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Roads Day 14 True Hope In An Age Of Enlightenment: Digging Deeper

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Digging Deeper Days

Finding the original intent of Scripture and making good application to our everyday lives as we become equipped to correctly handle the Word of Truth!

Yesterday’s Journey Study connects with today’s!
Check out True Hope In An Age Of Enlightenment!

The Questions

1) How can an evil spirit predict the future? Do Satanic forces know everything like God does? 

2) The girl seemed to be proclaiming truth about God, why was Paul “greatly annoyed”? 

3) What does the phrase “hope of profit” reveal? 

Acts 16:16-19

16 Once, as we were on our way to prayer, a slave girl met us who had a spirit by which she predicted the future. She made a large profit for her owners by fortune-telling. 17 As she followed Paul and us she cried out, “These men, who are proclaiming to you the way of salvation, are the servants of the Most High God.” 18 She did this for many days. Paul was greatly annoyed. Turning to the spirit, he said, “I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her!” And it came out right away. 19 When her owners realized that their hope of profit was gone, they seized Paul and Silas and dragged them into the marketplace to the authorities.

Original Intent

1) How can an evil spirit predict the future? Do Satanic forces know everything like God does?
It’s important to know that Satan and his demonic angels, or spirits, cannot know the future. Satan is not omniscient (all-knowing); only God is. Satan knows only what has been revealed by Christ since the beginning of Satan’s existence. Satan prowls as a lion, watching his prey, studying his prey like the commander of an army would study his opponent to know his weak points. This long-time study of human interaction and patterns allows Satan to use this information in cunning ways to make it appear that he, through his demonic forces, can “tell the future”. Examples of false prophets and deceptive prophesies that appear true, but end up being lies, are strewn all throughout Scripture. Only what comes from Christ can be absolutely trustworthy. Jesus is quoted as saying Satan “was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies.” (John 8:44) 

2) The girl seemed to be proclaiming truth about God, why was Paul “greatly annoyed”?
This was not a one-time incident between Paul, Silas, Luke (the eyewitness author of Acts), and the girl who was possessed by a demon. Paul and his duo were regularly going to the place of prayer by the river to meet with believers, preach the gospel, pray, and encourage the saints. The girl, led by the demon, found them out intentionally, and followed them chanting, “These men, who are proclaiming to you the way of salvation, are the servants of the Most High God.” It was obvious to all on-lookers that this girl was demon-possessed, which was not an uncommon sight. Even though the message was indeed true, its messenger was from the “father of lies”. Paul wanted nothing to do with publicity from a false source. The gospel Paul was preaching and teaching of Jesus did not need “help” from a deceiving demon to proclaim. The gospel of Jesus is altogether other, full of light, life, hope, and most importantly, solid truth. This message had no place coming from the mouthpiece of a deceiver.   

3) What does the phrase “hope of profit” reveal? 
“When her owners realized that their hope of profit was gone, they seized Paul and Silas and dragged them into the marketplace to the authorities.” (Acts 16:19) This display of anger boils down to 2 things, control and worship. Satan had given them the false idea that they were in control and were planning their own wonderful destiny by making large amounts of money through their scheme. No doubt they were self-assured, confident, and adept at knowing how and when to best promote their “propaganda”, the slave girl and her false demonic prophesies. When it was stripped of them, their indignant response was anger because their plans had been foiled, their false sense of control had been seized from their hands. Their source of power wasn’t solid and unshakeable, it was only found in their ability to manipulate and attempt to control something outside themselves for their own gain. The focus of their worship was not the unchanging God of the Universe, it was money, power, and self-gratification. If these men had been intent on worshipping the One True God, they wouldn’t have time or desire to worship lesser things.

Everyday Application

1) How can an evil spirit predict the future? Do Satanic forces know everything like God does?
Satan’s craft of choice is deception; he will stop at nothing to lure us into his lies. He is called the “god of this age” (2 Corinthians 4:4) for good reason. Not because he is all-powerful like God, but because he hungrily seeks to rule this world with his limited dominion and turn every human heart, along with all of creation, away from the God who loves us, and towards anything else. Satan’s success is our demise as we are deceived into worshipping things, people, and desires that will absolutely never satisfy like the One who crafted our hearts for perfect union with Him. With all of this deception swirling around us from the “father of lies”, how can we possibly know whether we are being tricked, or where our hearts are worshipping something other than the God of the Bible? Scripture is the solid answer. The whole of Scripture is effective for teaching us how to live, and how to differentiate between truth and lies. From various belief systems, to cultural messages, and even good things we do, Scripture helps us understand our heart’s worship and which lies we are believing. Truth is available; it’s solid, sure, and life-giving, and worth seeking out!  

2) The girl seemed to be proclaiming truth about God, why was Paul “greatly annoyed”?
We too, like Paul, should be “greatly annoyed” when truth becomes jaded because of the source from which it comes. Whether it’s religious beliefs that use Christian language, a preacher who distorts truth, or leaders who use the Bible to make falsehoods appear “true and biblical”, all of it should feel like a punch to the gut. We, as believers, are called to act boldly, to love deeply, and not shy away from firmly taking a stand for truth and its ultimate Source, the Almighty God. Respectfully and lovingly? Absolutely! But we cannot hold loosely to truth so as not to offend someone. Sisters, share the full truth of the gospel with love and grace! Eternity is at stake. Speaking truth isn’t about winning a religious argument, it’s about saving friends, family, and those around us for eternity as we point each one to the solid hope we have in Christ! This Journey Theme, Roads, has tackled 9 religions and given us practical tools, equipping us to have good conversations with others. Use these tools, dig into Scripture, and hold firm to truth, Sister, hold firm! 

3) What does the phrase “hope of profit” reveal? 
When we hold firmly to truth, circumstances no longer hold us captive because we are personally in a living relationship with the Author of Life. Our very lives are held in His mighty hands. The men in this story worshipped themselves, and were held captive by Satan and his lies. They had been deceived into thinking they really did have power and and control in life, but they didn’t. Satan was simply using them to further his own twisted purposes of leading people astray and far away from the glorious truth and hope of Jesus Christ. These men were “owned” by a slave owner, just as they were “owning” this slave girl. And so are we, all of humanity is under the rule and reign of Sin and Satan. It is only through the offer of salvation by grace alone through faith alone by Jesus, fully God, fully man, sacrificially offering Himself on our behalf that we can be freed from the Slave Master Sin! In this incident in Scripture, when Satan lost to the power of Jesus Christ, these men lost too. Not So With Jesus! Sister, is God the Son yours?! For all who call on the Name of Jesus Christ, salvation belongs to them. Not a Jesus who is only “a” god. Not a Jesus who was created. Not a Jesus who holds no standard of right, wrong, or justice, but the Jesus of the Bible. It is only through this Christ, and this Christ alone, that our victory is forever won!

What do YOU think?! Share Here!
Missing the connection to our other Journey Study?
Catch up with True Hope In An Age Of Enlightenment!

Digging Deeper is for Everyone!

