unbelief

If Day 1 One God?

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If Day 1 One God?

Marietta Taylor

July 12, 2021

Deliver,Faith,God,Holy Spirit,Jesus,Kingdom,Salvation,Scripture,Worship

Read His Words Before Ours!

Isaiah 9:2-7
Hebrews 1
Colossians 1:13-22
Daniel 7:9-14

Years ago, a certain talk-show host sometimes used his show to attack the faith he’d abandoned. During one show he asked, “If God the Father is so ‘all-loving,’ why didn’t He come down and go to Calvary?” This man traded the truth he knew for a what-if question. I myself have heard it in several forms. 

What if Jesus was just a prophet or a great teacher? What if Jesus wasn’t really God? Honestly, I’ve asked myself these questions. It wasn’t from unbelief, but a desire to be able to explain my faith to others.

Those questions have one answer: Jesus was fully God and fully man. Therefore God did come down, teach as only God could, and then endure the cross so we could obtain salvation and eternity in heaven with Him. 

Want to know what’s good about my answer? I can back it up. 

If Jesus isn’t God, then He and John the Baptist would be liars. John the Baptist called Jesus “the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world” (John 1:29) and “the Son of God” (John 1:34). Jesus said of Himself, “before Abraham was, I am,” (John 8:58), echoing God the Father’s statement in Exodus 3:14, “I AM WHO I AM.” But let’s go one step further. 

If Jesus isn’t God, then God Himself would be a liar.
And let’s be clear.
God is holy.
He cannot lie. (Numbers 23:19)

When John the Baptist was baptizing Jesus, the voice of God from heaven proclaimed, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well-pleased” (Matthew 3:16-17) We know from Genesis 1 that the Trinity (God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit) was present at creation. They work in tandem with each other. We see an example of this in John 14:16, where Jesus asks the Father to send the Holy Spirit to the believers. Three persons, yet one God, working for our good and our salvation.

Salvation means God working on behalf of man to deliver us from sin and death and give us eternal life in heaven. How does Scripture support this? What a great question! I started in Isaiah 9:6, “For a child will be born for us, a son will be given to us.” Then it lists His names, “Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace.” Who is this Son who is also Mighty God?

Matthew 1:20 says this, “Joseph, son of David, don’t be afraid to take Mary as your wife, because what has been conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.  She will give birth to a son, and you are to name him Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.” Look, we found Mighty God. It’s Jesus!

You might be wondering why this is important. Well, it speaks directly to several assertions people make about Jesus. Let’s review, shall we?

  •     Jesus was just a prophet or a great teacher
  •     Jesus was a great man, but not God

Colossians 1:13-22 addresses these assertions. Verse 13 reveals God has rescued us from darkness and “transferred us into the kingdom of the Son He loves.”

Who’s the Son God loves? Jesus. 

Who possesses kingdoms and has authority over everything within them? Kings. 

So Jesus was clearly not just a prophet or great teacher. 

He was, and is, an eternal king.

I confirmed this in Daniel 7:14, “His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and his kingdom is one that will not be destroyed.” 

Well, what about the “great man but not God” statement? Colossians 1 says this:

  •     “He is the image of the invisible God” (verse 15)
  •     He created everything (verse 16)
  •     He is the head of the church (verse 18)
  •     God was pleased to have all His fullness dwell in Him (verse 19)

Friends, Jesus was a great man. But He was also fully God. 

But not just any “god.” Jesus is the One True God. He’s the God who reconciled His people to Himself by defeating sin and death. Defeating sin requires a perfect, sinless life. In other words, a person would need to be perfectly and absolutely holy. No human fits that bill. But God, presenting Himself in human flesh could and did, in the form of Jesus. Then, He went one better. He took on all the sin of the world so we could be considered clean before God the Father. We should sit with that for a moment.

To defeat death, we’d have to die and resurrect ourselves. Humans can die, but we can’t resurrect ourselves. But Jesus’ human body died and then was alive again. He, Himself, resurrected. No smoke and mirrors. Just the power and authority of God. Thus, Jesus earned the title of Savior. 

God said this about Jesus, “And let all God’s angels worship Him.” 

I say, let all of us worship Jesus, our one True God. He is more than worthy!

