1 The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham. 2 Abraham was the father of Isaac, and Isaac the father of Jacob, and Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers, 3 and Judah the father of Perez and Zerah by Tamar, and Perez the father of Hezron, and Hezron the father of Ram, 4 and Ram the father of Amminadab, and Amminadab the father of Nahshon, and Nahshon the father of Salmon, 5 and Salmon the father of Boaz by Rahab, and Boaz the father of Obed by Ruth, and Obed the father of Jesse, 6 and Jesse the father of David the king. And David was the father of Soloman by the wife of Uriah, 7 and Solomon the father of Rehoboam, and Rehoboam the father of Abijah, and Abijah the father of Asaph, 8 and Asaph the father of Jehoshaphat, and Jehoshaphat the father of Joram, and Joram the father of Uzziah, 9 and Uzziah the father of Jotham, and Jotham the father of Ahaz, and Ahaz the father of Hezekiah, 10 and Hezekiah the father of Manasseh, and Manasseh the father of Amos, and Amos the father of Josiah, 11 and Josiah the father of Jechoniah and his brothers, at the time of the deportation to Babylon. 12 And after the deportation to Babylon: Jechoniah was the father of Shealtiel, and Shealtiel the father of Zerubbabel, 13 and Zerubbabel the father of Abiud, and Abiud the father of Eliakim, and Eliakim the father of Azor, 14 and Azor the father of Zadok, and Zadok the father of Achim, and Achim the father of Eliud, 15 and Eliud the father of Eleazar, and Eleazar the father of Matthan, and Matthan the father of Jacob, 16 and Jacob the father of Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom Jesus was born, who is called Christ. 17 So all the generations from Abraham to David were fourteen generations, and from David to the deportation to Babylon fourteen generations, and from the deportation to Babylon to the Christ fourteen generations.
Matthew 1:1-17
“Unlikely Lineage: Sin and Redemption in Jesus’s Family Tree” by Keith Harris
Once upon a time, there was a great King. He was foretold of old to be a great hero who would come from His faraway country to win back His lost love. His story is one of romance as He left His palace to rescue His Bride. His lineage hailed back to other…great…well, um….
One of the things I love about God’s Word is how it does not fall into the temptation to pretty things up or rewrite/remix them to be more acceptable. Yes, Jesus is the great King – the King of kings who was prophesied for centuries to come from heaven and rescue His people. Yes, Jesus’s Story is one of romance where He left His throne on high and traded it for a lowly manger in a tumble-down stable. But His lineage? It was not filled with kings and queens, although there are a few sprinkled in toward the middle. It was not filled with great heroes with tragic flaws; well, the tragic flaws are many. No, Jesus’s family tree was filled with regular old sinners with real sin and problems – people like me and you.
This Bible study will look at some women emphasized in Jesus’s family tree in Matthew who point us to Jesus in very specific ways. We do not have time to go fully into their stories today, so I will give you the cross-reference so you can check it out directly from Scripture.
The first woman is Tamar (v. 3), and her story is found in Genesis 38. Tamar was Judah’s – as in lion of the tribe of Judah, the original – daughter-in-law. She was originally married to Judah’s oldest son Er until “the Lord put him to death” because Er was “wicked in the sight of the Lord” (Genesis 38:7). In those days, when the elder son died, it was the role of his younger brother to take his place and father children in his name. This fell to second-born son, Onan, but Onan was more sinful and selfish than his big brother, doing what was “wicked in the sight of the Lord” and being “put…to death, also” (Genesis 38:10). Poor Tamar. Her only hope at bearing children would fall on Judah’s youngest son Shelah. But Judah lied and had no intention of continuing with Tamar. What did she do? She decided to be wicked herself. She tricked Judah and tempted him. How did he respond but by being wicked himself? Judah and Tamar committed sin together that is so heinous that I won’t write on it here. So, why would they be included in Jesus’s official lineage – in the Bible no less?
The second woman is Rahab (v. 5), and her story is found throughout the Bible in Joshua 2:1-21, 6:17, 6:22-25; Hebrews 11:31; and James 2:25. Rahab wasn’t one of God’s chosen people, and before the Hebrew spies came to her house in Jordan, she was known for her sinful profession, a profession that, like Tamar isn’t something I am writing down here. Yet she had faith in the God she had heard of because of the mighty work He had done with His people. She kept the Hebrew spies safe by hiding them from her own people. She sided with the Lord. Despite her people and her own history, God rescued her by letting her put a scarlet cord in her window to mark her safe. But what about that earlier profession? Why would someone like her be included in Jesus’s official lineage – in the Bible no less?
The third woman is actually somewhat related to Rahab – she ended up marrying Rahab’s son Boaz. Her name is Ruth, and her story is told in the book of the Bible bearing her name. Like her mother-in-law, she wasn’t one of God’s chosen people. She was from the land of Moab (a people group started by a whole bunch of mess way back in Genesis 19:30-37). Her husband Mahlon came to Moab with his family during a famine in Israel, seeking help from their own strength and ingenuity rather than from the Lord. While they were in Moab, her father-in-law, husband, and brother-in-law all died. She alone decided to go back to Israel with her mother-in-law Naomi. God blessed her while she was there and took care of Ruth and Naomi. Eventually, she – not one of God’s chosen people – would be blessed to marry Boaz, Rahab’s son. This story has a happy ending, especially considering Ruth would be David’s great-grandmother, but doesn’t King Jesus deserve a more presentable bloodline?
The fourth woman isn’t even called by her name, but how she is listed tells the sadness and sin surrounding her: “And David was the father of Solomon by the wife of Uriah” (v. 6, 2 Samuel 11:1-25). King David is heralded as a hero but mainly for his worship of the Lord. He is also known as a sinner. Yes, the man who slew Goliath and wrote a good chunk of the psalms committed some of the most heinous sins: murder and adultery. David saw “the wife of Uriah”, a woman named Bathsheba, and decided that he wanted to make her his. His decisions led to a child between them. Rather than owning up and confessing his sin – to the Lord, to his wives, to Uriah, to Israel, David undertook a massive cover-up that ended in his arranging Uriah’s murder. He stole a man’s wife. He took a man’s life. It looks good to have a man who killed a giant who worshiped the Lord in your lineage, but why associate King Jesus with the wickedness of King David (and the same or worse from many of the kings listed after him in the family tree)?
In short, there are answers to those questions. Why would the Bible recognize all those sins and sinners in Jesus’s lineage? They all really happened. Sin happens. All people “have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). None of us – not a single person in the history or future of the world – deserve to be in Jesus’s lineage, but faith in God – trusting in His work and His steadfast love and kindness – is woven through that lineage, marking like a scarlet cord those who are saved by trusting in Him. Looking at their sin and faith in Him reminds us that none of us are worthy of saving. But that is why He came. Jesus Himself said that He came to “seek and save the lost” (Luke 19:10). And how did He come to seek and to save? Christmas. The incarnation of God becoming flesh and dwelling among us (John 1:14). He came to earth to provide a way for people like Tamar, Rahab, David, you, and me to be saved – by grace through faith in Him alone.
