Sorry everyone, was away from the computer for a couple days, time to get back on track!

(S)

2 My dear children, I am writing this to you so that you will not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate who pleads our case before the Father. He is Jesus Christ, the one who is truly righteous. ² He himself is the sacrifice that atones for our sins—and not only our sins but the sins of all the world.

³ And we can be sure that we know him if we obey his commandments. ⁴ If someone claims, “I know God,” but doesn’t obey God’s commandments, that person is a liar and is not living in the truth. ⁵ But those who obey God’s word truly show how completely they love him. That is how we know we are living in him. ⁶ Those who say they live in God should live their lives as Jesus did.

A New Commandment

⁷ Dear friends, I am not writing a new commandment for you; rather it is an old one you have had from the very beginning. This old commandment—to love one another—is the same message you heard before. ⁸ Yet it is also new. Jesus lived the truth of this commandment, and you also are living it. For the darkness is disappearing, and the true light is already shining.

⁹ If anyone claims, “I am living in the light,” but hates a fellow believer, that person is still living in darkness. ¹⁰ Anyone who loves a fellow believer is living in the light and does not cause others to stumble. ¹¹ But anyone who hates a fellow believer is still living and walking in darkness. Such a person does not know the way to go, having been blinded by the darkness.

¹² I am writing to you who are God’s children
    because your sins have been forgiven through Jesus.
¹³ I am writing to you who are mature in the faith
    because you know Christ, who existed from the beginning.
I am writing to you who are young in the faith
    because you have won your battle with the evil one.
¹⁴ I have written to you who are God’s children
    because you know the Father.
I have written to you who are mature in the faith
    because you know Christ, who existed from the beginning.
I have written to you who are young in the faith
    because you are strong.
God’s word lives in your hearts,
    and you have won your battle with the evil one.

Do Not Love This World

¹⁵ Do not love this world nor the things it offers you, for when you love the world, you do not have the love of the Father in you. ¹⁶ For the world offers only a craving for physical pleasure, a craving for everything we see, and pride in our achievements and possessions. These are not from the Father, but are from this world. ¹⁷ And this world is fading away, along with everything that people crave. But anyone who does what pleases God will live forever.

Warning about Antichrists

¹⁸ Dear children, the last hour is here. You have heard that the Antichrist is coming, and already many such antichrists have appeared. From this we know that the last hour has come. ¹⁹ These people left our churches, but they never really belonged with us; otherwise they would have stayed with us. When they left, it proved that they did not belong with us.

²⁰ But you are not like that, for the Holy One has given you his Spirit, and all of you know the truth. ²¹ So I am writing to you not because you don’t know the truth but because you know the difference between truth and lies. ²² And who is a liar? Anyone who says that Jesus is not the Christ. Anyone who denies the Father and the Son is an antichrist. ²³ Anyone who denies the Son doesn’t have the Father, either. But anyone who acknowledges the Son has the Father also.

²⁴ So you must remain faithful to what you have been taught from the beginning. If you do, you will remain in fellowship with the Son and with the Father. ²⁵ And in this fellowship we enjoy the eternal life he promised us.

²⁶ I am writing these things to warn you about those who want to lead you astray. ²⁷ But you have received the Holy Spirit,^[h] and he lives within you, so you don’t need anyone to teach you what is true. For the Spirit^[i] teaches you everything you need to know, and what he teaches is true—it is not a lie. So just as he has taught you, remain in fellowship with Christ.

Living as Children of God

²⁸ And now, dear children, remain in fellowship with Christ so that when he returns, you will be full of courage and not shrink back from him in shame.

²⁹ Since we know that Christ is righteous, we also know that all who do what is right are God’s children.

(O)

One of my favorite things about the book of 1 John is the encouragement and the assurances found in the verses. If you read carefully, there are many verses that say something like “you can know”, “you who are”, and “you can be sure”. These are all statements of fact, a reminder to us who we are in Christ and what that means for us. We don’t have to wonder or doubt. We don’t have to waste precious time worrying whether we meeting expectations or qualify for God’s grace. John lays out the facts. I personally find much comfort in that.