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Authority,Fully God,holy,If,One,questions,Savior,True,unbelief,What iF,worthy
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Paul’s message to anyone who will listen is that the omnipotent God, because of His great love for us, came to earth as our Redeemer and covered our sins. (Colossians 1:14) It is astonishing to realize that the God over all creation longs to be in relationship with the finite, sinful beings He created and for them to each be reconciled back to Him! (Colossians 1:22)
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The GT Weekend! Sketched IV Week 3

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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) We speak countless words every day. Think through your day and estimate the amount of time talking versus the amount of time listening. How would your day look if your speech was stopped? Building in intentional time of silence can be a very effective way to hear from God. Curious as to why silence with God is necessary? Check this out!

2) We see several places in the Bible where faith is the space between logic and the promises of Scripture. Which topic in Scripture causes you to squirm? What do you secretly doubt didn’t actually happen? Perhaps there’s a premise of Scripture you think might not really be true? God is bigger than your doubts and He longs for you to trust Him enough to voice your questions. Finding a safe community to explore and find what the Bible actually has to say is important to our continued growth. Needing help finding someone to talk with, email us at prayer@gracefullytruthful.com , we’d love to hear from you!

3) The idea of “there’s no free lunch” permeates our life. It’s difficult to see how salvation could actually be a FREE gift. We don’t need to work and earn our salvation, yet we often consider our perceived value in God’s eyes based on how busy we are doing good things. Where do you see this lie seeping into your life? Are you needing a reminder that Jesus has covered ALL the punishment and paid the price for you to enjoy relationship with Creator God again?

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 Hebrews 11:1-3 back to the Lord and
let His Spirit speak to you through it!

1Now faith is the reality of what is hoped for, the proof of what is not seen. 2 For by it our ancestors won God’s approval. 3 By faith we understand that the universe was created by the word of God, so that what is seen was made from things that are not visible.

Prayer Journal
O Lord and Ruler of the hosts of heaven, God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and of all their righteous offspring: You made the heavens and the earth, with all their vast array.

All things quake with fear at your presence; they tremble because of your power. But your merciful promise is beyond all measure; it surpasses all that our minds can fathom. O Lord, you are full of compassion, long-suffering, and abounding in mercy. You hold back your hand; you do not punish as we deserve. In your great goodness, Lord, you have promised forgiveness to sinners, that they may repent of their sin and be saved. And now, O Lord, I bend the knee of my heart, and make my appeal, sure of your gracious goodness. I have sinned, O Lord, I have sinned, and I know my wickedness only too well. Therefore, I make this prayer to you: Forgive me, Lord, forgive me. Do not let me perish in my sin, nor condemn me to the depths of the earth. For you, O Lord, are the God of those who repent, and in me you will show forth your goodness. Unworthy as I am, you will save me, in accordance with your great mercy, and I will praise you without ceasing all the days of my life. For all the powers of heaven sing your praises, and yours is the glory to ages of ages. Amen.

Taken from the Common Book of Prayers

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Sketched IV Day 14 Thomas: 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 Thomas!

The Questions

1) Why had the Jews in Judea tried to stone Jesus?

2) Jesus said Lazarus would not die, but he did. Was this double-talk?

3) What was Thomas’ assumption? What was his motivation?

John 11:1-16

11 Now a man was sick, Lazarus from Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha. 2 Mary was the one who anointed the Lord with perfume and wiped his feet with her hair, and it was her brother Lazarus who was sick. 3 So the sisters sent a message to him: “Lord, the one you love is sick.”

4 When Jesus heard it, he said, “This sickness will not end in death but is for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it.” 5 Now Jesus loved Martha, her sister, and Lazarus. 6 So when he heard that he was sick, he stayed two more days in the place where he was. 7 Then after that, he said to the disciples, “Let’s go to Judea again.”

8 “Rabbi,” the disciples told him, “just now the Jews tried to stone you, and you’re going there again?”

9 “Aren’t there twelve hours in a day?” Jesus answered. “If anyone walks during the day, he doesn’t stumble, because he sees the light of this world. 10 But if anyone walks during the night, he does stumble, because the light is not in him.”

11 He said this, and then he told them, “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I’m on my way to wake him up.”