So, as you gather with family and friends and notice some rough looking fruit in your family tree – or whether you notice the same by looking in your own mirror, realize that Jesus is more than the reason for the season – He came to seek and save sinners like you and me. Won’t you ask Him to save you?
Reflection Questions:
By God including Tamar, Rahab, Ruth, and David in Jesus’s family line, how do you see God’s grace and mercy at work despite their sins? How can that remind us of God’s redemption?
Consider the phrase Jesus used in Luke 19:10, that He came “to seek and save the lost”. How does that impact you personally?
📖 Revelation 3:7–13We’re back!After a few months off, The King is Coming returns in 2026 with one of the most encouraging letters in Revelation — Jesus’s message to the faithful church in Philadelphia. In a world filled with opposition and weakness, Jesus opens a door no one can shut.In this episode, Keith Harris and Jamie Harrison explore:✔️ Jesus’s identity as the Holy One, the True One — God Himself✔️ What the “key of David” means and how Jesus alone opens and shuts✔️ The debated phrase “I will keep you from the hour of trial” — and how to read it biblically✔️ Why “little power” doesn’t disqualify faithfulness✔️ How being kept through the trial glorifies Christ’s strength in us✔️ What it means to be a pillar in God’s presence foreverThis church had no rebuke — only encouragement. And Jesus’s call still stands today: “Hold fast what you have, so that no one may seize your crown.” (Revelation 3:11, ESV)🔗 Missed earlier episodes in the series? You can click here to catch up and listen from the beginning.✍️ If you’d like to see a written version of this podcast, complete with footnotes and cross-references, you can find it here.
Oh sing to the Lord a new song, for He has done marvelous things!His right hand and His holy arm have worked salvation for Him.The Lord has made known His salvation;He has revealed His righteousness in the sight of the nations.He has remembered His steadfast love and faithfulness to the house of Israel. All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God.
Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth; break into joyous song and sing praises!
Psalm 98:1-4
Did you know that Isaac Watt’s hymn “Joy to the World” was not intended to be a Christmas carol? Watts wrote it with the intention of having a hymn show praise to God for His care for His people with a New Testament perspective, specifically a focus on the return of Christ. But just as the New Testament begins with the birth of Christ – Emmanuel, God with us – “Joy to the World” will forever be associated with Jesus’s first coming. It will forever be associated with Christmas.
Psalm 98 is the inspiration for “Joy to the World” and is a psalm celebrating God’s continual salvation for Israel and all the times that “His steadfast love and faithfulness” were bestowed on them. But all of that – all the times God showed up and moved in Israel’s history, all the powerful examples of His continued care for them – was on display for the Gentiles, on display for “all the earth”. That’s good news!
When we look at the world around us, there is not a lot of good news to be found – and definitely very little “good news of great joy”, and even less good news that is meant “for all the people” (Luke 2:10). But with Jesus comes “Joy to the World”. Jesus makes Psalm 98 true because He is the culmination of the “marvelous things” God has done – God in flesh (John 1:14)! Jesus is God’s salvation “made known”! Jesus is God’s righteousness revealed! God truly “remembered His steadfast love and faithfulness to the house of Israel” by sending them the Messiah, and praise be to God, “all the ends of the earth” can see and experience “the salvation of our God” through Him!
This year’s Advent guide is named after the hymn “Joy to the World”, but it is also – not a subtitle, but another title entirely – named after a line from “O Holy Night”: “a thrill of hope the weary world rejoices”. There seems to be a lot more weary in the world today than joy, but we need to be reminded that the Lord has come, and He is coming again. So, this is our effort to help you be able to rejoice in this weary world – to help you fix your eyes on Jesus rather than the trouble of the day (Hebrews 12:2, Matthew 6:34).
📖 Revelation 3:7–13We’re back!After a few months off, The King is Coming returns in 2026 with one of the most encouraging letters in Revelation — Jesus’s message to the faithful church in Philadelphia. In a world filled with opposition and weakness, Jesus opens a door no one can shut.In this episode, Keith Harris and Jamie Harrison explore:✔️ Jesus’s identity as the Holy One, the True One — God Himself✔️ What the “key of David” means and how Jesus alone opens and shuts✔️ The debated phrase “I will keep you from the hour of trial” — and how to read it biblically✔️ Why “little power” doesn’t disqualify faithfulness✔️ How being kept through the trial glorifies Christ’s strength in us✔️ What it means to be a pillar in God’s presence foreverThis church had no rebuke — only encouragement. And Jesus’s call still stands today: “Hold fast what you have, so that no one may seize your crown.” (Revelation 3:11, ESV)🔗 Missed earlier episodes in the series? You can click here to catch up and listen from the beginning.✍️ If you’d like to see a written version of this podcast, complete with footnotes and cross-references, you can find it here.
Here are the links to the daily Scripture readings & devotions:
HOPE
Lighting the first candle of hope means looking forward to the promised Savior, as foretold in Isaiah 7:14 and Romans 15:12-13. This hope isn’t just a wish—it’s a sure expectation based on God’s promises. Seeing God’s faithfulness in fulfilling ancient prophecies during Christ’s birth offers hope for everyone, not just for personal salvation but for a world seeking restoration that comes from Him.
We find hope in God’s faithfulness to keep His promises. We worship a God who planned to forgive our sins through Jesus Christ long before Bethlehem, as foretold in Scriptures centuries earlier. Advent reminds us of God’s promises fulfilled in Christ, assuring us of His unchanging faithfulness and securing our hope in Him. And Advent reminds us Gd has promised Jesus’s return. “He who promised is faithful” (Hebrews 10:23).
As the second candle of peace shines, consider the profound peace brought by Jesus, the Prince of Peace, mentioned in Isaiah 9:6-7 and Luke 2:14. His birth signifies reconciliation between God and humanity, offering a deep, lasting peace found only in a personal relationship with Christ. His teachings guide us towards peace with God, ourselves, and others. Let this candle inspire a desire for reconciliation and peacemaking in a divided world.
This portion of Advent also draws attention to Bethlehem. Reflecting on Bethlehem’s seemingly insignificant setting reminds us of God’s penchant for using ordinary places for extraordinary purposes. In this portion of Advent, amidst feelings of insignificance, remember that God loves you dearly. Take a moment to pause, acknowledging how God specializes in using the seemingly small and insignificant for His glory. Pray that God uses you for His purpose—to bring peace and reconciliation to those around you, to bring people to Him.
As the candle of joy, the third candle, shines, remember the angel’s message of “good news of great joy” in Luke 2:10-11. This Gospel isn’t just duty; it’s a reason for deep delight in God’s work through Jesus Christ. It’s a lasting joy rooted in Christ’s hope, surpassing fleeting happiness. This joy invites you to live joyfully, sharing the transformative joy of knowing Christ with others.