1) Take this passage (or any other passage).
2) Read it, and the verses around it,
several times
3) Write down your questions
as you think of them.
4) Ask specific culture related questions and be ready to dig around for your answers. Google them, use www.studylight.org, or look them up in a study Bible and read the footnotes (click on the little letters next to a word and it will show you
other related verses!). (www.esvbible.org)
5) Check your applications with other trusted Christians that you are in community with and embrace the fullness of God
in your everyday!

Digging Deeper Community

Share What You’ve Learned!
Pray Together!
Join us in the GT Facebook Community!

Our Current Study Theme!

This is Roads Week Three!
Don’t miss out on the discussion!
Sign up to receive every GT Journey Study!

Why Dig Deeper?

Finding the original meaning is a huge deal when we study Scripture and can make all the difference in our understanding as we apply God’s truths to our everyday lives.

In our modern-day relationships, we want people to understand our original intention as we communicate; how much more so between God and humanity?!

Here’s a little bit more on why we take Digging Deeper so seriously.

Study Tools

We love getting help while we study and www.studylight.org is one of many excellent resources, providing the original Hebrew (Old Testament) or Greek (New Testament) with an English translation.

Want to know more about a specific word in a verse? Click on “Strong’s Interlinear Bible” then click the word you’d like to study. Discover “origin”, “definition” and hear the original pronunciation – That Is Awesome!

Want more background? Click “Study Tools”, then pick a few commentaries to read their scholarly approach, keeping in mind that just because a commentary says it, doesn’t mean it’s true. (just like the internet :-))

Memorize It!

Download this week’s verse and make it your phone’s lockscreen!
Tap and hold on your mobile device to save.

Roads Day 13 True Hope In An Age Of Enlightenment

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Read His Words Before Ours!

Acts 16:16-19 
Romans 5:1-11
1 Peter 1:13-25 

Roads, Day 13

As I researched New Age beliefs,
I pondered the draw of these religious practices.

The New Age religion is actually a mix of several religious mindsets that have been categorized under the umbrella of New Age.
The New Age category is identified by two main characteristics:
1) Unity that will bring about societal and spiritual transformation and
2) Practices that will bring about individual spiritual transformation as a precursor to a larger, corporate unity and breakthrough.
Enlightenment is said to come from practices involving (but not necessarily limited to): channeling, astrology, crystals, tarot cards, psychics, and even in some cases drug usage. This is a broad overview, so New Age practitioners may use a variety of methods with the main overarching goal of spiritually reaching higher as, individuals, in order to corporately become unified.

The more I read about the desires behind the beliefs,
the more I recognized those hopes within myself.
How I would love to see a world in which we walked in unity!
Can you imagine people all moving together as one to eradicate 
racism, 
hunger, 
human trafficking,
and so many other social injustices?
What a powerful force that would be!

There was another civilization who felt their cohesive unity could accomplish their own brilliant plans.
Their fatal flaw? Pride.
Blindsided by their own arrogant pride in thinking they, in their sinful humanity, could set out to accomplish their plans and make themselves their own god,
were ruined.
Just look at the outcome at the Tower of Babel. (Genesis 11:1-9)

The more I envisioned the power of unity becoming a reality
through the methods of my own individual enlightenment,
the more I recognized I was the flaw in the logic of this plan.
Or at least, the recognition of my own, fallen, sinful humanity, revealed the flaw.

The idea of working as one, unified group sounds great… until I actually think through what it would take in order for it to be an ongoing, success.
And there, the hope of success falls short.

How do I know? 
First, I am a people watcher.
This is one of the reasons that I love to travel. Airports and destinations thrill me as I get to observe and meet new people, places, and cultures. I have experienced beauty and growth; I’ve seen human nature shine in all of its glory, both good and bad.
I’ve witnessed the kind person helping the mom traveling with kiddos.
I’ve also seen the woman moving through the airport crowds as though she were a human battering ram. 

In all of my experiences,
I have never met a perfect person or a perfect team of people.

Even teams that gel for a season eventually fall short in some way.
If that weren’t the case, the same teams would consistently win the Super Bowl, World Series, or the NBA finals. All of those teams moved with a singular goal in mind of functioning to the best of their abilities as a team, in order to win the ultimate championship. 
Even so, there were errors and failures in the midst of those journeys, and that was with everyone agreeing to the same rules of the game and methods for winning! Putting players from different sports on the same team and expecting them to win the championship, likely won’t yield the desired results.  

Second, I know my inner thoughts.
I have walked with the Lord for several years, yet I still sin.
I’ve grown immensely through His Spirit making me new, and my struggle against certain sins are less, but I have not (nor will I ever, at least on earth) arrive at a point of perfect sinless living or attain godlike equality.
I know my failures and shortcomings.
I know my pet peeves that challenge me to work well with some individuals.
I know the times I have allowed my sin to fracture teams and hurt those around me. I know I am a sinner, and no effort on my part will ever make me good enough to reach a great spiritual enlightenment on my own.  

Third, I believe the Bible is true and that Jesus is alive.
I have experienced the impact of the Holy Spirit dwelling within me as He has made me new. His movement in my life, and in other Christians, have continuously proven the Word to be true. I have seen people encouraged by the Word of God and promises revealed through it coming to pass. I have walked through dark times, and been buoyed by hope solely found in my relationship with Jesus.
Because I have experienced all of this with Jesus,
I cannot comprehend a hope-filled life without Him.  

As we move through our days, may our walk with the Lord
be the defining hope of our lives.
Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life,
and it is only through Him that we can experience fulfillment.
The journey will never be boring!  

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Embracing God’s fullness in our lives is rooted in scripture and memorizing His word is vital to our continued growth and depth with Jesus. Tap and hold from your mobile device to download this week’s verse and make it your phone’s lockscreen!

Thanks for joining us today as we journeyed into Roads Week Three! Don’t miss out on the discussion below – we’d love to hear your thoughts!

Looking for other journeys from this theme?
Here’s a link to all past studies in Roads!

Roads Day 12 The Weight Of Hopelessness: Digging Deeper

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Digging Deeper Days

Finding the original intent of Scripture and making good application to our everyday lives as we become equipped to correctly handle the Word of Truth!

Yesterday’s Journey Study connects with today’s!
Check out The Weight Of Hopelessness!

The Questions

 

1) What was the man hoping to hear from Jesus when he approached him?

2) What did Jesus’ response reveal about true hope? 

3) Why did the man walk away dejected, despite the fact that Jesus did give him an answer?

Mark 10:17-22

17 As he was setting out on a journey, a man ran up, knelt down before him, and asked him, “Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”
18 “Why do you call me good?” Jesus asked him. “No one is good except God alone. 19 You know the commandments: Do not murder; do not commit adultery; do not steal; do not bear false witness; do not defraud; honor your father and mother.”
20 He said to him, “Teacher, I have kept all these from my youth.”
21 Looking at him, Jesus loved him and said to him, “You lack one thing: Go, sell all you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.” 22 But he was dismayed by this demand, and he went away grieving, because he had many possessions.

