Should we still be keeping the Law of Moses?

Replica of an ancient Torah scroll, from
Zondervan Illustrated Bible Backgrounds Commentary 

I've asked TFCers to read the Sermon on the Mount (Mt. 5-7), find something they don't understand, try to figure it out, and then email or bring it on Monday for discussion. Here's one I've been considering:

“Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets. I have not come to abolish these things but to fulfill them. I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth pass away not the smallest letter or stroke of a letter will pass from the law until everything takes place."
Matthew 5:17–18 (NET)

Jesus says that he hasn't come to abolish the Law, but neither has he come to preserve it -- he has has come to fulfill it.  That can mean two things:

1. The promises made in the Law and Prophets will come true in him.
2. The reason the Law was given, to make people holy, will finally happen.^[1]

In some ways, verses 17-20 are Jesus' "thesis statement" for the rest of the sermon: no matter what you have heard about the Law before, it isn't enough to go through the motions externally. From now on, your righteousness must exceed even that of those rule-keepers, the Pharisees -- it has to come from inside you. In other words, keep the spirit of the Law, not just the letter.

What are some of your questions about the Sermon on the Mount? Comment below, or come share them this Monday, 6:30pm at Berthusen Park!

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^[1] Credit: Barton, B. B. (1996). Matthew. Lifeapplication Bible commentary (86–87). Wheaton, Ill.: Tyndale House Publishers.

Learning from Matthew

 Matthew study starting in June at TFC; notes about the ESV.

Attention Bible quizzers! Just because its summer, doesn't mean that you can't get a head start on next year's material. Here's some need-to-know information about our upcoming quiz season.

1. This season covers the Gospel of Matthew

Don't just memorize; learn it and live it. 

In our Summer in the Parks at TFC, we will be looking at the book of Matthew chapter by chapter. Adam will be working together with student teachers to examine the themes and lessons that set Matthew apart from the other gospel accounts. The series starts June 4 at Riverside Park in Everson, and we'll be at a different park each Monday night. Even if you aren't ready to start memorizing yet, this is a great opportunity to understand Matthew like you never have before!

Already prepping for fall?

Here's what we'll quiz on for the Kickoff Retreat on Sept 7-8 [edit] Sept 14-15:

• First-time quizzers: Matthew 4 (25 verses)
• Returning quizzers: Matthew 5 (48 verses)

The schedule for the rest of the season is posted at www.tfcnw.org/quiz/meet-material.

2. We're switching to the ESV!

Why the change?

The NIV has never been a strict word-for-word translation. Since Greek words and idioms often don't really have an English equivalent, the translators thought it more important that the ideas be understood, and so they used a thought-for-thought (or, "dynamic equivalence") philosophy of translation.  Following this translation style, when they revised the NIV in 2011, they included some changes to make some wording more gender inclusive -- for example, using "all people" instead of "all men," or "brothers and sisters" rather than simply "brothers."   The NIV translators may have honestly tried to reflect what the original writers meant; but the fact is, they changed or added words that aren't actually in the original language, and sometimes this can change the meaning as well.

The Bible Quiz Fellowship committee feels this takes the "thought-for-thought" style too far, and it's important to preserve the original, inspired words that God recorded through the biblical authors.  With that (and some secondary reasons) in mind, the BQF committee voted in May 2011 to adopt the English Standard Version, which is much closer to word-for-word translation.  You can learn more about the decision from the statement on the BQF website.

2011 Edition

When you start studying Matthew, make sure you use a 2011 edition of the ESV by looking at the copyright date at the front of your bible. Or, just pick up a quiz book at the TFC office for $6.

Older versions of ESV (2001 or 2007), are a little bit different. Not much -- just a word here and there -- but it will be enough to throw off your word-perfect memorization for quizzing. If you already have an older ESV you'd like to study from, you can download and print this list of changes. 

There's no such thing as a Bible verse | How to Understand the Bible, Part 1 of 3

Every encounter with the Bible can be a deeply personal experience in which the Creator speaks directly to your heart.  But how do you know that what you're hearing is really the Holy Spirit?  There are three questions you can use to make sure you understand correctly.

1. How does this verse fit with the rest of the Bible?

Here's a brain-bender for you: Bible verses don't really exist. To be sure, God inspired the writers of the Bible with His own Word; but the verse numbers (and chapters, too) were added centuries later, by men who wanted an easy way to find a certain quote, or create a list of where to find a certain word.

Verses were never meant to be clipped out and read by themselves.  It's too easy to take a single line out of context, and make it seem like it means something else. For example, look at this line from Romans 5:14:

Nevertheless, death reigned from the time of Adam to the time of Moses...

Now, you could read that and think, there was no death after Moses. I could even make the argument that since God gave Moses the Law, he gave the means to live a righteous life, to escape spiritual death. But you only need to read a few verses more to see that Paul's point is exactly the opposite -- "law was given so that all people could see how sinful they were" (Rom 5:20, NLT).

You can get into even more trouble when you start pasting together verses from different parts of the Bible. So when you read a Bible verse that catches your eye, ask yourself, how does it fit in the rest of the chapter or section? How does that passage contribute to the overall story of the book, or the message of the letter?

Finally, how does it makes sense in light of the rest of the Bible? What are the Old Testament promises that you find fulfilled in the New Testament? Where do you find foreshadowing of Christ in the Old Testament? Where do you find two different authors saying the same thing?  What are characteristics of God you see coming up over and over again?

As has been said many times before, "Scripture interprets Scripture." Whenever you discover something in the Bible you've never noticed before, it's always best to see how your new insight lines up with the rest of the Good Book.




What are your tips for studying the Bible? Leave a comment below!

