I will send you Elijah the prophet

Bible Reading: 2 Chronicles 36; Revelation 22; Malachi 4; John 21

Malachi 4:5-6 Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD: And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse.

The last words of the Old Testament end with a promise and a warning. The promise is that Elijah is coming. He had a heart turning ministry to do before the great and dreadful day of the LORD. Sin always separates and God’s purpose is to reconcile. The promise of Elijah was fulfilled in John the Baptist. The angel told Zechariah this concerning his son:

Luke 1:17 And he shall go before him in the spirit and power of Elias, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just; to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.

And Jesus said:

Matthew 17:11-12 And Jesus answered and said unto them, Elias truly shall first come, and restore all things. But I say unto you, That Elias is come already, and they knew him not, but have done unto him whatsoever they listed. Likewise shall also the Son of man suffer of them.

John the Baptist prepared the way for Jesus. The work of God is reconciliation. He is reconciling the world back to himself and working in the hearts of men to reconcile them to one another. Turning the hearts of fathers to children and of children to fathers is a mighty work. How many broken families are there? How many heartaches come this time of year because of difficulty in relationships among families?

Will you receive the heart turning ministry that Elijah prepared the way for? The salvation that comes from Jesus Christ brings the love of God into the heart and that love builds strong relationships. The parent/child relationship is a vital one. Along with marriage and master/servant relationships, parents and children reflect the image of God. God is our Father and those who are saved are his children. If the earthly parent/child relationship is a bad one, it reflects a wrong view of God.

Would you pray with me for fathers and children? Would you pray for love, understanding and reconciliation? The love of God is like glue that bonds people in love to one another and parents and children need that love!

In Christ,

Rody

These are written that ye might believe

Bible Reading: 2 Chronicles 35; Revelation 21; Malachi 3; John 20

John 20:31 But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name.

The purpose of John’s gospel is that those who read it might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God. John plainly tells us that he selected certain things from the life and ministry of Jesus to put down in his gospel because he could not write down all that Jesus did.

John 20:30 And many other signs truly did Jesus in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book.

John wrote to convince. He told the stories of Jesus’ life with the prayer and intent of having people believe the truth about Jesus. John was not merely a reporter; he was a believer as well. John knew that what he penned was inspired by the Holy Spirit and the Word was not his, but God’s. That is the way the Bible works. It produces faith in the one who reads and hears the Word.

Romans 10:17 So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.

John wrote to dead men, wanting to see them live. He says that when you believe, you have life through the name of Jesus. The truth about men is that we are dead because of sin until Jesus makes us alive by faith in him.

Ephesians 2:1 And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins.

The Word is the means by which God speaks to us about his Son, Jesus Christ. When we hear the Word and believe on Christ, we are made alive by faith. Jesus said:

John 5:24 Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.

As you read the gospel of John, you have the wonderful privilege of knowing that it was written so that you would believe on Jesus Christ. Many have been like Thomas who said he would not believe unless he saw and touched the risen Jesus. However, Jesus pronounced a blessing on those who do not see and do believe. If you are ever wavering in your faith or wondering what might give you more faith, just get into the Word. It is the Word of God that brings faith. For the one who does not yet believe, it is the Word of God that they need. That is what brings faith. Let’s get the Word into us and out there into the world!

In Christ,

Rody

Deal not treacherously

Bible Reading: 2 Chronicles 34; Revelation 20; Malachi 2; John 19

Malachi 2:16 For the LORD, the God of Israel, saith that he hateth putting away: for one covereth violence with his garment, saith the LORD of hosts: therefore take heed to your spirit, that ye deal not treacherously.

The prophet Malachi lived during a difficult time in Judah. He was tasked by God to bring an indictment against the priests and the people for their departure from the Word of God. They were bringing crippled and sickly sacrifices and dishonoring the Lord with these miserable sacrifices. They were also dealing treacherously with the wives of their youth. They were committing violence but they were trying to cover it up like you would cover something with a garment.

Malachi 2:14 Yet ye say, Wherefore? Because the LORD hath been witness between thee and the wife of thy youth, against whom thou hast dealt treacherously: yet is she thy companion, and the wife of thy covenant.

God’s intention in marriage is for a man and a woman to enter into the covenant of marriage and for that covenant to last as long as they both live. The men of Judah were behaving treacherously toward their wives by divorcing them or putting them away. God is clear in his Word when he says that he hates putting away. God intends for a man and woman to be companions. In the Garden of Eden, God was clear that he gave Eve to be a helper to Adam. They are a pair; a couple.