Original Intent

1)  What was the man hoping to hear from Jesus when he approached him?
I can almost hear this man’s thoughts as he runs up and kneels at Jesus’ feet, seeking His approval, and desiring to justify himself.  Did you notice the man called Jesus a “good” teacher, and Jesus brought that out in His response?  Jesus tells the man that if he acknowledges Him as “good”, he is agreeing that Jesus is a prophet/teacher from God and is therefore owed the authority and deference that would be given to one sent from God.  Without saying it, Jesus essentially warns the man, “Remember that you called me ‘good’ when you don’t like my answer.”  The man asks Jesus what is required for eternal life.  Jesus reminds him of the commandments, and the man quickly responds, “Teacher, I have kept all these from my youth,” (verse 20).  CHECK.  AND.  DONE.  The man had to feel victorious in that moment.  Jesus knew the man wanted the easy answer of “you’ve done enough.”  The man’s works were the center of his hope.  He wanted to hear that he was good enough, had done enough, and was “in” for eternal life.  All because of his own efforts.  

2)  What did Jesus’ response reveal about true hope?
Jesus knew the reality that this man was putting his hope in his own works and earthly possessions before He ever heard his answers, yet it didn’t change Christ’s love for the man.  In fact, Jesus loved this man enough to tell him about true hope.  Jesus exposed to the man what was still a false hope in his life (his works and his riches).  Jesus then shared with him that hope always has to be in a Person, not in things or works.  “Follow me” was the only hope this man would ever know and it would require him to let go of all else. 

3) Why did the man walk away dejected, despite the fact that Jesus did give him an answer?
Jesus was clear about His expectations and not afraid to ask for more.  The man had hoped his works would be enough.  But Jesus said there was more required: to give it all up and follow.  However, the man’s riches proved to be a hindrance that would keep him from fully following Jesus.  The man loved what he had more than what he would gain from accepting Jesus’ challenge.  In that moment, the man chose to love his riches and the false hope of good works, over the One who could have given him everything he truly desired.

Everyday Application

1) What was the man hoping to hear from Jesus when he approached him?
Just like the man who approached Jesus, many of us and those we know, look for the same answers: easy checkboxes that say “Yep, you’re good and don’t need to do anything else.”  However, the work of sanctification is a lifelong pursuit.  We will never fully arrive. We never get to the point of being done and accomplished on this side of eternity.  There will always be more growth for us to do.  Psalm 39:7 says, “Now, Lord, what do I wait for?  My hope is in you.”  Jesus alone completed the work of a perfectly righteous life.  As humans, we are unable reach that level of perfection.  Instead, all we need is to believe that Jesus was the perfect son of God.  And His perfection makes it possible that we don’t have to be.  

2) What did Jesus’ response reveal about true hope?
Are you willing to hear the truth about hope?  Jesus’ teaching proved to be much harder to accept than the man in this passage had bargained for.  Often this is our same experience.  But just like this man, Jesus loves me, and you, enough to tell us the truth about hope.  Titus 3:7 says we are justified by grace through Christ’s death on the cross, which gives us hope.  Jeremiah 14:22 warns us that worthless idols can do nothing, so our hope must be in God alone.  Ephesians 1:18 promises us the hope that comes through His calling in our lives; He gives us meaning and purpose in a way that nothing else can. 1 Timothy 4:10 says that since our hope is in Christ alone, this is the reason why we labor, rather than in any wasted effort to save ourselves.  And what about those you know who are putting their hope in good works?  Are you willing to share the truth about hope?   To ask them how they will know when they have reached enough?  To let them know that hope comes in Christ alone? 

3) Why did the man walk away dejected, despite the fact that Jesus did give him an answer?
Unfortunately, I can resonate with this man’s story.  For years, my career was the one thing I would bargain with God over. ”You can have anything in my life…please just don’t ask me to give this up.”  What about you?  Are you clinging to anything over Christ?  Like the man in this passage, what do we miss out on when we make that choice?  Psalm 62:5 says, “Rest in God alone my soul, for my hope comes from Him.”  Trying to earn our way in and do enough is exhausting.  Rest comes when we place our trust in Him alone.   When we are finally willing to make that transition, our rest and hope will be noticeable to the world around us that is still busy striving to earn something. In those moments, we have the opportunity to share the truth of the gospel, the “…reason for the hope that is in [us],” (1 Peter 3:15).   This is our calling. This is why we have been set apart, to bring His hope to the world around us that is still busy striving and looking for more.

What do YOU think?! Share Here!
Missing the connection to our other Journey Study?
Catch up with The Weight Of Hopelessness!

Digging Deeper is for Everyone!

1) Take this passage (or any other passage).
2) Read it, and the verses around it,
several times
3) Write down your questions
as you think of them.
4) Ask specific culture related questions and be ready to dig around for your answers. Google them, use www.studylight.org, or look them up in a study Bible and read the footnotes (click on the little letters next to a word and it will show you
other related verses!). (www.esvbible.org)
5) Check your applications with other trusted Christians that you are in community with and embrace the fullness of God
in your everyday!

Digging Deeper Community

Share What You’ve Learned!
Pray Together!
Join us in the GT Facebook Community!

Our Current Study Theme!

This is Roads Week Three!
Don’t miss out on the discussion!
Sign up to receive every GT Journey Study!

Why Dig Deeper?

Finding the original meaning is a huge deal when we study Scripture and can make all the difference in our understanding as we apply God’s truths to our everyday lives.

In our modern-day relationships, we want people to understand our original intention as we communicate; how much more so between God and humanity?!

Here’s a little bit more on why we take Digging Deeper so seriously.

Study Tools

We love getting help while we study and www.studylight.org is one of many excellent resources, providing the original Hebrew (Old Testament) or Greek (New Testament) with an English translation.

Want to know more about a specific word in a verse? Click on “Strong’s Interlinear Bible” then click the word you’d like to study. Discover “origin”, “definition” and hear the original pronunciation – That Is Awesome!

Want more background? Click “Study Tools”, then pick a few commentaries to read their scholarly approach, keeping in mind that just because a commentary says it, doesn’t mean it’s true. (just like the internet :-))

Memorize It!

Download this week’s verse and make it your phone’s lockscreen!
Tap and hold on your mobile device to save.

Roads Day 10 The Gospel + Something = Nothing

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Read His Words Before Ours!

Ephesians 1:7-8 
Galatians 1:6-10
Romans 10:9-10 
Psalm 73:23-28 

Roads, Day 10

 Many have said people can believe in the biblical view of God,
while still ascribing to the Catholic faith.  

In preparing for this Journey Study, I set out to examine this claim for myself.
A difficult task, I might add.  

I began with the Twelve Articles of Catholic Faith, which are central to the Catholic faith. These mirror the Apostle’s Creed, a summary statement of apostolic beliefs.   

The 12 Articles 
A triune God who created the universe. 
Jesus as Divine Savior; He is fully God. 
Jesus was born of a virgin, conceived through the Holy Spirit, proving He is fully human and fully God.
He was crucified under the word of Pontius Pilot, a Roman governor of Judea. He died and was buried. 
Jesus then descended into Hell and rose from the dead three days later. 
Jesus is now seated at the right hand of God the Father in Heaven, mediating for us. 

Jesus will return to earth to judge the living and the dead.
They believe in the Holy Spirit.
They believe in the catholic Church (meaning one global church) and communion of Saints. 
The forgiveness of sins. 
The resurrection of the body. 
And finally, in everlasting life.  

While these 12 are core doctrine for Catholic and Christian beliefs,
the difference lies in definitions.   