Later this week:
2. What did it mean to the original audience?
3. How has it been traditionally understood by the Church?

The Life of Peter

Peter means “the Rock;” but Simon was anything but a rock before Jesus changed his life.

Peter was from Bethsaida (Jn 1:44), a small town on the shore of the Sea of Galilee. On the west side of this large lake was the region of Galilee, which was settled mostly by Jewish people, living under the rule of the Herods – the supposedly Jewish family who had sold out to the Romans, governing Judea as a puppet state of the Roman Empire. Visible on the opposite side of the lake were some of the cities of the Decapolis – these Greek cities also served as a base for Roman legions, and would have been a stark contrast to Peter’s simple Jewish life.

Bethsaida literally means “fish house,” which gives you a clue about what its main income was. Like many others in the area, Peter and his brother Andrew earned their living at the family business: fishing. Just like many fishermen today, they were uneducated (Acts 4:13), hard-working, blue-collar workers, who were often crude (Peter was a self-described “sinful man,” Lk 5:8), and prone to causing trouble (James and John, Peter’s business partners, were nicknamed the “Sons of Thunder,” Mk 3:17).
Even so, they weren’t uninterested in learning about and following God; in fact, Peter’s brother Andrew was a disciple of John the Baptist (Jn 1:40), and the first thing he did when he met Jesus was to tell his brother they had found the Messiah – he must have known that Peter would want to know.

Imperfect as he was, Peter is also something of a leader.  He is always listed first among the Apostles, and often speaks on behalf on their behalf when they want to ask Jesus something.  When the disciples fall asleep at Jesus’ last night, only Peter is singled out for taking responsibility.  Even after Jesus’ resurrection, Peter is the one who says “I’m going fishing,” and the other disciples follow his lead.

Early on, Peter becomes part Jesus’ inner circle, even within the Twelve. Only Peter, James, and John were present at several key moments of Jesus’ ministry:

• when Jairus’ daughter was raised (Mk 5:37; Lk 8:51)
• at the transfiguration (Mt 17:1; Mk 9:2; Lk 9:28)
• in the Garden of Gethsemane (Mt 26:37; Mk 14:33)

Yet, even though he is privileged to have such intimate glimpses of Christ’s glory, Peter often fails to live up to the calling he has received. His personality seems to make him predisposed to extremes --

• He is brave enough to step out of the boat onto the water towards Jesus, but almost immediately loses his faith. (Mt 14:29-39)
• Peter proclaims Jesus to be the Son of God (Mt 16:15-16), and moments later proceeds to tell him what to do (Mt 16:22).
• In John 13, he first refuses to allow Jesus to wash his feet, and when Jesus insists, wants him to wash him all over!

And then, of course, is Peter’s most famous failing of all – his denial of Jesus.  John’s gospel gives us a unique, eye-witness insight to this story:  Peter first declares that he will follow Jesus to the death, and even attacks a servant of the high priest to defend his Lord. 
But after Jesus is taken, Peter – typically – swings to the opposite extreme; afraid of being arrested himself, and follows at a distance to the house of the high priest Caiaphas, and his father-in-law Annas (a former high priest himself). And as Peter is outside, waiting to hear what will happen to his Lord, nervous about his own fate… you know what happens. Three times, someone recognizes him as disciple, and three times he denies it.  Forget going in to the courtroom, never mind testifying before Annas, Caiaphas, and the Sanhedrin -- he is so afraid of being associated with Jesus, he doesn’t even want to admit that he’s a follower to a teenage servant girl. 

But the story doesn’t end there; after Jesus restores his relationship with Peter (Jn 21:15-18), and charges him to “feed my sheep,” we see a very different Peter. In Acts 3-4, Peter and John find themselves in trouble with the Jewish authorities after publicly healing a paralytic and preaching Christ at the Temple.  And look who comes to deal with them:

They seized Peter and John, and because it was evening, they put them in jail until the next day. … The next day the rulers, elders and teachers of the law met in Jerusalem. Annas the high priest was there, and so were Caiaphas, John, Alexander and the other men of the high priest’s family. They had Peter and John brought before them and began to question them: “By what power or what name did you do this?”
Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them: “Rulers and elders of the people! If we are being called to account today for an act of kindness shown to a cripple and are asked how he was healed, then know this, you and all the people of Israel: It is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified but whom God raised from the dead, that this man stands before you healed. He is
         “ ‘the stone you builders rejected, which has become the capstone.’
Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved.”

Acts 4:3-12, NIV
(emphasis added)

The contrast is amazing – not only is Peter now willing to speak boldly, he does so to the very men who put Jesus on the cross!  In the very next chapter, they are in trouble again, and challenge the priests – who could kill them just like they did Jesus – “We must obey God rather than men!” When Peter and John narrowly escaped with their lives, receiving a flogging instead,

The apostles left the Sanhedrin, rejoicing because they had been counted worthy of suffering disgrace for the Name.

Ac 5:41

Before writing his letters near the end of his life, Peter grows the Church, pastors those in the Way, and spreads the Good News through missionary journeys.  He was executed for his faith by Emperor Nero in AD 67-68, by crucifixion.  And while there is no way to know for sure, legend has it that when Peter was told how he was to be executed, he asked to be crucified upside-down, because he didn’t consider himself worthy to die the same way as his Lord.

 

Peter lived and died a far cry from his beginning as a country bumpkin who abandoned his Master when it mattered most.

 

Discussion Questions:

• How do you think Peter (and the other people of Galilee) felt about where they grew up?
• Why do you think Jesus called a lowly, coarse fisherman as his chief disciple?
• What made Peter so different in Acts than he was in the Gospels?
• What would it take for God to change you so dramatically? 

