Words

Think of how many people we converse with each and every day. Whether it's saying have a good day to our loved ones as they embark on their day, a casual conversation with that sweet old lady at the supermarket, or the constant conversation we have with ourselves in our head. There are constant voices going on. Have you ever really stopped to think about what you're saying? Does your mood dictate how you respond to others? I know for me, my mood can definitely be an influence. However, since I work with people all day long, there are times when I have been forced to put a smile on my face and try to be as cordial as possible, even if I'm having a bad day. Sometimes that mood will spill over into home. As my husband reminds me, leave it at work. Don't be someone I dread coming home to. 

Out of curiosity, I Googled "Bible Verses about Speaking". I found one site that listed 45 of them (http://dailyverses.net/speaking)!! If there is that many (and probably countless more that I could find) then it must be a pretty important topic in the bible! The only thing they DON'T tell you is how to make sure that everything we say to everyone is encouraging and uplifting. There are days I'd like to just tell some people to take a flying leap. My point is that once something comes out of your mouth, you can't take it back. Remember when we were kids and we'd say "Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me"? How untrue that is. Words are some of the most powerful things we have, so take a moment before you say something. Think about it. 

Here's a verse to reflect on: "Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart Be acceptable in Your sight, O LORD, my rock and my Redeemer" (Psalm 19:14, ESV)

Here is a powerful song that tells of the power of the words we speak. It is "Words" by Hawk Nelson.

 


 

The Greatest Prayer in the World (Maundy Thursday)

April 17, 2014     by John Piper      Topics:  The Life of Christ

http://www.desiringgod.org/blog/posts/the-greatest-prayer-in-the-world-maundy-thursday

Today is Maundy Thursday. The name comes from the Latin mandatum, the first word in the Latin rendering of John 13:34, “A new commandment (mandatum novum) I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another.” 

This commandment was given by Jesus on the Thursday before his crucifixion. So Maundy Thursday is the “Thursday of the Commandment."

 

It is Thursday, the night before Jesus’s crucifixion. This evening has been laden with teaching (John 13–17), shocking with foot-washing by the greatest for the least (John 13:3–20), epoch-making with the institution of the Lord’s Supper (Matthew 26:20–30; Mark 14:17–26; Luke 22:14–20), and pivotal with the departure of Judas (John 13:30).

Now Jesus and the eleven have gone to the Garden of Gethsemane (John 18:1; Mark 14:32). Here Jesus prays the greatest prayer in the world. What hung in the balance was the glory of God’s grace and the salvation of the world. The success of Jesus’s mission to earth depended on Jesus’s prayer and the answer given. He prayed with reverence and his request was given.

The question I would like to try to answer is: How does Hebrews 5:7 relate to the prayers in Gethsemane? Hebrews 5:7 says, “In the days of his flesh, Jesus offered up prayers and supplications, with loud cries and tears, to him who was able to save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverence.” He was heard. He got his request. What does this refer to in Jesus’s life?

 

Loud Cries in the Garden

Nothing in Jesus’s experience comes closer to this description than the prayers of Gethsemane. “Jesus offered up prayers and supplications, with loud cries and tears,” corresponds emotionally to Luke 22:44, “Being in agony he prayed more earnestly; and his sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground.” “Loud cries and tears” is a description of the “agony” of Jesus.

What was the content of Jesus’s “prayers and supplications” in Hebrews 5:7? If we assume the content was: “Remove this cup from me” (Mark 14:36), then what would it mean that “he was heard because of his reverence” (Hebrews 5:7)? Hebrews teaches that, precisely because of his “godly fear,” Jesus “was heard,” that is, he received his request.

But the cup was not removed. He suffered the fullness of physical pain and divine wrath. So in what sense was Jesus “heard because of his reverence”?