The message that speaks to me today is simply that we need to remember to not love the world, but rather love one another and love God’s commands. By this we find our purpose and fulfill our purpose to disciple others. And this can be done simply by loving others and not being a stumbling block. Live our lives according to God’s commands and teach others to do the same. Sometimes with words, sometimes with just our actions. I was reminded the other day how close people do watch what we do when they brought forward a concern about something that one of the more “mature” Christians were doing that they felt was not being an example. We are called God’s children several times in this chapter. With that honor comes great responsibility.

(A)

We are never expected to be perfect, but we are expected to continually learn and try to be more Christ-like. We need to strive to watch our words and actions carefully. Our daily dealings with people need to be filled with honesty and integrity, and filled with grace. We must not ignore the needs around us and be generous in whatever way we can. God gave us gifts so we can use them to further the kingdom. The reality, though, is that we are sinful people and are prone to making mistakes, and people will see them. But great news, some of the best discipling can be done through our own reactions to our mistakes. Are we humble? Can we say we’re sorry? Are we willing to admit we were wrong? Are we willing to go the extra mile to make things right? Do we forgive easily? These are the things people will remember as they watch us, we who ARE God’s children!

(P)

Lord, knowing you call us your children is almost beyond comprehension, but we thank you that we can know how much you love us because of that. We thank you we can know we are forgiven and your grace has been given to each of us that call you Father. Because of this, we want to be more like you in action and word, help us to be an example today, and not a stumbling block to anyone. Help our interactions today be filled with integrity and grace. Teach us how to handle mistakes well and be humble of heart. We love you Lord, in Jesus name, amen.

(S)

1 We proclaim to you the one who existed from the beginning, whom we have heard and seen. We saw him with our own eyes and touched him with our own hands. He is the Word of life. ² This one who is life itself was revealed to us, and we have seen him. And now we testify and proclaim to you that he is the one who is eternal life. He was with the Father, and then he was revealed to us. ³ We proclaim to you what we ourselves have actually seen and heard so that you may have fellowship with us. And our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ. ⁴ We are writing these things so that you may fully share our joy.

Living in the Light

⁵ This is the message we heard from Jesus and now declare to you: God is light, and there is no darkness in him at all. ⁶ So we are lying if we say we have fellowship with God but go on living in spiritual darkness; we are not practicing the truth. ⁷ But if we are living in the light, as God is in the light, then we have fellowship with each other, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, cleanses us from all sin.

⁸ If we claim we have no sin, we are only fooling ourselves and not living in the truth. ⁹ But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness. ¹⁰ If we claim we have not sinned, we are calling God a liar and showing that his word has no place in our hearts.

(O)

The word confess does not mean to ask for forgiveness. Christ’s work for us upon the cross has already done all that is necessary to forgive us. What God wants us to do is to look at the sin before us and call it what He calls it. That means to agree with God about it, and that is what the word confess means: “Fess” comes from a root which means “to say”, and “con” means “with”. “To say with” God what He says about something is confessing sin. There is a popular song that you sometimes hear in Christian circles: If I have wounded any soul today, If I have caused one foot to go astray, If I have lived in my own selfish way, Dear Lord, forgive. That is not a confession at all. Do not say if, say, Lord, I have caused some foot to go astray, I have lived in my own selfish way. That is confession, agreeing with God.

let me share a story I read today:

Do you know what happens when you do not confess? You become very unpleasant to live with. As a schoolboy in Montana I endured many bitter winters when the temperature would sometimes go down to sixty degrees below zero for a week at a time. In our homes, where we had no running water, no indoor plumbing, and no electricity, taking a bath was relatively akin to major surgery. In that painful setting, we performed our ablutions. It was difficult enough that some people did not think it necessary to bathe at all during the winter months. If you went into the heat of a one-room schoolhouse on a cold winter’s day, with about fifty or sixty sweating bodies there, you became very much aware of this fact.

