Category: Bible Commentary

How God Spoke In The Christmas Story

God is the Great Communicator.  The Bible says, “God, after He spoke long ago to the fathers in the prophets at many times and in various ways, in these last days has spoken to us in His Son…” (Hebrews 1:1-2).

As Francis Schaeffer said, “He is there and He is not silent.”  He certainly was not silent in the circumstances surrounding the birth of Christ.

Tradition says Jesus was born in a cave; He would be buried in a cave-tomb.

When Jesus was born, His mother wrapped Him in swaddling cloth, the same type of cloth used to wrap the dead before burial. (Luke 2:7). When the magi came to worship Jesus, they brought Him myrrh, an aromatic gum resin used for embalming.  (Matthew 2:1-12). Continue reading “How God Spoke In The Christmas Story”

Money And The Ministry

Jesus and his crew roll into Capernaum and before Peter can even get to his house the Temple tax police corner him and ask if Jesus intends to pay His tax. Peter, apparently trying to avoid trouble just says “Yes” and then rushes into the house to tell Jesus.

Before he can open his mouth Jesus asks Peter a question, the point of which is that since Jesus is the Son of God, He obviously has no obligation to pay such a tax.

After all, the tax supported the temple where people worshipped God, and Jesus was God, the very object of that worship. Taxing Jesus was like making Peyton Manning buy a ticket to the next Indianapolis Colts game.

And here is the point of Jesus teaching: “However, so that we do not offend them, go to the sea and throw in a hook, and take the first fish that comes up; and when you open its mouth, you will find a shekel. Take that and give it to them for you and Me.” (Matthew 17:24-27).

Jesus refused to let the issue of money come between Him and His ministry. If Jesus had refused to pay the tax based on His identity it would have been easy for His critics to say He was claiming to be the Son of God to avoid paying taxes. Jesus chose not to give them the opportunity.

When I hear of the salaries of some of the pastors of megachurches in the U.S. I wonder if they’ve ever read this passage of Scripture, and I wonder how badly they want to reach non-Christians.

Let me make something clear. Im not offended by pastors being well-paid. I think pastors should be well-paid. In fact, if it were up to me, in a perfect world, they would be the highest paid of all vocations.

But we don’t live in a perfect world, and in a corrupt world the No. 1 priority should be reaching the corrupt with the Gospel. So why hinder that effort over the issue of money? Jesus didn’t. GS

Jesus vs. Nostradamus

Nostradamus has never impressed me. His so-called prophecies are vague, obscure and he doesn’t say when they will come to pass.  Jesus is the real deal.

The year is 30 A.D.  Jesus is walking away from the temple, a magnificant structure built by Herod the Great, when one of His disciples points out the temple buildings to Him.

Jesus says, “Do you not see all these things?  Truly I say to you, not one stone here shall be left upon another, which will not be torn down.”  (Matt. 24:1-2).

Now, no building stands forever.  So, if Jesus had stopped there, I would say that his prediction wasn’t too risky.  But later, His disciples ask him, “when will these things be, and what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?” Jesus then answers the questions.

Jesus tells them there will be a number of signs.  He even quotes prophetic language of judgment from Isaiah and Ezekiel that the “sun will be darkened” and “the moon will not give its light.” (cf. Matt. 24:29, Isaiah 13:10, Ezek. 32:7-8).  In other words, Jesus is going to come back and turn out the lights on Jerusalem and the Jewish sacrificial system.

Jesus tells the disicples that when they see Jerusalem surrounded to get out of dodge.  (Luke 21:20).  He is also very specific about the timing: “Truly I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things take place.” (Matt. 24:34).  A generation, by Jewish reckoning is 40 years.

In 70 A.D., the Roman army led by its general, Titus, surrounded the City of Jerusalem.  The Christians, remembering Jesus’ words, left Jerusalem, eventually settling in a city north of Jerusalem called Pella.  The Romans sacked Jerusalem, entered the temple, where no Gentile was permitted to go, stole its treasures, then destroyed the temple.  The temple has never been rebuilt.

Within a generation, Jesus returned in judgment, the temple was destroyed, just as Jesus predicted, bringing an end to the age of the Jewish sacrificial system.  Jesus called it, and dated it.  That’s real prophecy. GS

Man Bites Dog

Maybe you saw this headline earlier this year, “Man Gets 15 Years After Trying to Break Into Jail.”

Yes, you read it right, “break into jail.”  If you don’t believe me, you can read it here.

Dude was on probation for manslaughter, but three days after being released returns to jail and begs deputies to take him back into the jail because he feared retaliation from the victim’s family.  When he was refused entry he tried to reenter the jail by climbing a 12-foot high fence.  He was caught, convicted of trespassing and resisting an officer and was sentenced to 15 years for violating his probation.  It goes without saying this was probably the stiffest sentence ever given to anyone for attempting to break back into jail.

This story strikes me as odd, which, according to G.K. Chesterton, is a good thing since “…oddities only strike ordinary people.  Odditities do not strike odd people.”  This story also strikes me as interesting because it never could have happened under Old Testament law.  Here’s why.

First, there were no jails or prisons under the Old Testament law. It’s true.  It’s not because there weren’t criminals.  It’s just that criminals were required to make restitution or were sold into bond service to pay restitution (to the victim, not to the State), or, if the victim did not choose a ransom or ransom was not available under the law and it was a capital crime, they were given the ultimate earthly punishment.

Second, the Lord anticipated the situation encountered by our jailbreaker and set up cities of refuge for those guilty of manslaughter so they could avoid victims’ vengeful relatives who might have thoughts of helping the manslayer into the grave. See Numbers 35:9-12.

So what is the point?  I don’t know.  I’m just saying, it strikes me as odd. GS

Playing Your Own Game

My father used to tell me when I was learning to play golf competitively, “Play your own game.”  What he meant was if I was playing with someone who, for example, hit the ball longer than me, I should not try to change my game to hit the ball farther but that I should play the way I play best and not worry about the others around me.

The same could be said of life.  So many people waste their lives trying to make more money than those around them or being envious of those with more, or wanting to be something they are not called to be because they think money or fame will make them happy or validate them.  And unfortunately, the ubiquity of television and the internet taunt us to envy and discontentment perhaps more than at any time in history.

Jesus knew people were prone to journey down this destructive path.  After Jesus told Peter the kind of death Peter would suffer, Peter looked over at John and said, “Lord, and what about this man?”  Jesus response was, “If I want him to remain until I come, what is that to you? You follow me!” (John 21:18-23). Was that fair?  At another time, Jesus paid His and Peter’s taxes but not the taxes owed by the other disicples (Matt. 17:24-27).  Was that fair?

The issue then and the issue now is not fairness, but calling.  So, play your own game.  Keep your eyes on Jesus.  Don’t envy others.  GS