. (Sōtēr). Means Saviour or Deliverer.
The Tenses Of Salvation
• PAST TENSE. We have been saved from the PENALTY of sin.
• PRESENT TENSE. We are being saved from the POWER of sin
• FUTURE TENSE. We will be saved from the PRESENCE of sin.

1) PAST TENSE. We have been saved from the penalty of sin
JUSTIFICATION. Made right with God. Through what Jesus did for us.
Rom 5:8, Christ died for us. Eph 2:8, saved through faith. 2 Tim 1:9, who saved us Titus 3:5, he saved us, …by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit

What it means for us that we “have been saved”
i) Salvation is offered to us individually now. Rev 3:20, If anyone hears my voice and opens the door I will come in. (We need to open the door of our lives to allow Him to enter).
ii) We can have assurance of our salvation. Jn 3:16, …have eternal life. Eph 2:8-9, you have been saved ..the gift of God 1 Jn 5:11-13, he who has the Son has life
iii) We can live with humble assurance and not arrogant presumption. Eph 2:8 By grace you have been saved…
iv) NOW we have peace with God. Rom 5:1, Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God …
v) NOW we are no longer condemned by God. Rom 8:1, There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.
vi) NOW we belong to the family of God. Jn 1:12 … he gave the right to become children of God, …born of God. 1Jn 3:1,… love… we should be called children of God; 1Jn 3:2, …now we are children of God

2) PRESENT TENSE. We ARE BEING SAVED from the POWER of sin
(SANCTIFICATION– Jesus lives IN us)
i). 1 Cor 1:18, For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.
ii). 2 Cor 2:15, For we are the aroma of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing,
iii). Phil 2:12, … work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, 13 for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.
iv). Heb 7:25 Consequently, he is able to save to the uttermost those who draw near to God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them.

What it means for us that we are “being saved”
i). We are being empowered by the gospel we CAN understand.
1 Cor 1:18, For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. (Only the “saved” can understand what God has done for them in Christ. The gospel empowers us to live for Christ in our everyday living.)
ii). God is pleased with those in whom Christ lives and moves. 2 Cor 2:15, For we are the aroma of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing
iii). CAUTION! GOD IS AT WORK IN US! And He works through us!
• Phil 2:12, … work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, 13 for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure. [Those being saved have to work OUT in everyday living what God is working IN them as “saved” people. They are being motivated (will) and empowered (work) by God Himself to live for His pleasure (will).]
iv). GOD HELPS THE “BEING SAVED PEOPLE” THROUGHOUT THEIR LIVES. Heb 7:25 Consequently, he is able to save to the uttermost those who draw near to God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them.
2 things are necessary for our victories in our Christian lives from beginning to end on this earth. a. We need to keep drawing near to Him (our part) b. Jesus keeps on praying for us. (100% certain)

3) FUTURE TENSE. We will be saved from the PRESENCE of sin
(GLORIFICATION- Jesus is coming to take us WITH Him to glory).

We will be saved from God’s wrath.  i). Rom 5:9, Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God. AND   1Thess 1:10, … to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come.
Our bodies will be set free from weakness. ii). Rom 8:23, … but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies.

What it means for us that we will be saved from the PRESENCE of sin!
The wrath of God will be released when Jesus returns but believers will be saved from it because

1). They have trusted in Jesus’ death for them. Rom 5:9, Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God. And

2). They have turned to God. 1Thess 1:10, … to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come.

3). Our bodies will be set free from weakness when He returns to take us to be with Him in glory. Rom 8:23, … but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies.
Jesus is the ONLY Saviour.

The A.B.C.D. of making Him our Saviour. (From writings of the late Canon John Stott)

A. We need to Admit that we are sinners in the sight of God.

B. We need to Believe that Jesus died on the cross for each one of us.

C. We have to Consider the cost of becoming a Christian. Salvation is a free gift but it demands our total response to God.

D. We have to Do something about it. We have to invite Him into our lives.

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No.161. The Person of Jesus. Session 1 of 4. Jesus as the CREATOR

Posted on November 6, 2015 by Jim Holbeck

This is the first of 4 teaching sessions at Port Macquarie, Australia, which focussed on the Person of Jesus as The Creator of the universe, as the Saviour of the world, as the Lord of the Universe and as the ultimate Judge of all the earth.  People need to know just who this Jesus is so that they can make informed decisions about His claim on their lives.

The talks can be heard on You Tube as audio addresses under “Jim Holbeck”. The link for the first talk can be clicked on here.   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_GYb8fv2otc

Below is the brief outline handed out to participants at the seminar and provide the framework for the talk. It would be possible for Bible Study or Home Groups of any size to listen to the audio presentation whilst having before them a downloaded copy of the material which follows.  I trust the four talks may be helpful for individuals as well.

SESSION 1. JESUS THE CREATOR

TO RECOGNISE ABOUT CREATION
 No human was there to observe it
 Our knowledge comes by revelation not by human investigation.
 The Bible contains God’s revelation of as to the how and why of creation.