Now I do not mind living with someone who knows he or she is dirty and therefore frequently washes, but it is terribly distressing to live with someone who thinks he or she never gets dirty. That is what John is saying. If we say we cannot get dirty, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.

(A)

But if we face up to it and confess it, then the cleansing that the Lord Jesus has fully and abundantly provided for on the cross is immediately ours, and we are as though we had never sinned.

(P)

Lord, we thank you that you already forgave all my sins on the cross. Help me Lord to recognize when I sin and confess it immediately. Help to remove my pride to confess and allow me to live in that abundant life you promise. In Jesus name, amen.

The Christmas Story

The Birth of Jesus Foretold (Luke 1:26-45)

²⁶ In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, ²⁷ to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. ²⁸ The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.”

²⁹ Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. ³⁰ But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary; you have found favor with God. ³¹ You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus. ³² He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, ³³ and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never end.”

³⁴ “How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?”

³⁵ The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God. ³⁶ Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be unable to conceive is in her sixth month. ³⁷ For no word from God will ever fail.”

³⁸ “I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May your word to me be fulfilled.” Then the angel left her.

At that time, Mary got ready and hurried to a town in the hill country of Judea, ⁴⁰ where she entered Zechariah’s home and greeted Elizabeth. ⁴¹ When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the baby leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. ⁴² In a loud voice she exclaimed: “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the child you will bear! ⁴³ But why am I so favored, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? ⁴⁴ As soon as the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy. ⁴⁵ Blessed is she who has believed that the Lord would fulfill his promises to her!”

Joseph Accepts Jesus as His Son (Matthew 1:18-25)

¹⁸ This is how the birth of Jesus the Messiah came about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit. ¹⁹ Because Joseph her husband was faithful to the law, and yet did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly.

²⁰ But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. ²¹ She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.”

²² All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: ²³ “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” (which means “God with us”).

²⁴ When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife. ²⁵ But he did not consummate their marriage until she gave birth to a son. And he gave him the name Jesus.

The Birth of Jesus (Luke 2:1-21)

2 In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. ² (This was the first census that took place while Quirinius was governor of Syria.) ³ And everyone went to their own town to register.

⁴ So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. ⁵ He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child. ⁶ While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, ⁷ and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no guest room available for them.

⁸ And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. ⁹ An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. ¹⁰ But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. ¹¹ Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. ¹² This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”

¹³ Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,

¹⁴ “Glory to God in the highest heaven,
    and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”

¹⁵ When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”

¹⁶ So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. ¹⁷ When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, ¹⁸ and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. ¹⁹ But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. ²⁰ The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.

²¹ On the eighth day, when it was time to circumcise the child, he was named Jesus, the name the angel had given before He was conceived.

The Magi (Wisemen) Visit the Messiah (Mathew 2:1-15)

2 After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem ² and asked, “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.”

³ When King Herod heard this he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him. ⁴ When he had called together all the people’s chief priests and teachers of the law, he asked them where the Messiah was to be born. ⁵ “In Bethlehem in Judea,” they replied, “for this is what the prophet has written:

⁶ “‘But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,
    are by no means least among the rulers of Judah;
for out of you will come a ruler
    who will shepherd my people Israel.’

⁷ Then Herod called the Magi secretly and found out from them the exact time the star had appeared. ⁸ He sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and search carefully for the child. As soon as you find him, report to me, so that I too may go and worship him.”

⁹ After they had heard the king, they went on their way, and the star they had seen when it rose went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was. ¹⁰ When they saw the star, they were overjoyed. ¹¹ On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. ¹² And having been warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, they returned to their country by another route.

¹³ When they had gone, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream. “Get up,” he said, “take the child and his mother and escape to Egypt. Stay there until I tell you, for Herod is going to search for the child to kill him.”

¹⁴ So he got up, took the child and his mother during the night and left for Egypt, ¹⁵ where he stayed until the death of Herod. And so was fulfilled what the Lord had said through the prophet: “Out of Egypt I called my son.”