Forgiveness of Sin
According to Catholic doctrine, Christ’s death “afforded grace for the forgiveness of sin.”
But it wasn’t actually “enough”, we still need to “work” to be “good enough” for that forgiveness to be extended to us.
Catholicism says “original sin” is removed only through baptism, which is a bit like the “Door to Forgiveness” being opened for you. To walk through it, however, you must participate in the “Sacrament of Penance.” This mainly happens through Confession with a Catholic priest. The priest is said to be the mediator between God and humankind, able to extend God’s forgiveness to us on His behalf.  

To a Catholic, Christ’s work on the cross was insufficient to forgive sin without these works of baptism and confession to a priest on our part.

Christian doctrine also holds to Baptism and Confession,
but with different definitions.  

Ephesians 1:7-8 makes it clear:
“In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, 
according to the riches of His grace, that He richly poured out on us with all wisdom and understanding.”

Through His blood.
By His grace.
Nothing more, nothing less.
We don’t need to work for forgiveness,
it’s freely given through Christ’s complete sacrifice.  

Our Catholic friends are constantly working to cover up the bad things they’ve done through penance, instead of walking into the guaranteed forgiveness the cross and shed blood of Christ brings.  

With constant work comes a constant question,
“Am I good enough for forgiveness?”

Eternal Life
Death, for a Catholic, continues to beg the question, “Am I good enough?’.
At death, if their soul is deemed holy by God, they go to Heaven.
If the soul is evil, they go directly to hell.
If the soul is neither holy nor wicked, they go to purgatory until the soul is cleansed of any sin (through others praying to Mary on their behalf) before going to Heaven.

In the Catholic faith, Mary is the mediator between us and Jesus, as we pray to her, and she prays to Jesus for us.  

However, Scripture teaches two precious truths:
There is only one mediator between God and man, Jesus Christ! 1 Timothy 2:5
We are given access, through Christ’s precious blood, to boldly and directly enter His throne room of grace. (Hebrews 4:16)

When Jesus died on the cross for our sins, he tore the veil in the temple.
That veil separated the Holy of Holies, where the presence of God resided, from the rest of the temple. Only a priest could enter the Holy of Holies to intercede for forgiveness on the peoples’ behalf. If the priest entered in with sin in his life, he would be struck dead.  

But Jesus, who is the only sinless one,
came to earth to make God accessible to us through Himself.  

Jesus came to take the place of the priests as mediator.
He is our perfect mediator because He is the sinless, spotless Lamb of God.
Mary was a great woman, but being human means that we are sinful.
She was never intended to be the mediator between us and Jesus. 

The Gospel
The gospel says Jesus’ shed blood and resurrection plus our acceptance equals salvation. Romans 10:9-10 

But Catholicism says the gospel plus work equals potential salvation.  

For all of the good, solid doctrine Christianity shares with Catholicism,
when we start adding things to the gospel, it’s no longer the gospel.  

Good Enough?
If we’re honest, it’s a question we’ve all asked ourselves.
It’s one I’ve been asking myself a lot lately.

Good enough to go to Heaven?
Good enough to bypass purgatory?
Good enough for God’s forgiveness?  

If we’re honest, it’s a question we’ve all asked ourselves.
It’s one I’ve been asking myself a lot lately.  

In truth, Sisters, we can trust that neither are we good enough, nor do we need to be!
Because our God is more than good enough. 
It’s not by baptism that our “original sin” is removed.
It’s not by attending mass without missing.
It’s not by confessing sins to a priest, or any other requirement.
Salvation is found, and forgiveness atoned for, by confessing with our mouth that Jesus Christ is Lord. (Romans 10:9)

Our eternity is secure.
Nothing can ever snatch us from His hand once we’ve crossed the line of salvation for ourselves. (John 10:28)
The full gospel, nothing more, nothing less, is solid enough to hold our souls for eternity.
Jesus + Nothing = Everything!
Have you trusted Him?!

Ready for more? Dig Deeper!
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Don’t miss today’s Digging Deeper!     And we’d love to hear your thoughts from today’s Journey!    Comment Here!

Embracing God’s fullness in our lives is rooted in scripture and memorizing His word is vital to our continued growth and depth with Jesus. Tap and hold from your mobile device to download this week’s verse and make it your phone’s lockscreen!

Thanks for joining us today as we journeyed into Roads Week Three! Don’t miss out on the discussion below – we’d love to hear your thoughts!
Click the above image for today’s Digging Deeper!

Looking for other journeys from this theme?
Here’s a link to all past studies in Roads!

Roads Day 9 How Much Is Enough: Digging Deeper

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Digging Deeper Days

Finding the original intent of Scripture and making good application to our everyday lives as we become equipped to correctly handle the Word of Truth!

Yesterday’s Journey Study connects with today’s!
Check out How Much Is Enough?

The Questions

1) What does John mean about Jesus being the light in the midst of darkness?

2) What is John saying when he writes that Jesus is the Word who became flesh?

3) What is the importance of Jesus bringing grace and truth (verse 17)?

John 1:1-18

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was with God in the beginning. 3 All things were created through him, and apart from him not one thing was created that has been created. 4 In him was life, and that life was the light of men. 5 That light shines in the darkness, and yet the darkness did not overcome it.

6 There was a man sent from God whose name was John. 7 He came as a witness to testify about the light, so that all might believe through him. 8 He was not the light, but he came to testify about the light. 9 The true light that gives light to everyone, was coming into the world.

10 He was in the world, and the world was created through him, and yet the world did not recognize him. 11 He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him. 12 But to all who did receive him, he gave them the right to be children of God, to those who believe in his name, 13 who were born, not of natural descent, or of the will of the flesh, or of the will of man, but of God.

14 The Word became flesh and dwelt among us. We observed his glory, the glory as the one and only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. 15 (John testified concerning him and exclaimed, “This was the one of whom I said, ‘The one coming after me ranks ahead of me, because he existed before me.’”) 16 Indeed, we have all received grace upon grace from his fullness, 17 for the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. 18 No one has ever seen God. The one and only Son, who is himself God and is at the Father’s side — he has revealed him.

Original Intent

1) What does John mean about Jesus being the light in the midst of darkness?John’s gospel about Jesus’ life and ministry is written toward a Greek-thinking culture, Hellenized Jews and Gentile Greeks, driven by intellect and reason.  John’s goal is to capture for them the true identity of Christ as the one and only Son of God.  He opens his gospel account with the tangible metaphor of Jesus being the light in the darkness.  He uses the image to contrast that Jesus is different and stands out from all other sources of light; to acknowledge the real battle between spiritual darkness and spiritual light; and to say that Jesus is the one and only true light, unlike any other man.

2) What is John saying when he writes that Jesus is the Word who became flesh?In Genesis 1, the world is brought into being through the power of God’s word, as every part of creation is spoken into existence.  John states that Jesus is, in fact, the source of those words of God and therefore was, and still is, God.  John wants his readers clearly understand that he is writing about someone who is much more than a mere man; instead, Jesus is God, who became flesh, in order to reveal Himself to the world.  Jesus’ coming in the flesh did not change his identity as God in any way, but served to reveal to humanity the invisible God they had been unable to approach and see up until that time.

