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Kneel Day 7 On Our Behalf: 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 On Our Behalf!

The Questions

1) What is the “new and living way” inaugurated by Jesus? (verse 20)

2) How are our hearts sprinkled clean and our bodies washed in pure water? (verse 22)

3) How do we hold onto the confession of our hope without wavering? (verse 23)

Hebrews 10:19-23

Therefore, brothers and sisters, since we have boldness to enter the sanctuary through the blood of Jesus— 20 he has inaugurated for us a new and living way through the curtain (that is, through his flesh)— 21 and since we have a great high priest over the house of God, 22 let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed in pure water. 23 Let us hold on to the confession of our hope without wavering, since he who promised is faithful.

Original Intent

1) What is the “new and living way” inaugurated by Jesus? (verse 20)
In Hebrews 10:20, we are told Jesus’ blood has made a new and living way to enter the sanctuary of God. Before Jesus’ death on the cross, the high priest sacrificed an innocent animal every year to atone for the sins of God’s people. (Leviticus 16) Because of Jesus, people have a “new and living way” to access the Father. When the sinless Savior took our sin upon Himself, He redeemed our lives and reconciled all who believe in Him back to God. We are no longer separated from God but can come boldly to His throne of grace (Hebrews 4:16) through the “new and living way” of Jesus. Andrew Murray suggests “Christ’s death was something entirely and essentially new, and so also His resurrection life; a life out of death, such as never had been known before. This new death and new life constitute the new and living way, the new way of living in which we draw nigh to God.” The reason Jesus came to earth and sacrificed His life was so we could live an abundant life (John 10:10) in communion with God (1 Corinthians 1:9). His death made a way for us to draw near to our righteous God without the hindrance of our sin. As David Guzik points out, “Now under the New Covenant we have access because of the perfect sacrifice of the sinless Son of God, and it is as if the living, resurrected Jesus ushers us into the throne room of God.” We can remain in God, and He remains in us (John 15:4-8), because Christ’s work on the cross brings us into relationship with God.

2) How are our hearts sprinkled clean and our bodies washed in pure water? (verse 22)
In the Old Testament, priests sacrificed an animal and sprinkled its blood on the altar to signify cleansing and payment for sin. They would also wash themselves, signifying holiness, before wearing tabernacle garments to make the sacrifice. (Leviticus 16:4) Kenneth Wuest explains how the “high priest would sprinkle the blood of the sacrificial animal seven times on the ground as he approached the mercy seat in the Holy of Holies.” (Leviticus 16:14) The author of Hebrews references this in writing, “Let us draw near [to God] with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed in pure water.” (Hebrews 10:22) It is Jesus, our High Priest (Hebrews 4:14), who cleanses us from sin through the blood sacrifice He made for us at the cross. We are sprinkled clean and washed pure by His blood. Some, like David Guzik, suggest this passage also references water baptism. “With the perfect cleansing available to us, described in terms of promises of the New Covenant in the Hebrew Scriptures (hearts sprinkled) and the Christian practice of baptism (bodies washed), we can draw near to God in a way never available to someone under the Old Covenant.” Jesus’ sacrifice made a way for us to have a vibrant relationship with the living God! Andrew Murray asserts, “The blood [of Christ] has put away the thought of sin from God; He remembers it no more forever. The blood puts away the thought of sin in me too, taking away the evil conscience that condemns me.” What an incredible reality, that we can commune with the Holy God who frees our conscience from evil and sprinkles our hearts clean, free of condemnation! (Romans 8:1)

3) How do we hold onto the confession of our hope without wavering? (verse 23)
The author of Hebrews 10:23 admonishes readers to “hold on to the confession of our hope without wavering, since he who promised is faithful.” According to Chuck Swindoll, this letter was written to “Jewish Christians in Rome, who were struggling under Nero’s persecution and were considering moving back toward the Mosaic Law. The writer to the Hebrews showed these Jewish Christian believers that, though they were faced with suffering, they were indeed following a better way . . . and they should persevere.” It can be hard to stay committed to biblical beliefs when doing so incurs mistreatment from others. It can be easy to waver, or even fall away, from truth when following Christ becomes difficult. This verse tells us that, because God is faithful and keeps His promises, we should hang on with hope without faltering. R.C. Sproul explains, “The faithfulness of His Word and His activity through history give us the basis for our hope and confidence that God will do all that He promises. Because of this faithfulness, we too must be faithful to Him.” God’s Word tells us all Christians will face persecution (2 Timothy 3:12), but the hope we are holding onto in the promises and Person of Jesus is worth any persecution we face for following Jesus. In fact, the Bible calls those who are persecuted blessed for the kingdom of heaven is theirs. (Matthew 5:10) God grants us the grace (John 1:16) to be faithful to Him as He shows faithfulness to us in all situations.

Everyday Application

1) What is the “new and living way” inaugurated by Jesus? (verse 20)
Recently at church, our fancy printer for checking kids into class wasn’t working, so I told parents we were “kickin’ it old school” using ink pens and stickers instead of technology. Of course, “old school” is relative; when I was a child, kids were simply dropped off without official security measures. Everybody knew everybody else and the street where they lived. The “new system”, even with a downgrade to markers and stickers, was still better than the “old system” I’d grown up under. In relating with God, Jesus has given us a “new system” described in Hebrews 10:20 as “the new and living way” which is immeasurably better than the old system. Instead of relying on a priest to temporarily atone for our sins through animal sacrifice, we can freely access God because Jesus took our sins upon Himself once and for all. (1 Peter 2:24) We don’t need to worry about not measuring up, or working to atone for the impossible debt our sins have incurred, because Jesus paid the debt-price (1 Corinthians 6:20) to cleanse us from “all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9). Dan Cruver describes what it’s like for us to “enter the sanctuary through the blood of Jesus” (Hebrews 10:19) when he writes, “Our confidence to enter is not based upon what we’ve done or not done but upon what Christ has done through the shedding of His own blood. Our confidence is based upon the work of Christ.” There is much freedom in knowing my salvation does not rely on what I do or fail to do. My righteousness before God is because of Jesus’ righteousness; all I need to do is accept His love and mercy made available through the “new and living way”! (John 3:16)

2) How are our hearts sprinkled clean and our bodies washed in pure water? (verse 22)
I was saved from my sin-debt at age 5, so the idea of being made clean and whole didn’t resonate with me as deeply then as it does now. Since then, I’ve grown in understanding of my sin, its offensiveness to the Holy God, and my deep need for a Saving God to cleanse me. There are numerous sermons, songs, books and movies describing the blood of Jesus washing us because it’s a life-altering experience. Hillsong United’s song, Clean, declares, “The highest Name has set me free/Because of Jesus My heart is clean.” In her song, “Clean,” Natalie Grant sings, “There’s nothing too dirty/that you can’t make worthy/You wash me in mercy/I am clean/ Washed in the blood of your sacrifice/Your blood flowed red and made me white/My dirty rags are purified/I am clean.” When your life has been tinged with the guilt and shame of sin, being delivered from the heaviness of condemnation is whole-life-liberating. Only the blood of Jesus, shed for us, cleanses us from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:7) and frees us from sin and death (Romans 8:2). According to author Liz Curtis Higgs, “God doesn’t just clean us up, fix us up, straighten us up. He recreates us in the image of His Son. He starts from scratch. He makes us new.” (2 Corinthians 5:17) In Christ, we become “a new being” (Good News Bible), “a new person” (New Living Translation), “a new creature altogether” (Amplified Bible), and have “a fresh start” (The Message Paraphrase).” This freedom is available to all who choose to turn from their sin and trust Christ to pay their sin-debt! Being made new, clean and free, stirs us to share this Good News with everyone!