Daniel 9:25

“Know therefore and understand,
That from the going forth of the command
To restore and build Jerusalem
Until Messiah the Prince,
There shall be seven weeks and sixty-two weeks;
The street shall be built again, and the wall,
Even in troublesome times.

The name “Prince of Peace” is the Hebrew Shar Shalom, which means “the one who removes all peace-disturbing factors and secures the peace.” This instantly sets Him apart from those human rulers whose reigns depend on bloody conquest, for His rule rests on a bloody sacrifice. What a contrast to such biblical kings as Nebuchadnezzar, and even David, whose rule was established on power but not peace.

The name “Prince of Peace” helps to explain why Jesus disappointed His countrymen when He came. They did not want a peaceful prince. They wanted a ruler who would annihilate their foes and reestablish the glory Israel knew in the golden days of Solomon. They wanted Rome and all their other oppressors taken away.

What is the importance of the name “Prince of Peace” to the one who believes in Christ?

Those who trust Christ as their Savior are given by God an assurance that flows out of this new relationship with Him. Once we are in Christ, the Prince of Peace shows us that He can bring peace wherever He rules. He can bring:

Peace in life’s trials. “Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid” (JN. 14:27).

Peace in life’s maturing process. “Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely…” (1 TH. 5:23a).

Peace in life’s victories. “The God of peace will crush Satan under your feet shortly” (ROM. 16:20).

Peace in life’s relationships. “… endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace” (EPH. 4:3).

Peace in life’s witness. “The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control” (GAL. 5:22-23).

Isaiah 9:2-7

The people walking in darkness
    have seen a great light;
on those living in the land of deep darkness
    a light has dawned.
³ You have enlarged the nation
    and increased their joy;
they rejoice before you
    as people rejoice at the harvest,
as warriors rejoice
    when dividing the plunder.
⁴ For as in the day of Midian’s defeat,
    you have shattered
the yoke that burdens them,
    the bar across their shoulders,
    the rod of their oppressor.
⁵ Every warrior’s boot used in battle
    and every garment rolled in blood
will be destined for burning,
    will be fuel for the fire.
⁶ For to us a child is born,
    to us a son is given,
    and the government will be on his shoulders.
And he will be called
    Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
    Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
⁷ Of the greatness of his government and peace
    there will be no end.
He will reign on David’s throne
    and over his kingdom,
establishing and upholding it
    with justice and righteousness
    from that time on and forever.
The zeal of the Lord Almighty
    will accomplish this.

He is our Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, and Prince of Peace. May we give Him our full devotion, as we ponder the great God that He is!

Luke 1:35

³⁵ The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God

Let me share something from “Our Daily Bread” today

One of my favorite portions of Handel’s Messiah is the joyous movement “For unto us a Child is born,” from the first part of the oratorio. I especially love how the chorus rises to the phrase, “Unto us a Son is given.” Those words, of course, are taken from Isaiah 9:6, “For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given.” Handel’s majestic music soars with adoration for the Son who came to us in human flesh that first Christmas.

The New Testament clarifies even further who this Son is. In Luke 1, the angelic messenger appeared to Mary and identified the Christ-child in four ways. He would be the son of Mary, making Him fully human (1:31). He would be the Son of the Highest, which made Him fully divine (1:32). He would also be the Son of David, giving Him royal lineage (1:32). And He would bear the title of Son of God (1:35), giving Him equality with the Father in all things. All of the roles the Messiah was called to fill are made possible in these distinct expressions of His Sonship.

As we worship Him this Christmas, may our celebrations be filled with joy and wonder at the fullness of what it means. Our heavenly Father has given us His perfect, sufficient Son. O come, let us adore Him!

Luke 1:26-35

²⁶ In the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, ²⁷ to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. ²⁸ The angel went to her and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.”

²⁹ Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. ³⁰ But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary; you have found favor with God. ³¹ You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus. ³² He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, ³³ and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never end.”

³⁴ “How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?”

³⁵ The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God. 

Isaiah 7:14

Therefore the Lord himself will give you^[c] a sign: The virgin^[d] will conceive and give birth to a son, and^[e] will call him Immanuel.

