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Showing 2026 to 2050 of 2331 results

2026. Jesus Arrested

Mark 14:43-52

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... ” (14:48; NIV “leading a rebellion”), the word in Greek (lēstēs) sometimes referring to an adherent of the Zealot movement. The reference to the fulfillment of Scriptures in 14:49 must recall Isaiah 53:12: he “was numbered with the transgressors.” “Then everyone deserted him and fled” is Mark’s bitter climax to the arrest. All have drunk the cup (14:23), all have pledged to die with him (14:31)—and all flee! The young man who flees the mayhem of the arrest is sometimes thought to be Mark ...

2027. The Baptist’s Ministry: Preparation for the Lord

Luke 3:1-20

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... the son-in-law of Annas, and hence Annas continued to exercise great power during the high priesthood of Caiaphas. The event Luke is placing into its historical context is the beginning of John the Baptist’s ministry. John’s ministry is conducted in the desert (3:2) near the Jordan River. He preaches “a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins” (3:3). This was not merely ritual washing but involved a definite break with sin. Luke sees John’s ministry as a fulfillment of Isaiah 40:3–5 ...

2028. Stephen’s Speech to the Sanhedrin

Acts 7:1-53

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... he was in Mesopotamia (7:2); Joseph experienced the presence of God in Egypt (7:9), and his family was also delivered from the famine by following Joseph to Egypt (7:12); Moses grew up in Egypt (7:21–22) and was called by God “in the desert near Mount Sinai” (7:30); Israel experienced God’s powerful hand as they left Egypt (7:36); and they received the law on Mount Sinai (7:38). The emphasis on God’s mighty acts outside the land of Israel is heightened by the strikingly short summary statement ...

2029. Correcting Cephas

Galatians 2:11-21

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... continued bias of some. Peter, it seems, was not alone in this problem of integrating faith with living, since even Barnabas followed his example, as well as other Jews present (2:13). From Paul’s description of the actions of the ones who deserted the table fellowship, it is clear that he places the blame squarely on the shoulders of Peter for initiating the response. The actions of the rest of the Jews and Barnabas, described in the passive voice, indicate how Peter’s action influenced their similar ...

2030. The Man of Lawlessness

2 Thessalonians 2:1-12

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... ” refers to the rejection of an established authority, whether political or religious. In this case, the rebellion is against God (as in 2 Chron. 29:19; 33:19; Acts 21:21; 1 Tim. 4:1; Heb. 3:12). As here, in 1 Timothy 4:1 Paul speaks of this desertion from God as one of the signs of the end times (Matt. 24:10–13). The apostles expect that the Thessalonian believers will not participate in this rebellion (2 Thess. 2:13–14). The other event that will occur before the day of the Lord is that the man ...

2031. Thanksgiving and Appeal

2 Timothy 1:1-2:13

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... counterexamples:Sadly, not everyone in Paul’s circle is staying true to the apostle. Though there is surely some exaggeration in Paul’s saying that “everyone in the province of Asia” (where Ephesus is situated, and where Timothy is ministering) “has deserted me,” it certainly means that Timothy is serving a church with little backing from Paul’s supporters. Paul is offended enough by two of them to name them, Phygelus (who is otherwise unknown) and Hermogenes (who may be the person identified ...

2032. Warning against Falling Away

Hebrews 5:11-6:12

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... indicates that in the case of apostates, God is unwilling and not permitting (6:3). Perhaps some in this community had already apostatized; others were alarmingly near to doing so, prompting the author to warn of the grim and irrevocable effects of deserting the faith. The severity of this warning and the gravity of the situation contemplated must not be mitigated. Scripture is not silent regarding the hopeless condition of those who, having been numbered among the people of God, professed faith in Christ ...

2033. Joy at Believers’ Walking in the Truth

3 John 1:1-14

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... evil but what is good (v. 11). Does this imply that the inhospitality resulting from Diotrephes’ primacy-loving leadership is presented as evil? If so, the assertion that “anyone who does what is evil has not seen God” becomes problematic. Claiming that Jewish-Christian deserters “never were a part of us” (1 John 2:19; NIV “they did not really belong to us”) and that loving the flesh comes from the world and not from God (1 John 2:16) is understandable, but to say a neighboring church leader ...