3) How do we hold onto the confession of our hope without wavering? (verse 23)
I’ve always been inspired by Christians whose lives demonstrate a life that “hold(s) on to the confession of our hope without wavering, since He who promised is faithful.” Corrie Ten Boom was a Christian Dutch woman who hid Jews from the Nazis in the Netherlands during World War II. “In concert with her religious beliefs, her family experience, and the Dutch resistance. Her defiance led to imprisonment, internment in a concentration camp, and loss of family members who died from maltreatment while in German custody” (encyclopedia.ushmm.org) Though she and those she loved suffered much, she was still able to say, “In darkness God’s truth shines most clear”. (Corrie Ten Boom) She held onto the unwavering hope she had in Christ and the truths of the Scriptures in her darkest hours, then emerged to share that hope with others around the world. There are stories from all over the globe like this one, of people holding fast to Jesus in the face of intense struggle. The recent coup in Myanmar left people fleeing into the jungles for survival, but hope persists for those displaced Christians. Lindy Lowry reports, “Like so many situations where God’s people are pressed on every side (2 Corinthians 4:8,) faith continues to survive in persecution. Our local partners [in Myanmar] report that increasing numbers of people are turning to Jesus for their hope.” In Nigeria, Boko Haram has harassed Christians who refuse to convert to Islam, yet “many Nigerian Christians forgive their persecutors, and some even share the gospel with militants” (persecution.com) Stories like these remind me that holding on to my hope in Christ without wavering is important because it keeps me connected to God’s promises and it encourages others who may be struggling.

What do YOU think?! Share Here!
Missing the connection to our other Journey Study?
Catch up with On Our Behalf!

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 Kneel 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.

Alive Day 7 Adopted: 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 Adopted!

The Questions

1) What is the spirit of slavery? (verse 15)

2) What is the Spirit of adoption? (verse 15)

3) What does it mean to suffer with Christ? (verse 17)

Romans 8:14-17

14 For all those led by God’s Spirit are God’s sons. 15 For you did not receive a spirit of slavery to fall back into fear. Instead, you received the Spirit of adoption, by whom we cry out, “Abba, Father!” 16 The Spirit himself testifies together with our spirit that we are God’s children, 17 and if children, also heirs—heirs of God and coheirs with Christ—if indeed we suffer with him so that we may also be glorified with him.

Original Intent

1) What is the spirit of slavery? (verse 15)
Slavery is a concept Paul’s readers would have known and understood as it was commonplace in their everyday lives from household slaves to business slaves. In Acts 16, Luke records the story of Paul’s interaction with a slave girl, setting her free from demons. (Acts 16:16-24) Paul’s Roman audience, a mix of both Jews and Gentiles, knew the history of Jews enslaved in Egypt for 400 years as told in the Torah, which is a Jewish holy text, comprising the first 5 books of what we know as the “Old Testament” in our Bibles. You can read of Jewish slavery in the book of Exodus. Slavery also existed in the Old Testament when a poor person would sell themselves to another person in order to pay a debt they owed. (Leviticus 25:39) However, God included clear commands in Leviticus instructing slave owners not to force these slaves into labor, but instead to view them as hired workers who would be released in the Year of Jubilee. (Leviticus 25:40-41) Paul is using this base knowledge with his audience to explain their condition as sinners. They were slaves of the debt they owed God because of their sin against Him.

2) What is the Spirit of adoption? (verse 15)
In Roman culture, an adopted person lost all rights in his old family and gained all the rights of a legitimate child in his new family. He became a full heir to his new father’s estate, while forfeiting all ties to his past. Paul uses this imagery to convey what happens spiritually when an individual accepts Jesus’ substitutionary sacrifice on the cross, which paid the debt of all sin. (1 John 2:2) This person has lost all ties, ownership, rights, and connection to the previous “family”, ruled by Sin and Death, they become adopted by God as members of His family. Through Jesus, God as Father, gives the person who fully surrenders themself to Him, the “right to become a child of God”. (John 1:12) This is the only way to be accepted by God and be given an inheritance of eternal life instead of the rightfully earned condemnation of eternal separation from Him. (John 14:6, Ephesians 1:3-12) Children of God no longer belong to the world and its slavery to sin, instead they are welcomed in to God’s family as co-heirs with Christ, the Son. (verse 17)

3) What does it mean to suffer with Christ? (verse 17)
Roman crucifixion was one of the worst forms of death, if not the worst form of punitive punishment, ever invented. It was grotesquely brutal and Paul’s audience knew it full well. Likely, some in his audience had even witnessed it firsthand or had heard the horrendous cries of anguish accompanying such a torturous death. The prophet Isaiah conveys the suffering of Jesus’ horrible death in Isaiah 52:13-53:12, hundreds of years before crucifixion was even invented by the Romans. The recipients of Paul’s letter also knew there was a price for choosing to follow Christ, meaning many of these early believers would face persecution or death for their faith. Paul knew the persecution was growing more intense for the Church and he wrote to remind the believers that the price of following Jesus was known, expected, and shared among all true followers of Christ, but that reward was coming! (Luke 14:26-27, verse 18) They must be willing to suffer with Christ as part of their adoption. “…if children, also heirs—heirs of God and coheirs with Christ—if indeed we suffer with Him so that we may also be glorified with Him.” (verse 17)
However, there is the comfort in knowing nothing they would endure would compare to the suffering of Jesus as He bore the punishment for our sin. (1 Peter 2:24) Praise God, no believer will ever be alone after trusting Christ for salvation for God will always be present through the Holy Spirit!

Everyday Application

1) What is the spirit of slavery? (verse 15)
The type of slavery Paul referenced in this passage was not slavery we think of in western culture today. It was selling yourself as a hired hand to pay a debt, knowing you would one day be released, free of your debt, in the Year of Jubilee, which God had instituted. God outlined specifically how slaves were to be treated in Leviticus 25. Paul uses the term “spirit of slavery” to convey our position before the God of Justice without the atoning sacrifice of Jesus. We are sinners bound to the debt we owe as sinners, which is death. (Romans 6:23) Each one of us rightfully deserves death and punishment for our sin and it’s fundamentally imperative we do not forget what we deserve.

2) What is the Spirit of adoption? (verse 15)
The day we accept Jesus’ sacrifice for our sin we become co-heirs with Christ (verse 17). We are no longer bound by our sin but instead welcomed into God’s family. The ownership chains of sin and slavery have been removed, we are officially declared “dead to sin”. (Romans 6:11) He becomes our Abba, meaning Father, and, just as an ancient Roman son would become an heir to their father’s estate, so we become an heir to our Father’s inheritance. We are fully adopted into the family of God, our penalty of death is paid through Jesus’ death for us and we are given the gift of the Holy Spirit to live within us, promising us our final inheritance is yet to come in eternity with our Father. (Ephesians 1:13-14) We are given the gift of a restored relationship with our Father, that was once broken because of our own sinfulness!