3) What is the importance of Jesus bringing grace and truth (verse 17)?
John writes to the people first about Moses bringing the law to God’s people.  Transitioning, he tells them that something even greater has arrived.  He makes the statement that, “…grace and truth came through Jesus Christ,” (verse 17).  For the Jews reading his words, John addresses how Jesus gives grace, emphasizing that grace is critical in even being able to follow the Law.  This was a critical point because for centuries the Jews had been trying to follow the Law in their own strength as a means for salvation.  But Jesus brings grace to fill the gap between our inability to follow God’s perfect law and God’s righteousness.  For the Greeks reading his words, John tells them that Jesus is truth.  Not just a truth, but THE truth.  This would have been significant, and important, to the Greek people, as truth was an important pursuit to them culturally.

Everyday Application

1) What does John mean about Jesus being the light in the midst of darkness?Jesus is different than any other man.  First, we must be clear on that in our own thinking.  We should not make Jesus out to be any less than who He is.  Second, we should be careful in how we present Jesus to the world around us to clarify His uniqueness.  Jesus is altogether different from any other figure in any other religion.  There are many religions that will acknowledge Jesus as a good teacher or prophet, but that doesn’t go far enough.  He was, and is, the Son of God.  Anything that makes Him less than that doesn’t line up with the truth of Scripture.  We must stand firm in that truth.

2) What is John saying when he writes that Jesus is the Word who became flesh?We cannot waver on the truth that Jesus was fully God, yet became flesh to walk the earth.  We must share that same truth with others when we want them to learn more about Jesus.  That is what makes Him so distinct.  In Jesus’ humility, He loved us enough to dwell among us and make Himself like us by taking on a human form.  In the Old Testament period, God would dwell with His people in the Tabernacle and then in his holy Temple. The literal meaning of the Greek in this verse is that Jesus came “to tabernacle” with us. He did this to help us understand God’s true heart for His people and the efforts He was willing to make to reconcile us to Himself.

3) What is the importance of Jesus bringing grace and truth (verse 17)?
The teaching about Jesus being both grace and truth is as relevant in our world today as it was to John’s original audience.  In a modern world that can be harsh and can feel like nothing we do is ever good enough, the message of grace is a welcome relief.  Instead of constantly striving to do or be more, grace gives us the assurance that Jesus will do for us what we cannot do for ourselves.  He is our perfection.  In that, we can find rest and peace; this is a message that is needed by so many!  In a world where truth is relative, subjective, and shouldn’t be questioned, Jesus offers an absolute.  He removes the confusion of what is real and right.  He brings clarity.  Think of those in your life; who needs to hear the message of Jesus as grace?  Who needs to hear the message of Jesus as truth?  How can you share the hope that Jesus offers with those people in a way that is winsome and inviting?

What do YOU think?! Share Here!
Missing the connection to our other Journey Study?
Catch up with How Much Is Enough?

Digging Deeper is for Everyone!

1) Take this passage (or any other passage).
2) Read it, and the verses around it,
several times
3) Write down your questions
as you think of them.
4) Ask specific culture related questions and be ready to dig around for your answers. Google them, use www.studylight.org, or look them up in a study Bible and read the footnotes (click on the little letters next to a word and it will show you
other related verses!). (www.esvbible.org)
5) Check your applications with other trusted Christians that you are in community with and embrace the fullness of God
in your everyday!

Digging Deeper Community

Share What You’ve Learned!
Pray Together!
Join us in the GT Facebook Community!

Our Current Study Theme!

This is Roads Week Two!
Don’t miss out on the discussion!
Sign up to receive every GT Journey Study!

Why Dig Deeper?

Finding the original meaning is a huge deal when we study Scripture and can make all the difference in our understanding as we apply God’s truths to our everyday lives.

In our modern-day relationships, we want people to understand our original intention as we communicate; how much more so between God and humanity?!

Here’s a little bit more on why we take Digging Deeper so seriously.

Study Tools

We love getting help while we study and www.studylight.org is one of many excellent resources, providing the original Hebrew (Old Testament) or Greek (New Testament) with an English translation.

Want to know more about a specific word in a verse? Click on “Strong’s Interlinear Bible” then click the word you’d like to study. Discover “origin”, “definition” and hear the original pronunciation – That Is Awesome!

Want more background? Click “Study Tools”, then pick a few commentaries to read their scholarly approach, keeping in mind that just because a commentary says it, doesn’t mean it’s true. (just like the internet :-))

Memorize It!

Download this week’s verse and make it your phone’s lockscreen!
Tap and hold on your mobile device to save.

Roads Day 8 How Much Is Enough?

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Read His Words Before Ours!

Ephesians 2:1-10
1 John 2:1-6
John 1:1-18 

Roads, Day 8

Imagine a young woman named Fatima who grew up in the Islam faith. 
As far back as she can remember, she has seen her mother quickly cover her head, kneel on her prayer rug, and pray five times a day during the namaz (required memorized prayers).

She has watched her brothers being sent to the Imam (EE-mom) weekly to learn recitation of the Quran in Arabic. Arabic wasn’t Fatima’s native language and though poorly understood, was necessary for recitation as it was chosen by Allah.

On Fridays, her brothers and Father proudly wear their white caps and Kurtas (long shirt) and pray at the mosque.

Fatima’s mother has strictly taught her to keep her skin covered in front of men, following the example of Prophet Mohammad’s wives. Allah’s command is for women to be modest so as not to entice men. She regularly hears her parents sneering at their unbelieving neighbors who eat unclean pig, drink forbidden alcohol, and flaunt their women instead of protecting them.

As Fatima seeks to obey the principles of Islam, she sees how this pleases her parents and she is filled with pride. The more she denies herself with fasting from “worldly” desires, the more she is seen as righteous. She feels a strong sense of pride in being Muslim. 

This is a common picture for an Islamic family today.
Taking pride in their religion is taught from a young age as Muslims are family and community based. Their communities are centered around mosques; religious practices are outward, not private or personal.

The biggest difference between Christianity and Islam is how Jesus is understood.  Muslims are taught Jesus was a great Islamic prophet.
Believing Jesus is the Son of God will send you to hell. (Quran 5:72)
Christianity believes Jesus is the Son of God and belief in Him, as being fully God, will save you from Hell and grant forgiveness.

What does this mean in everyday life?
Since Islam does not believe in Jesus as Savior, good works attain salvation.
Salvation in Christianity is based on grace and faith alone, with no good works in order to be forgiven. (Ephesians 2:8-9)
How will we know if our good works have finally achieved salvation?
How much “good” is good enough?
And, of course, there is the constant pressure to perform and perform, better and better.  

In my conversations with girls like Fatima, I have often asked,
“What happens to you after you die?”
They respond, “I will go to heaven if Allah wills.”
When I ask, “How do you know if Allah wills it?”
They shrug their shoulders saying,
“We cannot know for sure. 
We hope our good works outweigh our bad, 
and hope Allah will be merciful.”

These words break my heart!
Our gracious, loving God has given us His truth that we may indeed know for certain He will rescue our souls for eternity!

The Qur’an teaches that in the last day, Allah will bring out a scale, weighing good versus bad deeds. Many hope their prayers and rule-keeping to be enough to grant acceptance by Allah on judgment day. 