2034. The Celestial Woman and the Dragon

Revelation 12:1--13:1a

One Volume

Gary M. Burge

... (Rev. 9:20–21; 16:9–11). The church is called to return evil with good (Rom. 12:14–21). Like the Israelites who were rescued from the Red Sea (12:15–16; cf. Exod. 14:26–29; 15:19), like the wilderness generation who were nourished in the desert (12:6, 14; cf. Exod. 16:12–13; Ps. 105:40–41), and like the returning exiles who were carried on eagles’ wings back to Zion (12:14; Isa. 40:31; cf. Exod. 25:20), God’s people are completely sustained and empowered by the Spirit in their battle ...

2035. Accept His Peace

John 4:1-26, Romans 5:1-11, Exodus 17:1-7

Sermon

King Duncan

... ’s perfectly all right to complain to the Lord. If you’re dying of thirst. If your children are in danger of starving. If you have a terminal illness, you have a right to ask, “Where are you, God?” The children of Israel after an extended in the desert stay are thirsty and quite naturally they complain to Moses. Moses cries to the Lord, “What am I to do with these people? They are almost ready to stone me.” Now it’s Moses who is worried. No leader wants his people to turn against him. The Lord ...

2036. What Was That All About?

Matthew 3:13-17

Sermon

James L. Killen

... of the River Jordan, not far from the oasis city of Jericho. To the west was the steep mountain road that led up to the capital city, Jerusalem, with its temple, the spiritual center of the Jewish people. To the south was the harsh desert wilderness, the Dead Sea, the enclaves of the radical religious sect called the Essenes, and the mountaintop fortress of Masada, built by a tyrant whose name still inspired fear even years after his death. To the north, up the Jordan River valley, were the cosmopolitan ...

2037. Dying To Live

Isaiah 43:16-21

Sermon

Charley Reeb

... it? It springs forth, where the screaming jackals of your nature are silenced. Do you not perceive it? Your sins being forgiven. Do you not perceive it? A life free from bondage. Do you not perceive it? God’s refreshing Spirit quenching every dry, deserted corner of your soul. Do you not perceive it? A beautiful death birthing a life of love, joy, peace, and hope. Do you not perceive it? Come and die an invigorating death. Your life is waiting. 1. Tom Sine, The Mustard Seed Conspiracy (Waco, Texas ...

2038. Prayer Changes Things

Mark 2:1-12

Sermon

Charley Reeb

... , we must go to God as often as we can to receive the breath of life. Jesus knew the power of prayer. The gospels demonstrate that prayer was the power source for Jesus’ ministry. Luke 5:16 (NIV) states that Jesus “would withdraw to deserted places and pray.” The Greek word “withdraw” means “he continually withdrew.” In other words, withdrawing to pray was his habit. Indeed, it was. In the gospel of Luke we find fifteen different references to Jesus praying. We find that Jesus prayed at every ...

2039. Pop Verses: Proverbs 3:5-6

Proverbs 3:5-6

Sermon

Charley Reeb

... , this situation I am in is difficult, but I there might be something you can something teach me that will prepare me for the wonderful things you have for me in the future. I will be patient and rely on you.” A curious man once approached the desert father Abba Anthony. He was really curious and asked, “Father, what must one do to please God.” The Father said something very wise. He said three things. The first two were expected. He said, “Always be aware of God’s presence and always obey God’s ...

2040. The Beatitudes

Matthew 5:1-12

Understanding Series

Robert H. Mounce

... on the tap whenever they want water and are always able to secure some sort of food to eat, the experience of hunger and thirst is foreign. Not so in the ancient world, where so many lived constantly on the edge of starvation and often traveled through desert regions without water. Thirst as an image for spiritual longing is seen in passages like Psalm 42:1–2, “As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul … thirsts for … God.” The righteousness for which men and women long is the ability to ...

2041. Jesus and John the Baptist

Matthew 11:1-19

Understanding Series

Robert H. Mounce

... obviously is are said to be blessed (the beatitude of v. 6 corresponds to those in 5:3–11). 11:7–15 As John’s disciples are leaving, Jesus turns to the crowds and asks, What were you expecting to see when you went out into the desert? A reed swayed by the wind? Of course not. John was no weak and vacillating person blown about by every contrary wind of opinion. This inference could have been drawn by some because of Jesus’ warning concerning stumbling (v. 6). A second question follows: What then did ...

2042. Despair, Hope, Easter, and Pentecost

John 20:10-18

Sermon

Tom Garrison

... women exclaim: "Jesus said to go and tell the disciples and Peter and Judas I want to meet them in Galilee and get on with it." After all, what Judas did was not that much worse than what Peter did when he denied our Lord or the others when they deserted him. There would have been mercy enough even for Judas. I am sure of that. But he did not stay around to see what God can do with what we have done. He despaired. He forgot that out there in the future there is also God powerful enough to make ...