3) What does it mean to suffer with Christ? (verse 17)
In modern western culture, the concept of suffering and persecution as a believer for their faith is foreign. However, believers around the world are currently persecuted for their faith in Jesus, many in torturous ways or through death. If the Lord has currently blessed your life, keeping you from facing the same type of persecution other brothers and sisters in the faith face, I urge you to please use the freedom you’ve been given to share Christ! Regardless of where we live, or what the cost of following Jesus looks like for us specifically, we must not forget we are all called to a higher standard as a child of God. We are to be set apart from the world, which will inevitably make us “stick out”, often bringing on forms of suffering. Paul calls his readers not to be conformed to the world’s pattern of sin, but instead to be transformed by His Spirit (Romans 12:2); this leads to suffering. (John 15:18-21) We are called to love and serve like Jesus and this will come at a cost. The world hated Jesus, and it will hate all who follow Him as well. Jesus Himself calls believers to pick up their cross (Matthew 16:24-28), deny self, and follow Him. Each of us will pay a different price for our faith in Jesus, but we can be sure following Him won’t be suffering free. However, we can cling to the truths Paul wrote of to encourage the early believers. Jesus experienced worse than we can ever imagine, we are never alone, and the final battle for our souls has already been won. We can say with strength as the psalmist did, “The Lord is for me; I will not be afraid. What can a mere mortal do to me?” (Psalm 118:6) We are able to endure whatever lies before us because of the One who has gone before us!

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

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 Alive 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.

Sketched IX Day 3 A New Work

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Read His Words Before Ours!

Luke 5:1-11
Matthew 17:1-13
Isaiah 42:1-4
Galatians 2:18-21

Sketched IX, Day 3

It’s been nearly a week since Jesus taught us in detail about the cost of following Him, but the words still roll in my head, keeping me awake at night and popping up unbidden as we move through crowds ministering to them.

“Take up your cross and follow Me.” (Mark 8:34)

Death.
That’s all I can think about.

A cross signifies one thing, cruel death.
There is no way to escape torture when a cross is involved.
None.

Cross victims press against nail-pierced feet to slide their raw back upwards against shredded wood attempting to catch a breath as their wrists are nailed on either side, outstretched in agony. Eventually, exhaustion overtakes the condemned man and their futile exercise for oxygen is over, resulting in suffocation. It’s cruel, but it is the price to pay for those who dare break Roman law. I’ve seen it before, the crucifixion parade outside the city as thieves and murderers are led away for gruesome justice. It’s bloody and agonizing, the screams of men as naked flesh is grotesquely pierced, but it is effective in making its point: don’t run against Rome.

I shook my head again, attempting to clear the horrific scenes playing out in my mind. I just don’t understand! Why did Jesus tie these two ideas together, following Him and taking up a cross. It makes no sense! To follow, I must be alive. So, why must I also die? And not simply die, but die a cruel death.

Why does following Him cost so much?!

The turmoil inside me continues churning, never lessening, and I grab a fistful of olive branches in my frustration as I take one more step forward up the narrow, well-worn path on the side of Mount Tabor.

“Hey! Come on, Peter!” James’ indignant voice complains behind me as the olive branch swipes his face. “What’s wrong with you lately, man?”

I glance back, ruefully apologizing for the errant branch thrashing. Does James understand? I lift my eyes forward to catch John following closely to Jesus on the path ahead; the two are conversing, and then I hear John’s laughter ripple out. I grin in spite of my war inside, as John’s laughter invites everyone into its embrace. I can’t stop myself from wondering, does John understand? I furrow my brow and increase my pace, ignoring James’ question. Chest heaving and brow sweating, I catch up to John and Jesus at Tabor’s summit. A quip about my meaty muscles weighing me down compared to John’s lean, young frame is on my lips, but it dies instantly as I follow John’s aghast gaze.

Jesus! Jesus! He’s…

Suddenly, the brilliance of light envelopes everything in sight. The radiance is utterly beyond description as Jesus’ face shines like He swallowed the sun, His ordinary garments now aglow with uncanny light. James gasps and I follow his finger, seeing the unbelievable!

Moses and Elijah are here as well! I may not have everything figured out, but as Moses representing Law and Elijah representing Prophets stand here with Jesus, it’s all becoming clear! They are all the same! Law, Prophet, and Jesus!

Bursting with my revelation, I run unhindered towards the three men bathed in light. “Jesus! Jesus!” I shout. “Lord! It’s so good for us to be here! I’ve got it figured out! We will build three tents for you all and honor you all equally!” (Matthew 17:3-4, paraphrase)

Instantly, a thick, heavy cloud overshadows all of us, striking deep fear into our hearts. Moses and Elijah vanish. Terror-stricken, James, John, and myself are rendered immovable and speechless as a voice boomed, “This is my Son, the Chosen One, listen to Him.” (Luke 9:35)

Cowering and mute, the three of us fall face down in the heart-stopping glory of Yahweh’s voice. Then, as suddenly as it appeared, the cloud of glory vanished, replaced by natural Judean sunlight that makes me sweat again. Stuttering as I examine the common dirt clinging to Jesus’ feet and toenails before me, I realize I haven’t been breathing and gulp in air as Jesus reaches down to touch my shoulder. His voice, astounding in its common, ordinary sound, tenderly speaks, “Get up; don’t be afraid.” (Matthew 17:7)

With lightning-fast clarity, Jesus’ words prompt a memory of the very first time I followed Him. He had looked at me then too, my nets bursting with an enormous catch of fish flopping everywhere. Crowds had gathered and men were agape at the plunder I’d caught, but Jesus had His eyes fixed on mine, “Don’t be afraid. From now on you will be catching people.” (Luke 5:10)
And so my following began.

Death.
Don’t be afraid.
Follow.

Though it would cost me everything, even my very life and all the pleasures and materials I had once loved, I was to crucify those daily, torturously even, and be left in the wake of the life of Yahweh so I could follow Him freely, without any hindrance.

He knew.
He knew of my internal battle, and He was making me new in the midst of it.
He was showing me Who He was, as God of all.

For Him, no, in Him, I will crucify my old self, and live to follow Him daily in the newness of abundant life. Jesus, the Great I Am, was worth it.
He is the Beloved Son, the Only One worthy of my life.

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A Note About Sketched
In this series, we are stepping into the shoes of various characters throughout history. Some are biblical, some are well-known in modern day times, and some are people our writers know personally. We do our best to research the culture and times surrounding these individuals to give an accurate representation of their first-person perspectives on life and the world, but we can’t be 100% accurate. “Sketched” is our best interpretation of how these characters view(ed) God, themselves, and the world around them. Our hope is that by stepping into their everyday, we will see our own lives a little differently!
Enjoy!
And keep watching for Sketched Themes to pop up throughout the year!

Join the GT Community and share your thoughts!

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 Sketched IX 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 Sketched IX!

Nations Day 2 Out Of Darkness: 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 Out Of Darkness!