Meditation: Introduction to Spiritual Disciplines

Throughout this year, we will be looking at many of the Spiritual Disciplines; last week, Adam V introduced us to them by examining the discipline of meditation.

photo by Joe Shlabotnik on Flickr

Spiritual Disciplines rarely get talked about among America’s churches. If I asked you name a few, you would probably name praying and reading the Bible, and maybe even fasting; and not that these are unimportant, but that’s usually all we ever hear about.  Disciplines like solitude, service, and simple living get much less airtime, but they can be vitally important. 

What is a spiritual discipline, and does it matter?  They are tools that we have to strengthen our spiritual muscles.  We do not use them to change ourselves by our own strength, but they are indispensible methods of allowing God’s power to transform our lives.  

Meditation, in some ways, opens the door to the other Disciplines, because it teaches us how free our minds from distraction and listen for God’s voice.  Here's Adam V's lesson:

What is Christian Meditation? (And What it is Not?)

  When a lot of people hear the word ‘meditation’, they might think of relaxing and doing nothing. People may say that it helps you get in touch with your inner self or spirit, or helps relieve stress. When I looked up the word ‘meditate’ in the dictionary, it said, “To think deeply”. But we as Christians (when we meditate) are not supposed to just ‘think deeply’; it is about thinking deeply about, to, and on God. Meditation is different from prayer because you aren’t asking for his blessings or confessing your sins. The definition of biblical/Christian meditation is “The ability to hear God’s voice and obey His word.”

  The differences between worldly meditation and that of the Christian variety are this: worldly meditation is an attempt to empty the mind and Christian meditation is an effort to fill the mind; filling the mind with things of God. Those are two very diverse thoughts.

  A common misconception of meditation is that meditating is too hard and too complex. They say it is best left to the professionals. To the contrary, meditation is said to be a natural human action. Something even I can do.

What Prevents Us From Meditating on God?

  Ways that keep us from meditating ourselves are things such as busyness, thinking it is too difficult, being uneducated about it, leaving it to the ‘spiritual giants’, and thinking that it is simply weird.

 

  Why is Meditation Important?

  Christian meditation is important because… 

·         It reveals who God is.

·         It helps you understand Scripture.

·         It calms you.

·         It brings you closer to God.  

·         God speaks to us through meditation.

Meditating on God reveals who He is and what He has to say to you.  You can’t hear what He has to say if you aren’t listening to Him.

  Meditation connects us to God in ways prayer and reading the Bible does not allow us to.

   The truth of the matter is, God desires our companionship. Meditation allows us to, in a way, walk with him as a friend walks with a friend.

  The following verses are some situations where meditation comes up in the Bible. 

  1 Kings 19:7-14

  Joshua 1:8

  Psalm 1:2, 19:14, 104:34, 119:15&78&97, 145:5

   In these circumstances, they are meditating on the Law of God and on the Works of God.

  There are also some circumstances where Jesus has gone away from the crowds for purposes that include prayer and probably meditation as well.

  How Should You Meditate?

  You cannot properly learn to meditate on God just by reading about it in a book, by watching a ‘how to’ DVD, or even by listening to me. You learn how to meditate by, well, meditating.  

Meditate When?

   Well from what we read earlier the answer is “day and night or all the day”, but with schooling and other activities it is difficult to devote your entire day and night to meditating. That being said, the best time to meditate is at a time when you have a clear mind free of distraction and you can put full effort of thought into meditative matters.  It’s difficult to be in a peaceful state of mind when your thoughts are constantly jumping from different things you need to do when you are done meditating.

Meditate Where?

  The best location to meditate is at a place of few distractions. Distractions, such as, phones or (in some cases) people, should not be present. Some people prefer to meditate in the great outdoors, where God’s immense creation is most evident, with trees and birds and such.

On What Shall We Meditate?

  I came up with a few things on which to meditate. The first of which is God’s creation in which God’s greatness is tangibly showcased. Looking at the clouds on a warm afternoon or the colorful leaves of autumn spikes amazement inside of me. I love watching snow cover the ground and the sound of the rain hitting the pavement.      

  Secondly, you can meditate on God’s word. From the verses we read earlier, the psalmists wrote a lot about meditating on the law. When you are reading the Bible, it is good to stop on a passage that means a lot to you, take a key word or phrase and let it take hold of you.

  Branching off of that, I like to spend time pondering the words of a worship song or hymn. One of my favorite hymns is How Great Thou Art. The refrain and verses of that song move me. Here is the first verse of the song. “O Lord my God, when I in awesome wonder, consider all the worlds thy hands have made. I see the stars, I hear the rolling thunder, thy power throughout the universe displayed.” 

  I had not noticed before, but the writer of the hymn is writing about meditating on the greatness of God.

  I have also read about people who like to imagine that they are in at a biblical event. Say, for example, you pretend you are one of the five-thousand Jesus fed or the prodigal son or witnessing the trans- figuration. It may help you understand the stories in a way you have not before.

  Meditating on the works of God is my third and final idea that I came up with on which to meditate. We can’t take for granted everything God has done for us, but I think it is safe to say that we all do.  Thinking about Jesus getting spat upon, stripped of his clothes, flogged, humiliated, and nailed to a cross should send shivers down anyone’s spine.

 

To sum up on all that I have said, Meditation is important in helping us take the next step in our relationships with God.

 

  For further study on the disciplines in general, please check out these resources:

Inside Out Pt4: A sermon by CTK Bellingham Pastor Grant Fishbook

     

Who Really Wrote the Gospel of John?

How do we know that the John the Apostle really wrote the Fourth Gospel? And even if he did, how do we know he didn't just make it up?