2043. Being Too Generous

Matthew 20:1-16

Sermon

Kristin Borsgard Wee

... the order and pay everyone the same regardless of how long they have stood in the sun. The owner asks the workers, "Do you begrudge my generosity?" The answer is, "You bet we do." We should get what we deserve, we say. I love the wisdom of the desert fathers. They were humble, uncomfortably honest, and their wisdom has a different twist to it. There is a story about one of the brothers to whom the devil keeps appearing. One night, the devil came to him disguised as an angel of light. The angel said to him ...

2044. Being a True Disciple

John 8:31-36

Sermon

David G. Rogne

... the remaining options, for if you do this, you can't do that at the same time; if you take this road, you cannot also take that road. A few years ago I served a church in Lancaster, California, a self-contained community up on the high desert. Most of the young people talked about moving down to Los Angeles, either for education or for a job. They looked forward to the anonymity of the big city, freedom from restraint, opportunity to do as they pleased, which was difficult in a small town. What surprised ...

2045. The Lord's Supper

Mark 14:12-26

Understanding Series

Larry W. Hurtado

... . The dramatic irony is full. Here is Jesus eating with his circle of close followers, making secret arrangements to avoid detection, yet knowing that it is all in vain and that the very ones with whom he is sharing such intimate company include a traitor and deserters who will fall away when the test comes. In the following passage (vv. 22–26) Jesus’ words over the bread and the cup make the meal a prefiguring of the Christian rite of Communion or Eucharist. Mark’s readers should be able to read this ...

2046. Jesus at a Pharisee's House

Luke 14:1-14

Understanding Series

Craig A. Evans

... and would run as follows: If you are concerned to rescue your own son (or even an ox) on the Sabbath, then surely there is nothing wrong with rescuing the son of someone else. By way of contrast, it is interesting to note that the members of the desert community of Qumran applied the Sabbath laws so strictly that they believed that it was wrong to “assist a beast in giving birth on the Sabbath day,” much less to pull it out of a pit (Fitzmyer, p. 1040; see CD 11.13–17). Election Parables Although the ...

2047. Abraham Justified by Faith

Romans 4:1-25

Understanding Series

James R. Edwards

... 2. He does not say that Abraham had nothing to boast of. If Abraham chose to present his credentials as a pretext for God’s favor, then he was, as we say, a “self-made man,” and he need not give credit to God, for his justification was his desert, not God’s gift. This was how first-century Judaism regarded Abraham. The rabbis taught that God’s favor had been a reward to Abraham for his observance of Torah, even before it had been given. A common proof-text was Genesis 26:4–5, which said that God ...

2048. Dead to Sin, Alive in Christ

Romans 6:1-14

Understanding Series

James R. Edwards

... , sin has neither the right nor the power to enslave them. Sin can rule only when it is obeyed, and Christ has broken its power. Sin need no longer be obeyed. Jesus said that no one can serve two masters (Matt. 6:24). Believers are like soldiers who have deserted the ranks of a rebel unit to rejoin their rightful leader: the orders of the rebel captain have no further authority over them. Death can no longer be Christ’s lord, and sin will no longer be the lord of the believer. The Lord of the believer is ...

2049. Slaves to Righteousness

Romans 6:15-23

Understanding Series

James R. Edwards

... in relation to sin, and these rights become his judgment” (TDNT, vol. 5, p. 592). Because of sin humanity gets what it has coming to it; death is our due or “right.” But God does not pay the wages of “rights” nor compensate according to deserts. He freely forgives those who renounce the “rights” of sin. God, who is rich in mercy, remits our debts and freely grants what we do not deserve—eternal life in Christ Jesus. That is the meaning of grace. Additional Notes An informative discussion of ...

2050. God's Sovereign Choice

Romans 9:1-29

Understanding Series

James R. Edwards

... :28). It means the elect, covenant people of God (Isa. 43:1). Who else could claim adoption as sons (Exod. 4:22; Jer. 31:9; Hos. 11:1)? What other people had beheld the divine glory, the very presence of God in theophanies (Exod. 3:2ff.; 24:10), in the desert (Exod. 13:21–22), in the temple (1 Kings 8:29; Ps. 11:4), and in the ark of the covenant (1 Sam. 4:4; 2 Sam. 6:2)? With what other nation had God entered into covenants, first with Abraham (Gen. 15:17f.), later with Israel at Mount Sinai ...

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