The Questions

1) Follow, deny, and take up sound rigorous. What do they mean in real life? (verse 23)

2) What does it mean to lose one’s life? What is the cost involved? (verse 24)

3) Is being ashamed of Jesus really possible? (verse 26)

Luke 9:23-26

23 Then He said to them all, “If anyone wants to follow after Me, let him deny himself, take up his cross daily, and follow Me. 24 For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life because of Me will save it. 25 For what does it benefit someone if he gains the whole world, and yet loses or forfeits himself? 26 For whoever is ashamed of Me and my words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when He comes in His glory and that of the Father and the holy angels.

Original Intent

1) Follow, deny, and take up sound rigorous. What do they mean in real life? (verse 23)
Jesus intended to be very clear in His statements by using the imagery of a cross as He spoke to those gathered around Him. All who wanted to follow Him must understand it involved denying one’s self and daily taking up their cross. To Jesus’ first audience, “cross” wasn’t a lovely symbol to hang around your neck or a decoration for your wall space. Rather, “cross” instantly brought to mind the cruelest form of death and torture known at the time. To “take up a cross” meant death. To take it up “daily” was altogether confusing to Jesus’ listeners as Christ Himself had not yet been crucified on a cross. However, one day, these listeners would look back after Jesus had died and been resurrected. Then they would understand a fuller picture of His words. Jesus meant for us to die to our sinful, natural selves and daily surrender to the new work of His Holy Spirit within us. “If you live according to the flesh, you are going to die. But if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.” (Romans 8:13) Christ wanted His listeners to understand that true disciples were committing to making a radical decision to deny themselves and then live this out daily. Jesus demonstrated this when He literally took up a physical cross in complete surrendered obedience to the Father’s will. “Yet the Lord was pleased to crush Him severely.” (Isaiah 53:10) There was no self-focus in Jesus’ willful act of surrender, and His disciples were instructed to live out their daily surrender to Him in the same way. Bible scholar, W. Hendricksen, notes that Jesus made His clear statements to an audience of believers and non-believers. Whether His listeners chose to follow Him as disciples or not, their eternity was still at stake.

2) What does it mean to lose one’s life? What is the cost involved? (verse 24)
No one listening to Jesus that day was interested in “losing their life”, just as much as none of us reading this today would like to sign up to “lose”. This is exactly why Jesus chose such extreme language to communicate the all-important decision of following Him. He insisted that if anyone truly wants to save their life and win, they must surrender it to Him. Only by trying to hold onto their lives and their way would they actually end up losing everything. In Luke 12:16-21, Jesus told a story of a man who felt he was truly “winning at life” by piling up his material goods and pleasurable experiences. This man felt he had a long life ahead to enjoy everything, but God came to him and said, “You fool! This very night your life is demanded of you. And the things you have prepared—whose will they be?” (Luke 12:20) The man’s selfish way of living life cost him everything in the end, even his eternity with God. Jesus pointed His listening audience toward real, lasting hope when He said, “but whoever loses his life because of Me will save it.” (verse 24, emphasis mine) The process of losing our life to Christ is costly and painful as our fleshly, sinful desires are crucified. But as the Lord refines us, and teaches us to love Him first and most, we find ourselves whole, healed, and truly free! In surrender, we will ultimately experience great joy for His peace is greater than any sinful thing we give up. The sweetness of living life with the Holy Spirit working within us far outweighs any sin we think is better than Him.

3) Is being ashamed of Jesus really possible? (verse 26)
For a time during Jesus’ earthly ministry, it was popular to follow Him. He drew large crowds, everyone knew Him, and His miracles were known far and wide across the region. Everyone was talking about this miracle working prophet. But, Jesus’ mission wasn’t focused on fame and popularity. He regularly preached difficult messages and confronted people in their sin, offering them a chance to come into the Light, to be known and loved, and walk in newness of a surrendered life. Following Jesus when it was popular was easy. Following Him when He claimed to be God Himself and was facing death was quite another. Even Jesus’ disciples all fled from Him, and Peter denied Him, when crucifixion became imminent. (Matthew 26:56, Luke 22:54-62) When Jesus spoke of being “ashamed” of Him, He intended His audience to understand that if they were to continue in their choice not to follow Him, this equaled being ashamed of Him and His teachings of truth. To not follow Him means to be ashamed of Him. It is to be so proud of one’s ownership of their life that they refuse to live in surrender to Him or His words. At His return, Christ will justly condemn and reject those who rejected Him. The importance of how we respond to Jesus’ call to follow Him cannot be underestimated! Will we choose to live for ourselves on our own strength, or will we daily choose His ways and His path? Our world is very topsy-turvy, and many consider it easier to rebuff Jesus and His message so as to continue living for self. In denying ourselves and following Jesus, we will be rejecting the pattern of this world, which means we can expect ostracism, conflict and social dishonor. Yet, we remain confident that Christ will not be ashamed, or reject, us in the end because we have chosen to surrender to Him.

Everyday Application

1) Follow, deny, and take up sound rigorous. What do they mean in real life? (verse 23)
To follow means to attach ourselves to Jesus as His disciple, it requires denying our sin nature and remembering it has been crucified with Christ. “I have been crucified with Christ, and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.” (Galatians 2:20) We are to live continually crucified of all sinful patterns of life that do not harmonize with God and His ways of love. (2 Corinthians 10:5-6) Living lives of surrendered following and self-denial as we take up the cross of Jesus, means that, regardless of what we encounter, we are to trust Christ and His ways over our own. We are to choose His commands for life as we worship Him for His great gift of salvation to us. (Ephesians 4:32-5:2) Crucifying our old nature with Christ means surrendering our bent to rely on ourselves, our abilities, and our logic. It’s the attitude of “I can do this, and I don’t need anyone”. Boy, oh boy, does this ever hit home in my own life! God is gracious by letting me fail on my own, then bringing me back to the reality that I can only follow Him when I surrender my ways to His. It’s impossible to follow Jesus without the power of Christ at work in me! We are to give ourselves away for the gospel! I pray my legacy for my children, grandchildren, and others would be my surrender to Christ so He could amplify His strength in my life. (2 Corinthians 12:9) Jesus is worth surrendering everything for! In surrender to a loving God, we don’t need to fear for His perfect love will never leave us! (1 John 4:18, Matthew 28:20)

2) What does it mean to lose one’s life? What is the cost involved? (verse 24)
Throughout Jesus’ ministry, He had a slogan, if you will, “whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life because of Me will save it.” This was the theme of the messages He preached as He ventured from city to city. The crux of His message then is just as important for us now. Jesus is not interested in “casual Christians”. Only those who have surrendered their lives to Jesus in full are genuine. Of course, because we still love our old sin nature, and we forget that Jesus died for us, even true Christians still sin. But Christ stands ready to forgive! “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:9) Even this returning to Jesus in humble repentance isn’t possible without His Spirit at work within those who have given themselves to Christ. True followers are marked by God’s Spirit at work in them as they surrender daily to His will. Living for ourselves, following our agendas and desires, refusing to deny our sin nature, and choosing not to lovingly serve others through Christ’s power is to live in opposition to God. None who follow this pattern of life can claim to also follow Jesus. “If we say, “We have fellowship with Him (God),” and yet we walk in darkness, we are lying and are not practicing the truth.” (1 John 1:6) We must not miss the seriousness of this distinction! Living separate from God is dangerous! If we die in our sinful state, we will earn eternity apart from God; this equals pain, brokenness, and shattering loss for ALL eternity! The cost of surrender may feel high and painful, but the price tag that comes with an eternity separated from Him isn’t even worth comparing!