Jesus was questioned about his matter by the Pharisees. They pointed out that Moses had written that a man could divorce his wife. Their question concerned the grounds for divorcement. Could a man divorce his wife for any reason?

Mark 10:5-9 And Jesus answered and said unto them, For the hardness of your heart he wrote you this precept. But from the beginning of the creation God made them male and female. For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and cleave to his wife; And they twain shall be one flesh: so then they are no more twain, but one flesh. What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder.

God intends for marriage to last a lifetime. He intends for it to be a blessed covenant of companionship between a husband and his wife. Marriage is so important because it is a picture of Christ, the bridegroom and his church, the bride (Ephesians 5:22-33).

Let’s value marriage as highly as God does and let’ model and teach the importance of it!

In Christ,

Rody

I spake openly to the world

Bible Reading: 2 Chronicles 33; Revelation 19; Malachi 1; John 18

John 18:20-21 Jesus answered him, I spake openly to the world; I ever taught in the synagogue, and in the temple, whither the Jews always resort; and in secret have I said nothing. Why askest thou me? ask them which heard me, what I have said unto them: behold, they know what I said.

When Jesus was on trial before the high priest, he was asked about his disciples and his doctrine. They wanted to know what he was teaching. It is very important that we as followers of Jesus understand what Jesus here says. He did not teach a secret doctrine. There was no esoteric teaching from Jesus. He taught openly in the places where the Bible was taught – the synagogue and the temple. The only reason a person would not know what Jesus taught was because they had not been present to hear him teach.

Jesus said that you could ask any one of his disciples and they could tell you what he taught. This is as it should be. Secret groups and societies are not of God. There is no secret inner group of true Christians. All Christians are priests and are able to know all the doctrines of the Word of God. It was the Cabbalists and the Gnostics who came up with the differentiation between exoteric and esoteric doctrines. These groups taught that there were two doctrines to religion. There was the open doctrine or exoteric which was taught to the masses of people. There for a select few initiates, there was an esoteric or hidden doctrine.

Yes, Jesus did choose twelve and he gave them fuller instruction, but those instructions were so that once the Holy Spirit had come, they could fully explain everything to all the followers of Jesus. There is no hidden doctrine and true followers of Jesus must beware of falling into that trap. Anyone who will study the Word of God in the power of the Holy Spirit can know and understand the Word of God. Jesus wants all his followers to know the truth and to share that truth with the world.

Do not form secret clubs. Be a part of a good, godly church and then openly spread the gospel of Jesus Christ with the whole world!

In Christ,

Rody

I also sent them into the world

Bible Reading: 2 Chronicles 32; Revelation 18; Zephaniah 14; John 17

John 17:17-18 Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth. As thou hast sent me into the world, even so have I also sent them into the world.

The apostles were ‘sent ones’ with a particular mission. They were sent with the same mission that Jesus was sent on. Jesus here uses a simile – a comparison using like or as. He says, “As the Father sent him into the world, he sent his disciples.” Do you see yourself as a disciple of Jesus? Then you have his same mission.

As Jesus prayed for the eleven after having the Lord’s Supper, he asked the Father to sanctify them through the truth. Then he sent them into the world. This is the same pattern we must take as disciples of Jesus today. Sanctify and send. That’s the way God does it.

Sanctify – the word means ‘to set apart’ or ‘to make holy’. God sets his children apart from this world by transforming them by the truth. It is the word of God that uses to make a person holy for his purposes. If you and I don’t study the word of God we will not know what God wants of us. We will be the wrong kind of people and we will have the wrong mission. Jesus said:

John 8:31-32 Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.

The Bible is the textbook of the disciple. As we study the Bible empowered by the Holy Spirit, God uses the truth to transform us and make us different from this world.

Romans 12:2 And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

As our mind is renewed, we prove out the will of God by taking the mission of Jesus as our own. We are sent with the same mission that Jesus was sent on. That being:

Luke 19:10 For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost.

Mark 16:15 And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.

Romans 1:16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.

We are to preach the gospel to every creature. It is the power of God unto salvation to everyone who believes. Our sanctifying Bible study must lead us to this conclusion, or we are not studying the Bible! Transformation by the truth leads to a fervent passion for the salvation of souls. Let’s get the truth out!

In Christ,

Rody