All religions and belief systems, except for one, are the same as Islam;
they are man-made,
relying on our ability to work for forgiveness and eternal security.

That one that’s different?
It’s Christianity!
The Bible teaches faith in Christ’s work on the cross for eternal salvation is,
and will always be,
enough to cover the sins of the truly repentant heart.
This stark contrast between true Christianity and all other religious belief systems, including Islam, should give us confidence as we share our faith with others!

One reason Christians feel inadequate, even scared, to share the Good News with Muslims is because they aren’t sharing regularly with anyone.

Learn to share the Gospel and begin sharing 
with everyone God puts in your path!
As evangelism becomes more natural, through faithful obedience and dependence on God, you will be able to adapt and adjust to whatever religious or spiritual background you encounter.  

There’s no silver bullet in how to share with a Muslim, but Christianity and Islam share much common ground we can utilize to begin and continue spiritual conversations.

Both religions believe in creation, monotheism, similar prophets, Torah/Psalm/Injeel (New Testament), many of God’s qualities (such as omniscience, omnipotence, omnipresence), and many things about Jesus (such as His virgin birth, no sin, many miracles, His ascension to heaven, and His future return to earth). 

Want to help a Muslim understand the gospel?
Intentionally make a friend!  
Because Muslims practice their faith in community, many immigrants to America feel isolated. Take this opportunity to disprove any wrong presuppositions they might have toward Christianity as they get to know you.

What does that mean practically?
Humanize them!
These are the faces of individuals with many of the same problems as you:  finances, marriage, raising children, workplace difficulties, etc.
Invite them over for birthdays, holidays, and special events.
Start regularly praying for specific concerns they have.  

As your friendship grows, be intentional to share the Good News both directly and indirectly.
This isn’t time to shy away until you “know each other better”.
Direct sharing is as simple as sharing your Gospel-focused story of how Jesus remade you! As you gain their trust, you can ask what they believe about Jesus, Christianity, and the Bible. Not all Muslims believe the same way. This will provide opportunities to humbly use God’s Word to correct wrong understanding of Christian principles and beliefs.

Indirect sharing can be accomplished by drawing them into your everyday life. Allow them to witness the sincerity of your faith in the way you treat your spouse, children, and time spent in worship and prayer. Don’t pull away from your regular spiritual practices out of fear of offending your Muslim friends.  

There is a good chance that a woman like Fatima lives near you.
Be intentional, share in her life, faithfully pray for her, and speak of Jesus often with reverence and love, using Bible stories about Him.  At the appropriate time, you can gift a Bible in her heart language (the New Testament, Psalms, and the first five books of Old Testament are acceptable portions of Scripture in Islam).
Then, if she is willing, teach her how all the books of the Bible fit together!
Just as Islamic women are proud of their religion, let us also be unashamed of the Gospel of Christ! 
Let’s pray for boldness in reaching Muslims around us, in order to bring them into eternal Christian community!
Because Jesus is more than enough!

*Written by Janna Comfort 

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Embracing God’s fullness in our lives is rooted in scripture and memorizing His word is vital to our continued growth and depth with Jesus. Tap and hold from your mobile device to download this week’s verse and make it your phone’s lockscreen!

Thanks for joining us today as we journeyed into Roads Week Two! Don’t miss out on the discussion below – we’d love to hear your thoughts!

Looking for other journeys from this theme?
Here’s a link to all past studies in Roads!

Roads Day 7 Quest For Truth: Digging Deeper

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Digging Deeper Days

Finding the original intent of Scripture and making good application to our everyday lives as we become equipped to correctly handle the Word of Truth!

Yesterday’s Journey Study connects with today’s!
Check out Quest For Truth!

The Questions

1) What would Jesus not give the Pharisees and Sadducees to prove He was God?

2) What did Jesus mean about the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees?

3) What is the significance of the exchange between Jesus and His disciples about who they say that He is?

Matthew 16:1-6

The Pharisees and Sadducees approached, and tested him, asking him to show them a sign from heaven. 2 He replied, “When evening comes you say, ‘It will be good weather because the sky is red.’ 3 And in the morning, ‘Today will be stormy because the sky is red and threatening.’ You know how to read the appearance of the sky, but you can’t read the signs of the times. 4 An evil and adulterous generation demands a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of Jonah.” Then he left them and went away.
5 The disciples reached the other shore, and they had forgotten to take bread. 6 Then Jesus told them, “Watch out and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees.”
7 They were discussing among themselves, “We didn’t bring any bread.”
8 Aware of this, Jesus said, “You of little faith, why are you discussing among yourselves that you do not have bread? 9 Don’t you understand yet? Don’t you remember the five loaves for the five thousand and how many baskets you collected? 10 Or the seven loaves for the four thousand and how many large baskets you collected? 11 Why is it you don’t understand that when I told you, ‘Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees,’ it wasn’t about bread?”12 Then they understood that he had not told them to beware of the leaven in bread, but of the teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees.
13 When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” 
14 They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others, Elijah; still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.”
15 “But you,” he asked them, “who do you say that I am?”
16 Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”

Original Intent

1) What would Jesus not give the Pharisees and Sadducees to prove He was God?
Seemingly, a visible sign could have once and for all removed any false accusations that Jesus was fully God. But Jesus knew it wouldn’t because human beings without the Holy Spirit, will always choose to believe what they want to believe. He pointed out that these religiously righteous follow the signs they want to follow, like weather markers. Jesus knew the heart of these leaders, and they wanted nothing to do with following God in their hearts. Jesus spent His entire ministry giving “sign after sign” that He was God. He healed the sick, brought sight to the blind, mended the lame, and even forgave sin. (Mark 2:5-11) Yet, the self-righteous still refused to accept truth because it would radically shift their entire lives. Even the most incredible “sign” of all, Jesus’ resurrection after 3 days of being dead (likened to Jonah in this passage who was in the belly of the sea creature for 3 days), would not be enough to turn hard-hearted skeptics with no sincere desire to know truth to accept truth. Signs weren’t the problem, their hearts were.

2) What did Jesus mean about the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees?
To get the full understanding here, we travel back to when the Israelites were being freed from slavery under the heavy hand of the Egyptians. Their exit would be quick, at a moment’s notice, and they had to be ready to leave. Of course, having no groceries along the way, they needed to quickly prepare bread for the journey, which meant not using yeast because it took so long to rise. The Israelites were commanded to remove all yeast as they hastily prepared to leave when the Lord said Go! Over time, yeast became a byword for evil or wickedness. Paul uses the same phrasing in Galatians, “This persuasion does not come from the one who calls you. A little leaven (or yeast) leavens the whole batch of dough.” Just as a small amount of yeast spreads quickly throughout the dough, so do distortions of truth. Jesus was warning His disciples to be on guard against evil teaching from the Pharisees and Sadducees, who, though they had the appearance of righteousness, they denied the Holy Spirit room to work in their lives. Both Jesus and Paul warn to “avoid these people” and their insidious deceptions. (2 Timothy 3:5)