3) Is being ashamed of Jesus really possible? (verse 26)
When we choose not to be ashamed of Jesus by surrendering our lives to Him, we are free to anchor our lives in steadfast truth. We no longer need to be carried away by every wind of doctrine or whim of peer pressure around us. As we continue living daily in surrender to God’s Spirit within us, the Lord leads us to give our lives away for Him. One mark of knowing we do indeed belong to Jesus and haven’t rejected Him is the desire to boldly tell others of the forgiveness found in Christ. Sharing about God’s redemption in our lives can be scary, but when we consider that someone’s life for eternity hangs in the balance, we can choose to courageously explain how Jesus gave Himself for all people. Remember, Jesus taught this passage to an audience of both followers and those who didn’t believe. The consequence for choosing to be “ashamed” of God’s gracious gift of salvation is an eternity separated from Him! Jesus wanted all people to know this truth, which is why He has commissioned His followers to go and tell His good news! How often in our daily lives do we shrug off Jesus by avoiding telling someone about Him because we are afraid or unsure? His forgiveness and grace are available to us when we don’t take every opportunity given to us to share the hope of Jesus, but these missed chances should strongly encourage us to share Hope all the more often with others! The Lord is intentional in giving us opportunities to share about Him with others. Pray fervently for who the Lord wants you to share the Gospel with! Be of good courage, God is building His kingdom through His followers! Praise God for His desire that all people come to Him! (2 Peter 3:9)

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2) Read it, and the verses around it,
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3) Write down your questions
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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)
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Fervent Day 11 Suffering Of One

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Read His Words Before Ours!

2 Corinthians 1:3-7
Romans 15:30-33
2 Corinthians 12:6-10
2 Thessalonians 3:1-5

Fervent, Day 11

I’ve never really considered myself to have suffered for Jesus.

Unfriended on social media?
Losing a real, face-to-face, personal friendship?
Labeled as the “Jesus girl” or the “church girl”?
On the receiving end of snarky comments, text messages, and emails?

Yes, to all of these.

Beaten for proclaiming Christ?
The lives of my children threatened for my refusal to renounce Jesus?
Imprisoned for relentlessly sharing the gospel?

Never, not once. Not even a hint.

Occasionally, I will remember to pray for the “persecuted church,” even pray fervently with tears and renewed vigor, but I shamefacedly admit to generally feeling fairly disconnected from “them.”

Then, one summer I read a book that marked me for life.
Some things you simply cannot un-read.

Nik Ripken, using a pseudonym to protect his identity and countless other believers whose stories he tells, shared many unforgettable accounts in his book The Insanity of God. Years later, Stoyan’s testimony continues to speak volumes to me.

Stoyan had been imprisoned for his faith, and as Nik thanked him for sharing his story, Stoyan made a remarkable statement:
“I thank God and I take great joy in knowing that I was suffering in prison in my country,
so that you, Nik, could be free to share Jesus in Kentucky.”

My heart plummeted as I read his words, and simultaneously put up defenses.
How could Stoyan consider it a trade-off for himself to be chained so that I can be free?

We aren’t connected!
Me, in midwestern United States, free to drink Starbucks, parade around Target at my leisure, share Jesus when, or if, I want, walk in my church doors whenever I please (or don’t please) and belt praise music whenever I feel (or don’t feel) the urge.
Stoyan and I are not connected.
How could we be so intertwined that I should feel a debt to him and his persecution?

A debt so heavy I should feel all the more urged to share Jesus, as if on his behalf?

My response was similar to Nik’s…
“Those words pierced my soul. I looked Stoyan straight in the eyes. ‘Oh, no!’ I protested. ‘No! You are not going to do that! You are NOT going to put that on me. That is a debt so large that I can never repay you!”

I pray Stoyan’s response will mark your heart like it has mine.

“Stoyan stared right back at me and said, ‘Son, that’s the debt of the cross!’
He leaned forward and poked me in the chest with his finger as he continued,
‘Don’t you steal my joy! I took great joy that I was suffering in my country,
so that you could be free to witness in your country.’

Then he raised his voice in a prophet-like challenge that I knew would live with me forever: ‘Don’t ever give up in freedom what we would never give up in persecution! That is our witness to the power of the resurrection of Jesus Christ!””

“Don’t ever give up in freedom what we would never give up in persecution.”

Sisters, I confess I have done exactly this.
I have indeed “given up” sharing the hope I and Stoyan both possess because, well, I have other things to do, you know? All the Target runs, the coffee, the groceries, the running of kids to all the places, the laundry, oh please the laundry…
Besides, what if I push someone away in my passion to share Jesus?
What if I offend someone?
What if they ask me a question I can’t answer?

When I am afraid of “awkward”. . .
I plead for the Holy Spirit to remind me of Stoyan’s call to
“never give up (my witness of Jesus) in freedom what he wouldn’t give up in persecution.”

The apostle Paul was familiar with persecution.
He was also familiar with the comforts of life.
He knew hunger, and he had lived in plenty.

He knew years of education and finery, and had also felt the cuts of whips, the weight of rocks as he was stoned, and emotional distress accompanying oppression.

His prayers on suffering in the church have little to do with being removed from it, but rather, persistence to share Jesus in suffering, together with other believers.

“… brothers and sisters, pray for us that the word of the Lord may spread rapidly and be honored, (…) and that we may be delivered from wicked and evil people…”
(2 Thessalonians 3:1-2, emphasis mine)

“I appeal to you, brothers and sisters, through our Lord Jesus Christ and through the love of the Spirit, to strive together with me in prayers to God on my behalf. Pray that I may be rescued from the unbelievers in Judea, that my ministry to Jerusalem may be acceptable to the saints…” (Romans 15:30-31, emphasis mine)

Stoyan, Paul, Nik, myself, and you, dear sister Christ-follower, wherever you are living in the world, are all connected.

There is no “persecuted church” and “free church.”
We.
Are.
Church.
Together in One Body, Christ’s.

Every single believer carries the weight of the same gospel, purchased by the same blood, from the same God and Savior of us all. May we cease to be guilty of “giving up in freedom what our brothers and sisters refuse to give up in persecution.”

Stoyan is right to expect the free-by-law believers, to boldly share Jesus, precisely because he is suffering for the same gospel.

We are bound together.
All suffering together.
All preaching Christ together.
All interceding for one another together.

Unity is the heart of Paul’s laborious prayers and the thread woven through every single letter he penned. Because we are one, may we live, and preach, and suffer as one.

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Questions 2 Day 15 Does God Need Me?

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Read His Words Before Ours!

Exodus 3:13-15
Psalm 50:7-15
John 15:9-17
John 17:9-13
Romans 5:6-11

Questions 2, Day 15

Tap. Tap. Tap-tap-tap.

Drops of blood struck a staccato beat as they fell into an ever-widening pool, saturating the dirt around rough-hewn beams gouged into the earth. Blood’s heavy iron scent settled in a stifling cloud over nearby onlookers.

Soldiers clustered in conversation a little distance away, raising their voices over the heartrending wail of mourners. One soldier threw a puzzled glance to the sky, wondering at the darkness shrouding the sun since midday. He shrugged in the inky darkness and turned back to his fellow servicemen. For those assigned to crucifixion duty, the agony that daily played out around them faded quickly into mundane.