Why we should think about Jesus as the Creator of the world?
1). Because He IS THE CREATOR.
2). Because many do not acknowledge Him as such.
3). Because we all owe our origin to Him.
4). Because we are offered the privilege of being used in His purposes
5). Because we are accountable to Him for how we live

1). WHAT JESUS SAID OF HIMSELF
Jn 8:58. “Before Abraham was, I am.” (The significance of the “I am.”)
Jn 17:5. “And now, Father, glorify me in your own presence with the glory that I had with you before the world existed.” (He pre-existed before creation).
The “I AM’s” of Jesus. (The meaning and application of the metaphors by Jesus.)
Jn 6:35, … Bread of life .. never hunger, never thirst
Jn 8:12, … light of the world … have the light of life
Jn 10:7, …door of the sheep … life to the full.
Jn 11:25, … the resurrection and the life … will live.. never die

2). WHAT JOHN THE APOSTLE SAID OF JESUS
Jn 1:1-3. “… 3 All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made.” (He was creator of all things.)
Jn 1:10-11. “He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him. 11 He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him.” (The Creator came to His own creation and His own people rejected their Creator.)

3). WHAT ST PAUL WROTE OF JESUS
 1 Cor 8:6 yet for us there is one God, the Father, from whom are all things and for whom we exist, and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all things and through whom we exist. (Jesus was the agent of creation.)
 Col 1:15. He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. 16 For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities–all things were created through him and for him. 17 And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. (All things owe their origin to Him.  and they are ‘for” Him. )

4). THE WRITER TO THE HEBREWS WROTE OF JESUS
Heb 1:1-3. Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, 2 but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world. 3 He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high. (Jesus is the Creator and the Sustainer of the universe He came to redeem).

5). WHAT JESUS AS CREATOR MEANS FOR US
 Everything that exists was created by Jesus
 Every person ever born owes their origin to Him.
 Creation was made by Him, through Him and for Him
 Creation is His. It exists for His purposes
 All people are His by right of creation
 All people should humble themselves before Him as their Creator

6). JESUS HAS BEGUN A NEW CREATION ON EARTH
2Cor 5:17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.
Gal 6:15 For neither circumcision counts for anything, nor uncircumcision, but a new creation.
 It consists of those who believe in Him
 They are united to Him by faith

THE CHALLENGE TO US TODAY
THE GIVEN OF CREATION
We are created by Jesus for Himself
We should submit to Him in everything

THE OPPORTUNITY WE ARE GIVEN
To become “new creatures” in Christ as we live as His creatures in His creation. It is our choice to enter “into Christ” by putting our faith in Him or to refuse His offer
The choice is choosing for or against the Creator

Blog No.161. Jim Holbeck. Posted on Friday 6th November 2015

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160. Easter! We Are Risen! We Are Risen Indeed! Ephesians chapters 1 and 2

Posted on April 6, 2015 by Jim Holbeck

The above title may need some explanation! Surely the emphasis at Easter should be upon Jesus Christ who was crucified on that first Good Friday and rose from the dead on that first Easter morning! Of course it should be. He was the first to rise from the dead and was seen by many in His resurrection appearances.

However what we fail to see, even as mature believers, is what God did for us in the Resurrection of Jesus.  Paul puts it plainly in Ephesians as he describes the resurrection of Jesus and then goes on to show that believers are to see themselves as risen with Him in His resurrection.

First of all he focusses on Jesus’s resurrection in Eph 1:19-21. These verses are packed with meaning.  We can see that when we examine some of the words used in this passage. There are a large number of words describing God’s power at work in the resurrection of Jesus. If we place the original Greek New Testament word after each of these power words we get some idea as to the power of God involved.  For example “what is the immeasurable (huperballō)greatness (megethos) of his power (dunamis) toward us who believe, according to the working (energeia) of his great (kratos) might (ischus) 20  that he worked in (energeō) Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places, 21  far above all rule (archē) and authority (exousia) and power (dunamis) and dominion (kuriotēs), and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come.”

We will look at each of these words in turn to appreciate what Paul was describing in the resurrection of Jesus.

“Immeasurable” (huperballō) is used by Paul in other verses to describe the surpassing glory of God (2 Cor 3:10); the surpassing grace of God  (2 Cor 9:14); the surpassing riches of His grace Eph 2;7,  and in Eph 3:19 the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge.

“Greatness” (megethos), found only here in the N.T.  is one of the many cognates of (megas) meaning “great”.

“Power” (dunamis) the origin of our English word “dynamite” is often used of God’s almighty power. In the plural it often refers to the miracles or mighty works of God.

“Working” (energeia) is usually used of God at work in power.   It is used in a verb form in verse 20. Thus  the “working” (energeia) of God in verse 19, “worked (energeō) in Christ.” Verse 20

“Great” (kratos) can mean dominion as well as might or strength. Is used with the next word (ischus) in  Eph 6:10  Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might.