If you are serious about your faith, at some point you have to consider why you believe the Bible.  This slideshow outlines the discussion we had at the TFC Monday Night  youth meeting on Oct 4, 2010.

John 1:1

In one amazing opening sentence, John speaks powerfully and specifically to three radically different schools of thought.

View John 1:1 on Prezi

Even though the Jews, the Stoics, and the Gnostics believe radically different things about the world, God, and human nature, John (speaking in the Holy Spirit) speaks to each of them in their own language, teaching the truth that the man  called Jesus was indeed the Son of God.

This lesson was first presented at 

the TFC Monday night youth 

meeting on Sept 27, 2010.

Discovering God in the Psalms: Secret Codes

I have always loved the Psalms, but learning how to read them was like discovering a secret code.

The Psalms are some of the most beloved of all the Scriptures, for good reasons --

• There is a Psalm for every situation: whether you are rejoicing, grieving, in trouble, searching for meaning, or marveling at God's creation, the Psalms cover the entire range of human emotion.
• The Psalms is the largest book in the Bible.
• The writers of the New Testament quote Psalms more than any other source in Scripture.

Over the next few weeks, we're going to be looking at the character of God, using the Psalms as our tool. But before we can begin to do that, we need to learn a bit about how the Psalms are written.  They're poetry, right?  Well, yes -- but Hebrew poetry doesn't always match our Western way of thinking of poetry.  The commentator sheds some light on the subject:

How the Psalms Communicate Their Meaning
Although the psalms are poetry, they do not deliver their message through rhyming words. They get their point across by laying out a thought one way and then immediately following it with a parallel thought that takes the first thought a step further. It is this interplay between parallel thoughts that forms the individual bricks that add up to the meaning of each psalm. In order to understand the psalms, the reader must avoid seeing the sentences of each psalm as independent wholes and recognize the relationships between parallel lines and sentences.^[1]

Looking for parallel lines can unlock our understanding of the Psalms and reveal their beauty.  Whenever you see a line that repeats, that should be a red flag that that's important; ask, what is being emphasized here?

In the morning, O Lord, you hear my voice;
in the morning I lay my requests before you
and wait in expectation.

In Psalm 5:3, by repeating that he goes to the Lord in the morning, David emphasizes that he is putting his time with God as first priority, before anything else in his day.  In the first line, we know that that he is taking time to talk to God; the second line takes this thought further by telling us what he is saying (requests), and especially that he expects to get a response, and that response often requires us to wait and listen for it. It's not enough to blurt out what we want and then "hang up" on God -- it's supposed to be a two-way conversation!

But looking at one or two lines is not enough to understand a Psalm's meaning; you have to look for structure and parallelism throughout the entire poem.

Psalm 5, like many other Psalms, is structured as something called chiastic parallelism, a symmetrical pattern which can be diagrammed like this:
A - first point or idea
    B - next point
       C - center point (usually the most important)
    B - reflects second point
A - returns to, or answers, the first point

The Chaistic structure is something that can be found in a LOT (but not all) of the Psalms, and in fact a lot of other places in the Bible. Even the New Testament has examples of chiasm -- some scholar's even believe the the entire Gospel of Matthew is arranaged in this pattern!

Returning to our example in Psalm 5, we can find this structure:
A1 ( vs 1–3) Confidence in the Lord
   B1 ( vs 4–6) The Lord’s rejection of the wicked
      C ( vs 7–8) Commitment to the Lord’s righteous way
   B2 ( vs 9–10) The Lord’s banishment of rebels
A2 ( vs 11–12) Joy in the Lord

Thus, this psalm is framed by David's confidence in the Lord (remember how he expects an answer in v.3?), expresses his need for protection from evil, and its central focus is his request to come into God's house, and to have the Lord lead.

The fantastic thing is that not only can you see this parallel structure in many Psalms, not only in other passages of the Old and New Testaments, but you can actually see it in the organization of the entire collection of the book of Psalms!  Join us as we continue to explore the Psalms, and what they tell us about the character of God!


View and print the handout for this lesson! (Opens with Internet Explorer.)

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1 Robert B. Hughes and J. Carl Laney, Tyndale Concise Bible Commentary (, The Tyndale reference libraryWheaton, Ill.: Tyndale House Publishers, 2001), 200.

Rich Towards God

Read Luke 12:15-21

As you might be able to tell, this is kind of a continuation of last week's lesson. Our question is, what does is mean to be "rich towards God?" But we're going to try to understand some things before we answer that. 


First, what is it that the Rich Fool has done wrong?
He stored up his possessions for himself. Or more broadly, he loved his possessions and himself more than anything or anyone else. 


Here are some other verses that talk about this idea; what is the key phrase that keeps coming up?

• 1 Tim 3:3 requires that a church leader must "not love money"
  
• Heb 13:5 "keep your lives free of the love of money"
  
• 2 Tim 3:1-5 lovers of money are included in a list of selfish, ugly traits, which concludes with "having a form of godliness but denying its power."
  Does this list sound familiar? Does that pretty much describe the culture we live in? Maybe even ourselves? Do you have a form of godliness that has no power to change your life, or anything around you? Is that the God we know?
  
• 1 Tim 6:10 This is the famous one. (If you really want to understand what it says, read v.5b-10.) We Christians are quick to point out that this verse doesn't condemn money – "the love of money is the root of evil," we like to call attention to. And in that way, we can justify that its OK for us to have money, "just as long as we don't love it."
  And as far as that goes, that's true.
  But do you realize how hard it is to have money and not love it? Or, especially, how small of a distinction it is to want to keep your money (or want more of it), but say that you don't love it? It's such a fine line, it may as well not even exist. Instead, the "love of" clause becomes a convenient excuse for our wealth.
  