In the same way, the Gospel reminds us to find our joy in Christ rather than in temporary pursuits. Embrace the deep joy found in knowing Christ, sharing this good news of great joy with those around you.
As the fourth candle, the candle of love, shines, ponder God’s profound love revealed through Christ’s birth and sacrifice, echoing 1 John 4:10. Reflect on John 3:16 and Romans 5:8, recognizing the Gospel as the ultimate display of God’s unconditional love. This divine love calls for embracing it fully and extending it sacrificially to others, as highlighted in Ephesians 5:2. Let Christ’s love inspire you to practice radical love in your relationships, mirroring His example.
The heart of Christmas lies in God’s immense love shown by sending His Son, Jesus, as the ultimate gift. This Advent phase illuminates the depth of the Father’s love, echoing the truth found in 1 John 4:10. Amidst the festivities, remember that Christmas revolves around God’s extraordinary love revealed through the sacrificial gift of His beloved Son for unworthy sinners like us.
The Christ candle marks the culmination of Advent, embodying hope, peace, joy, and love of Jesus. He is the heart of the Gospel message, representing hope for humanity’s reconciliation with God. Embrace His presence, allowing His light to shine through your life, illuminating the world with the Gospel’s transformative power.
Jesus’ birth led to His sacrificial death, offering us new life through His resurrection. He is our sole hope, the Way, the Truth, and the Life. Amid the Christmas hustle, ponder the profound impact of Christ’s birth in history, changing humanity forever.
This Christmas Eve, reflect on His birth, mourn the necessity of His death, celebrate His resurrection, and gather with fellow believers to worship Him.
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1 If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. 2 Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. 3 For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. 4 When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.[1]
📖 Revelation 3:7–13We’re back!After a few months off, The King is Coming returns in 2026 with one of the most encouraging letters in Revelation — Jesus’s message to the faithful church in Philadelphia. In a world filled with opposition and weakness, Jesus opens a door no one can shut.In this episode, Keith Harris and Jamie Harrison explore:✔️ Jesus’s identity as the Holy One, the True One — God Himself✔️ What the “key of David” means and how Jesus alone opens and shuts✔️ The debated phrase “I will keep you from the hour of trial” — and how to read it biblically✔️ Why “little power” doesn’t disqualify faithfulness✔️ How being kept through the trial glorifies Christ’s strength in us✔️ What it means to be a pillar in God’s presence foreverThis church had no rebuke — only encouragement. And Jesus’s call still stands today: “Hold fast what you have, so that no one may seize your crown.” (Revelation 3:11, ESV)🔗 Missed earlier episodes in the series? You can click here to catch up and listen from the beginning.✍️ If you’d like to see a written version of this podcast, complete with footnotes and cross-references, you can find it here.
I love the way that Paul’s letter to the Colossian church builds and builds and builds. I think our overviews of the larger chunks of chapters one and two help us to see how it builds, but also how it fits together as an epistle or letter. Remember, where we see chapters, sections, passages, and verses there was just a letter from the apostle Paul to a church that needed help. Paragraph by paragraph the help he offers them is pointing them to Jesus. And since Paul’s letter to the Colossians was “Scripture…breathed out by God” (2 Timothy 3:16), it is important for us to remember that these words apply to us and the local churches we belong to as well!
Even though we have spent several weeks reviewing the initial chapters of Colossians, it is important that we keep our passage today in correct context:
In chapter 1, we saw Paul presenting Jesus in a beautiful hymn highlighting how Jesus, God incarnate, is preeminent over all and yet cares for them enough to deliver and redeem them (and us) “from the domain of darkness” to His Kingdom (ch 1:13-14).
Chapter 2 saw Paul helping them to understand what it is to be alive in Christ and helped them understand that receiving Christ and walking in Him (ch 2:6-7) is necessary to combat the false teaching attacking their church.
As we begin chapter 3 where Paul lays out for the Colossian church – and again, the church today – what new life in Christ is and is not, the final verse from last week’s passage (ch 2:23) strikes me a bit stronger: “These (human precepts and teaching) have indeed an appearance of wisdom in promoting self-made religion and asceticism and severity to the body, but they are of no value in stopping the indulgence of the flesh.”
We looked at Colossians 2:23 in the context of last week’s passage, and we need to now see it as the hinge that opens the door between last week’s passage and ours today because, contextually, it fits with both passages. The “human precepts and teaching” (ch 2:22) were spoken of in the context of the false teaching plaguing the Colossian church – that people were trying to tack on additional religious practices to the gospel and distract from it. But, as we are about to begin looking at precepts and teaching given by Paul, it is fitting that we clarify the difference between human precepts and those “breathed out by God” (2 Timothy 3:16). Sins are going to be listed – not Paul’s interpretation of a religion but speaking from God as He was “carried along by the Holy Spirit” (2 Peter 1:21). We must be careful to focus on and look at what God is saying to the church – then and now – through Paul. We must be careful to recognize the authority of Scripture to teach us what to believe and correct us when we are wrong – to teach us how to live and correct us when we sin – to give us everything we need to live this new life in Him (2 Timothy 3:17).
There is temptation to blunt what God makes sharp regarding sin – to call good what God called evil (Isaiah 5:20). There is also a temptation to take God’s Word and use it to hurt people rather than to point them to Him. Both are dangerous. Both are trying for “human precepts” instead of the divine. God’s Word says what it says, and it has power. But the former, the man-made or man-twisted have “no value in stopping the indulgence of the flesh”. Thankfully, Paul’s answer to both – the answer that has been consistent throughout Colossians and will continue to be through the end is Jesus – is clear in our passage today.
If You Have Been Raised (vv. 1, 3)
The first word of today’s passage is “if”. As a parent and a high school teacher, I understand this word with unique clarity.
Daddy, can I go to __’s house Friday? Yes, if, you clean your room. Mr. Harris, if we all make __ or above on the assessment, you should buy us donuts. I sure will if you hold up your end of the bargain. When Friday comes or the assessment is over both sides play the parts of expert lawyer explaining how I am bound to do this or how I should change my mind because of how close they got to the agreement. Yet if leaves extraordinarily little wiggle room. If is conditional. Any agreement containing if means that its completion is contingent upon whatever in-the-event-that occurs.
In the case of today’s passage – “Ifthen you have been raised with Christ”, the condition is if someone is in Christ, whether or not they have been “raised with Christ”. One either is or is not. Think back to the way that Paul has presented this state of being in Christ throughout the letter: either in “the domain of darkness” or “the kingdom of His beloved Son” (ch 1:13), either reconciled to Him through “the blood of His cross” or “alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds” (ch 1:20-21), either “dead in your trespasses” or “made alive together with Him” (ch 2:13). So, to say “If then you have been raised with Christ” is to say you are either dead in your sins or raised to “walk in newness of life” (Romans 6:4) – in Christ or not knowing Him at all (Matthew 7:21-23[2]).