12 Then the disciples said to him, “Lord, if he has fallen asleep, he will get well.”

13 Jesus, however, was speaking about his death, but they thought he was speaking about natural sleep. 14 So Jesus then told them plainly, “Lazarus has died. 15 I’m glad for you that I wasn’t there so that you may believe. But let’s go to him.”

16 Then Thomas (called “Twin”) said to his fellow disciples, “Let’s go too so that we may die with him.”

Original Intent

1) Why had the Jews in Judea tried to stone Jesus?
Jesus was in the temple in Jerusalem at the time of Hanukkah. While there, he was surrounded and harassed by people who demanded to know if He was the Promised Messiah. He responded with clarity, “I and the Father are one.” (John 10:22-33) While it may not be obvious to us, to Jesus’ audience, they heard nothing but, “I Am God.” The Jews believed Jesus was blaspheming God by claiming Himself to be equal with God. After all the signs Jesus had shown proving His Holy Other-ness, these Jews still didn’t get it. According to Old Testament law, blasphemers were to be stoned to death; this was their intention and their motivation. (Leviticus 24:16)

2) Jesus said Lazarus would not die but he did. Was this double-talk?
Lazarus was very sick and, as some commentaries conclude, had already died before the messenger even reached Jesus and His disciples to tell them of the illness. Jesus knew He would not make it back to Lazarus in time to keep him from experiencing physical death. However, this event would not ultimately end in death, because Jesus would resurrect Lazarus. By staying away as He did, Jesus ensured that the resurrection would be a miracle beyond miracles for the family and other witnesses who had gathered. This would show the glory of God through Jesus and certainly cause many to believe. Jesus’ plans to bring glory to God and comfort to the ones He loved went far beyond their temporary insistence of what “should” happen.

3) What was Thomas’ assumption? What was his motivation?
Thomas assumed that Jesus’ return to Judea would mean His demise. Surely the Jews would do everything necessary to ensure His stoning was a success this time. His motivation must have been, as D. A. Carson wrote in The Pillar New Testament Commentary on the Gospel of John, “raw devotion and courage.” Thomas was willing to face his own death alongside Jesus, in support of Jesus, with devotion to Jesus.

Everyday Application

1) Why had the Jews in Judea tried to stone Jesus?
Blaspheming – asserting yourself as God – is a sin worthy of death, both in the Old Testament and today. For anyone else in all of history, or in the days to come, to make the statement Jesus made about Himself would indeed be blasphemy. He is the only One who truly is God.
Thomas knew, and believed, Jesus was indeed God. He understood the political tension that existed because not everyone, especially the Pharisees, recognized Jesus for who He really was. Because Thomas realized this, he knew persecution was to be expected. As a believer in the One True God, you can be assured that persecution is still active today. In the United States, it has not yet reached the proportions of other nations, and we consider ourselves blessed. But we should not become complacent; rather, we need to remain steadfast in Christ and aware of the times.

2) Jesus said Lazarus would not die but he did. Was this double-talk?
The story of Lazarus’ resurrection teaches a valuable lesson: in certain circumstances, God may wait to provide help so that when He does, His glory shines more brilliantly! In my own life, He has come through financially several times when I thought I would surely go hungry or lose my car, etc. Can you reflect on an instance of God glorifying Himself through your difficulties? Where are you struggling to trust His way over yours? Take comfort in the solid truth that He will never abandon and is always working for your good and His glory! (Romans 8:27-29)

3) What was Thomas’ assumption? What was his motivation?
Thomas garnered the unfortunate nickname of “the doubter” because of his desire to have visual confirmation of Jesus’ resurrection (John 20:24-29). Yet, there was no doubt that Thomas was deeply devoted to Jesus. Put yourself in his shoes…would you have been courageous to go with Jesus to Lazarus’ hometown, even if it meant your death? Are you – right at this moment – willing to follow Jesus, even if it means facing dire consequences, persecution, and possibly death? That’s His calling, it’s the cost of discipleship: a willingness to die to self in a hundred different ways in order for the glory of the Lord to be on display in us. He wants all of us, each of us. This is not a journey for the faint of heart, but oh, some days I would rather just sit in my comfortable chair than follow Jesus. Can you relate? Will you pray with me to have fully devoted, courageous hearts full of faith?

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

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!

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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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