Does this mean I can never have money? I can never live comfortably?
No. But it does mean that you need to be very, very careful that it does not control you. Just as in the parable of the talents, everything that you have, God has given you to use. If we ourselves belong to God (I Cor 6:19-20), how much more that things that we call "ours"? Everything you have is really His, and you should be ready to give it back the moment He asks for it. Remember, you cannot serve both God and Money.


What can the Rich Fool do with this wealth?
Let's return to the Rich Fool. In v.17, he says, "What shall I do?" There are only 3 choices that I can think of:

• Store/save it up. Jesus says, uh-uh.
  
• Spend it all immediately on himself. Think about that one for sec. I don't think that's where Jesus was going.
  
• Share. To give it away is the only option left.
  

So, how do we be Rich Towards God?
You should be beginning to get the picture. But to really drive it home, let's go back to Paul's letter to Timothy. Read 1 Tim 6:11-12, 17-19.
What do these keywords tell us?

• pursue – It doesn't just "come" to us… we have to chase these things! They require work and diligence!
  
• put hope in God – like we talked about last week, God is worthy of our hope and trust, because he will take care of us
  
• for our enjoyment – God does not want us to be unhappy! Sometimes we think of God as some cosmic killjoy that just wants to take away anything that's fun, but that is NOT the case! It's okay to enjoy the things he blesses you with!
  
• rich in good deeds – Such a great phrase. Not only does it tell us to fill our lives with good deeds (think "make your life thick with good work"), but it also implies that our lives, our character will be richer for having done them. We are the ones who actually benefit from our own good deeds!
  
• Be generous… -- This is the ultimate way to show that money has no hold over you. In addition, it specifically spells out that this lays up treasure in heaven. So if you never how to put Matt 6:20 into practice, now you know!
  
• life that is truly life – Only God can give true life. You can chase after fulfillment, and try to create a meaningful life, for yourself, on your own… but you will end up losing yourself (Luke 9:24). Instead, if you give up control of your life to God, and live richly toward him without holding anything back, he will give you a life you never dreamed of!
  

 

The Kingdom of God

by Zac Ahrens

When most people think of the kingdom of Heaven they think of a place up in the clouds. The most common thing we think of when we think of a kingdom is a large area of land ruled by a king. 

              The Kingdom of God is the number one thing Jesus talked about while on earth. So to start off with what is it: What is this mustard seed like, or pearl, or treasure hidden in a field? First we must ask what a kingdom is. A kingdom is one of two things. It can either be a group of people united by a common ruler, or it can be a piece of land under the control of a single person. In Mark 12:34 Jesus tells a teacher of the law that he is not far from it. This after the teacher had asked Jesus what the greatest commandment was. So was Jesus talking about a physical place or a that was close by or a condition of the heart. In this case it is clear that Jesus was talking about an attitude of the heart.

              The next question is when is it? We know from the word that it will never end. So the only question is when the does it begin. Of all the questions this is one of the hardest ones to answer. The most interesting illustration we heard (but still true) is that it is like a train: It is here but still coming. It is the idea that parts of it are here already, but it will not be here in full until the return of Christ. 

              A final question is who does the kingdom of God belong to? Mark  10:14-15 says “let the little children come to me and do not hinder them for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these.” What is it about children that Jesus says the kingdom belongs to them? Personally, I think it is the trust that children have in their parents, the security they have in their parents, and the dependence in their parents. In Mathew 5, Jesus says Blessed are poor in spirit for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. I think poor in spirit means those who know that they have a long way to go those not proud of where they are. Just as important though is the question who is it not for. The first group that sticks out is the legalistic such as the Pharisees. Another group is the proud for such people it is not impossible but it is still very difficult.

              The Kingdom of God still provides many questions. Even though we have answered a few questions about it there are still many questions about it. Such as when will Christ return and bring it in full and what will heaven be like. Such questions will be asked until the we see them for ourselves. 

 This lesson was prepared and 

presented by Zac Ahrens

at the TFC  Youth Group on 3/1/2010.

Going Above and Beyond: The Sermon on the Mount and the Golden Rule

Jesus says "I have not come to abolish the Law"… so why does the Sermon on the Mount sound like he's contradicting the commandments given in the Old Testament?

 

The Pharisees get a lot of bad press in the Gospels; but it's important to remember that they were the "good" people of the day. They studied the Scriptures, they followed the rules, they didn't smoke or drink or cuss; they were respected role models of community. In today's terms, they would be pastors, professors, church-goers... Bible quizzers.

But they completely missed the point, because the Pharisees focused on _APPEARANCES_; Jesus focused on _INTENTIONS_.

God has given his Commandments as ways for people to better their lives and draw closer to him; the Pharisees made a "fence" of rules around the law, defining what technically does or doesn't break the rules, and missing the matter of the heart entirely.


Did Jesus come to get rid of the old laws? Look again at Matt. 5:17-20.

Jesus says that he hasn't come to abolish the Law (which God gave Moses in the Old Testament), and then he seems to go on and repeatedly undermine it with the phrase "You have heard… but I tell you (instead)." But really, Jesus is supporting the intention behind the commandment, and attacking the way people have interpreted it for their own benefit. Instead of taking a step further away from the Law, in a legalistic sense, Jesus takes the principle a step further inward and upward.


"You have heard…"

• Matthew 5:21 "You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, 'Do not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.'"
  • Comes from: Ex 20:13, the Sixth Commandment
    
  • The reason for the commandment: To protect _LIVES_.
    