But their talk halted abruptly as a figure on one of the three crosses heaved against the spikes and cried out,

“Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?”
My God, my God, why have You abandoned me?(Matthew 27:46)

Centuries later, we wonder what could possibly compel the God-man on that cross to knowingly and willingly submit to such agony?
To a death that left Him unrecognizable as human?To total and utter separation from God the Father and the Spirit?

Surely, it must have been to satisfy a desperate need.
To mend His eternity, torn by the sins of His creations.
To fill the aching loneliness left by their desertion.
To secure for Himself workers in the establishment of His kingdom on earth.

These are logical conclusions, but they’re based on a fundamental misunderstanding of the character and heart of God . . . one I’d never really considered until now. If it’s a new idea for you, too, cool! Let’s learn together in this safe space!

In essence, we ask
Did Jesus die to redeem me because God needs me in order to be happy?
To be joyful?
To be satisfied, or fulfilled, or in community?
To be effective, powerful, or present?
Does God need me . . . at all?

Absolutely not.

Stings, doesn’t it?
But let’s invite our egos to take a seat and talk it through . . .
Because it’s actually THE BEST news.

God needs nothing.

He lacks nothing; the world and everything in it are His.
He does not need our offerings, praise, or provision.(Psalm 50:7-15)

He created all, in heaven and on earth.
He owns all.
He is victorious over all, with no need of aid.
(Genesis 14:17-20, Psalm 24:1-2)

Instead of needing anything, He is the source of everything.
Including us.
He gives us life and breath.
He determines our days and our boundaries.
He, Who made us, cannot be contained by us.
Our service does not fulfill or empower Him.
He is not bound by our understanding or creations or imagination.
(Acts 17:22-29)

He. is. all.
When God revealed Himself to Moses through the burning bush, He declared, “I AM WHO I AM”. (Exodus 3:14)
No other descriptor is needed, or could be more than, God Himself.

He is fullness of joy.
While He offers to share His joy with us, His joy is NOT dependent upon us.(John 15:11)

He is fullness of community, existing as God the Father, Christ the Son, and Holy Spirit.

In Himself is shared ownership, shared pleasure, and shared knowledge of each other on the most intimate level.

He has no need of us.

But take heart; we’re coming to the best part.

If the God-man on that cross knowingly and willingly submitted to such agony to satisfy a desperate need, His sacrifice would have been one of obligation.

Instead, He embraced His suffering
Unto disfigured death and utter abandonment
to satisfy a desperate love.

Our sin broke our world, broke our eternity, broke our spirits,
But it did NOT break His love.
And so He made a way to overcome our sin.
(Romans 5:6-8, Ephesians 2:4-5)

No, He doesn’t need us.
But oh, how He wants us!
How He loves us!

In those moments when….
the enormity and ugliness and shame of our sin
punches us in the gut, stealing our breath and leaving us longing
to peel off our skin, climb out, and be someone else because we can’t stand to be this wretched mess for one more second . . .

Oh, how He wants us!
How He loves us!

For here, in the absence of need, the fullness of God’s want
astounds us with its flourishing passion. 

Beholding the sobbing heap of mistakes and regret before Him,
Against all human logic, with obligation nowhere to be found,
Driven by abiding love,
He wraps us in His scarred arms and whispers,
“Beloved, I chose the cross, because I choose you.
Even here. Even now.”

(Cue the ugly cry. Every time.)

What will we do with this stunning reality?

Perhaps you’re experiencing significant lack, or feeling small and incapable . . .
His truth reminds you of the God Who needs nothing,
Who is the source of all, and is graciously, your Provider.

Perhaps you’re drowning in condemnation and shame, feeling wholly unlovable . . .
His truth resoundingly declares His incomprehensible love for you.

Perhaps He’s asking you to respond to His love by stepping out in forgiveness, obedience, or repentance . . . .
Here, in this unforced space, you are free to proclaim grateful devotion to your Father, Lover, and Helper.

Move into truth and act upon it, knowing full well the One Who loves us best is for us!

As we reflect on these questions, seek His heart, and follow the gentle nudges of His Spirit, we can walk on in partnership with the One Who loves us best.

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Questions 2 Day 10 Close Enough

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Read His Words Before Ours!

Psalm 14
Romans 3:21-31
Psalm 36

Questions 2, Day 10

“What? It IS clean, Mom! You cannot complain about that, you don’t know what it looked like before I cleaned it!”

This is the reply I’ve heard a thousand times as one of my kids responds to my raised eyebrows and look of, “Seriously? You think this is clean?”. Every single one of my kids have vivid dramatizations playing in their minds of me walking around their “clean space” and picking up countless “somehow unseen” objects. They like to call it “Un-Stuffing” and if it’s really bad, they know I’ll start singing “Little Girls” by Cameron Diaz from Annie, replacing “girls” with “things”.

“Little things, little things
Everywhere I turn I can see them
Little things, little things
Night and day I eat, sleep, and breathe them.”

Toilet paper scraps, pencil shavings, marker lids, I can see it all and will gladly bring their attention to their lack of detailed cleaning. While I am playfully (and sometimes, not so playfully) reminding them that our definitions of clean are not the same, I’m encouraging them to work harder, not be lazy, and definitely not get caught “stuffing little things” as they work to raise their standard of “clean” to my own.

While this may work in our homes when it comes to tidying up, it is absolutely useless when it comes to our hearts. Maybe you’ve seen the quote, “Cleaning house while raising kids is like shoveling in a snowstorm.” When it comes to making our own hearts and lives righteous before God, it’s impossibly futile!

Pastor Paul quoted King David and Isaiah in Romans 3, all of whom were inspired by the Spirit of the Living God to make Himself known to us,
(We are all) under sin, as it is written,
“None is righteous, no, not one;
no one understands;
no one seeks for God.
All have turned aside; together they have
become worthless;
no one does good,
not even one.” (Psalm 14:1-3)

All-inclusive language is something my husband and I work hard to stay away from in our marriage, because it’s “almost never” accurate. J Phrases like, “You never listen to me,” or “You always attack me” are fighting words full of anger and hurt with the intention of wounding. However, these all-inclusives from the Lord God are not intended to hurt us relationally, but to awaken our hearts to reality.

None righteous.
Not One.
None understands.
None seek God.
All have turned aside to their own ways.

“Their throat is an open grave;
they use their tongues to deceive
The venom of asps is under their lips.” (Psalm 140:3)

“Their mouth is full of curses and bitterness.” (Psalm 10:7)

“Their feet are swift to shed blood;
in their paths are ruin and misery,
and the way of peace they have not known.” (Isaiah 59:7-8)

Much like my kids’ attempt to clean their rooms while neglecting under their beds, we are altogether filthy because of our sin. We love to pretty it up with a glossy Instagram filter or toned-down phrases like, “white lie” or “mistake” or “not my fault” or “I’m a good person”.

Regardless of what we believe, or how we want to feel about ourselves, a holy God holds the final word on sin and righteousness. He is altogether perfect, which requires Him to justly judge who is sinful and who is granted access to be with Him forever.

No one can follow the law of God perfectly.
There is no “close enough” with God.