Matthew 1:18-24

1⁸ This is how the birth of Jesus the Messiah came about^[d]: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit. ¹⁹ Because Joseph her husband was faithful to the law, and yet^[e] did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly.

²⁰ But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. ²¹ She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus,^[f] because he will save his people from their sins.”

²² All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: ²³ “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel”^[g] (which means “God with us”).

²⁴ When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife. ²⁵ But he did not consummate their marriage until she gave birth to a son. And he gave him the name Jesus.

So something struck me today, and maybe this is some basic bible knowledge that I somehow missed, but I wondered about the seemingly contradictory statements in vs. 23 and 24. God said in vs 23 that the Messiah would be called “Immanuel”. and in the very next verse, Joseph names the baby Jesus. So I always had assumed the name Jesus was just the translation of the Immanuel name in a different language, but it seems it was not. Here is what I learned today:

Let’s look at the name “Immanuel” – the meaning of the name is “God with us”. Clearly we can understand that this described Jesus perfectly, as He was God with us, He was physically among us for 33 years. But Immanuel was merely a description, just like the many different names we’ve looked at over the past 3 weeks. It was never intended to be his actual name. Just like when Isaiah said ““He will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace”, again, obviously, not intended to be His real name. The angel that spoke to Mary in Luke chapter 1 gave them the specific name, Jesus. Interesting. I thought so at least.

But let’s focus on what really matters here, and that God was among us. What an incredible gift we were given! And forevermore, the lives of all humanity would be changed.

Isaiah 7:10-14

¹⁰ Again the Lord spoke to Ahaz, ¹¹ “Ask the Lord your God for a sign, whether in the deepest depths or in the highest heights.”

¹² But Ahaz said, “I will not ask; I will not put the Lord to the test.”

¹³ Then Isaiah said, “Hear now, you house of David! Is it not enough to try the patience of humans? Will you try the patience of my God also? ¹⁴ Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel.

Thank you God for the gift of Immanuel. Your love is clearly shown by dwelling among us putting your plan of salvation into motion. Thank you for your forgiveness and grace. in Jesus name, amen.

John 6:48

⁴⁸ I am the bread of life.

Jesus said an interesting thing when He was being tempted by the devil after His baptism. After 40 days, Jesus would have been very weak and extremely hungry. Satan told Him to turn this stone into bread. And Jesus replied, “Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God. Matt4:4 While bread most often represented the food that we need to meet our physical hunger, Jesus says this isn’t enough. Our physical nourishment is not the only important need we have. Jesus tells us He is the bread of Life. We also know Jesus is the Word, and the Word was with God in the beginning and the Word was God. So if we take all these things into account, Jesus is saying we need to nourish ourselves with the Word of God. We need to nourish our souls, and this is just as important, if not more important that our physical hunger. Let’s not forget to daily feed our hungry spiritual selves with some truth from the bible!

John 6:44-51

⁴⁴ “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws them, and I will raise them up at the last day. ⁴⁵ It is written in the Prophets: ‘They will all be taught by God.’^[d] Everyone who has heard the Father and learned from him comes to me. ⁴⁶ No one has seen the Father except the one who is from God; only he has seen the Father. ⁴⁷ Very truly I tell you, the one who believes has eternal life. ⁴⁸ I am the bread of life. ⁴⁹ Your ancestors ate the manna in the wilderness, yet they died. ⁵⁰ But here is the bread that comes down from heaven, which anyone may eat and not die. ⁵¹ I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Whoever eats this bread will live forever. This bread is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.”

Lord, you are the bread of Life. You Word nourishes our very souls. Thank you Lord for looking after our physical needs as well as our spiritual hunger. Help me to never be “full” from the Word, but rather have a constant nagging hunger for it. In Jesus name, amen.

Isaiah 28:16

¹⁶ So this is what the Sovereign Lord says:

“See, I lay a stone in Zion, a tested stone,
    a precious cornerstone for a sure foundation;
the one who relies on it
    will never be stricken with panic.

