John 8:28-32

If we believe in Jesus and the salvation that can only come through Him…we will be saved. 

If we listen closely to the promptings of the Holy Spirit we will know our sins. The truth of that and asking for forgiveness allows us to remain in Him. In lifting Jesus up and sharing His gift of salvation, offered to all as a free gift, we spread the Good News of the Gospel.This faith pleases God.

God doesn’t want anyone to spend eternity without Him.

The Greek phrase translated believed in occurs almost exclusively in John’s Gospel. The phrase describes faith in Jesus’ message, which results in eternal life. A believer who continues to obey the Word is a disciple, a learner.

Obedience to the Lord means fellowship with Him, protection from sin, and experiencing His love. NKJ Bible

John 8:28–32 (NKJV)

²⁸ Then Jesus said to them, “When you lift up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am He, and that I do nothing of Myself; but as My Father taught Me, I speak these things. ²⁹ And He who sent Me is with Me. The Father has not left Me alone, for I always do those things that please Him.” ³⁰ As He spoke these words, many believed in Him.

³¹ Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, “If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. ³² And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.”

John 5:30 (NKJV)

³⁰ I can of Myself do nothing. As I hear, I judge; and My judgment is righteous, because I do not seek My own will but the will of the Father who sent Me.

Deuteronomy 18:18 (NKJV)

¹⁸ I will raise up for them a Prophet like you from among their brethren, and will put My words in His mouth, and He shall speak to them all that I command Him.

The Book of Luke

THANKFUL…plainly, unadulterated gratefulness for the the King of kings and Lord of lords. Deeply moved and captured by the dear Holy Spirit who enables us to love others and to be loved by Him. Holy, holy, holy is the Father almighty who from the beginning loved His creation so much that our Savior and salvation was in His mind!

Love divine…Father, Son and Holy Spirit. The mind, body and heart of God revealed to mankind.

Christ in the Scriptures

Just like we’d expect from a family doctor, Dr. Luke sensitively describes Jesus as One who reaches out personally and heals those who are mercilessly caged by devastating illnesses. As a person, He is concerned with people. Whereas Matthew likes to refer to Jesus as the Son of David and Mark refers to Him as the Son of God, Luke’s favorite expression is “the Son of Man.”

Jesus’ humanity and compassion are repeatedly stressed by the author. This, coupled with Luke’s portrayal of Jesus’ sinless perfection, set up his logical conclusion. Because Jesus is the only perfect person born of a woman and because He identifies compassionately with the plight of suffering sinful people, He alone is qualified to carry our sorrows, bear our sin, and offer us the priceless gift of salvation.

John 14:15-18

What did Jesus command us to do?

To love  God above anyone, any place or any thing and to love others in the same way that we do ourselves and our own families.

Easy to say not as easy to carry out…Holy Spirit guide us into the way, the truth and the life.

All three members of the Trinity are mentioned here. Jesus prayed to the Father who would give the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is called the Spirit of truth because He is truth and guides us into all truth. The Spirit of God is active in the world, but His acts go unnoticed by the world. NKJ Bible.

John 14:15–18 (NKJV)

¹⁵ “If you love Me, keep My commandments. ¹⁶ And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever—¹⁷ the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you. ¹⁸ I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you.

John 15:26 (NKJV)

²⁶ “But when the Helper comes, whom I shall send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father, He will testify of Me.

John 16:13 (NKJV)

¹³ However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come.

Ephesians 3:17 (NKJV)

¹⁷ that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love,

Proverbs 22:17-25

Wisdom! 

Care for others in the same way that you would want them to care for you. Jesus commanded it!

This proverb addresses the exploitation of the impoverished. Because they are unable to protect their legal rights, the poor are an easy target for the rich and powerful. The rationale given here for not robbing them is that Yahweh defends them. The oppression of the poor insults God, the Maker of both rich and poor. This proverb goes further, stating Yahweh will come to the defense of the impoverished and carry out justice for the oppressed. While quarrelsome people bring destruction, the greatest danger of associating with them is becoming like them. This threat of corruption is also a common theme in Egyptian wisdom literature. Faithlife Bible.

Most violations of justice target poor and afflicted people because they are weak and defenseless. But anyone who does this makes an enemy of God, who will plead their cause. NKJ Bible.

Proverbs 22:17–25 (NKJV)

¹⁷ Incline your ear and hear the words of the wise,

And apply your heart to my knowledge;

¹⁸ For it is a pleasant thing if you keep them within you;

Let them all be fixed upon your lips,

¹⁹ So that your trust may be in the Lord;

I have instructed you today, even you.