“Might” (ischus) is usually used of God’s might. However it is also used of believers who are to love God with all their “strength”.  This strength needs to come from God Himself as 1Pe 4:11 implies. “… whoever serves, as one who serves by the strength that God supplies.”

“Rule” (archē) can mean first in position or in time. It can mean “from the beginning” and it can also refer to authority figures. These authority figures include earthly rulers or authorities. But a deeper meaning is seen in the following verses where there is a reference to spiritual authorities, Eph 3:10 “… the rulers and authorities in the heavenly places.” Eph 6:12 “ For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.”  Col 2:10 “ and you have been filled in him, who is the head of all rule and authority.” Col 2:15  “He disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them in him.” Jesus is not only the first in power but He rules over every other power.

“Authority”  (exousia) means having the authority to exercise power or control. Jesus is the head over all authorities. Col 2:9 “For in him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily, 10 and you have been filled in him, who is the head of all rule and authority.”

“Power”  (dunamis) we looked at in verse 19.

“Dominion” (kuriotēs) is found only 4 times in the New Testament. However Col 1:16 shows that Jesus Christ exercises dominion because everything was created by Him and for Him, “For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him.”

Jesus now sits at the Father’s right hand in glory, having been raised by the Father to do so. He rules over all. He is Lord of the universe.  All are to live in submission to Him.

Well, where does the truth behind our title “Easter. We Are Risen” come in? It actually comes in the next chapter. Eph 2:4-7, “But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, (5)  even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ–by grace you have been saved–(6)  and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, (7)  so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.”  

What incredible truths lie in these verses.  Paul emphasises that in the words he chose to highlight those truths.  He describes our unity or identification with Christ using three verbs in particular. The first is “made us alive together with. “ This translates the one Greek word (suzōopoiéō) which is made up of (sún) meaning “together with”, and (zōopoiéō) meaning “to make alive”.  The reference is to the fact that when we believed in Christ we were raised from spiritual death to spiritual life through our faith union with  Christ.

The second verb is no less spectacular. It is translated  (6)  “and raised us up with him” . It is the combined word (sunegeírō) which comes from (sún) meaning “together with”, and (egeírō) “to raise” . That is, “to raise together with.”  God wants us to understand that our faith union with Christ is such that when He raised up Jesus from the dead, He also raised us up with Him.

The third verb  is rather mind-blowing.  It is translated as “seated us with him.”  Again it is a single combined word (sugkathízō) which is made up of (sún) meaning “together with” and (kathízō) “to set or sit down.” God seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus.  When God raised Christ to glory at His right hand, He seated us with Him in the heavenlies,  through our faith-union with Christ.

So how are we to see ourselves as believers in the light of these verses? Well naturally, I am to see myself typing out this article in my home on the Eastern coast of Australia. A 500 metre walk eastwards could have me stepping into the Pacific Ocean and striking out to sea towards South America. The first part of the vision I have painted is true as I sit in my study. (I have no intention of swimming to South America.)

But God would have me see another vision of myself as a believer. That is sitting now with Christ at His right hand. I don’t feel as though I am sitting there in the heavenlies at the moment but that is what God wants me to believe and act upon.

What does it mean then that we are now “seated with Christ” in the Heavenly places? I think the following may be true.

1). We are in the place of acceptance with God. The Bible teaches that God accepts all those who accept His Son as their Saviour and submit to Him as their Lord. We are accepted  in the Beloved. We can never be more accepted than we are now. More useful? Yes! More available? Yes! But never more acceptable.

2). We are in the place of honour before God. God honours all those who honour His Son. There are few in the world who bother with Jesus at all. Most people ignore Him or reject Him or see Him as irrelevant. I believe the Lord loves those who embrace His Son in love.  What higher honour could there possibly ever be than to be exalted to the right hand of God, as Jesus was. AND we are sitting there with and in Him.

3). We are in the place of authority. Our prayers can have power. Jesus has overcome the powers of darkness and we have the victory in Him. We can speak to the powers of darkness from the authority Jesus has delegated to us, to bind or dislodge evil powers.  Not in our own strength or power, but only always from the delegated power we have in Him.

So we celebrate another Easter with its wonderful message that Jesus died to take away our sins on Good Friday and rose again from the dead on that first Easter Day, the victor over sin and death and evil. Soon we will observe His Ascension to remind us of when He rose from the dead and returned to the Father.

But what joy, what blessing, what a privilege to know that God sees us, not just sitting at our desks in our places of abode but as abiding in Christ, sitting with Him now in the heavenly places. We don’t have to do spiritual or mental gymnastics or soar into the heights of hyper-imagination to make it become real to us. It is real! He has told us so! We should live in such a way by being enlightened and empowered by His Spirit to know His wisdom, to experience His strength and grace and to work out in our everyday lives what He is working within us, to His glory.  (Phil 2:12-13)

CHRIST IS RISEN! HE IS RISEN INDEED! (And we are too in Him! God said so!)