We can’t work harder to reach His standard, strive for “less lazy”, or determine not to sin anymore. If you’ve lied, stolen anything, lusted in your heart, or even been angry, you are guilty of breaking God’s law.

Breaking the law requires payment, and because God is just, He requires that payment to be made in full.

The payment for sin is death.

Christ came, as God the Son, deity, fully divine, to live under the law perfectly for us, knowing we could never pay the debt on our own and be at peace with God.

Yes, Jesus came in the form of a baby, but He was 100% God,
living in a 100% human body, with a specific mission to save us from our sins.

“As long as I believe God exists, I’ll go to Heaven, right?”
This wasn’t true at the beginning of time with Adam and Eve, for the prophets of old, for the disciples as they walked with Jesus, for passionate Pastor Paul, or for you, me, my children or your friends.

Either we are covered completely by His righteousness, purchased for us at the cross where Jesus gave His perfect life to cover for our impossibly flawed one, or we are on our own.

And on our own….we will always turn aside to our own ways;
we will forever be without righteousness.

Is your trust in Jesus an “I believe He exists” kind of trust,
or an assertion that “I am utterly sinful apart from the righteousness of Jesus”?

Are you “close enough” or “all in”?


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Questions 2 Day 3 All Roads

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Read His Words Before Ours!

John 14
John 1:1-18 
Genesis 1
Romans 3:9-26

Questions 2, Day 3

“I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” 

These words, spoken by Jesus in John 14:6, are the foundation of Christianity. In this statement, Jesus disputes the arguments of many religions both in His time and ones to come. A non-Christian coworker told me, “All religions are basically the same. They all lead to heaven.” But is that really true? Do all the different roads of faith lead to that one coveted destination, heaven and eternal life with God?

In short, no. Let’s go back to John 14:6 and note the word choice. Jesus says He is the way, the truth, the life. He says we can only get to heaven and thus, God the Father, through Him. There is one road. And His name is Jesus.  

So, why is Jesus the road?

Well, let’s go back to the very beginning of the Bible, Genesis. The first verse, Genesis 1:1 says, “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” No Jesus there, right?

But verse 26 (emphasis mine) says, “Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, according to our likeness.”
So God was not by Himself, but who was with Him?

John 1:1 tells us, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” To further identify this person, we look at verse 4, “In him was life, and that life was the light of men.” Remember John 14:6? Jesus said He is the life.

What about the light? Well, in John 8:12, Jesus tells us He is the light of the world. Now we’ve learned Jesus is the light, the life, and the Word who was with Father God at creation. 

But we know there had to be another present at creation, because Jesus speaks of Him later in John 14. He tells us of the Holy Spirit, whom He refers to as “another Counselor” (John 14:16) and “the Spirit of truth” (John 14:17).

The Holy Spirit is the third person in the Holy Trinity. He is our counselor, who is also holy and divine. As the Spirit of Truth, he empowers us to live godly lives.

When we accept Jesus as the way, the truth and the life, Father God then sends us the Holy Spirit to help us live for Him and like Jesus.

This is important because many other religions are performance-based. In some, when you die, your “good deeds” are counted against your “bad deeds.” If the bad outweighs the good, you are reincarnated to “try again.” Others say that as you live each reincarnated life, you should become more humble and eventually you’ll earn salvation. In others, you have to stop desiring all things in order to stop suffering and earn enlightenment.

All these variations depend on you saving yourself.
It is your work and effort.
There is no helper like the Holy Spirit.
There is no Savior who sacrificed Himself to pay for your sins.
There is no Father God who loved you enough to make a way back to Him.
In every other religion, you are on your own, trying to figure out how to reach nirvana or enlightenment.

I don’t know about you, but this one life is quite enough. I don’t want a do-over, and certainly not an indefinite number of them. And as Christians we don’t need a do-over. Romans 3:10 tells us, “There is no one righteous, not even one.”
Thank God, hope is not lost because we do not need to manufacture our own righteousness. God already worked it out. John 1:14-16 explains that The Word (read: Jesus) came here to earth, dwelt among us, and gave us grace and truth.

Romans 3:22-26 gives us the details:
Every person sins and falls short of the glory of God.
The righteousness of God is given to us when we believe in Jesus Christ.
We are justified in God’s sight by God’s grace.
We receive God’s grace by the redeeming power of Jesus’ blood shed on the cross.
Our sins are eternally removed when we are justified by faith in Jesus.

We are saved, not by our own work, but by grace (Ephesians 2:8). We are never righteous, but righteousness becomes ours through Christ. It is Christ’s perfect righteousness that welcomes us to salvation. I’m so glad my entrance to eternal life is a one-time deal and it does not depend on my perfection! If it did, I’d never get in.

Speaking of heaven, we know we’ll see Jesus there. Romans 8:34 says, “Christ Jesus is the one who died, but even more, has been raised; He also is at the right hand of God and intercedes for us.” No other religion teaches of being loved and cared for by God while we are here on earth. Jesus died for us, was resurrected, and went to be with God the Father. We will worship the fullness of the three-in-one God in heaven (Revelation 4:1-11). I look forward to offering praise in the very presence of God. I can’t wait to see His glory and be surrounded by His love. I hope you’ll join me!

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Follow Day 14 Faith To Stay: 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!
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The Questions

1) What does it mean to lose our lives because of Jesus? (verse 25)

2) In honesty, I can think of many benefits to not losing my life to Jesus, what it His point in these questions? (verse 26)

3) How are rewards tied in to Jesus’ questions? (verse 27)

Matthew 16:24-28

24 Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone wants to follow after Me, let him deny himself, take up his cross, and follow Me. 25 For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life because of Me will find it. 26 For what will it benefit someone if he gains the whole world yet loses his life? Or what will anyone give in exchange for his life? 27 For the Son of Man is going to come with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then he will reward each according to what he has done. 28 Truly I tell you, there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom.”

Original Intent

1) What does it mean to lose our lives because of Jesus? (verse 25)
We often have the wrong idea about who God is at His core. We might see Him as vengeful, waiting for us to mess up so He can mock us, condemn us, or ruin our lives. Some view Him as disengaged and entirely uninterested in the affairs of humanity. In transparency, I struggled for years with the idea that just because God “made us”, doesn’t mean He actually “loved us”. He is infinite while we are finite mortals, what could we bring to the God of all to cause Him to love us?! Before we can talk about “losing our lives because of Jesus”, it’s absolutely imperative we know exactly Who this Jesus really is. If I surrender to Him, am I giving Him free reign to be a dictator? If I lose my life to Him, will I hate my life and become strapped into stringent lists of “holy performance”? Who is the Jesus we are surrendering to? The disciple John answered this concisely for us in three words, “…God is love…”. (1 John 4:8) Preacher Paul helps us define what love looks like in everyday life as he penned a letter to the church in Corinth, “Love is patient, love is kind. Love does not envy, is not boastful, is not arrogant, is not rude, is not self-seeking, is not irritable, and does not keep a record of wrongs. Love finds no joy in unrighteousness but rejoices in the truth. It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never ends.” (1 Corinthians 13:4-8) When we realize the God who is calling for our surrender to Him is good, kind, loving, and trustworthy, we can “lose our lives” to Him with full confidence that He is for us and not against us. (Romans 8:31-32)