²⁰ Have I not written to you excellent things

Of counsels and knowledge,

²¹ That I may make you know the certainty of the words of truth,

That you may answer words of truth

To those who send to you?

²² Do not rob the poor because he is poor,

Nor oppress the afflicted at the gate;

²³ For the Lord will plead their cause,

And plunder the soul of those who plunder them.

²⁴ Make no friendship with an angry man,

And with a furious man do not go,

²⁵ Lest you learn his ways

And set a snare for your soul.

He will not stand before unknown men.

Exodus 23:6 (NKJV)

⁶ “You shall not pervert the judgment of your poor in his dispute.

Exodus 23:7 (NKJV)

⁷ Keep yourself far from a false matter; do not kill the innocent and righteous. For I will not justify the wicked.

Luke 12:1-7

Be honest and transparent. God already knows everything about you and loves you. You are important to Him. 

Trust God to accomplish what you cannot. 

Leaven serves as an apt metaphor to describe the widespread effects of the Pharisees’ hypocritical teachings and actions. The disciples must not fear their trials because God is watching over them. Faithlife Bible.

Practicing hypocrisy is senseless because eventually all deeds—both good and evil—will be exposed. God knows the most minute detail of what happens on earth. The copper coins mentioned were the smallest coin in circulation, worth about one-sixteenth of a basic day’s wage. NKJ Bible.

Luke 12:1–7 (NKJV)

12 In the meantime, when an innumerable multitude of people had gathered together, so that they trampled one another, He began to say to His disciples first of all, “Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy. ² For there is nothing covered that will not be revealed, nor hidden that will not be known. ³ Therefore whatever you have spoken in the dark will be heard in the light, and what you have spoken in the ear in inner rooms will be proclaimed on the housetops.

⁴ “And I say to you, My friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body, and after that have no more that they can do. ⁵ But I will show you whom you should fear: Fear Him who, after He has killed, has power to cast into hell; yes, I say to you, fear Him!

⁶ “Are not five sparrows sold for two copper coins? And not one of them is forgotten before God. ⁷ But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Do not fear therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows.

John 15:13 (NKJV)

¹³ Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends.

John 15:15 (NKJV)

¹⁵ No longer do I call you servants, for a servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all things that I heard from My Father I have made known to you.

1 Corinthians 14:27-28

Every gift is to be used for the glory of God. 

Speaking in tongues is a gift. It is nothing to do with our abilities but everything to do with the power of the Holy Spirit to use fallen man for His purposes. It is not a weapon but a means of praise to our Savior! Where it cannot be interpreted…use it quietly to speak of things beyond your understanding to honor your creator.

If each person brings to the meeting the special ability that God has given him or her, and if everything is done for edification, the church as a whole will benefit. NKJ BIble.

1 Corinthians 14:27–28 (NKJV)

²⁷ If anyone speaks in a tongue, let there be two or at the most three, each in turn, and let one interpret. ²⁸ But if there is no interpreter, let him keep silent in church, and let him speak to himself and to God.

Acts 11:19-26

CHRISTians…being justified in Him and being changed precept by precept to do good works to the glory of God. It was too small a thing that Jesus came to only the Jews. He came to offer salvation to ALL…those in every financial condition, every nationality, every gender. EVERYONE.

All praise and honor be to God…Father, Son and Holy Spirit!

The Greek term used here, christianos, which may be literally rendered “of Christ” or “belonging to Christ,” refers to “Christ followers.” The community began to be known as a distinct movement from Judaism that was loyal to Jesus as Messiah (or Christ) and Lord.

The mission of the early church extends into the region of Phoenicia—in modern-day Lebanon, north of Israel along the Mediterranean coast—beyond Caesarea and to areas besides Damascus. Cyprus a large Mediterranean island that figures prominently in Acts. Cyrene in northern Africa (modern-day Libya) settled by Greeks, which in the first century had a large Jewish population. 

Antioch was the Roman military and administrative capital of its region in southern Asia Minor. Luke (the narrator) underlines the culturally limited scope of the church’s witness beyond Jerusalem prior to this point. Faithlife Bible.

This persecution began when Stephen was murdered for his faith. God often uses tough times to accomplish His will. Jesus said, “You shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth”. God allowed persecution to be the impetus for spreading Christ’s witness throughout the land. Those who face such persecution will receive “great reward” in heaven. At this time it was primarily the Jewish believers who were being persecuted. Consequently, the Jewish Christians were the ones who were moving out and sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ in various regions. They shared the gospel with the Jews because they still met in the local synagogues and held onto many of the Jewish customs. (Catholic)

Seleucus I founded the city of Antioch, naming it after his father. The city was cosmopolitan, attracting people of various cultures and ethnic backgrounds—including people from Persia, India, and even China. The gospel proclaimed in Antioch would have had tremendous potential for reaching other areas of the world. Moreover, because the city was culturally diverse, it was not controlled by one religious group, making the people there more open to hearing the truth of the gospel message.