Blog No.160. Jim Holbeck.  Posted On Monday 6th April 2015

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159. BEWARE OF INSULTING THE PROPHET JESUS!

Posted on March 15, 2015 by Jim Holbeck

How do you insult someone? Most dictionaries have definitions which are similar to this one, “When you speak to or treat someone with disrespect.” It seems to imply that you can only insult people who are alive. You can insult someone by treating them with disrespect.  The disrespect might be seen in voicing an unfavourable opinion of the character of the person.  The disrespect might also be seen in failing to respect and value what the person stands for. It could be ignoring or devaluing the achievements people have accomplished in life.

So can we insult Jesus? If we believe what the Bible tells us, the answer has to be “Yes!”  for it shows that He alive in today’s world. He has risen from the dead and lives evermore.  He may not normally be seen (though people of all nations and backgrounds through the ages testify that they have had visions of Him) but He has promised to be with His people when they gather in His name. He is alive and keeps everything else alive as well, for the Bible declares that He sustains this world that He Himself has made.

You insult someone when you take no notice of what they have said to you. Especially when that person has told you how to live a life that is full of meaning and purpose. You also insult people by failing to appreciate the significance of what they have done in life and what implications it had for you personally.

Well, how do we answer the question as to whether we have personally insulted Jesus? There are a number of questions that need to be answered as we look at this situation.

1).           Was Jesus A Prophet?

There is no doubt that Jesus saw Himself as a messenger sent by God. There are over 50 verses in the Gospels where Jesus states that truth.   We look at just a few of them from the four Gospels.

For example when Jesus was sending out His 12 disciples He told them to expect that some might accept their message and others would not.  Those who did accept them by accepting their ministry would in fact be accepting Jesus who had sent them. Not only that but they would be accepting the Father who had sent Him into the world.  A serious response was required from those who were going to hear a serious message from God Himself through their lips. Mat 10:40 “Whoever receives you receives me, and whoever receives me receives him who sent me.”

 When His disciples were arguing among themselves about who was the greatest among them, Jesus took a child and put him into the midst of them saying, “Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me, and whoever receives me, receives not me but him who sent me.” Mark 9:37. What was needed was humility, the sort of humility that honoured even a little child. Such was His attitude to children. Such indeed was the attitude of the Father who had sent Him.

Jesus explained His ministry in the synagogue in Capernaum as He read from the scroll offered to Him. After He had read it, He went on to interpret its meaning. Luke 4:18, “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed.” God had anointed Jesus by His Spirit to be His Anointed One, the Messiah, the Christ.  His ministry would be conducted under the anointing of God’s Holy Spirit.  Under that anointing, all He said and all He did as God’s sent messenger would originate in God Himself. He taught this in John 14:10-11, “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 authority, but the Father who dwells in me does his works. 11 Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me, or else believe on account of the works themselves.” His words came from the Father. Jesus spoke them out. His works were a demonstration of the Father working through Him as His chosen messenger.

So it appears that Jesus was certainly a messenger from God but was He a prophet? It appears that He saw Himself as a prophet.  In Mat 13:57, when Jesus was being rejected by many in Nazareth, He said to them, “A prophet is not without honour except in his hometown and in his own household.”  His own hometown and His own household  had just failed to honour Him.  John in his gospel recorded that Jesus left Samaria to go to Galilee. He added these words, John 4:44, “For Jesus himself had testified that a prophet has no honour in his own hometown.”  Jesus recognised that He was indeed a prophet sent from God.  So did John.

 This is further illustrated in Luke 13:32-33. Jesus was warned by some Pharisees that Herod was planning to kill Him. He told them, “Go and tell that fox, ‘Behold, I cast out demons and perform cures today and tomorrow, and the third day I finish my course. 33 Nevertheless, I must go on my way today and tomorrow and the day following, for it cannot be that a prophet should perish away from Jerusalem.”  He WAS a prophet. He WOULD die in Jerusalem.

2).           Did Others See Him As A Prophet?

There are a number of verses which indicate that Jesus was seen to be a prophet by His contemporaries.  On one occasion the chief priests and Pharisees had been exposed to His teaching. They correctly assumed that He was speaking about them in His parables. Matthew adds, in Mat 21:46, “And although they were seeking to arrest him, they feared the crowds, because they held him to be a prophet.”  The perception of the general population was that He was a prophet.

 When Jesus raised a widow’s only son from death, the onlookers were amazed and said, “A great prophet has arisen among us!” and “God has visited his people!”  Lk 7:16. For them that could be the only explanation for such an outstanding miracle.  Similarly when Jesus fed the 5000 those who witnessed the miracle concluded,   “This is indeed the Prophet who is to come into the world!” Others were amazed at His teaching especially at the time of the last day of the feast.  After He had taught, many of His hearers remarked, “This really is the Prophet.” Jn 7:40.