2) In honesty, I can think of many benefits to not losing my life to Jesus, what it His point in these questions? (verse 26)
“For what will it benefit someone if they gain the whole world….”, Jesus asks His audience. (verse 26) Perhaps like them, and me, I imagine His voice trailing off and my own mind running away with just this snippet of conversation. I quickly build reasons I feel are worth “gaining the whole world”. Wealth. Fame. Power. The allure for more, the lie that I don’t have enough, and the sick temptation to only satiate self, fuels me into reasoning away why I just can’t follow Jesus. At least not right now. I have things I want to do. I have my kingdom to build. Ladies, that isn’t just a collection of words right there, they are lies I have purchased and owned and fought hard to protect, even after I surrendered to Jesus. But this poignant question from the Lord isn’t a snippet in an overheard conversation. He doesn’t leave us to our imaginative interpretations. “Whoever wants to save his life will lose it.” (verse 25) Not perhaps. Not ‘by chance’ if the odds are against you. It’s a dead certain guarantee. If you want to save your life by yourself, live it your way, and build your own kingdom, you will lose it in the end. Jesus said it like this to a man who visited him under the cover of nightfall so no one would see him stepping outside the kosher norm, “Truly I tell you, unless someone is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. Whatever is born of the flesh is flesh, and whatever is born of the Spirit is spirit.” (John 3:5-6) There are not countless ways to “get to God”. There is one. Total surrender to Him, allowing Him to kill and remove our sin nature and ushering us into a new birth as new creations, born with His righteous DNA in place of our sinful set. Only here, in the sacred space of surrender, do we find the deeply radical truth fleshed out in real life, “…whoever loses his life because of Me will find it.” (verse 25)

3) How are rewards tied in to Jesus’ questions? (verse 27)
Jesus asks another question to help us think through the value of surrendering to Him and the rewards only He can offer, “What will anyone give in exchange for his life?”. Even if we had the whole world given on a silver platter and somehow achieved “it all”, when the blinking vapor of our life is over and all of eternity begins, what could we possibly give in exchange to the God of the Universe to “buy back” our souls? All of our wealth, knowledge, and possessions? What a mockery that would be to the God who owns all, knows all, and sees all. Jesus’ point is for His audience to fully understand how inescapable it is for us to save ourselves from the coming wrath we deserve because of our sin. No, the only possible way we can “earn” the rewards Jesus speaks of in verses 27-28 are by acknowledging that we truly are impoverished. We have absolutely nothing of value to buy back our souls, except one thing. Our soul itself. Our souls were crafted with tenderness, masterful creativity, divine love, and abundant joy, then given to us, in the hope we would surrender them back to the Lord God that we might experience life to the fullest. (John 10:10) Is there a grander dichotomy?! In laying down our life, we find it. In keeping it to ourselves, we lose it. Only in its surrender are we freed to live our lives in adoring love to the God who unshackled us from our sin. It’s these acts of love that are divinely rewarded.

Everyday Application

1) What does it mean to lose our lives because of Jesus? (verse 25)
We can lose ourselves easily to a myriad of important and worthwhile pursuits. Family. Raising children. Higher education. Career. Being the best version of ourselves. None of these, however noble, will save us from the consequence we have rightfully earned because of our sinfulness. Only faith in Jesus Christ and His work on the cross to crucify our sin nature and pay the penalty required for our sin will save us from an eternity of endless death, shame, and condemnation. To lose our lives for Jesus is to “lose ourselves” to the law of love. The simplest description of God is that He IS Love. (1 John 4:8) Every other aspect of His character and every action He takes is deeply anchored in radical, divine love. Therefore, to surrender ourselves fully over to Him, to lose our lives to Him, is to be ruled by Love. Every word we speak, action we take, body language we give off, or thought we think is to be ruled by this same radical, divine love of the God who broke our bondage to sin through His own death and resurrection. This is surely an impossible feat to accomplish on our own! Ask anyone who has “tried hard” to simply be consistently loving in only one instance of everyday life! Yet, because of His love, God graciously gives us His Own Power to live out His kind of radical, divine love every moment of every day through the power of the Holy Spirit. When we surrender our everything to Jesus, agreeing with Him that yes, the only way to save our lives is in giving them up to Him, then He gives us His Holy Spirit to live inside each of us for eternity. Living everyday lives governed by the law of love is precipitated by losing ourselves entirely within the love of Jesus. Who rules you?

2) In honesty, I can think of many benefits to not losing my life to Jesus, what it His point in these questions? (verse 26)
I have the gift of 3 teenagers living together with us in our current parenting season, and more on the way as time seems to move faster and faster. We have always encouraged our kids to “own their own faith”, whatever that looks like. Sometimes it means deciding to save up and pay their own way to attend summer church camp because they see the value of investing in their faith walk. Sometimes it means having random conversations about the inner workings, and honest messiness, of church, marriage, and real life through the lens of a good God who redeems. And sometimes, it means letting our kids wrestle with, and push against, the faith we have taught them since they were small. Being a millennial teenager certainly gives ample reason to ask hard questions. Ones that punch my gut, making me ache for weeks at their depth and heavy implications. “I want to follow Jesus, but I don’t want Him to, you know, take me to Africa and make me poor.” Or “I just don’t think there actually is a God, or if there is, we can each choose our own way to make Him happy.” Or, “There’s just a lot of ‘fun’ things I want to do that God wouldn’t approve of, so I’ll wait to follow Him until I’m older.” Each of these are real statements from my kids at varying stages, and they break my heart because they have missed the deep, unshakeable, utterly complete goodness of God. We have the conversation, and I praise God for the safety of our relationship that allows the “push back”. I listen compassionately, permitting their words to flow unhindered, knowing I do exactly the same to God in different scenarios and with different words, but I still wrestle against Him. Here’s the incredible thing, He always allows my wrestling. I cannot say the right words to “force” my children to follow Jesus wholeheartedly, but God is the author of every story. He will keep pursuing them, just as He has faithfully pursued me. Go ahead, girl, ask the big uncomfortable questions. Lay them out there. Know the Lord God is listening, attentive, and is pursuing you with love!

3) How are rewards tied in to Jesus’ questions? (verse 27)
Following Jesus comes at a high cost, total surrender. This kind of following guarantees discomfort, struggle, and persecution, but Jesus wants to remind us the benefit far outweighs the cost. In yesterday’s Journey Study, the man Jesus healed begged to follow Jesus far away from his hometown, but Jesus told him to stay and share what Jesus had done for him. Following Jesus is often unexpected, and when we face trial in the unexpected, we can begin to lose heart and become tempted to “go back” to living our own lives instead of continuing to daily surrender to Christ. Jesus’ words press in on our hearts, urging us to stay focused on truth. Christ will come again, and He will bring judgement with Him for all of us. No amount of our actionable effort to “do good works” will matter one bit if we have not first surrendered the whole of ourselves to Him for safekeeping. When we remember that our surrender is earning for us a life that cannot be lost and eternal rewards, we are encouraged to keep the running the race ahead of us in this life, difficult as it is, because our “momentary light affliction is producing for us an absolutely incomparable eternal weight of glory. So we do not focus on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.” (1 Corinthians 4:17-18)

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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

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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 :-))

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