3) What is the significance of the exchange between Jesus and His disciples about who they say that He is? 
Jesus and His disciples have crossed the sea of Galilee in this passage, and are walking together on their way to Caesarea Philippi, an ancient Roman city located at the base of Mt. Hermon. It’s a beautiful spot, lush and green as it was the chief source of water for the Jordan River. It’s also the historic location of idol worship for the then-current mythological Greek god “Pan” and, going farther back, to King Jeroboam, who led the entire Northern Kingdom of Israel into idolatry as they worshipped Baal here. The significance of the location wouldn’t have been lost on the disciples as Jesus posed His question, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?”. The competing voices for worship were loud. The disciples gave several names the crowds were throwing around for who this Jesus really was, the spirit of John The Baptist, Elijah, Jeremiah, or other prophets. All were important people, all carried the weight of respect with the people, but none of these were God. None deserved total life worship and surrender. Jesus presses in as He turns the question to them as individuals and Peter responds based on everything he has witnessed in his time with Jesus, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” (verse 16)

Everyday Application

1) What would Jesus not give the Pharisees and Sadducees to prove He was God?
People will always excuse away evidence, even if it’s right in front of them and seemingly undeniable, in order to hold on to what they want to believe. That’s why being “free” to “choose our truth” is so dangerous. While it appears welcoming to all beliefs and safe from any judgment, having no “real truth” leaves us, and our lives, empty and meaningless, like waves tossed to and fro that are neither here nor there. Even Christians are susceptible to this precarious way of thinking. How often have you held to what you thought was a biblical perspective only to find out through careful study and conversation with another trusted Believer, that you were wrongly interpreting Scripture? We must be studying God’s Word for truth, aligning our lives with it, and constantly asking the Holy Spirit to convict us where our beliefs are out of line with His perfect truth! Check your heart as you seek truth; are you willing to sacrifice your beliefs if you discover truth?

2) What did Jesus mean about the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees?
False doctrine and belief systems run rampant in our society. Even pastors claiming to be true and biblical have distorted the truth. We must always be on our guard, constantly comparing what we are taking in from leaders and teachers and friends to the truth of the Bible. It’s not enough to trust “someone else’s” study, we must know our Bible for ourselves! Paul says it like this, “But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to what we have preached to you, a curse be on him!” (Galatians 1:8) The people in Berea, who listened to the teaching of Paul and Silas, didn’t simply take their word for it. They poured over the Scripture to see if what they’d heard was true. (Acts 17:10-12) We would be wise to follow their example of faithfulness to truth! Despite how appealing it may seem to have the freedom to “believe whatever you want”, truth matters.

3) What is the significance of the exchange between Jesus and His disciples about who they say that He is? 
In yesterday’s Journey Study, Sara likens the Unitarian view of Jesus not being God, to Him being on an “all-star” team of super prophets. Jesus intentionally allowed the question of His true identity to sit with His disciples as they sorted through what others said versus what they had witnessed day in and day out. Owning that truth was a turning point for Simon Peter, as it is for each one of us that call Jesus Lord. Has there been a day, a moment, when you stood surrounded by other voices, other religions, other deceptions, and it became clear to you that Jesus Christ is Lord, the Son of the Living God? I pray so! If you ever find yourself in a conversation and feel the Spirit tugging you to turn it to spiritual matters, follow Jesus’ own example and ask, “who do you say Jesus is?”. It’s a great, open-ended, non-threatening way to give the other person a chance to talk and share freely. Listen closely, build the relationship, and when it’s the right time, don’t shy away from sharing who Jesus is to you!

What do YOU think?! Share Here!
Missing the connection to our other Journey Study?
Catch up with Quest For Truth!

Digging Deeper is for Everyone!

1) Take this passage (or any other passage).
2) Read it, and the verses around it,
several times
3) Write down your questions
as you think of them.
4) Ask specific culture related questions and be ready to dig around for your answers. Google them, use www.studylight.org, or look them up in a study Bible and read the footnotes (click on the little letters next to a word and it will show you
other related verses!). (www.esvbible.org)
5) Check your applications with other trusted Christians that you are in community with and embrace the fullness of God
in your everyday!

Digging Deeper Community

Share What You’ve Learned!
Pray Together!
Join us in the GT Facebook Community!

Our Current Study Theme!

This is Roads Week Two!
Don’t miss out on the discussion!
Sign up to receive every GT Journey Study!

Why Dig Deeper?

Finding the original meaning is a huge deal when we study Scripture and can make all the difference in our understanding as we apply God’s truths to our everyday lives.

In our modern-day relationships, we want people to understand our original intention as we communicate; how much more so between God and humanity?!

Here’s a little bit more on why we take Digging Deeper so seriously.

Study Tools

We love getting help while we study and www.studylight.org is one of many excellent resources, providing the original Hebrew (Old Testament) or Greek (New Testament) with an English translation.

Want to know more about a specific word in a verse? Click on “Strong’s Interlinear Bible” then click the word you’d like to study. Discover “origin”, “definition” and hear the original pronunciation – That Is Awesome!

Want more background? Click “Study Tools”, then pick a few commentaries to read their scholarly approach, keeping in mind that just because a commentary says it, doesn’t mean it’s true. (just like the internet :-))

Memorize It!

Download this week’s verse and make it your phone’s lockscreen!
Tap and hold on your mobile device to save.

The GT Weekend! – Roads Week 1

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The GT Weekend!

At Gracefully Truthful, weekends aren’t for “checking out”.
Use this time to invite the Almighty’s fullness into you life in a deeper way!
Saturdays and Sundays are a chance to
reflect, rest, and re-center our lives onto Christ.
Don’t miss the opportunity to connect with other women in prayer,
rest your soul in reflective journaling,
and spend time worshiping the Creator who
longs for intimacy with each of us!

Worship Through Journaling

Worship Through Journaling

1) When we talk with people that believe some Christian tenants, it’s much more comfortable to accept them as believers. It’s important to carefully discern what the person, or religion, believes and check it with Scripture. The core, non-debatable truths of Scripture must align or it’s some form of untruth. How have you prepared to identify untruth? How can you engage and ask questions to help them see the Gospel clearly?  

2) We know Jesus + nothing = EVERYTHING. Nothing needs to be added to it or taken away from it to include completion. Where have you been tempted to believe untruth? It could be something big blatantly false or something small like believing “I need to work hard for God so He will love me.” Take time this week to sort through your deep-seated beliefs and assess any untruths that might be lingering.  

3) Questions are a great place to begin with your atheist friend. What questions would you start with? How would you respond when you don’t know the answer to one of the questions? A great starting place is a question you had previously that you found a good, Biblical answer to! Don’t worry about knowing all the answers; trust the Holy Spirit to lead you and go find the answer to bring back to them!

Praying Scripture back to the One who wrote it in the first place is a great way to jump start our prayer-life! Pray this passage from Matthew 7:15-20 back to the Lord and
let His Spirit speak to you through it!

15 “Be on your guard against false prophets who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravaging wolves. 16 You’ll recognize them by their fruit. Are grapes gathered from thorn bushes or figs from thistles? 17 In the same way, every good tree produces good fruit, but a bad tree produces bad fruit. 18 A good tree can’t produce bad fruit; neither can a bad tree produce good fruit. 19 Every tree that doesn’t produce good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20 So you’ll recognize them by their fruit.