Later when a blind man was asked who it was that had healed him, he said, “He is a prophet.” Jn 9:17. Even at His death, the guards mocked Jesus, “Then they spit in his face and struck him. And some slapped him, saying, “Prophesy to us, you Christ! Who is it that struck you?” Mat 26:67-68. It indicates that the concept of Jesus as a prophet was firmly established during His ministry.

 In coming articles we will look in more detail at what it means for us today that Jesus is a prophet. And also at what challenges that truth presents for us in a world that largely ignores Him and is insulting Him as a living Person in a world that so much needs Him, His wisdom, His grace and His strength.  As the title warns us, BEWARE OF INSULTING THE PROPHET JESUS! When we come to realise that He is not only a prophet, but also the Creator of this universe, the Sustainer who keeps it going, the Redeemer who came to give His life for the life of the world and ultimately will be the judge of all the peoples of the world, then He has to be taken seriously as a living Person today. Not to take Him seriously is to insult Him.

Blog No. 159.  Jim Holbeck.  Posted on Sunday 15th March 2015.

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158. Sermon on Mark 1:21-27. “The Authority of Jesus in His Teaching and in Releasing People From Bondage to Evil Spirits”   

Posted on March 2, 2015 by Jim Holbeck

Jesus overcame all the temptations and assaults of the devil in the wilderness. As He began His ministry He was about to help people through His authoritative teaching and in exercising His authority in setting them free from the powers of darkness. He began His ministry with the news that the kingdom of God had come in Himself. That meant that He would be operating with real Kingdom power and authority in the various aspects of His ministry.

 1).        THE AUTHORITY IN JESUS’ TEACHING. 1:21-22

The authority in Jesus’ teaching came from God, (Mk 1:21 They went to Capernaum; and when the sabbath came, he entered the synagogue and taught. (Mark 1:22)  They were astounded at his teaching, for he taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes.

  • People recognised that His message wasn’t a second hand message telling people what other scholars had written.
  • They were amazed at the authority with which He spoke. It was a call from God through Jesus, for people to act upon the Word of God.
  • (It’s amazing that humans in their free-will can close their ears and their minds and their hearts to Jesus and to the living God.)

 2).        THE AUTHORITY IN JESUS’ MINISTRY. 1:23-24

A man with an unclean spirit interrupted His teaching. (Mark 1:23)  Just then there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit, (Mark 1:24)  and he cried out, “What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are, the Holy One of God.”

  • It was the demon, or the evil spirit speaking through the man. It’s as though the demon was challenging Jesus’ authority, for the words can mean, “Why do you interfere with us?” or ” mind your own business.”
  • Evil spirits recognised who Jesus was. This one called Jesus “the Holy One of God.” But Jesus never let the truth about Himself be declared by the powers of darkness. (Mark 1:25)  But Jesus rebuked him, saying, “Be silent, and come out of him!” (Mark 1:26)  And the unclean spirit, convulsing him and crying with a loud voice, came out of him.
  • A spiritual power encounter took place. Jesus commanded the spirit to “be muzzled”, to be silent, and to come out of the man and it came out.
  • The people were again amazed. (Mk 1:27) They were all amazed, and they kept on asking one another, “What is this? A new teaching–with authority! He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey him.”
  • What an exciting, scary time for those who were there. Here was kingdom authority and kingdom power in action.

The late Professor C.S. Lewis saw 2 dangers as we read a story like this.

a).           To deny the existence of the powers of darkness. Yet the Bible tells us that humans can be held captive by the devil. 2Tim 2:26  … they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, after being captured by him to do his will. AND for the Gentiles like us, Act 26:18  to open their eyes, so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.’

b).           The other danger is to have an unhealthy interest in them, and in so doing, give them more power than they really have.

His warnings are relevant today, for there are many who have gone too far in both extremes, and lost the balance of Scripture.

 3).        THE AUTHORITY OF JESUS OVER THE POWERS OF DARKNESS TODAY

Where does that place us today regarding the powers of darkness or of evil?

People can come under various degrees of control by the powers of darkness.

  • Deception and oppression when people still function, but with difficulty, right through to the extremely rare cases of demon-possession when the person seems to be out of control.
  • I don’t believe we’re to go on witch-hunts trying to find demons to cast out. Rather we are to rest in the confident assurance that if anyone has been adversely affected by the powers of darkness, they can be set free.
  • We see that in practice in the gospels as we see Jesus at work,
  • We see it too in Paul’s teaching, where he states that the powers of darkness have been dealt a mortal blow. For example, he reminded the Colossians that when Christ died on the cross, He not only died to take away sins so that we can be forgiven, but He also disarmed the principalities and powers. (Col 2:13)  And when you were dead in trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made you alive together with him, when he forgave us all our trespasses, 14)  erasing the record that stood against us with its legal demands. He set this aside, nailing it to the cross. 15)  He disarmed the rulers and authorities and made a public example of them, triumphing over them in it.
  • The cross was the placarding, the public proof, that He had defeated the powers of darkness. They no longer have the power they had. Victory is ours through the victory He won on the cross.