Barnabas, nicknamed “Son of Encouragement” by the apostles, was sent to discern what God was doing in the lives of the new converts. When Barnabas saw the grace of God in these converts, he was true to his name and encouraged them in their new faith. Purpose of heart describes a resolve of the will to make up one’s mind about one thing. The resolve here was to remain with the Lord.

The believers were called Christians because they worshiped Christ, the Messiah. The historian Josephus called them “that tribe of Christians.” Tacitus, the Roman historian, referred to them as “Christians, a name derived from Christ.” Originally, the church called themselves “The Way.” But later they began to refer to themselves as Christians, despite the fact that the name most likely was originally used to ridicule the believers. NKJ Bible.

Acts 11:19–26 (NKJV)

¹⁹ Now those who were scattered after the persecution that arose over Stephen traveled as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus, and Antioch, preaching the word to no one but the Jews only. ²⁰ But some of them were men from Cyprus and Cyrene, who, when they had come to Antioch, spoke to the Hellenists, preaching the Lord Jesus. ²¹ And the hand of the Lord was with them, and a great number believed and turned to the Lord.

²² Then news of these things came to the ears of the church in Jerusalem, and they sent out Barnabas to go as far as Antioch. ²³ When he came and had seen the grace of God, he was glad, and encouraged them all that with purpose of heart they should continue with the Lord. ²⁴ For he was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith. And a great many people were added to the Lord.

²⁵ Then Barnabas departed for Tarsus to seek Saul. ²⁶ And when he had found him, he brought him to Antioch. So it was that for a whole year they assembled with the church and taught a great many people. And the disciples were first called Christians in Antioch.

Acts 2:47 (NKJV)

⁴⁷ praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved.

Luke 1:66 (NKJV)

⁶⁶ And all those who heard them kept them in their hearts, saying, “What kind of child will this be?” And the hand of the Lord was with him.

Ezekiel 9:9-11

There will come a time of  judgement.

What does God require of us? Micah 8:6

Be fair to ALL people

Forgive quickly

Remain humble

it is nothing to do with your goodness but everything to do with His!

God can no longer delay punishment for Israel. His justice requires judgment. Faithlife Bible.

Three reasons are given as to why the nation deserved this terrible outpouring of God’s wrath—serious and undeniable (1) iniquity, or guilt of sinful offenses; (2) bloodshed, or violence; and (3) perversity, or more precisely injustice. The people and especially rich rulers willfully chose to believe that God did not see or care what injustices went on. NKJ Bible.

 Ezekiel 9:9–11 (NKJV)

⁹ Then He said to me, “The iniquity of the house of Israel and Judah is exceedingly great, and the land is full of bloodshed, and the city full of perversity; for they say, ‘The Lord has forsaken the land, and the Lord does not see!’ ¹⁰ And as for Me also, My eye will neither spare, nor will I have pity, but I will recompense their deeds on their own head.”

¹¹ Just then, the man clothed with linen, who had the inkhorn at his side, reported back and said, “I have done as You commanded me.”

2 Kings 21:16 (NKJV)

¹⁶ Moreover Manasseh shed very much innocent blood, till he had filled Jerusalem from one end to another, besides his sin by which he made Judah sin, in doing evil in the sight of the Lord.

Isaiah 29:15 (NKJV)

¹⁵ Woe to those who seek deep to hide their counsel far from the Lord,

And their works are in the dark;

They say, “Who sees us?” and, “Who knows us?”

Isaiah 65:6 (NKJV)

⁶ “Behold, it is written before Me:

I will not keep silence, but will repay—

Even repay into their bosom—

Micah 2:1-4

Evil never pays. Hate never rewards. Ill gotten gain is fleeting. I fear for our country under the current administration. God help America.

They do evil not merely on a sudden impulse, but with deliberate design. 

These wicked individuals lay on their beds at night thinking of evil plots. They cannot sleep because they are consumed with wickedness. These evildoers were powerful, wealthy people with the ability to carry out their schemes and profit by them. The mistreatment of others has given these evildoers the impression that they are better than those upon whom they prey. The “Day of Yahweh,” would be a day of divine judgment. Faithlife Bible.