Prayer Journal
Father, we want to see Your face more clearly. Let us know Your word intimately and completely so when we’re met with false teachings, we can recognize them as the deceptions they are. As we try to discern someone’s belief, give us grace Lord, to not come across as self-righteous. Clothe us in your humility as we gently prod to find our friend’s thought process.  

Lord, I know I have untruths buried deep in my heart. Things I subconsciously believe about You or about myself. I would guess Lord, there are even some mistruths I believe about other people in my life. Remove those, Lord, and replace them with Truth from your Word.

Worship Through Community

Can we pray for you? Reach Out! We’d love to pray for and with you!
Send us an email at prayer@gracefullytruthful.com

Build community, be transparent, and encourage others:
Share how God spoke to you today!
Comment Here or in our Facebook Community Group!

Worship Through Prayer

Worship Through Music

Roads Day 3 All Roads Lead To Heaven?

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Read His Words Before Ours!

John 1:1-18
1 John 4:1-6
John 14:6-11

Roads, Day 3

“All roads lead to Heaven…”
Do they really?

And if they didn’t, would you like to know?

It’s easy to say, “Of course, I’d rather know the truth!”.
But what if truth challenges what we already think,
what we already believe, and how we already live?
What if truth is different than what we’ve grown up believing?
What if truth offends us?
Would we still rather know?

Jesus As God?
Several cults include belief in Jesus as part of their doctrine, which can make it seem like “all roads lead to Heaven.”
But dig a little deeper, and the definitions are entirely different.
Many world religions hold Jesus as a model, a good man, an exceedingly wise prophet, or even a form of a deity, but only one, Christianity, claims Jesus to actually BE fully God.

Jehovah’s Witnesses, like Mormons, believe that Jesus is a created being. Jehovah’s Witnesses hold that Jesus is actually the archangel, Michael, and was created before a physical world existed. He has god-like qualities, but is not equal with Jehovah God.

Could This View Be True?
According to the Bible, Jesus has existed eternally with God not just “as a god”,
but actually “God.” Period.
“In the beginning was the Word (Jesus). The Word (Jesus) was with God and the Word (Jesus) was God.” (John 1:1)
Even Jesus says these words about Himself,
“Truly, truly before Abraham was, I AM.” (John 8:58)
This wasn’t poor grammar on Jesus’ part, He was using the title God had first called Himself when He was speaking to Moses at the site of the burning bush.
God told Moses He was the “I AM”.  (Exodus 3:14)
Jesus was calling Himself God, and every Jewish ear around Him knew it full well, which is why they ultimately crucified Him. They believed He claimed Himself to be God, not just once, but repeatedly and consistently.

If Jesus Himself said He was God all throughout the New Testament (John 10:30, Hebrews 1:3), was prophesied as the coming Messiah in the Old Testament (Isaiah 43:11 with Titus 2:13), and widely preached about as the Creator God, fully equal with God the Father as the Church became established, (Colossians 1:15-20, Isaiah 6:1-5 with John 12:41) who are we to claim differently?

Jesus ~ Spirit? Body? Both?
Jehovah’s Witnesses believe that Jesus’ body and spirit were separate entities. The spirit part was good, but the physical body part was weakened because of His humanity. They claim that when Jesus was crucified, it was only His spirit that was resurrected because He couldn’t “take back” His fleshly body as it had been destroyed by sin in the sacrifice.

Could This View Be True?
The Bible is exceedingly clear about Jesus’ humanity and His deity, both before and after His resurrection. When Jesus appeared to the disciples in the upper room, He showed them his hands and feet, and invited Thomas to put his hand inside the wound where Jesus had taken a spear to His side. (John 20:27) Jesus also countered the idea that He was only “resurrected spirit” by directly saying of His resurrected body, “A spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see I have.” (Luke 24:39)

Truly, for Jesus’ sacrifice to be acceptable on our behalf, He needed to be fully human and fully God. Human, so He could live our human life, and God, so He could do so blamelessly, for no human being could attain to God’s righteous holiness.

A Triune God?
Jehovah’s Witnesses believe the Holy Spirit to be an impersonal “good force”, much like the depiction in Star Wars. He is not a person, not even a Being, and certainly not a deity.

Could This View Be True?
Biblically? Most definitely not.
The Holy Spirit is noted in Scripture as having the three attributes of a personal Being:
A mind (Romans 8:27), emotions (Ephesians 4:30), and a will (1 Corinthians 12:11).

The Holy Spirit is also recorded in Scripture as doing actions only attributed to sanctioned, reasoning beings. The Holy Spirit teaches (John 14:26), testifies (John 15:26), commissions (Acts 13:4), gives commands (Acts 8:29), and intercedes (Romans 8:26).
All with authority, and all through the union of oneship found in the relationship of the godhead as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. (John 16:12-15)

Also of significance in Scripture, is how often all 3 distinct persons of the godhead are mentioned together with equal rights and authority. Below is just one example:
“Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” (Matthew 28:19)

Saved ~ Some? None? All?
Jehovah’s Witnesses hold firmly to their belief that two “classes” of people are given salvation. First, the “Anointed Class” of 144,000 who will live and reign with Christ in Heaven. Second, the “Other Sheep” who will be relegated to earth, although it will be a “paradise”. Jehovah Witnesses believe that the full benefits of salvation are not for everyone.

The “how” one can be given salvation according to a Jehovah’s Witness isn’t “given” at all, it’s “earned” by obedience to the Jehovah’s Witnesses’ laws and rules, association with their organization, as well as faith in Jesus.

Could This View Be True?
Jesus answers like this:
“I am the way, the truth, and the life, no one comes to the Father except through me.” (John 14:6) No extras, no additional pathways, no “all roads lead to Heaven”, just Jesus.

Paul states Christ’s truth like this:
“For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing;
it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.” (Ephesians 2:8-9)
No works, no good deeds, no religious association, just the radical grace of a God who pursues and loves us.

The truth?
Jesus, His fullness, His deity, His humanity, His righteous sacrifice on our behalf.
Plus Nothing.
Equals Everything.

Salvation is for all peoples equally. (Titus 2:11)
Given through God’s gracious mercy.
That we might live fully free because of His unchangeable, unshakeable truth.

If you, dear one, are reading this across the screen from me as a follower of the Jehovah’s Witnesses belief system, I invite you to sit and consider these words today. Not because they are cleverly crafted or tied with a pretty bow, but because they are true.
All on their own, without one bit of help from me, because they are breathed by the very Spirit of the Living God.

Be willing to wrestle, just for a bit, with “what if….”
What if Christianity is true?
What if I’m hinging my eternity on a lie?
Come, kick the tires of Christianity.
Come, meet my Jesus, the Jesus of the Bible, the Jesus who is fully God, fully man, fully able to save, and find real life!

The thing about truth is that it remains true regardless of whether we accept it or not.
Wouldn’t you rather hang eternity on something you can know for sure?

“If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth,
and the truth will set you free!” (John 8:31-32)

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Thanks for joining us today as we journeyed into Roads Week One! Don’t miss out on the discussion below – we’d love to hear your thoughts!

Looking for other journeys from this theme?
Here’s a link to all past studies in Roads!