So the cross of Christ shows me at least these three things.

  1. It shows me how much God hates sin because only His Son could come to die to take it away.
  2. It shows me how much God loves you and me, that He was willing for His Son to die for us so that we could be forgiven.
  3.  It shows me that the supernatural powers of evil were defeated once and for all on the cross of Calvary.

But it also reminds us that you and I only win the victories in our own lives over the power of evil, by calling on the name of the victorious Christ, and by allowing Him to strengthen us by His resurrection power through His Holy Spirit within us.

 4).        LIVING UNDER JESUS’ AUTHORITY.  HOW WE CAN WALK IN VICTORY?

We think not only of healing for ourselves but for our family, (siblings, children and grandchildren) our neighbours, our friends, our enemies. We want them all to be healed by God to become the people He wants them to be. We need to pray for them and for ourselves:-

  • To have their eyes opened to the truth about God. Paul wrote in 2 Cor 4:4) In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.

–  Satan has blinded the minds of all our loved ones, our friends and our enemies who are not yet Christians so that cannot understand how wonderful God is.

–  As unbelievers they may be KIND people socially but they are also BLIND people spiritually. We need to pray that God would open their blind eyes to enable them to know Him and to serve Him.

  • To be set free from the power of evil. God said through the apostle John, 1Jn 5:19 We know that we are from God, and the whole world lies in the power of the evil one. People may not realise it but they are in the devil’s power. We need to pray for all our loved ones that that they might be set free from the power of evil in their lives to know and experience God’s power in their lives.

STEPS WE CAN TAKE TO BE SET FREE.

There are three main steps to freedom in this area. We need to take them ourselves and to pray that God will work in the lives of all our loved ones so that they too will take the same steps to freedom.

i).         The first one is repentance.

  • God commands us to repent of all known sin in our lives by confessing it before Him and asking for His forgiveness and turning to follow Him.

ii).        The second step is renunciation.  The word means to forsake, to cast off.

  • If we have tapped into supernatural powers through our own wrongful activities, it’s to say, “I’m handing all this over to God. I no longer want any part of it. I’m renouncing it, forsaking it.”
  • It is saying to God, “I don’t want anything to do with the powers of darkness. Please set me free by the power of your Holy Spirit.”

iii).       The third step is to give yourself completely to the Lord, so that He can do in your life what He wants to do as He minsters to you in Kingdom power.

  • It means asking Christ to be the Lord of every part.
  • It means asking Him to fill you with His Holy Spirit, so that you live by the power of the Spirit of God.
  • It means allowing Him to set you free of any wrong supernatural power in your life.

Let me encourage you with the truth that no matter what people’s involvement has been with the powers of darkness, Christ by His Spirit has the power to set them free.

Let me close by leading us in a prayer of repentance and renunciation, and asking the Lord to begin the process of setting us (and others we pray for) free to belong completely to Him.

 A PRAYER FOR FREEDOM FROM THE POWERS OF DARKNESS

“Lord Jesus Christ, I thank You that when You died on the cross, it was to enable me to be forgiven.

I thank You that it also showed Your victory over all the powers of darkness. I want to be free from all that may have bound me in the past, and be released to fulfil Your plan and purpose for me.

I repent of being associated with the powers of darkness in any form, whether it be through my own personal involvement, or through the involvement of members of my family or other people.

I renounce everything to do with the powers of darkness, and I want nothing to do with them. I want you to set me free. 

Lord Jesus, I accept You as the Lord and Master of every part of my life.

Please heal me in body, mind and spirit by the power of your Holy Spirit.  

I thank You by faith for the victories and release I now have.

May Your Spirit lead me and empower me to live for You. In Jesus’ name, Amen.”

Posted by Jim Holbeck on Monday 3rd March 2015

Posted in BIBLE PASSAGE OUTLINES, Bible verses. Comments, Faithfulness, Forgiveness, Prayer, Sermons and articles on the Gospel of Mark | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

157. Sermon on Mark 1:29-34. “Taking Advantage Of The Opportunities For Receiving God’s Blessing and Healing.”

Posted on March 2, 2015 by Jim Holbeck

Isn’t it sad to think that something was available for you and you missed out on receiving it? It can happen in every area of life. Sometimes we fail to act on the opportunities that are open before us.

It can happen in relationships

I heard two older folk who had known each other for decades sharing together. One was a man whom many women adored but had never married. The other was a gracious and beautiful woman who had become a widow early in life. She had remained single for many years but remarried much later in life. Her second husband had now become virtually a “vegetable” (but still a very much loved person) in a care facility. The woman said to the man in my presence, “Did you know when we were much younger I was hoping you might marry me one day?”

The man was taken aback. He was silent for what seemed like an eternity. Then he spoke with some obvious feeling of regret, “Why didn’t you ever tell me that you might be interested in me? I would have done something about it.” There was silence for some time following. One wonders how their lives might have been different if they had known how they felt about each other and expressed it much, much sooner.