His First Prayer and the Angel’s Help

Both Matthew and Mark portray Jesus as praying three separate times, and each time returning to the sleeping Peter, James, and John. Luke, on the other hand, gives a single summary description of Jesus’s prayers, and includes a detail that points to an answer to our question, namely, the visitation of the angel. Luke writes,

He withdrew from them about a stone’s throw, and knelt down and prayed, saying, “Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me. Nevertheless, not my will, but yours, be done.” And there appeared to him an angel from heaven, strengthening him. And being in an agony he prayed more earnestly; and his sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground. (Luke 22:41–44)

Before the angel came “to strengthen” him, Jesus prayed that the cup be removed (Luke 22:42). Then the angel came, “strengthening him.” Strengthening him for what? Presumably to do what he had to do. In other words, the angel was God’s response to Jesus’s first prayer. The angel bears God’s message that there is no other way, but I will help you. Do not turn from your mission now, in spite of the terrifying prospect. I will help you. Here is my angel to strengthen you.

Then the question is: What was the content of the prayers that followed? Luke 22:44 says, “And being in an agony he prayed more earnestly.” Does this mean he kept on saying: “Remove this cup from me,” even more earnestly? That assumption would be unworthy of Jesus. What then was he praying? And is this different prayer what Hebrews says “was heard because of his reverence”?

 

He Prays a Second Time

According to Matthew, when Jesus went away a second time to pray, he did not say the identical words as the first time. The first time he said, “My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me.” The second time he said, “My Father, if this cannot pass unless I drink it, your will be done” (Matthew 26:42).

May we not assume that the angel had come to Jesus the first time he prayed, and had made plain to Jesus that it was, in fact, not possible for the cup to pass from him, but that God would help him drink it? Which is why, in his second prayer, Jesus does not ask for the cup to be removed, but instead asks for God’s will to be done in view of the revealed fact that “the cup cannot pass”: “If this cannot pass unless I drink it [which has now been made plain to me by the coming of the angel], your will be done.”

When Mark says, of the second prayer of Jesus, “And again he went away and prayed, saying the same words” (Mark 14:39), it need not contradict this, as though only the same words were spoken all three times. “The same words” may simply refer to, “Your will be done,” which indeed Jesus prays each time.

If we are on the right track, then the content of Jesus’s supplications after the angel came was not the same as before. He did not go on praying: “Let this cup pass from me.” It says, “And being in an agony he prayed more earnestly” (Luke 22:44). If he was not praying more earnestly for the cup to be removed, then what was he praying?

 

His Greatest Act of Obedience

Hebrews 5:7 says, “Jesus offered up prayers and supplications, with loud cries and tears, to him who was able to save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverence.” If “save his soul from death” does not mean, “Remove this cup from me,” what does it mean? For he was certainly heard and received this request.

Jonathan Edwards answers,

This was the greatest act of obedience that Christ was to perform. He prays for strength and help, that his poor feeble human nature might be supported, that he might not fail in this great trial, that he might not sink and be swallowed up, and his strength so overcome that he should not hold out, and finish the appointed obedience.

He was afraid lest his poor feeble strength should be overcome, and that he should fail in so great a trial, that he should be swallowed up by that death that he was to die, and so should not be saved from death; and therefore he offered up strong crying and tears unto him that was able to strengthen him, and support, and save him from death, that the death he was to suffer might not overcome his love and obedience, but that he might overcome death, and so be saved from it. (“Christ’s Agony”)

Jesus did not go on praying for the cup to pass. He went on praying for success in drinking it.

When Paul says, of Jesus’s resurrection, “Therefore, God has highly exalted him” (Philippians 2:9), the “therefore” refers to Jesus’s unwavering obedience unto death: “Being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Therefore . . .” (Philippians 2:8). God saved Jesus from death because he was obedient. His prayers were answered.

 

The Father’s Answer

If Jesus had not been obedient unto death, he would have been swallowed up by death forever and there would be no resurrection, no salvation, and no future world filled with the glory of God’s grace and God’s children. This is what Jesus prayed for “to him who was able to save him from death” — that is, save him from a death that would not succeed its saving mission.

“He was heard for his godly fear.” God did save him from the threat that such a death posed to his obedience. Jesus did succeed. There is salvation for all who believe. There will be a new world full of the glory of God’s grace and God’s children.