The ethical teaching of the prophets regularly included oracles of judgment against greed, theft, and oppression, actions of the powerful in attacking the weak. To covet is not just to have a passing thought; it is a determination to seize what is not one’s own. “Do not prattle” these words may have been a strong warning to Micah not to be like the lying prophets who counseled that all was well in the land. NKJ Bible.

Micah 2:1–4 (NKJV)

2  Woe to those who devise iniquity,

And work out evil on their beds!

At morning light they practice it,

Because it is in the power of their hand.

² They covet fields and take them by violence,

Also houses, and seize them.

So they oppress a man and his house,

A man and his inheritance.

³ Therefore thus says the Lord:

“Behold, against this family I am devising disaster,

From which you cannot remove your necks;

Nor shall you walk haughtily,

For this is an evil time.

⁴ In that day one shall take up a proverb against you,

And lament with a bitter lamentation, saying:

‘We are utterly destroyed!

He has changed the heritage of my people;

How He has removed it from me!

To a turncoat He has divided our fields.’ ”

Amos 5:12 (NKJV)

¹² For I know your manifold transgressions

And your mighty sins:

Afflicting the just and taking bribes;

Diverting the poor from justice at the gate.

Amos 5:13 (NKJV)

¹³ Therefore the prudent keep silent at that time,

For it is an evil time.

Isaiah 14:4 (NKJV)

⁴ that you will take up this proverb against the king of Babylon, and say:

“How the oppressor has ceased,

The golden city ceased!

Matthew 2:9-12

This is the day the Lord has made let us rejoice and be glad in it!!

We will never totally understand the depravity of the world that exists without Jesus…but we were placed here to be a beacon of light not darkness. Listen carefully to the Holy Spirit who will direct your path and protect you from all evil.

This unusual activity demonstrates that the star is a supernatural phenomenon. Matthew does not identify the warning’s origin. Throughout his narrative, he commonly ascribes dreams to God and His emissaries. Faithlife Bible.

The wise men undoubtedly would have been discouraged by their failure to find the King in Jerusalem, by the lack of knowledge concerning the birth of the Messiah among the leaders, by the disinterest among Israel, and by the weariness from the long journey. The reappearance of the star must have brought great joy and encouragement to them. Their gifts provided the financial resources for Mary and Joseph’s flight to Egypt. NKJ Bible.

Matthew 2:9–12 (NKJV)

⁹ When they heard the king, they departed; and behold, the star which they had seen in the East went before them, till it came and stood over where the young Child was. ¹⁰ When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy. ¹¹ And when they had come into the house, they saw the young Child with Mary His mother, and fell down and worshiped Him. And when they had opened their treasures, they presented gifts to Him: gold, frankincense, and myrrh.

¹² Then, being divinely warned in a dream that they should not return to Herod, they departed for their own country another way.

Job 33:15 (NKJV)

¹⁵ In a dream, in a vision of the night,

When deep sleep falls upon men,

While slumbering on their beds,

Matthew 1:20 (NKJV)

²⁰ But while he thought about these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take to you Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit.

Acts 12:5-10

God is in total control.  He has the absolute power to save, to change circumstances and act on our behalf. He also can and does use our hands and our feet to fulfill his wishes as He did in WW2 in response to the genocide of the Jews by the hands of Hitler. As He used Moses to save his children enslaved by pharaoh. Throughout HISstory God has used those willing to serve him to help others in unison with the miraculous.

We must never put God in a box. He is the great I AM!

To God alone all glory!!

Two of the soldiers in the squad are chained to Peter while the other two keep watch. This choice to guard him this closely is probably due to him being freed miraculously earlier. Faithlife Bible.

Peter was arrested and slated to be executed like James. However, Peter’s execution was delayed because it was against Jewish law to have a trial or sentencing during the Feast of Unleavened Bread, better known as Passover. This was Peter’s third arrest. During a previous incarceration, Peter had miraculously escaped with the help of an angel of the Lord who opened the gates of the prison. This time Peter was placed under maximum security in the care of four squads of soldiers of four men each. The soldiers worked three-hour shifts. Both of Peter’s wrists were chained, and he had a soldier on each side. Outside Peter’s cell, two more soldiers stood guard. NKJ Bible.