  • Jesus makes it clear that the sin is not just the act of murder, it's the _HATRED_ behind it, which is an issue of _THE HEART_. Anger can murder a person or a relationship, without actually killing the person.
    
    
• Matthew 5:27 "You have heard that it was said, 'Do not commit adultery.'
  • Comes from: Ex 20:14, the Seventh Commandment.
    
  • The reason for the commandment: To protect marriages, and promote personal _PURITY_.
    
  • The Pharisees condemned _THE OUTWARD ACT_.
    
  • Jesus said that _THE DESIRE_ was just as sinful and harmful to yourself.
    
    
  
  
• Matthew 5:38 "You have heard that it was said, 'Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.'"
  • Comes from: Ex 21:24, and others
  • This is a tricky one, because it sounds so brutal by today's terms. But think about it: if I knock out your tooth, is your instinct to inflict exactly the same about of damage to me? No! The natural reaction is to escalate, and cause me more pain than I caused you!
    The reason for the commandment: To restrict _REVENGE_.
    
  • The Pharisees used this law against its own purpose: to _JUSTIFY_ their own personal retribution and revenge.
    
  • Jesus was teaching to _FORGIVE_ , and do not resent. In fact, you should pursue peace and love kindness at any cost.
    - What did it mean to lose your tunic, or cloak? In the first century, clothing was difficult and time-consuming to make, and most people had only one set of clothes. The "tunic" was the shirt they wore next to the skin, while a "cloak" was the outer garment, which they also could use as a blanket, a carrying bag, or other uses. If you gave both of them away you had nothing left. Can you imagine giving away everything you own?
    - What kind of person could force you to "go a mile"? Remember, this was a nation who was conquered by the Roman army, who was present everywhere. And if the army needed work done, the soldiers had authorization from Rome to require labor from the local population. They could take your work animal, eat your food… and if they want, force you to carry their things. What a difference from the Zealots, who wanted to fight the Romans: Jesus says, don't resent them for making you work for them. Instead, put on a smile, and offer to do a double shift!
    
    
• 
  
  Matthew 5:43 "You have heard that it was said, 'Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.'
  • Comes from Lev 19:18 – Look it up! What does this verse NOT say?
    __it doesn't say "hate your enemy"__
    
  • The reason for the commandment: To live _IN PEACE_
    
  • This was a common saying at the time, but it appears no where in the Old Testament. Someone (I wonder who) had added it, and it was repeated so often that people took its validity for granted.
    
  • Jesus _SURPRISED_ the crowd by telling them to love your enemy. The enemy was a foreign power occupying their country. This was a complete 180 for them!
    

The Golden Rule

Matthew 5:45-48
When Jesus says the Father in heaven "causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good", he's saying that God _BLESSES EVERYONE_, and if we really want to be God's children, then we also shouldn't make distinctions on who deserves our love and who doesn't. After all, if we only love those who are good to us, how could we be called God's children? How is that any better than anyone else? He makes a very similar comparison in Mt 7:9-11.

Matthew 7:12 So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.

This is Jesus' _CONCLUDING STATEMENT_; it wraps up everything else that he was trying to communicate in the whole section. Remember Matt. 5:17? What does He start with? "The Law and the Prophets."

He ends in the same place he started, and his message is that righteousness is not something that can be attained by keeping a list of rules; it has everything to do with your attitude and your relationships.


 

January Devotional

Give your all to God; He will always give back to you more than you could ever need .

This devotional message 

was prepared and delivered by Nick Roth

at the January Bible Quiz Meet.

December Devotional

Meaningless controversy is never worth it.

This devotional message 

was prepared and delivered by Brad Widman

at the December Bible Quiz Meet.

Devotion

Devotion: What comes into your mind when you think of that word? What does it mean to be devoted to someone or something? Webster’s dictionary describes devotion as “religious fervor, an act of prayer or private worship other than regular corporate worship of a congregation.” It also states that “the act of devoting is the fact or state of being passionately dedicated and loyal to an idea, person or thing.”

Okay, so now that we have a definition I want you to think of things in your life that you are devoted to, according to this definition. Right now I have one that comes to mind and that is the Seattle Seahawks.  I am completely 110% devoted to the Seahawks; I am loyal beyond belief.  I check their site every day to find out what happened at practice. I have jerseys and memorabilia. I watch every game without fail.  My whole Sunday is planned around the Seahawks game.  So, now what is the first thing that comes into your mind when you think of what you are devoted to? What do you spend most of your time doing? My guess is that like me, most of you came up with something that you are devoted to besides God.

In 1 Corinthians 7:29-35, Paul is taking about marriage and how those who are married should live.  Then all of a sudden Paul breaks off from the topic of marriage and just talks about how we as Christians should live our lives.  Paul says in verses 29 – 35:

What I mean, brothers, is that the time is short. From now on those who have wives should live as if they had none; those who mourn, as if they did not; those who are happy, as if they were not; those who buy something, as if it were not theirs to keep; those who use the things of the world, as if not engrossed in them. For this world in its present form is passing away. I would like you to be free from concern. An unmarried man is concerned about the Lord's affairs—how he can please the Lord. But a married man is concerned about the affairs of this world—how he can please his wife— and his interests are divided. An unmarried woman or virgin is concerned about the Lord's affairs: Her aim is to be devoted to the Lord in both body and spirit. But a married woman is concerned about the affairs of this world—how she can please her husband. I am saying this for your own good, not to restrict you, but that you may live in a right way in undivided devotion to the Lord.

Let’s go back here to verse 31 and the word engrossed. What do you think about this idea? It says “those who use the things of the world, as if not engrossed in them.” What do you guys use on a daily basis? Is it a computer, a cell phone, maybe your car.  Are you engrossed in those things? Are you more concerned about texting your friend, or checking your Facebook page than spending 30 minutes with God in prayer or reading His word? From that last passage it looks to me like we all have a lot of work to do in order to achieve this level of devotion that Paul is talking about.

So let me ask you: do you devote yourself to God in this way? Do you want to live your life in undivided devotion to the Lord? I know that I do. So let’s start a change today so that rather than pursuing the things of this world we pursue the things of God. So that rather than worshiping the creation we worship God. So that instead of being engrossed in the things of the world we would be engrossed in God. So here is my challenge for everyone reading this: take a real close look at your life, what are you allowing to take up your time? Are your interests divided? Are you concerned about the world’s affairs or are you concerned about the affairs of God? I want you to understand that the hardest and most important aspect of your life is your relationship with Jesus Christ. It’s not always easy, it’s not always fun, but it’s always worth it. It’s not easy to wake up early before school so you can read your Bible and pray to God. It’s not fun to go to your friends and tell them about Jesus and invite them to church or youth group or to bible quiz.  But our reward both in heaven and on earth for living a life of undivided devotion to God is always worth it.

This "devotional" message was 
 prepared and delivered by Kyle Miksovsky 

at the November Bible Quiz Meet.
Watch it on youtube! 

To Be Long

There are different kinds of patience. In the Old Testament, the word for patience "is related to the verb 'to be long' and involves the idea of being long to get riled or slow to become angry." It means, like Micah said, "waiting, and being okay with waiting." That could mean waiting while a package is delivered, or waiting through an oppressive situation.
We live in a very impatient society; we are always looking for the newest, fastest thing. Microwave dinners, faster internet, quicker ways to text… we hate standing in line, getting stuck in traffic, or just waiting for anything, period. A friend of mine once related a story of how she was waiting at a traffic light, and "It was taking a really long time," she said, "like… 30 seconds." What does it say about us when 30 seconds qualifies as a really long time?

But patience can also apply to waiting on God – are we any more enduring when it comes to waiting for God to take care of us? Have you ever been in a situation when you needed God to come for you, you didn't think you could last any longer, and you just wanted Him to rescue you before it was too late?

In John 11:1-44, we see a story exactly like this. Mary and Martha, appeal to Jesus to come and heal their brother Lazarus before it is too late. Now, it's worth noting that these were not strangers to Jesus; they were special friends that "Jesus loved" (v. 3, 5, 36). And yet, Jesus didn't seem to do anything; he just waited around for two more days. When he finally arrives to find that Lazarus is dead, you can sense the frustration in both Mary and Martha's words: "Lord, if only you had been here, my brother would not have died!" (NLT) I read those words, and hear, "Why weren't you here? Why did you wait? I am I not worth it? Wasn't he worth saving? Did we do something wrong?"

But of course we know how the story ends. And so did Martha. "I know he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day," she said. She had faith in Jesus, faith that He would put everything right in the end; but maybe she didn't have faith that He would put everything right in the now. And I firmly believe that God always gives us what we need for now – and sometimes that doesn't make sense to us, sometimes it looks like He's waited too long, sometimes it seems like He has already answered "No" to our prayers… but He always knows what He is doing.

Patience can never be separated from faith. You should go and read Hebrews 11. These are the true heroes of the faith; people that lived and died in total dedication to God. But did you notice verse 13? Verse 39? They knew that God had started something big. But how patient do you think they had to be?

On Grace

Charles Swindoll said once that the subject of grace is kind of like riding a whale – “a big subject to try and get your arms around or to get a hold on.”

In one sense, it is easy.  We all have some idea of what it means have grace.  It is a word that still has a lot beauty attached to it; we speak of “graceful” dancers, or a “grace period” after a due date; an honored guest, we may say, will “grace us with her presence”.  Even being “grateful” (derived from the same Latin word, gratus) shows insight into how we think of grace.  It is a pleasing concept to us, this idea that we are showed favor where none is merited.

On other hand, the extent of God’s grace towards us is really mind boggling.  Why should he just give us anything?  Why should we accept it?  Some of us don’t – like the brothers in the Parable of the River, we might try earn God’s favor with our deeds, or hope that if we aren’t as bad as someone else God won’t notice our sin, or even just forget God altogether, trading in His great promises for the mud hut of selfish living.

By looking at Titus 3:5-7 and many other verses, we see that God’s grace is for all time. From 2 Cor 12:9 and Heb 4:16, we learn that grace is also for this time, this life, the here and now

Here are a few resources to help understand grace better.

Stories:

• In 1935, Fiorella LaGuardia showed grace to a woman who had stolen.
  Discussion question: How did LaGuardia carry out justice and mercy at the same time?
• In the 1700’s, John Newton was a slave trader whose life was transformed when he met Christ. To describe the vastness of God’s mercy on him, he wrote the hymn Amazing Grace.
  Discussion question: Does knowing Newton’s story change how you think of the hymn?  How does it affect the way you think of God’s grace?

Studies:

• The Grace Series from www.acts17-11.com is enjoyable for deeper study, especially the final entry on the Power of Grace.
• To find many more verses about grace in the Bible, type the word “Grace” into the search box below.

http://wbsa.logos.com/

The Most Excellent Way

If you are Bible quizzing this year, you probably know that I Corinthians 12 talks about spiritual gifts; Paul gives several examples of abilities that God gives believers: healing, teaching, speaking and interpreting tongues, prophecy, and discerning spirits, to name a few. He specifically points outs that just as a body has many parts that have different functions that are each necessary, the many gifts of the members of the church are all important, and should work together to form a cohesive whole. Paul goes on in chapter 14, explaining how tongues and prophecy are best used.