And all of this is owing to the greatest prayer in the world. Every hope of the gospel succeeds because of Jesus’s reverent earnestness in prayer, and the answer of the Father. “Being in an agony he prayed more earnestly . . . and he was heard because of his reverence” (Luke 22:44; Hebrews 5:7).

Evidently, by the time Jesus was done praying in Gethsemane, the Father had not only made clear that there is no other way than the cross, but also that this way would succeed. The Lamb would have the reward of his suffering. He will “see his offspring; he will prolong his days; the will of the Lord will prosper in his hand. Out of the anguish of his soul he will see and be satisfied” (Isaiah 53:10–11).

Surely this is why Hebrews 12:2 could say, “For the joy that was set before him he endured the cross.” Beneath the terrors of present agony was the taste of future joy. The angel had come, “strengthening him” — clarifying, confirming, connecting the coming joy.

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This is the fifth post in Desiring God’s 2014 Holy Week series “The Final Days of Jesus,” inspired by the new book of the same title by Justin Taylor and Andreas Kostenberger. Holy Week illustrations provided in partnership with Crossway Books and Adam Greene. Previously in the series:

• The Problem of Palm Sunday
• No Turning Back (Monday of Holy Week)
• The Escalating Conflict (Tuesday)
• Spy Wednesday

John Piper (@JohnPiper) is founder and teacher of desiringGod.org and chancellor of Bethlehem College & Seminary. For 33 years, he served as pastor of Bethlehem Baptist Church, Minneapolis, Minnesota. He is author of more than 50 books.

The Escalating Conflict (Tuesday of Holy Week)

    April 15, 2014   by Justin Taylor and Andreas Köstenberger     Topics:  The Life of Christ


http://www.desiringgod.org/blog/posts/the-escalating-conflict-tuesday-of-holy-week

 It is now Tuesday morning, March 31, A.D. 33. The disciples point to the withered fig tree that Jesus had cursed the day before. Jesus gives his disciples a simple lesson from it: have faith in God. In particular, he says, if they have undoubting faith they can throw even the mountains into the sea.

Now if the disciples had ears to hear they would recognize that Jesus is talking about more than seemingly magical powers that can curse trees and crumble mountains. He is talking about realities bigger than this.

Note that he closes this mini-lesson on mountain-moving, undoubting faith by saying, “whenever you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against anyone, so that your Father also who is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses” (Mark 11:25). Jesus is reminding them that failing to forgive looms as a bigger obstacle to answered prayer than a mountain. The disciples will soon face great challenges to their faith and their ability to forgive. Will they remember this withered tree on the road from Bethany?

As they approach the Holy City, the events from the day before could not have been far from their minds. As Jesus enters the Temple Mount, crowds gather to hear him teach (Luke 21:38), and the chief priests, scribes, and elders waste no time in making their move. They will try to lay four traps to ensnare their adversary.

Trap One: Whose Authority?

By whose authority, they demand to know, had Jesus carried out his actions the day before (Mark 11:28)? Jesus doesn’t take the bait. Instead, he turns the tables on them with a question of his own: “Was the baptism of John from heaven or from man?” (Mark 11:30). If they respond “from heaven,” the next question is obvious: Then why don’t you believe the one about whom John testifies? If they retort “from man,” they risk alienating the crowds that hold John in high esteem as a prophet.

Jesus then offers three parabolic stories (about two sons, murderous tenants, and guests at a wedding feast), all driving home the point that they are rejecting grace and truth in the service of hypocritical self-righteousness.

Trap Two: Whose Allegiance?

The leaders try a new tactic. They send Pharisees (a Jewish sect known for its zeal for the law) and Herodians (those loyal to Herod’s dynasty) to ask him a question: “Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?” (Matthew 22:15–22; Mark 12:13–17; Luke 20:20–26). If he answers “yes,” he shatters people’s expectations of him as a Messiah who will overthrow Roman rule. If he says “no,” he can be arrested for fomenting revolt.