It can happen in the spiritual areas of life

James wrote, “You have not because you ask not.” He states a general principle that God wants us to ask Him for what we need. He respects our free-will and will not force on us what we are not ready to receive.

The writer of the hymn “What A Friend We Have In Jesus” saw it in terms of missing out on peace by not bringing all our concerns to God in prayer. In the hymn there are these words, “O what peace we often forfeit, O what needless pain we bear, all because we do not carry everything to God in prayer.” We need to act on the opportunities we have to receive the grace of God.

In this passage in Mark there are 2 accounts of opportunities being taken to receive healing from Jesus.

1).        Healing for a woman with a fever. (Peter’s Mother in law)

Jesus had returned from the synagogue in Capernaum to Peter’s house where they found Peter’s mother in law ill with a fever.  She may have been delirious and not have been in a fit condition to reach out to Jesus for healing.  However whether she asked for healing or whether Peter and the others brought her need to Jesus, Jesus was invited to heal her. We read how Jesus took her by the hand and restored her to greater health so that she was able to get up immediately, and make them a nice hot cuppa.

Tonight in this service you have an opportunity to reach out to Jesus for healing or blessing and to be confident He is present to heal and to bless. We love to pray for God’s blessings on those with needs. Or it may be that you’re here to receive prayer for someone who is unable to be present because of distance, or because they are too ill to come to the service. It’s our privilege to join our faith with yours and to pray with you for God’s blessing on that other person. We hear almost every week of wonderful answers to prayer as we together pray for those “out there.” Like the people in Peter’s home, we simply join together to tell Jesus about the one who is sick, and leave it to Him to reach out to them in His love, and in His way and in His time.

Did you notice the immediacy of the healing? Very often those ill with a fever take ages to get up and get going. Peter’s mother in law was up and serving them all in no time at all. It doesn’t always happen as quickly as that, but it can. You and I have to be willing to receive God’s healing whether it comes in one week, one month or in one minute.

2).        The Sick Of Capernaum

Good news can sometimes travel as fast as gossip. Within hours of the man being delivered, and of Peter’s mother in law being healed, people came to the home where Jesus was, bringing all their sick and those with evil spirits. In fact the whole town was outside to see what was going to happen.  They witnessed many being healed and delivered of evil spirits.

We’re not told whether it was the people who brought the sick, who had faith, or whether it was the faith of the sick folk themselves. It would appear that those who were sick and were able to make it on their own got there, whilst those who weren’t well enough to make it, were brought by others.  What is true is that all the people who came took advantage of the opportunity that was provided to be healed, and wonderful healing took place.

Canon Henry Twells was right to describe this incident in the words of a hymn, “At even when the sun was set , the sick O Lord around Thee lay, O in divers pains they met, O with what joy they went away.”

(Many of us who have been involved in the Healing Ministry have seen both of these things happen. A sick person manages to come for prayer, and prayer and the laying on of hands is ministered, and the person receives a healing from God. Or it may be that someone has come and asked for prayer for another person who was too ill to be present.  Hands were laid on the person who brought the request, and prayer offered for the other person. Later the first person came back to thank God for the healing that flowed in the life of that other person at the time of the prayer or sometime later.

I will never forget one woman who came forward for prayer at a healing service. When I asked her what she would like the Lord to do for her, she replied, “Would you please lay hands on me for Elizabeth.” I knew Elizabeth was at home with terminal cancer, and too ill to come to a service. We prayed with the laying on of hands on Elizabeth’s friend. We discovered later that at exactly that time Elizabeth was instantly healed as she lay in her bed at home.  We can only imagine her husband’s surprise when he woke in the morning to find his wife not in bed beside him. And then an even greater surprise and utter delight to find her well and cooking his breakfast in the kitchen, something she had not been able to do for months. Like Peter’s mother in law she was healed and able to function immediately. She remained healed.

Whichever way healing takes place, it is still the same God who brings the healing. The risen Christ is the Healer, and He can heal the person who is present, or the person who is geographically distant.  The reason is, that though you and I can only ever be in one place at one time, Christ isn’t limited like we are. He can be there for them in their need. In love and in Kingdom power.

  1. The Secret Of Jesus’ Ministry

Let’s notice what happened just a few hours after Jesus ministered in Capernaum. Mark says that He went out in the early hours of the morning to a deserted place to pray. Here was the secret of His ministry on earth, the time He spent in prayer with His Heavenly Father.

You see it here and at other significant times in His ministry.