Acts 12:5–10 (NKJV)

⁵ Peter was therefore kept in prison, but constant prayer was offered to God for him by the church. ⁶ And when Herod was about to bring him out, that night Peter was sleeping, bound with two chains between two soldiers; and the guards before the door were keeping the prison. ⁷ Now behold, an angel of the Lord stood by him, and a light shone in the prison; and he struck Peter on the side and raised him up, saying, “Arise quickly!” And his chains fell off his hands. ⁸ Then the angel said to him, “Gird yourself and tie on your sandals”; and so he did. And he said to him, “Put on your garment and follow me.” ⁹ So he went out and followed him, and did not know that what was done by the angel was real, but thought he was seeing a vision. ¹⁰ When they were past the first and the second guard posts, they came to the iron gate that leads to the city, which opened to them of its own accord; and they went out and went down one street, and immediately the angel departed from him.

Psalm 126:6 (NKJV)

⁶ He who continually goes forth weeping,

Bearing seed for sowing,

Shall doubtless come again with rejoicing,

Bringing his sheaves with him.

Acts 5:19 (NKJV)

¹⁹ But at night an angel of the Lord opened the prison doors and brought them out, and said,

Acts 11:5 (NKJV)

⁵ “I was in the city of Joppa praying; and in a trance I saw a vision, an object descending like a great sheet, let down from heaven by four corners; and it came to me.

John 12:44-50

Believe in the One sent to save you. GOD, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, loves you so! Let the flame of Christ reside in you through the Holy Spirit. If we cling to the light we will be transformed into a beacon of God’s love to all those we meet!

Jesus equates Himself with God the Father; they are one. Jesus desires to save. Receiving that salvation involves believing in Him. The commandment Jesus requires His disciples to keep is to believe in His ability to grant eternal life. Faithlife Bible.

Jesus insisted that anyone who believed in Him was at the same time exercising belief in God the Father. Jesus explained that He was the personal manifestation of God. Christ will judge, but at His first coming He did not come to judge but to save.

John 12:44–50 (NKJV)

⁴⁴ Then Jesus cried out and said, “He who believes in Me, believes not in Me but in Him who sent Me. ⁴⁵ And he who sees Me sees Him who sent Me. ⁴⁶ I have come as a light into the world, that whoever believes in Me should not abide in darkness. ⁴⁷ And if anyone hears My words and does not believe, I do not judge him; for I did not come to judge the world but to save the world. ⁴⁸ He who rejects Me, and does not receive My words, has that which judges him—the word that I have spoken will judge him in the last day. ⁴⁹ For I have not spoken on My own authority; but the Father who sent Me gave Me a command, what I should say and what I should speak. ⁵⁰ And I know that His command is everlasting life. Therefore, whatever I speak, just as the Father has told Me, so I speak.”

Luke 10:16 (NKJV)

¹⁶ He who hears you hears Me, he who rejects you rejects Me, and he who rejects Me rejects Him who sent Me.”

John 6:53-59

Holy is the Lamb of God slain so that all who believe in Him, in His birth, death and resurrection, would live eternally with Him. Communion is the Body and Blood of our Savior and in partaking it we share in the remembrance of all that He did for us!

Jesus had made it abundantly clear in this context that eternal life is gained by believing. These verses teach that the benefits of Jesus’ death must be appropriated, by faith, by each individual. NKJ Bible.

This is that bread,—a sort of summing up of the whole discourse, on which let this one further remark suffice—that as our Lord, instead of softening down His figurative sublimities, or even putting them in naked phraseology, leaves the great truths of His Person and Office, and our participation of Him and it, enshrined for all time in those glorious forms of speech, so when we attempt to strip the truth of these figures, figures though they be, it goes away from us, like water when the vessel is broken, and our wisdom lies in raising our own spirit, and attuning our own ear, to our Lord’s chosen modes of expression. (It should be added that although this discourse has nothing to do with the Sacrament of the Supper, the Sacrament has everything to do with it, as the visible embodiment of these figures, and, to the believing partaker, a real, yea, and the most lively and affecting participation of His flesh and blood, and nourishment thereby of the spiritual and eternal life, here below).

 Jamieson, R., Fausset, A. R., & Brown, D. (1997). Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (Vol. 2, p. 140). Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc.

John 6:53–59 (NKJV)

⁵³ Then Jesus said to them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in you. ⁵⁴ Whoever eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day. ⁵⁵ For My flesh is food indeed, and My blood is drink indeed. ⁵⁶ He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood abides in Me, and I in him. ⁵⁷ As the living Father sent Me, and I live because of the Father, so he who feeds on Me will live because of Me. ⁵⁸ This is the bread which came down from heaven—not as your fathers ate the manna, and are dead. He who eats this bread will live forever.”

⁵⁹ These things He said in the synagogue as He taught in Capernaum.

Matthew 26:26 (NKJV)

²⁶ And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to the disciples and said, “Take, eat; this is My body.”

Matthew 26:27 (NKJV)

²⁷ Then He took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you.