But Jesus deftly evades the either-or dilemma: the denarius has Caesar’s image on it; as long as Caesar is in power, it is appropriate to pay taxes to him. And we are also to give God the things that are God’s; since we are made in God’s image, we owe everything — all that we have and all that we are — to him. Pay your taxes and worship God.

Trap Three: Whose Wife in the Resurrection?

After Jesus has silenced the Pharisees and Herodians, the Sadducees (a Jewish sect denying the end-time resurrection of the dead) try to ridicule Jesus’s belief in resurrection by asking a trick question about marriage in heaven (Matthew 22:23–33; Mark 12:18–27; Luke 20:27–40). Jesus tells them they do not understand the Scriptures (there is no marriage in heaven) or the power of God (God’s self-affirmation in Exodus 3:6, 15–16 shows that he is a God of the living, not the dead). Like the others, their smirk turns to marvel as they grow silent.

Trap Four: Which Commandment?

Now the Pharisees send forth an expert in the law to question Jesus: Which of God’s commands is the greatest (Matthew 22:34–40; Mark 12:28–34)? Jesus summarizes his answer in a word: love (to God and for neighbor: Deuteronomy 6:4–5; Leviticus 19:18). But Jesus discerns something different from this questioner, so he commends and implicitly invites him: “You are not far from the kingdom of God” (Mark 12:34).

Now it’s Jesus’s turn to initiate some questions with those who are trying to trap him. When he asks them a question about Psalm 110:1 and how the Messiah can be David’s Lord, “no one was able to answer him a word, nor from that day did anyone dare to ask him any more questions” (Matthew 22:46). Jesus then launches a lengthy, scathing critique of the scribes and Pharisees, pronouncing seven woes of judgment upon these “hypocrites” and “blind guides” (Matthew 23:1–39; Mark 12:38–40; Luke 20:45–47).

This full-scale verbal assault removes all doubt concerning Jesus’s intentions, agenda, and aims. He has no desire to ally himself with the current leadership. He has come to overthrow their authority. There’s no way both sides can survive the escalating conflict. Either Jesus will assume power, or he must die.

Grace and Truth in Every Trap

With another tension-filled day behind them, Jesus and the disciples begin to head back to Bethany. They stop on the Mount of Olives to rest, giving them a wonderful view of Jerusalem as the sun begins to set behind it in the west. The disciples marvel at the size and the grandeur of these impressive buildings, but Jesus tells them that a day is soon coming when not a single stone will be left upon another. He goes on to explain that his followers will experience increasing persecution and tribulation, leading up to the final Day of Judgment. But their task is to remain vigilant and persist in faith.

Tuesday is now done. But Friday is coming. This is not the flannel-board Jesus some of us learned as children. This is the real, historical Jesus: fully in control as he responds with grace and truth to traps on all sides. He knows what he is doing. And he knows what is coming. Every word and every step is for the fame of his Father’s name and the salvation of those willing to pick up their cross and die with him.

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This is the third post in Desiring God’s 2014 Holy Week series “The Final Days of Jesus,” inspired by the new book of the same title by Justin Taylor and Andreas Kostenberger. Holy Week illustrations provided in partnership with Crossway Books and Adam Greene. More on Holy Week:

• The Problem of Palm Sunday
• No Turning Back (Monday of Holy Week)
• Spy Wednesday
• The Greatest Prayer in the World (Maundy Thursday)

Justin Taylor is Vice President of Editorial at Crossway Books and an elder at New Covenant Bible Church in St. Charles, Illinois. He blogs at Between Two Worlds and is co-author of the newly released The Final Days of Jesus: The Most Important Week of the Most Important Person Who Ever Lived.

Andreas J. Köstenberger is Senior Research Professor of New Testament and Biblical Theology at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary in Wake Forest, North Carolina. He is co-author of the newly released The Final Days of Jesus: The Most Important Week of the Most Important Person Who Ever Lived.

The Story of Palm Sunday

The story of Palm Sunday isn't one everyone is familiar with. It is the story of Jesus' entrance into the city of Jerusalem. These are the days leading up to His crucifixion. 