  • After the feeding of the 5,000. (Mat 14:23) After he had dismissed them, he went up on a mountainside by himself to pray. When evening came, he was there alone,
  • After He had healed a leper. (Luke 5:16) But Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed.
  • Before he chose the 12 apostles. (Luke 6:12) One of those days Jesus went out to a mountainside to pray, and spent the night praying to God.
  • His prayer life touched His disciples who wanted to be able to pray like He did. Luke 11:1, He was praying in a certain place and after he had finished, one of His disciples said to Him, “Lord teach us to pray as John taught His disciples”.
  • On the road to Caesarea Philippi as Jesus prayed on the Mount of transfiguration, waiting for God to reveal to the disciples who He really was as the Son of God, and the Messiah. (Luke 9:18) Once when Jesus was praying in private and his disciples were with him, he asked them, “Who do the crowds say I am?” Only then did Peter come out with the revelation of God, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
  • On the Mount of transfiguration, they saw Who He was for those moments as the veil was lifted and they saw His pre-existent glory. (Luke 9:28)  About eight days after Jesus said this, he took Peter, John and James with him and went up onto a mountain to pray.  29)  As he was praying, the appearance of his face changed, and his clothes became as bright as a flash of lightning.
  • At Gethsemane as He faced the choice of going on to suffer on the cross for our sins, or whether to turn from the cross. (Luke 22:41) He withdrew about a stone’s throw beyond them, knelt down and prayed, “Father if You are willing, take this cup from Me. Yet not my will but yours be done.”

At all the significant moments of His life, Jesus prayed.

  1. Jesus was focussed on the will of God not just on prayer

He was praying to His Father when suddenly He was interrupted. His disciples who followed Him told Him that everyone was looking for Him. His response may seem surprising. Instead of returning to Capernaum and continuing His teaching and healing ministry there, He told His disciples that it was now time for Him to leave to go to minister in other towns.

Jesus wasn’t wrapped up in Himself and in His own spiritual growth. He wasn’t resentful that the time of prayer had been ended abruptly. For Jesus, prayer wasn’t just an end in itself. His prayer was His way of keeping in the centre of the will of God for Him that he might know the Father’s will for Him and receive power to do it.

He recognised that it was now to move on, not to bask in the adulation of people He had helped. Nor was it to stick to a good thing that was happening in that place. (Mark 1:38)  Jesus replied, “Let us go somewhere else–to the nearby villages–so I can preach there also. That is why I have come.”(Mark 1:39)  So he travelled throughout Galilee, preaching in their synagogues and driving out demons. His prayer had opened the will of God to Him. He realised that it was now time to move on to minister elsewhere.

A Reflection on the reading

The opportunity to receive the Lord’s healing had only been offered for a short time in Capernaum on that occasion. Then the opportunity was gone. But praise God, many took advantage of it and knew the Lord’s touch on their lives.

   What if, what if there had been some in Capernaum who heard that Jesus had the power to heal but didn’t act upon it? Some could have said the same sort of things that people say today and fail to come to Him for healing.

  • Some could have said, “I’m always suspicious about healing ministries. There are some funny people involved in healing ministries so I’ve heard. I don’t want to get involved with some weirdos. I’ll just hang back a bit and wait to see if the people who receive prayer actually live through it.”
  • Or others could have said, “I’m still working out my theology of healing, to see whether the Scriptures actually indicate that healing might be a possibility in today’s world.”

That’s not a bad attitude in some ways, for we need to search the Scriptures to see whether these things are so. But when are we going to be convinced?  The religious leaders and scholars of Jesus’ day saw first hand His healings. They were confronted with Lazarus, a man whom Jesus had raised from the dead, yet they still wouldn’t believe. In fact their unwillingness to believe in Jesus’ healing power made them look away from the proof before their eyes, and made them try to wipe out both Jesus and Lazarus.  Such is the strength of religious prejudice.  It refuses to be convinced and tries to destroy the evidence. It often tries to do so through character assassination.

What are the factors that would inhibit anyone from receiving prayer for healing?

Hopefully, not unbelief or religious prejudice. They are major blockages to receiving the grace of God. But there could be other factors.

  • Fear of what people might think is one factor. “What would my friends in my church say if I was prayed for and got healed? They mightn’t like it!”
  • Or pride. “I don’t need other people to pray for me. I’m a mature Christian!” You may also need to be a humble one, letting God minister through other people to you.
  • Or it could be that you would feel a hypocrite for asking for help from God, when you’ve not really had much time for Him up to the present. It’s true that God wants to be the Lord of your life, but it’s possible to give your life to Him and ask for help at the same time.

The opportunity to ask Jesus into your life, to be your Saviour and Lord, or to receive prayer for healing and blessing, is here now. But I don’t know, and you don’t know, how many other opportunities you will have. Certainly in Jesus’ day, there were many who missed out on His blessing. Don’t be among those who had the opportunity but missed out. Be encouraged by this fact, that God loves you and wants to bring you blessing, more than you want to receive it. Take advantage of the opportunity you have now in this service and ask for prayer for God’s blessing and healing.

(From a sermon preached at a Healing Service in Sydney several years ago.)

Posted by Jim Holbeck on Monday 2nd March 2015

Posted in Sermons and articles on the Gospel of Mark | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment