Pilate and the believing thief both confessed there was "no fault" in Him, and that He had done "nothing amiss" (Luke 23:14,41). The word "amiss" is rendered "harm" (Acts 28:6), and "unreasonable" (2 Thess 3:2), in the two other places where "atopon" occurs. There was nothing unreasonable in Christ's teaching, there was no harm in His actions, and not anything amiss in His character.
He did no sin - 1 Peter 2:22 says, "Who did no sin, neither was guile found in his mouth:"
There are many reasons for why we suffer. Some sufferings is the direct result of our own sin; some happens because of our foolishness; and some is the result of living in a fallen world. Peter is writing about suffering that comes as a result of doing good. Christ never sinned, yet he suffered so that we could be set free. When we follow Christ's example and live for others, we too may suffer. Our goal should be to face suffering as he did - with patience, calmness, and confidence that God is in control of the future.
In Him was no sin - 1 John 3:5 says, "And ye know that he was manifested to take away our sins; and in him is no sin."
Under the Old Testament sacrifice system, a lamb without blemish was offered as a sacrifice for sin. Jesus is "the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world" (John 1:29). Because he lived a perfect life and sacrificed himself for our sins, we can be completely forgiven (2:2). We can look back to his death for us and know we need never suffer eternal death (1 Peter 1:18-20).
He knew no sin - 2 Cor 5:21 says, "For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him."
When we trust in Christ, we make a trade - our sin for his goodness. Our sin was poured into Christ at his crucifixion. His righteousness is poured into us at our conversion. This is what Christians mean by Christ's atonement for sin. In the world, bartering works only when two people exchange goods of relatively equal value. But God offers to trade his righteousness for our sin - something of immeasurable worth for something worthless. How grateful we should be for his goodness to us.
He was holy, harmless, and undefiled, and separate from every vile association - Heb 7:26 says, "For such an high priest became us, who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and made higher than the heavens;"
Many people take Christ's work on the cross for granted. They don't realized how costly it was for Jesus to secure our forgiveness - it cost him his life (1 Peter 1:18-19).
Because Christ died once and for all, he finished all sacrifices. He forgave sins - past, present and future. The Jews did not need to go back to the old system because Christ, the perfect sacrifice, completed the work of redemption. You need not look for another way to have your sins forgiven. Christ was the final sacrifice for you.
The greatest character that ever lived died the most shameful and undeserved death that was ever experienced.
Saturday, April 24, 2010
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
The Man Who Gave His Grave To Jesus
This wealthy and devout Israelite, a member of the Sanhedrin, lived in a city of Jews (Luke 23:51). It is to the provision he made for the body of Christ that Isaiah had reference when he said, "He made His grave with the rich" (Isa 53:9). Of this renowned Joseph we discover:
He was an honorable counselor (Mark 15:43). Because of his adherence to the Law and integrity of life he was a member of the governing body known as the Sanhedrin.
He looked for the kingdom of God. Immersed in Old Testament Scriptures, he anticipated the reign of the promised Messiah.
He was "a good man and just" (Luke 23:50-51). As the Bible never uses words unnecessarily, there must be a distinction between "good" and "just." As a "good man" we have his own internal disposition - what he was in himself. As a "just man" we have his external conduct - what he was towards others. His just dealings were the fruit of the root of his goodness. His was the belief that knew how to behave.
He was a secret disciple (John 19:38). Joseph of Arimathaea was similar to Nicodemus in his respect for our Lord as a man, admiration for Him as a teacher, belief in Him as the Christ, and yet, till now, his lack of confessing Him before men. Dreading the hostility of his colleagues on the Sanhedrin, he kept his faith secret.
He begged the body of Jesus (Matt 27:58). As soon as Jesus was dead, Joseph hastened to Pilate for permission to inter His body. In the past, Joseph had been afraid to speak against the religious leaders who opposed Jesus; now he was bold courageously asking to take Jesus' body from the cross and bury it. The disciples who publicly followed Jesus had fled, but this Jewish leader, who followed Jesus in secret, came forward and did what was right. It was common for friends of the crucified to purchase their bodies, which would otherwise have been cast out as refuse, and give them decent burial (Mark 15:45).
He gave his grave to Christ (Matt 27:59-60). With lingering reverence Joseph paid his last respects to the One he admired, and in the hour of sorrow helped the friends and not the foes of the religious Sufferer. Joseph had a garden close to Calvary, where he had hewn a smoothed and polished tomb in the side of the rock as his own last resting place, in which, aided by Nicodemus, he buried the linen covered and perfumed body of Christ.
He was an honorable counselor (Mark 15:43). Because of his adherence to the Law and integrity of life he was a member of the governing body known as the Sanhedrin.
He looked for the kingdom of God. Immersed in Old Testament Scriptures, he anticipated the reign of the promised Messiah.
He was "a good man and just" (Luke 23:50-51). As the Bible never uses words unnecessarily, there must be a distinction between "good" and "just." As a "good man" we have his own internal disposition - what he was in himself. As a "just man" we have his external conduct - what he was towards others. His just dealings were the fruit of the root of his goodness. His was the belief that knew how to behave.
He was a secret disciple (John 19:38). Joseph of Arimathaea was similar to Nicodemus in his respect for our Lord as a man, admiration for Him as a teacher, belief in Him as the Christ, and yet, till now, his lack of confessing Him before men. Dreading the hostility of his colleagues on the Sanhedrin, he kept his faith secret.
He begged the body of Jesus (Matt 27:58). As soon as Jesus was dead, Joseph hastened to Pilate for permission to inter His body. In the past, Joseph had been afraid to speak against the religious leaders who opposed Jesus; now he was bold courageously asking to take Jesus' body from the cross and bury it. The disciples who publicly followed Jesus had fled, but this Jewish leader, who followed Jesus in secret, came forward and did what was right. It was common for friends of the crucified to purchase their bodies, which would otherwise have been cast out as refuse, and give them decent burial (Mark 15:45).
He gave his grave to Christ (Matt 27:59-60). With lingering reverence Joseph paid his last respects to the One he admired, and in the hour of sorrow helped the friends and not the foes of the religious Sufferer. Joseph had a garden close to Calvary, where he had hewn a smoothed and polished tomb in the side of the rock as his own last resting place, in which, aided by Nicodemus, he buried the linen covered and perfumed body of Christ.
What have you given Jesus?
Saturday, April 10, 2010
My Confession
1. Christ for Me. Salvation - Rom 5:8 says, " But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us."
While we were yet sinners - these are amazing words. God sent Jesus Christ to die for us, not because we were good enough, but because he loved us so much. Whenever you feel uncertain about God's love for you, remember that he loved you even before you turned to him. If God loved you when you were a rebel, he can surely strengthen you now that you love him in return.
2. Christ in Me. Sanctification - Gal 2:20 says, "I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me."
How have I been crucified with Christ? Legally, God looks at me as if I had died with Christ. Because my sins died with him, I am no longer condemned (Col 2:13-15). Rationally, I have become one with Christ, and his experiences are mine. My Christian life began when, in unity with him, I died to my old life (see Rom 6:5-11). In my daily life, I must regularly crucify sinful desires that keep me from following Christ. This too is a kind of dying with him (Luke 9:23-25).
And yet the focus of Christianity is not dying, but living. Because I have been crucified with Christ, I have also been raised with him (Rom 6:5). Legally, I have been reconciled with God (2 Cor 5:19) and am free to grow into Christ's likeness (Rom 8:29). And in my daily life, I have Christ's resurrection power as I continue to fight sin (Eph 1:19-20). Christ lives in me - this is my reason for living and my hope for the future (Col 1:27).
3. Complete in Him. Supply - Col 2:10 says, "And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power:"
When we know Jesus Christ, we don't need to seek God by means of other religions, cults, or unbiblical philosophies as the Colossians were doing. Christ alone holds the answers to the true meaning of life, because Christ is life. He is the unique source of knowledge and power for the Christian life. No Christian needs anything else than what he has provided to be saved. We are complete in him.
While we were yet sinners - these are amazing words. God sent Jesus Christ to die for us, not because we were good enough, but because he loved us so much. Whenever you feel uncertain about God's love for you, remember that he loved you even before you turned to him. If God loved you when you were a rebel, he can surely strengthen you now that you love him in return.
2. Christ in Me. Sanctification - Gal 2:20 says, "I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me."
How have I been crucified with Christ? Legally, God looks at me as if I had died with Christ. Because my sins died with him, I am no longer condemned (Col 2:13-15). Rationally, I have become one with Christ, and his experiences are mine. My Christian life began when, in unity with him, I died to my old life (see Rom 6:5-11). In my daily life, I must regularly crucify sinful desires that keep me from following Christ. This too is a kind of dying with him (Luke 9:23-25).
And yet the focus of Christianity is not dying, but living. Because I have been crucified with Christ, I have also been raised with him (Rom 6:5). Legally, I have been reconciled with God (2 Cor 5:19) and am free to grow into Christ's likeness (Rom 8:29). And in my daily life, I have Christ's resurrection power as I continue to fight sin (Eph 1:19-20). Christ lives in me - this is my reason for living and my hope for the future (Col 1:27).
3. Complete in Him. Supply - Col 2:10 says, "And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power:"
When we know Jesus Christ, we don't need to seek God by means of other religions, cults, or unbiblical philosophies as the Colossians were doing. Christ alone holds the answers to the true meaning of life, because Christ is life. He is the unique source of knowledge and power for the Christian life. No Christian needs anything else than what he has provided to be saved. We are complete in him.
Have you confessed and became complete with Jesus Christ?
Saturday, April 3, 2010
Satan's Many Parts
The Bible shows that Satan can play many parts, and among the principal parts he plays are the following seven:
1. He is the Devil to deceive. Rev 20:10 says, "And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever."
Satan's power is not eternal - he will meet his doom. He began his evil work in mankind at the beginning (Gen 3:1-6) and continues it today, but he will be destroyed when he is thrown into the lake of fire. Satan was released from the bottomless pit (20:7) but he will never be released from the lake of fire. He will never be a threat to anyone again.
2. He is the adversary (Satan) to accuse. Luke 22:31 says, "And the Lord said, Simon, Simon, behold, Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat:"
Satan wanted to crush Peter like a grain of wheat. He hoped to find only chaff and blow it away. But Jesus assured Peter that his faith, although it would falter, would not be destroyed. It would be renewed and he would become a powerful leader.
3. He is an angel of light to misrepresent. 2 Cor 11:14 says, "And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light."
Satan "transformed" means Satan masquerading. In one popular version of the story of Eve's temptation, Satan masqueraded as an angel. Paul may have been thinking of this story, or he could have been referring to Satan's typical devices. In either case, nothing could be more deceitful than Satan, the prince of darkness (Eph 6:12; Col 1:13), disguishing himself as an angel of light. By the same token, when the false teachers claimed to represent Christ, they were lying shamelessly.
Satan and his servants can deceive us by appearing attractive, good and moral. Many unsuspecting people follow smooth-talking, Bible-quoting leaders into cults that alienate them from their families and practice immorality and deceit. Don't be fooled by external appearances. Our impressions alone are not an accurate indicator of who is or isn't a tru follower of Christ; so it helps to ask these questions: 1) Do their teachings confirm scripture (Acts 17:11)? 2) Do the teachers affirm and proclaim that Jesus Christ is God who came into the world as a man to save people from their sins (1 John 4:1-3)? 3) Is their life-style consistent with biblical morality (Matt 12:33-37)?
4. He is an enemy to oppose. Matt 13:28,39 says, "He said unto them, An enemy hath doth this. The servants said unto him, Wilt thou then that we go and gather them up? The enemy that sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the world; and the reapers are the angels."
5. He is the hinderer to deter. 1 Thess 2:18 says, "Wherefore we would have come unto you, even I Paul, once and again; but Satan hindered us."
Paul was not using the word "Satan" here symbolically - he knew that Satan is real. Satan is called "the god of this world" (2 Cor 4"4) and "the prince of the power of the air (Eph 2:2). We don't know what exactly hindered Paul from returning to Thessalonica - opposition, illness, travel, complications, or a direct attack by Satan - but Satan worked in some way to keep him away. Many of the difficulities that prevent us from accomplishing God's work can be attributed to Satan (Eph 6:12)
6. He is the god of this age to blind. 2 Cor 4:4 says, "In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them."
The Good News is open and revealed to everyone, except to those who refuse to believe. Satan is "the god of this world." His work is to deceive and he has blinded those who don't beleive in Christ (see 11:14-15 (#3 above). The allure of money, power, and pleasure blinds people to the light of Christ's Gospel. Those who refuse Christ, perferring their own pursuits, have made Satan their God unknowingly.
7. He is the tempter to allure. Luke 4:2 says, "Being forty days tempted of the devil. And in those days he did eat nothing: and when they were ended, he afterward hungered. 1 Thess 3:5 says, "For this cause, when I could no longer forbear, I sent to know your faith, lest by some means the tempter have tempted you and our labour be in vain."
The Devil, who tempted Adam & Eve in the Garden, also tempted Jesus in the wilderness. Satan is a real being, a created but rebellious fallen angel, not a symbol or an idea. He constantly fights against God and those who follow and obey God. Jesus was a prime target for his temptations. Satan succeeded with Adam and Eve and he hoped to succeed with Jesus too.
Satan ("tempter") is the most powerful of the evil spirits. His power can affect both the spiritual world (Eph 2:1-3; 6:10-12) and the physical world (2 Cor 12:7-10). Satan even tempted Jesus. But Jesus defeated Satan when he died on the cross for the sins of the world and rose again to bring new life. At the proper time God will overthrow Satan forever. (Rev 20:7-10)
1. He is the Devil to deceive. Rev 20:10 says, "And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever."
Satan's power is not eternal - he will meet his doom. He began his evil work in mankind at the beginning (Gen 3:1-6) and continues it today, but he will be destroyed when he is thrown into the lake of fire. Satan was released from the bottomless pit (20:7) but he will never be released from the lake of fire. He will never be a threat to anyone again.
2. He is the adversary (Satan) to accuse. Luke 22:31 says, "And the Lord said, Simon, Simon, behold, Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat:"
Satan wanted to crush Peter like a grain of wheat. He hoped to find only chaff and blow it away. But Jesus assured Peter that his faith, although it would falter, would not be destroyed. It would be renewed and he would become a powerful leader.
3. He is an angel of light to misrepresent. 2 Cor 11:14 says, "And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light."
Satan "transformed" means Satan masquerading. In one popular version of the story of Eve's temptation, Satan masqueraded as an angel. Paul may have been thinking of this story, or he could have been referring to Satan's typical devices. In either case, nothing could be more deceitful than Satan, the prince of darkness (Eph 6:12; Col 1:13), disguishing himself as an angel of light. By the same token, when the false teachers claimed to represent Christ, they were lying shamelessly.
Satan and his servants can deceive us by appearing attractive, good and moral. Many unsuspecting people follow smooth-talking, Bible-quoting leaders into cults that alienate them from their families and practice immorality and deceit. Don't be fooled by external appearances. Our impressions alone are not an accurate indicator of who is or isn't a tru follower of Christ; so it helps to ask these questions: 1) Do their teachings confirm scripture (Acts 17:11)? 2) Do the teachers affirm and proclaim that Jesus Christ is God who came into the world as a man to save people from their sins (1 John 4:1-3)? 3) Is their life-style consistent with biblical morality (Matt 12:33-37)?
4. He is an enemy to oppose. Matt 13:28,39 says, "He said unto them, An enemy hath doth this. The servants said unto him, Wilt thou then that we go and gather them up? The enemy that sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the world; and the reapers are the angels."
5. He is the hinderer to deter. 1 Thess 2:18 says, "Wherefore we would have come unto you, even I Paul, once and again; but Satan hindered us."
Paul was not using the word "Satan" here symbolically - he knew that Satan is real. Satan is called "the god of this world" (2 Cor 4"4) and "the prince of the power of the air (Eph 2:2). We don't know what exactly hindered Paul from returning to Thessalonica - opposition, illness, travel, complications, or a direct attack by Satan - but Satan worked in some way to keep him away. Many of the difficulities that prevent us from accomplishing God's work can be attributed to Satan (Eph 6:12)
6. He is the god of this age to blind. 2 Cor 4:4 says, "In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them."
The Good News is open and revealed to everyone, except to those who refuse to believe. Satan is "the god of this world." His work is to deceive and he has blinded those who don't beleive in Christ (see 11:14-15 (#3 above). The allure of money, power, and pleasure blinds people to the light of Christ's Gospel. Those who refuse Christ, perferring their own pursuits, have made Satan their God unknowingly.
7. He is the tempter to allure. Luke 4:2 says, "Being forty days tempted of the devil. And in those days he did eat nothing: and when they were ended, he afterward hungered. 1 Thess 3:5 says, "For this cause, when I could no longer forbear, I sent to know your faith, lest by some means the tempter have tempted you and our labour be in vain."
The Devil, who tempted Adam & Eve in the Garden, also tempted Jesus in the wilderness. Satan is a real being, a created but rebellious fallen angel, not a symbol or an idea. He constantly fights against God and those who follow and obey God. Jesus was a prime target for his temptations. Satan succeeded with Adam and Eve and he hoped to succeed with Jesus too.
Satan ("tempter") is the most powerful of the evil spirits. His power can affect both the spiritual world (Eph 2:1-3; 6:10-12) and the physical world (2 Cor 12:7-10). Satan even tempted Jesus. But Jesus defeated Satan when he died on the cross for the sins of the world and rose again to bring new life. At the proper time God will overthrow Satan forever. (Rev 20:7-10)
Are you a follower of Satan or Christ?
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