But wait; chapter twelve… chapter fourteen. What’s missing from this picture? Chapter thirteen, of course! EVERYONE knows I Corinthians 13 – the famous “love chapter,” that you’ve heard at every wedding you’ve ever been to!

Now, why would Paul put the love chapter right in the middle of talking about spiritual gifts? Maybe part of the reason is that, in the first place, the spiritual gifts are “given for the common good” (I Cor 12:7). We have them in order to build each other up, and bond us together; and what is more for the common good than to love each other?

But Paul goes beyond this: as he introduces the love chapter, he calls it “the most excellent way.” The reason he puts love sandwiched between chapters twelve and fourteen, is that love is a spiritual gift. Not only that, but he says love is the greatest spiritual gift. This was a revelation to me when I first read it. We don’t tend to think of love as a spiritual gift; in fact, just the word love gets so overused in our cultural, that it often gets overlooked altogether. Do we really think of love as "the most excellent way?"

We have a tendency to look at people with other gifts and think how spiritual they are; if you have ever heard someone prophesy, or heal, or know someone who has given everything up to minister to the unsaved in a far-off country, then you know how easy it is to look at that person and think, "Wow.  If they can do that... they must be right with God."

Skip to John 13:35 for a moment.  To set the stage, Jesus is at the Last Supper with his disciples.  He has just washed their feet, he knows that he is about to be betrayed and crucified. It's a critical moment; the words he chooses just before he gives his life will carry special weight when his disciples look back on it later.  "By this all men will know that you are my disciples," he says, "if you ___________________.” What?  Have perfect theological teaching? Demonstrate miraculous powers?  NO! "If you love one another."

And decades later, what does Paul say?  Paraphrasing, he says, "So what, if I could speak the language the angels speak? Or if I could understand all of God's mysteries, or if he gave me so much power I could lift a mountain?  Or, if I gave away every single thing I own... what good is it?  Unless I have love, it counts for exactly ...NOTHING!”

After a description of exactly how love looks, he concludes: "And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love."  Why these three, and why is love the greatest? Because they are what is really necessary to be alive in Christ in this life, but only love will last forever:
  Faith is that we believe and trust without having seen (Heb 11:1); when we join the Lord, faith is no longer needed! 

  Hope, not in the sense that we wish for something to happen, but like a trapped man has hope when  rescue is coming  (Eph 1:18); in this life, we hope as we wait for the great promises God has for us -- but when those promises are fulfilled, our waiting will be over! 

  Love will continue to grow after everything else has been fulfilled.  In heaven, the love we experience from God and show towards others will be ever more perfect, building upon itself over and over for the rest of eternity.

This devotional was delivered by Adam Borries 

at the Oct 10, 2009 Bible Quiz meet.

Biblical Priorities

Saint Augustine[1] defined virtue as rightly-ordered love.  That is, our lives are good and virtuous when we the things we love are put in the right order: the best, most excellent things deserve our highest devotion, and the least important things should get the least attention.

What is the most excellent thing in the universe?  Therefore, how much love should that get?  How much attention do you spend on unimportant things -- video games, movies, texting, Facebook?

Here are the notes from the discussion Zac and Micah led on Monday:

1. What should be our #1 priority? A strong relationship with God. John 17:3
2. What are things that make your relationship with God stronger? Time, obeying him Mark 1:35
3. How do you make time to spend with god? Set a time that works good for your schedule, and try not to let anything else get in the way of that! Give some examples of how to spend time with God.
4. What does obedience look like? Having a willingness to go out on a limb and do anything for God. John 14:15 John 14:21
5. How do you know how strong your relationship with him is? We don’t know but we should pray that God would show us. (Look at the spiritual fruit you are producing.)
6. Why is a good relationship with God important? Because it is the only way for us to be transformed into a Christ like person. Phil 3:21

---

[1] St. Augustine was a Christian philosopher and theologian who lived only 400 years after Christ, and who had an huge influence on the thinking of the Church in the Western world.

The Great Love of the Lord Pt 2

And God answers... "You don't know how much I love you. The moment you think you understand is the moment you do not understand. I am God not man. You tell others about Me -- that I am a loving God. Your words are glib. My words are written in the blood of My only Son. The next time you preach about My love with such obonxious familiarity, I may come and blow your whole prayer meeting apart. When you come at Me with studied professionalism, I will expose you as a rank amateur. When you try to convince others that you understand what you are talking about, I will tell you to shut up and fall flat on your face."

-- Brennan Manning

Your assigment for next week:

• How would you live differently if you really understood how much God loves you?
• What are some verses that speak about this?
  

The Great Love of the Lord

Monday, Sept 14, 2009

Ever think that "Christianese" words -- like righteousness, salvation, grace -- get overused, and lose their meaning?  I do.  I have often thought that we hear them so often, even say them so often, that we skim over the words, like a rock skipping on a lake, without ever plunging into the depths of what they really mean.

Consider, for example, the most famous verse in the Bible: John 3:16.  Almost everyone knows this verse (or at least of this verse); we learned it in Sunday school as a small child; we see it at football games, on billboards, on t-shirts. But when do ever consider what it means?

If you really look closely at the meaning packed into each word of this remarkable verse, you might get something more like this:

The God handed over The Son, The Only-Born, that all the ones trusting into him not might not be destroyed, but might have life that is not limited by time. And this is the reason: He utterly loved this world that turned its back on him.

Reading:
Psalm 107:1-43, especially verse 43:
Those who are wise will take all this to heart; they will see in our history the faithful love of the Lord.


see also Ephesians 2:4-5, Romans 5:7-8