What is a cornerstone? In practical terms, the cornerstone (or foundation stone or setting stone) is the first stone set in the construction of a masonary foundation. All other stones will be set in reference to this stone, thus determining the position of the entire structure.

 In New Testament times, the cornerstone was the most important stone in the building. Builders lay the cornerstone first, then used it to determine if all other lines in the building were straight by comparing them to the cornerstone.

How ironic it would be for builders to reject a stone as unusable, only to later realize it was the most important stone in the building! Yet this is what many people of Jesus’ day did. The Jewish religious leaders rejected him, not realizing he was the one they had been searching for all along. Roman rulers saw him as expendable, willing to sacrifice a single man’s life in order to keep the illusion of peace. But those who believed recognized that Jesus is the cornerstone—the foundation of our faith and one on whom we must depend.

Today, some people can’t understand why we place such value on the words of a man who was crucified almost two thousand years ago. Yet when we look through the eyes of faith, we realize that Jesus is a priceless treasure. When we build our lives on him, everything else falls into place. What are you basing your life upon? Let Jesus be your cornerstone.

Psalm 118:18-24

The Lord has chastened me severely,
    but he has not given me over to death.
¹⁹ Open for me the gates of the righteous;
    I will enter and give thanks to the Lord.
²⁰ This is the gate of the Lord
    through which the righteous may enter.
²¹ I will give you thanks, for you answered me;
    you have become my salvation.

²² The stone the builders rejected
    has become the cornerstone;
²³ the Lord has done this,
    and it is marvelous in our eyes.
²⁴ The Lord has done it this very day;
    let us rejoice today and be glad.

1 Timothy 2:5

⁵ For there is one God and one mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus, 

What is a mediator? In most instances, particularly legal conflicts, that term describes someone who settles disputes between two parties who cannot come an agreement. The mediator keeps the dispute neutral and serves as an acceptable negotiator and message bearer for both sides, seeking the best interests—or the best compromise—for all involved. Mediation allows disputes to be settled in a peaceful fashion at a lower cost to both sides.

Jesus is not this kind of mediator. He is not seeking compromise. He is not asking both sides—sinful man and holy God—to meet in the middle and give a little ground. He is not finding the best of the unsatisfactory solutions to difficult problems. He is not carrying messages from one side to the other, and then rephrasing them to be more acceptable and palatable.

And so Jesus is an entirely different kind of mediator between God and us. This mediation is not a two-way street bringing our good to God to see what can be arranged. Jesus is the good that is brought to God. He is both mediation and mediator.

When we fall short (daily) and break fellowship with God, we can rest in the surety that “there is one God and one mediator between God and humanity, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all”

What greater hope could we have? 

1 Timothy 2:1-7

2 I urge, then, first of all, that petitions, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for all people— ² for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness. ³ This is good, and pleases God our Savior, ⁴ who wants all people to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth. ⁵ For there is one God and one mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus, ⁶ who gave himself as a ransom for all people. This has now been witnessed to at the proper time. ⁷ And for this purpose I was appointed a herald and an apostle—I am telling the truth, I am not lying—and a true and faithful teacher of the Gentiles.

Thank you Lord for your love today!

John 10:7

⁷ Therefore Jesus said again, “Very truly I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep. 

Jesus was taking an earthly picture and giving it a heavenly meaning. In heaven there is only one door to get in and that is through Jesus Christ. Heaven is not a place you can sneak into. Jesus is the doorway that leads to eternal life. Jesus proclaimed to all the religious leaders “I am the gate”. There is no other way.

John 10:7-10

Therefore Jesus said again, “Very truly I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep. ⁸ All who have come before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep have not listened to them. ⁹ I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved.^[a] They will come in and go out, and find pasture. ¹⁰ The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.

Lord, you are the only way to the Father. Help us to stay focused on the only gate that leads us to the path to heaven. Thank you for your mercy and grace, You are truly an awesome and mighty God. In Jesus name, amen.