It is important to the message Paul is communicating because the teachings in Colossians 3-4 are for those who have been “made alive…with Christ”, saved by grace through faith in Jesus (Ephesians 2:5). These are not principles for a good or successful life. They are not suggestions or even a how-to manual for faith or practice. If one is not in Christ – saved, born again, these teachings are of no value and will only end in discouragement and disappointment because they are contingent on the Spirit’s power only available to those who are His.
This is illustrated through the rest of that conditional statement: “seek the things that are above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God”. Basically, if you are in Christ, seek Him. Verse 3 clarifies it even further because, once one is saved, the former pre-salvation life is over and life is “hidden with Christ in God” – eternal life is contingent upon His life, our being brought from death to life is contingent upon His resurrection (1 Corinthians 15:12-16).
This is why the new life that comes from being in Christ is not simply a how-to manual or list of instructions – it is real and lasting transformation, life change that occurs when one goes from the “wages of sin”, which is death, to “the free gift of eternal life” (Romans 6:23). Think back to the time spent earlier on the context of ch. 2:23: only new life in Jesus is of value “in stopping the indulgence of the flesh”! Seeking Christ is more than reading His Word or praying to Him as a religious exercise, it is seeking the One who rescued you and redeemed you – who saved you. If you have been raised with Christ, why would you not seek Him?
Set Your Minds (vv. 2, 4)
There is good news in the command to seek Jesus, namely that He will be found! Look at this beautiful passage in Isaiah 55:6-7:
Seek the Lord while He may be found; call upon Him while He is near; let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; let him return to the Lord, that he may have compassion on him, and to our God, for He will abundantly pardon.
This is often viewed as an invitation – and it is – for those who do not know Christ but let us look at what it means for those who do know Him. If you have been raised with Christ, He will be found when sought and near when He is called upon. But also, if one’s wicked ways have been forsaken and unrighteous thoughts laid aside, one surely has sought the Lord and received His compassion and forgiveness – received His life – because human beings do not lay aside their wickedness of choice easily. The latter proves the former. The fruit proves the tree[3].
The command here moves from seeking Him, though, to setting one’s mind on Him. That word “set” means be mindful of, to be devoted to”[4]. Think about it like how one would set a thermostat or an alarm. A thermostat ensures that a house stays within the confines of temperatures that will keep us comfortable – that is comfortable to the one who sets the temperature. An alarm ensures that appointments are kept and things that one really does not want to miss. As a resident of Mississippi in June, I am devoted to making sure my thermostat is set correctly as the humidity and heat would quickly overtake my home. Alarms are necessities for things I want to make sure I do not miss and things I must do and are set as needed – as often as needed, as often as I need to be mindful of a time or date. How does this pertain to Jesus?
Paul tells the Colossian church to “set” their minds “on things that are above” – the same thing that he just commanded them to “seek”. The mind of the church, its members, should be set on Jesus “not on things that are on earth”. Set – like a thermostat – to keep one’s mind consistently where it needs to be, on Jesus. Set – like we would an alarm to remind us of where we need to be. Set.
Now, I have heard people say that there is a danger of being so heavenly minded that one is no earthly good, meaning that one can be so focused on “things that are above” that things below are forgotten about. That warning assumes that these heavenly minded people would have a sort of monastery view that would isolate them from the world.
I would argue that I am of no earthly good if my mind is not set on Christ. When we look at the rest of the larger section that today’s passage begins (Colossians 3:1-17), what follows comes from setting one’s mind on Jesus. The sins that are crucified are because of focusing on Jesus and the life He gives. The behaviors that characterize the new life follow in the way that He lived – and lives!
This leads to the ultimate goal: meeting Jesus. If we look at verse 4, this is the goal – the expectation of seeking and setting one’s mind on Christ – “When Christ who is your life appears”.
This is the sort of expectant devotion that reminds me of my son. The first day I spent alone with him was when he was barely a month old on my wife’s first day back at work. He screamed. He cried. He was upset. But everything changed when his mama called to see how everything had gone. He heard her voice over the phone and began to be soothed. For the first time that day (except when a bottle was in his mouth) he was quiet. As soon as he hit her arms when she got home, he was at rest. Now, I know it would be hard to say that as an infant he was thinking this or that. Yet on rare occasions when my wife is gone for a long while, every audible car noise from the street brings questions of whether his mom is back. When my wife and daughter were on a mission trip without us a year ago, every buzz on my phone brought questions whether it was his mama on the other end. And, as hard as he tried to play it cool when we picked them up at the church when they got back, everything was right in his world once his mama was home.
Expectantly setting one’s mind on Christ shows that kind of devotion. While Jesus is away, setting our minds on Him operates on the belief that He really is returning for us and has prepared a place for us (John 14:2). But, more than that, it is a connection between the one you confessed as Lord (Romans 10:9) and the life you actually live (Galatians 2:20). And when He appears – when He returns, He comes to take you with Him. Those who are His will be ready because their minds are set.
Wrapping Up
It is so easy to regiment our lives to fit everything that we want. We can schedule and plan. There are immovable commitments in our lives that will trump anything that comes up. I can be in the middle of something that has everything else in my schedule detouring around it and have it all upended with a single emergency call or text from my wife or kids. In that moment, everything else pales in comparison. The immovable appointment suddenly becomes movable.
But how does God fit in my life? Is time with Him immovable in my schedule? I learned – sadly later than I should have – that there are times that, if I do not schedule time with my wife I will run out of time – the same with my kids. I felt bad when I initially began scheduling this time because it seems so impersonal to schedule things as important as time with my wife and kids. Then, I realized that it is better to schedule than miss something important, which is the reason I had a calendar in the first place: to ensure that important things do not get missed. If I fix my schedule around gathering with my church family so that it is an immovable commitment, why should I be so foolish as to think the precious time I get with my wife and kids should be less of an immovable commitment.
I must do the same with my time with the Lord – in His Word and praying. It has become part of my daily routine (which I know also sounds impersonal). And, if I do not start my day in His Word and in prayer – if I do not set my mind on Him at the very beginning of my day, I will be off. I will be more like the old self than the new.
Important things are set. They are fixed.
And so, it must be for the minds of those who claim to be saved.
If you are reading this and find that you have no desire to set your mind on Christ or that you can make it through days or weeks or months or years without caring about spending time with Him in His Word or praying to Him, there is a problem. If you claim to be a part of His body – the church – and have left it dismembered in your absence, there is a problem. Remember that conditional if. If you are His, you will seek Him. If you are His, you will desire to spend time with Him. If you are His, there will have to come a time when you are set – fixed – on Him. It is conditional. And per His Word, the conditions are set – fixed, immovable.
Maybe there is an issue with repentance that needs to be taken care of so that you can fix your mind on Him. Or maybe, just maybe, you are not in Christ. If you have not truly been born again, it is like I said earlier: these actions are not for you. They will drain you because you do not have the Spirit’s power. They will make you feel empty and dead because those who have not been made alive with Christ (Ephesians 2:4-5) are still dead in their trespasses and sins (Ephesians 2:1). If this is you, then there is hope. The Bible is clear on this:
…because if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved. For the Scripture says, “Everyone who believes in Him will not be put to shame.” For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, bestowing His riches on all who call on Him. For “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”
Romans 10:9-13
If this is you, I hope you take these words to heart. If there is no fruit of life in Christ, then there is no life. But this does not have to be bad news. The words from Romans 10:9-13 tell us how to be in Christ. To confess Him as Lord is to submit to Him as the Master of your life, trusting that His ways are better than yours. To believe that God raised Him from the dead is more than mere information; it is trusting that only Him who raised from the dead can give life to those who are dead in their sin. If you call out to Him and tell Him these things, then He will save you just as He promised. Know this, whether you are in Christ or out: I am praying for you. I am praying for you to have a desire to meet God in His Word and talk to Him. I am praying for His Spirit to help you set your mind on Him and seek Him while He may be found. And, if you come to realize that you are not in Him, know that I would love to talk with you and pray for you. I would love to introduce you to Jesus.
[2] The context of Matthew 7:21-23 is interesting here because just prior to that paragraph in Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 7:15-20) is a paragraph where Jesus describes the danger of “false prophets” who appear to be part of the sheepfold but are “ravenous wolves”. The context helps us here because Jesus clarifies that one’s fruit defines what type of tree they are. Those who are in Christ bear His fruit – “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control” (Galatians 5:22-23). The fruit thrives because those who are in Christ are connected to Him (John 15:5-6). So, based on Jesus’ words in the Sermon on the Mount, no fruit means no Christ. This is very frightening and damning illustration – or it is assurance.
What a beautiful opportunity it is to get to gather on the Lord’s day to adore Him in worship, thinking on His first coming, life, death, and resurrection, and looking expectantly toward His return!
Here are our Scriptures and songs:
Scripture | Luke 2:8-17 —
8 And in the same region there were shepherds out in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. 9 And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with great fear. 10 And the angel said to them, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. 11 For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. 12 And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger.” 13 And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying,
14 “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!”
15 When the angels went away from them into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let us go over to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has made known to us.” 16 And they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby lying in a manger. 17 And when they saw it, they made known the saying that had been told them concerning this child.
Song | Go Tell It on the Mountain —
Song | Hark the Herald Angels Sing —
Scripture | 2 Corinthians 5:16-6:2 —
5:16 From now on, therefore, we regard no one according to the flesh. Even though we once regarded Christ according to the flesh, we regard him thus no longer. 17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. 18 All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; 19 that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. 20 Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. 21 For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
6:1 Working together with him, then, we appeal to you not to receive the grace of God in vain. 2 For he says,
“In a favorable time I listened to you, and in a day of salvation I have helped you.”
Behold, now is the favorable time; behold, now is the day of salvation.
The word advent refers to the arrival of someone or something important.
The season of Advent (basically the month prior to the celebration of Christmas) brings Titus 2:11-14 to mind:
For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age, waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, who gave Himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for Himself a people for His own possession who are zealous for good works.
That phrase “waiting for our blessed hope” reminds me of those who had long-awaited Jesus’ first coming. It also reminds me of how we should be as we await His return!
We want to give you the opportunity to use this time – when people are trying to focus on and remember hope, peace, joy, and love – to focus on “our great God and Savior Jesus Christ”. Starting on December 1 and going up to Christmas day, we have a Bible passage to read and have curated devotions to help focus our hearts and minds on Jesus.
Or you can use the links or podcast player below to listen to the Bible reading and devotion.
If you would like to sign-up to receive weekly devotions and other content, enter your email address in the box below and click the “subscribe” button.
This is meant to be a resource to help you pray for the upcoming school year – local schools, students, parents, teachers, administration, and school staff.
Praying is the most we can do – handing our concerns and cares over to the sovereign, almighty God of the universe. The requests and guide below are just suggestions; feel free to pray for whatever comes to mind!
There are two passages of Scripture that drive our desire to do this and show us the goal, scope, and hope of turning things over to the Lord in prayer:
“The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God that surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4:5b-7)
“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.” (Romans 15:13)
6 Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him, 7 rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving. [1]
📖 Revelation 3:7–13We’re back!After a few months off, The King is Coming returns in 2026 with one of the most encouraging letters in Revelation — Jesus’s message to the faithful church in Philadelphia. In a world filled with opposition and weakness, Jesus opens a door no one can shut.In this episode, Keith Harris and Jamie Harrison explore:✔️ Jesus’s identity as the Holy One, the True One — God Himself✔️ What the “key of David” means and how Jesus alone opens and shuts✔️ The debated phrase “I will keep you from the hour of trial” — and how to read it biblically✔️ Why “little power” doesn’t disqualify faithfulness✔️ How being kept through the trial glorifies Christ’s strength in us✔️ What it means to be a pillar in God’s presence foreverThis church had no rebuke — only encouragement. And Jesus’s call still stands today: “Hold fast what you have, so that no one may seize your crown.” (Revelation 3:11, ESV)🔗 Missed earlier episodes in the series? You can click here to catch up and listen from the beginning.✍️ If you’d like to see a written version of this podcast, complete with footnotes and cross-references, you can find it here.
Suffering. Over the last few weeks of studying to write these Bible studies, I have found myself thinking about it again and again, and with it a question: is there anything in my life for which I would willingly suffer?
Of course, you can imagine the answers that would receive a willing yes – or at least ones that I would hope to say ‘yes’ to or that I at least should be willing to suffer for: Jesus, family and loved ones. But what is the likelihood that I – in the normal scope of circumstances and the trajectory of my life – would have to be willing to suffer. At most, the things in my life that approach suffering are mere shadows of it or discomforts.
Last week’s passage looked at how Paul suffered on behalf of the church and, more importantly, why he was willing to suffer. First, he found the “surpassing worth of knowing Christ” (Philippians 3:7) to outweigh the discomfort of worldly suffering. But, second, he toiled and struggled to “present everyone mature in Christ” (ch 1:28-29) so that “no one may delude [them] with plausible arguments” (ch 2:4). He was willing to suffer so that the church would grow closer to Christ and be presented “mature” (ch 1:28) – that the church would have the life that the Bible talks about (and live it).
As a pastor and teacher of the Word – as a disciple of Christ who is supposed to be making disciples (Matthew 28:19), that is pretty much the goal: to reach people with the gospel of Christ and help them grow closer to Him. But that leaves me with more questions. I’ll offer them to you as well:
Is this a goal (making disciples and helping them mature in their faith) that would drive you to be willing to suffer, or is spiritual maturity something you care about at all?
Do the lives of those who profess Christ make everything that Christ has promised His people – the lifestyle and character traits as well as the blessings – seem right and true?
This would be an easy place to turn and bash the church. Bashing, or even just bad-mouthing, the church is a popular activity even among those who claim to be a part of it. I wish I could say that I have not done it, but I have come to realize that how I view – more importantly how I treat – the church, the Bride of Christ, says a lot about me. I cannot imagine someone coming to me to bad mouth Candice. Wrath would be readily available and grace in short supply. The church is to Christ what Candice is to me – and more.
The longer I walk with Christ and the more closely I am grafted into that body through my local church, I find that I have great hope for the church: His name is Jesus. And I pray that He sees fit to use me to help her – to make a difference through the ministry of the local church He’s called me to serve.
But that is never easy. Suffering may be involved. It is good that the “surpassing worth of knowing Christ” is more and better than any bad suffering can bring.
I cannot think about people who love and care for the church and who would willingly suffer to see her members grow in maturity without my mind being drawn to Dietrich Bonhoeffer (pronounced BON-hoff-er). He was a pastor, a theologian, a teacher, a spy, and later a martyr under the Nazi regime in Germany. His story is now viewed as remarkable, but he would not have thought it so. He pastored and trained pastors, many of whom were imprisoned or martyred by the Nazis themselves. Much of his time and ministry was spent helping young ministers know and grow in Christ.
The aspect of his story that comes to mind here is when his compatriots convinced him to be smuggled to America so that he would be safe and be able to continue to serve God and be active in Kingdom work. When he got to America, things were so much more peaceful than in WWII Germany, but he had no peace. The only Kingdom work he could think about or focus on was back in Germany – back where nothing good awaited him. He fell under the conviction that he had left where God had called him to be. So, he repented. He got smuggled back into Germany where he would eventually be arrested by the Gestapo and imprisoned in various places until he finally reached the Flossenburg Concentration Camp in Bavaria.
That is the kind of hope that comes only from Christ. The “surpassing worth of knowing Christ” makes every other thing of considerable value to be counted as “rubbish” or dung (Philippians 3:7-8). Knowing Him and seeking His Kingdom is like discovering a treasure worth more than everything you own – worth so much that you would cash it all in to possess it; it is realizing that you have found a relationship with the One whose value so outweighs your own and rejoicing that He loves you despite your unworthiness (Matthew 13:44; Romans 8:31-39).
That is the hope that made Paul willing to suffer and follow Christ’s example and sacrifice. Suffering paled in comparison to seeing others come to know Christ and follow Him. Suffering on earth is temporary, but God’s Kingdom has no end! And that is the hope that I want to help point us to today. If you have “received Christ Jesus the Lord”, you can “walk in Him” by being “rooted and built up in Him and established in the faith”.
“received Christ Jesus the Lord”
There are so many ways that people describe what it means to be in Christ – saved, born again, Christ-follower, Christian, etc. Sometimes it can feel like people are speaking Christian-ese or some sort of church language. To a certain extent, those terms are simply biblical ways to describe what happens when people repent of their sins and believe in Jesus, but that also sounds Christian-ese. Then, there are some who use these terms to camouflage their disbelief and navigate the waters of church culture. Even Demas was able to serve alongside Paul, completing “Christian” work until he “in love with this present world” abandoned him to go to Thessalonica (2 Timothy 4:10).
There are many today who once claimed Christianity but have abandoned the religion – or deconstructed their faith to construct something different in its place. Where I live in the southeastern United States was formerly known as the Bible Belt. There was a church on every corner and everyone seemed to know (at least) about Jesus, but that is not the case anymore. In fact, the predominant worldview in America as of 2021 is “moralistic therapeutic deism” which helps people speak of God generically and hold to whatever beliefs make them feel most comfortable, even attending churches for community when believing none of the Bible’s teachings.[2]
In a world where we sometimes casually speak about Christianity, especially in the church, I think it is helpful for us to look at what Paul means here when he says “as you received Christ Jesus the Lord” (v. 6). Jesus did not die for community. I like the way Jesus Himself put it: He came “to give His life as a ransom for many” (Matthew 20:28). He is “the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world” (John 1:29). He is “Jesus Christ the righteous…the propitiation for our sins” (1 John 2:1-2). He, “being rich in mercy”, came to make those who “were dead in the trespasses and sins in which [they] once walked” to be “made…alive together with Christ”, saving them by His grace (Ephesians 2:1-2, 4-5)! He died – and raised from the dead – for more than shallow religion offers.
Surely Paul would not willingly suffer – much less Jesus die – for people to generically call on Him as a label for their community while denying Him as Savior and Lord. In fact, the Bible speaks to this specifically. Paul clarifies this as a spiritual matter in 1 Corinthians 12:3:
“Therefore I want you to understand that no one speaking in the Spirit of God ever says ‘Jesus is accursed!’ and no one can say ‘Jesus is Lord’ except in the Holy Spirit.”
Basically, one cannot decide to accept Christianity while rejecting – essentially saying “to Hell with” – the Christ of Christianity. He is the Lord of the saved and rejected by all others. Romans 10:9, the model for true belief and what it looks like to be in Christ, leaves no room for someone to claim Him without submitting to Him as Lord:
“…because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.”
Submitting to Him is the confession – not lengthy or difficult doctrines. Confessing to the world that He is your Lord – with your mouth and especially your life – and that you commit to believing what the Bible says about Him, namely His death and resurrection are the hallmarks of being saved. The language is important because it comes from the Bible. It is important because it teaches us how to be saved and, then, what it means to follow Him.
That word “receive” from our passage today is a good indicator of what it means to “be saved” and for Jesus to be one’s “Lord”. In the original language, that word meant “receive with or to oneself what is given, imparted, delivered over…to receive into the mind, be taught”[3]; it meant that something of value had been offered or taught to be implanted and become part of the learner. The message of the gospel tells the truth about man, sin, and gives invitation and opportunity to repent of sin and believe in Jesus – to have faith and trust that He is who His Word proclaims He is and that He will do what He promised, namely bring lost sinners from death to eternal life. For those who get “saved”, they hear this message and respond to its call in repentance and faith, or they remain in their sins by rejecting the message and continuing on unchanged.
To reject the message means it is not received. This is clear. There are people who seek after many religions or philosophies. They would reject the idea that Jesus is who the Bible says He is. But, to “be saved” is to “receive Christ Jesus the Lord” – to believe what the Bible says about Him and live life the Life He gives following His example and commands. This is not a legalistic set of laws but a response of love to Him who loved us and thankfulness toward Him for all He has done and is doing on our behalf (v. 7).
This is a good opportunity, dear Sojourner, to assess whether or not you have received Him.
Jesus Himself speaks about this in His Sermon on the Mount:
“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’[4]
These words give me pause every time I read them. They do today. Salvation does not fall on me and my works, though. It lies solely on Him. Have I received Him – not just using His name and trying to work in His name? The Bible is clear that “everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved” (Joel 2:32, Romans 10:13) – those that call out to Him to save them, submitting to Him and trusting in Him as Savior.
Paul talks about a difference between the lives of the world and in those who have received or learned Christ in Ephesians 4. He describes those who have not received Christ as walking “in the futility of their minds” rather than walking in Him (Ephesians 4:17). He says that those who have not received Christ are “callous” – hardened due to “sensuality” and practicing all manner of “impurity” (Ephesians 4:19). Then, he issues one of the most chilling litmus tests for believers:
“But that is not the way you learned Christ – assuming that you have heard about Him and were taught in Him, as the truth is with Jesus, to put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.” (Ephesians 4:20-24)
Paul – really the Holy Spirit appealing to the church through Paul – does not leave room for one to have “learned Christ” while living like the world. When he talks about “assuming that you have heard about Him”, it chills up my spine as I examine my own life. This is not a question of my perfection or track record – but His!
So, I ask you to examine yourself. Have you “received” Him? If so, He has surely received, saved, loved, and adopted you as His! If not, I invite you to repent and believe!
“rooted and built up in Him and established in the faith, just as you were taught”
Until one has “received Christ Jesus the Lord”, there is no need to attain for maturity. Knowing Christ is not a class – although there are Bible teachers in churches who are meant to teach you what the Bible says for how to live your life. What I mean is that there is no program to progress through – no degree to attain. If one is not in Christ, he or she is dead. There is no maturity in death, only decay!
I find it interesting that Paul found presenting “everyone mature in Christ” (ch 1:28) as worthy of “struggling with all [Christ’s] energy” (ch 1:29) while all of our – honestly, I am speaking for me and the local church I serve – energy and focus goes elsewhere. We have to constantly be reminded that the Great Commission is about making disciples – not converts. Part of the reason is that making converts seems to be relatively easier – all we have to do is proclaim the gospel; Jesus does the saving!
Making disciples (discipleship) is difficult for us because it takes time. Sometimes we convince ourselves that we can travel somewhere, preach the gospel, and let someone else disciple the converts. But, unfortunately, we have many who profess Christ who no one disciples. They are handed a Bible, often given a job or ministry in the church, and wished good luck on their efforts. No one really took a concerted effort to disciple me until I had already been in ministry for over a decade and had burned out. To think, I was a little offended when an interim pastor approached me in my thirties and asked if I was interested in being discipled and growing in my walk with Christ. I am thankful for the offense, and, now, I seek to offend others in the same way!
I never realized what all it took to disciple someone – to truly labor and desire for their maturity – until a few years ago when my daughter received Christ. I also never fully understood the difficulties. She sees more of my walk with Christ than most anyone else, definitely more than anyone but Christ Himself and Candice. She sees my failings. She sees when I need to repent and whether or not I do. She sees when I read the Word and whether I worship God at home. What I try to teach her from the Word cannot remotely hope to compare to what she sees me living out. It is terribly frustrating at times, but, ultimately, it is a great joy to get to struggle and strive. I cannot imagine being satisfied with my own comfort if she would not be found mature in Him.
Paul did not have a wife or children. He cared that way for the churches he was called to serve. He looked at the Colossian church the way I look at Keri. He did not plant the church there, but the gospel he preached at Ephesus birthed that. Now, as I grow closer to Christ myself and mature to see more of what He has called me to, I understand more of what Paul wanted for the churches – and why he wanted them to be “rooted and built up in Him and established in the faith, just as [they] were taught, abounding in thanksgiving”.
Rooted
To be rooted in Christ lies in that foundation – “just as you were taught”. This reminds me of the parable of the sower in Matthew 13:1-9. Some of the seed was sown on the hard packed earth of a path and was eaten by birds. Other seeds fell on shallow soil over bedrock; there was not enough depth for roots to develop that would sustain growth. Similarly, some seeds feel among thorns and were choked out. But the seeds that were sown on the good soil developed healthy roots, received all of the nutrients the soil offered, received all of the light and water they needed, and grew into healthy plants that multipled “a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty” (Matthew 13:8).
Roots not only provide a means to gain sustenance but also support and strength. Think about how many times following a storm there are large trees whose roots snap off below the ground. The roots were enough to sustain the tree to grow large, but they never developed enough to withstand the pressure that comes with winds and storms. Yet there are very large and extremely old trees that line areas of the Gulf Coast in southern Mississippi. Their branches are gnarly as they have been whipped by hurricane after hurricane. Their branches bear the marks of the wind, but their roots have sustained them and held them safely in the ground.
So it is with Christ. To become mature, you must be rooted in Him. Like the branches of a grape vine have no hope of producing grapes without being attached to their vine, “apart from [Christ] you can do nothing” (John 15:5). The same gospel that brings the invitation to receive Christ also sustains. A Christian will never outgrow the truth of the gospel but, rather, studying and knowing it more means that our roots are dug deep into its good soil. Continuing to study the Word and walk with Christ draws sustenance and leaves us firmly planted in Him.
In the coming weeks of this study, we will look at the winds of false teaching that were attacking the Colossian church. There are similar winds today. The only way to withstand is to be rooted in Christ.
Built Up in Him
What good is a foundation if no one builds on it? What good are roots if there is no tree?
We looked earlier at some of Paul’s words in Ephesians 4. Earlier in that chapter, he spoke to this:
“Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into Him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.” (Ephesians 4:15-16)
Disciples grow as they study God’s Word and put it into practice. That’s right: practice. Too many people have been allowed to profess Christ with their mouths on a single occasion and deny Him with their lives in every moment following it. (This typically cues a chorus of “Thou shalt not judge”.)
Paul illustrated being build up in Christ to the Ephesian church by talking about love being the catalyst. Jesus Himself said that all of the law could be summed up by loving God and loving people (Matthew 22:36-40). Love is an action. Love is a constant choice to remember what God did for us in Christ and to share that with others. Love requires effort. The church is not built with bricks and mortar but with those who have received Christ serving Him and sharing Him with others.
Established in the Faith
This word is more closely related to assurance – that one can know that they have received Christ. To be “established in the faith” is to have the Spirit of God in you, leading and guiding. Honestly, and I am trying not to generalize this too much, if any of the things written about in this Bible study (receiving Christ, being rooted, and being built up/growing in Him) are missing, there is reason for concern, especially receiving Him.
One of the greatest issues for people in the former Bible Belt is false assurance. If someone has been allowed to profess Christianity with no connection to Christ, no fruit for decades, there is little to convince them otherwise. Think back to that chilling warning from Jesus in Matthew 7; there will be people who have claimed Christ in name only who will not be welcomed into eternity with Him. This is why Paul was willing to suffer to see people presented as mature. They were faced either with assurance of faith in Christ or outed as frauds. Demas could only stay with him so long before his love for the world overrode his words.
It is an uncomfortable thing to be confronted with a harsh truth. The harsh reality that your life does not bear fruit of a relationship with Christ offers opportunity for repentance and faith – opportunity to receive Him. But it does no one any good to save their feelings on earth if only to allow them to die and go to Hell. One way is love; the other hate.
Maybe you do not feel as if you are “established in the faith”. That is not necessarily a bad thing. Sometimes our trees need pruning. Sometimes we need to be confronted with present sin and repent – to “bear fruit in keeping with repentance” (Matthew 3:8). But, maybe, you have merely talked the talk. Maybe you learned enough Christian-ese to converse and fit in with the locals.
It is a good thing to be confronted with harsh truths. If you realize that you have never received Christ, it is not too late. The same words that showed us earlier what it means to believe show us how to receive Him now. Romans 10:9-10 says:
“…because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved.”
There is no better time for such a confession than right now. If you would like to talk, I would love to help you; feel free to reach out any time.
I have gone on longer than normal, but I definitely feel that this is important. Anything worth suffering over is worth our attention. And the state of our soul in the face of the holy and righteous God of the universe is worth attention.
I began by talking about Dietrich Bonhoeffer and how his repentance led him back to Germany and, ultimately, to Flossenburg Concentration Camp. But I did not tell you what happened to him there.
This is usually the part of the story where something inspirational comes, and that definitely happens here. But nothing comes out of the wings to save Bonhoeffer from the fate one would expect at a concentration camp.
As WWII was drawing to a close – Hitler had already committed suicide and the Third Reich was preparing to surrender, the Nazis still harbored great hatred toward Bonhoeffer. They hated him so much, in fact, that one of their last official actions would be to have him executed rather than letting him go free after the surrender.
The morning of his death, he was not sad. He preached a sermon to people in the camp with a fellow prisoner, a British officer, standing watch and Nazi soldiers waiting to accompany him to his execution. When he finished preaching, he went with them willingly. In the moments before his hanging on the morning of April 9, 1945, he bowed his face to the ground, prayed to the Christ he would meet face-to-face minutes later, and uttered the words: “This is the end – for me, the beginning of life.”
From an earthly perspective, this seems like such a sad story. But, the longer I walk with Christ, it is a story of hope. How could a man not fight against his executioners? How could he proclaim the gospel truth to his killers on his way out of this world? Hope. Hope in Christ that comes from being “rooted and built up and established in the faith”. Hope that comes from receiving Christ Jesus the Lord.
I cannot boast of great courage like that in my future. I can boast only in Christ and the hope He gives me now.
1 But on the first day of the week, at early dawn, they went to the tomb, taking the spices they had prepared. 2 And they found the stone rolled away from the tomb, 3 but when they went in they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. 4 While they were perplexed about this, behold, two men stood by them in dazzling apparel. 5 And as they were frightened and bowed their faces to the ground, the men said to them, “Why do you seek the living among the dead? 6 He is not here, but has risen. Remember how he told you, while he was still in Galilee, 7 that the Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men and be crucified and on the third day rise.” 8 And they remembered his words, 9 and returning from the tomb they told all these things to the eleven and to all the rest.
Song | His Mercy is More —
Scripture | 1 Corinthians 15:1-8 —
1 Now I would remind you, brothers, of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, in which you stand, 2 and by which you are being saved, if you hold fast to the word I preached to you—unless you believed in vain.
3 For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, 5 and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. 6 Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have fallen asleep. 7 Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles. 8 Last of all, as to one untimely born, he appeared also to me.
Song | Death Was Arrested —
Song | Forever (We Sing Hallelujah) —
Scripture | 1 Corinthians 15:50-57 —
50 I tell you this, brothers: flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. 51 Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, 52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed. 53 For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality. 54 When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written:
“Death is swallowed up in victory.” 55 “O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?”
56 The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. 57 But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
What is the first thing you think of when you hear the word Easter? It is probably things like…Easter Bunny, eggs, chocolate, candy, and baskets, right? But that is not what Easter is all about. Easter is all about how Jesus died for our sins and rose from the dead!
The Bible says that this is the most important thing:
3 For I passed on to you as most important what I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4 that He was buried, that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures….
1 Corinthians 15:3-4
Judas was one of Jesus’ disciples. He betrayed Jesus by leading an army to Him. Some people did not believe Jesus was the Son of God, so they paid Judas to lead them to Jesus. Since the Romans were the only people allowed to kill prisoners, the leaders told them about Jesus claiming to be the Son of God. Jesus is the Son of God!
The leaders thought if Jesus was the Son of God, He could save Himself. He could have called an army of angels to save Him, but He knew that dying on the cross was the only way for us to be saved.
After beating Jesus, Roman soldiers gave Him a crown made out of thorns, made fun of Him, and made Him carry the cross they nailed Him to. Even though Jesus was perfect, He chose to die on the cross to rescue us from our sins.
Three days later on the first Easter, Jesus rose from the dead!
Mary and some other women went to the tomb to wash Jesus’ body. When they got there, though, the stone was rolled away from the tomb, and Jesus was gone. There was an angel that said, “Do not be afraid; Jesus is alive!” Mary ran because she was scared and confused. Then, she saw Jesus! He told her to tell everyone that He was alive again! He is still alive today and will always be alive!
By dying and raising from the dead, Jesus made everything new. It is almost like the world was starting all over. Everything sad could be happy. And, one day, all of the sadness will – POOF! – disappear right out of the world when Jesus comes back again!
3 For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, 4 that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures, 5 and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve.
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14 And if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain. 15 We are even found to be misrepresenting God, because we testified about God that he raised Christ, whom he did not raise if it is true that the dead are not raised. 16 For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised. 17 And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins. 18 Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. 19 If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied.
I think that Saturday’s title in Holy Week is quite misleading. “Black Saturday” sounds so terrible. But only one Saturday in the last nearly 2,000 years could be called “Black Saturday” – the one when Jesus was actually in the tomb, when the Savior of the world was dead in the grave.
The good news for us is that no Saturday – or any day for that matter – has been the same since! As we read earlier in the week, the borrowed tomb has been returned! Jesus is the only person in history to walk out of His own tomb, and, since He did, death, hell, and Satan have been defeated.
So, today, I want you to contemplate the resurrection. Tomorrow will be busy and exciting – the first Easter for a gathering of the church since 2019. As sad as it is to say, we could miss Jesus – the resurrected King of kings – in all of the hullabaloo of the holiday. May it not be so for us!
Let us use today’s verses to meditate on King Jesus and the power of His resurrection:
(v. 3) The gospel – good news – of Jesus’ death burial and resurrection is supposed to be of “first importance” in our lives.
(vv. 3-4) Everything that Jesus went through was “in accordance with the Scriptures”. It all happened exactly as God had planned it from before the beginning.
(v. 14) Jesus’ resurrection from the dead is the basis for our faith.
(v. 15) Belief in Jesus’ resurrection from the dead is a non-negotiable belief for Christians. Not believing in the resurrection means not believing in Christ.
(vv. 16-18) If Jesus stayed in the tomb, our salvation would be in there with Him. Every other religion has faith in a dead man. Our resurrected Savior continues to save and redeem!
(v. 19) Because of the resurrection of Jesus, we have a hope that endures and lives. Hope is more than an idea or a belief; hope is a Person, and He is alive!
Just Keith Harris 