Palm Sunday - Jesus' Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem                     

It was a springtime Sunday in about the year 30 A.D. The holy city of Jerusalem was crowded with pilgrims who had come for the annual Passover celebration.

Jesus had spent many months traveling through the towns and villages of Palestine. He preached about the kingdom of God and healed the sick wherever He went. Now the time had come for Him to claim His title as the Messiah - the Savior that God had promised to the Jewish people.

Jesus knew His mission was almost finished. As they traveled to Jerusalem, Jesus warned His disciples that He would soon be put to death, and after three days He would rise again.

As they came near Jerusalem, Jesus told two of His disciples to go into a nearby village and bring a donkey that would be waiting there. Jesus rode into Jerusalem on the donkey. Crowds of people spread their coats on the ground in front of Him. Some waved branches of palm trees, a sign of victory. The people shouted,

Hosanna!

Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord- the King of Israel!

Only a king would be greeted this way (2 Kings 9:13), and the people wanted Jesus to be their king. Most of the people did not understand what kind of king Jesus would be. They expected their Messiah to be a great political and military leader who would free them from the tyranny of the Roman Empire. But the kingdom of God is not of this world. It is a spiritual kingdom that is now growing in the hearts of people who put their faith and trust in God.

Cleansing the Temple

Jesus went to the temple once He got into Jerusalem, and He didn't like what He saw. This most holy of places had been turned into a marketplace. Merchants were selling animals for temple sacrifices. Money changers were exchanging the pilgrims' money for special coins used in the temple. Many of these people were cheating the pilgrims who came to celebrate Passover in Jerusalem.

Jesus turned over the seats of the merchants and the tables of the money changers, scattering their coins. He told them all to leave. He made a whip of some cords and used it to drive out the animals. He said, It is written, 'My house will be called a house of prayer for all nations', But you have made it a den of robbers!

Teaching and Healing

Jesus went to the temple every day. Blind people, crippled people and sick people came to Him, and He healed all of them. He told stories and parables to help people understand the kingdom of God and God's love for all people. The crowds of people who came to hear Him were spellbound.

An expert on the Jewish Law asked Jesus which of God's commandments was most important. Jesus replied, 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.' This is the first and greatest commandment. The second is just as important: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' All the other commandments and the teachings of the prophets are based on these two.

Trust in God and Christian love (kindness and respect) for all people are the basis for everything Jesus taught us. These are the things that are really important in life.

Conflict with the Chief Priests and Elders

Not everyone was happy that Jesus was preaching at the temple every day. The chief priests and elders of the temple were angry and upset. The chief priests had given permission for merchants and money changers to use the outer courtyard of the temple, but Jesus had driven them out. They were afraid of a crackdown by Roman authorities because of the large crowds who followed Jesus. Worst of all, the people were putting their hopes and trust in Jesus. The temple officials felt their authority slipping away.

These temple officials came up with a plan to trap Jesus with His own words. They came to Jesus and demanded to know by what authority he was doing all these things. If Jesus said His authority was from God, they would accuse Him of blasphemy. If He did not claim authority from God, they could say He was just a crazy man.

But Jesus knew it was a trap. Instead of answering the question, He asked them another question: "Did the baptism of John come from heaven?" The temple officials realized this was also a trap. If they said "Yes", Jesus would say, "Then why didn't you believe him?" If they said "No" it would make the people angry because they believed John the Baptist was a prophet. So, they refused to answer.

As usual, Jesus had defeated his opponents at their own game! But the temple officials were even more angry and began to plot to have Jesus killed.

Lessons

For the Jews, Jerusalem was the holy City of God. When Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey, He fulfilled an Old Testament prophecy (Zechariah 9:9-10) and left little doubt that He was accepting the title of Messiah. Jesus was adored by the crowds of people who had come to Jerusalem for Passover.

But there was harsh conflict between Jesus and Jerusalem's religious leaders. They clashed on issues of prayer, holiness, life after death and paying taxes to the Romans. Above all, they clashed on the issue of Jesus' authority from God. These conflicts led to Jesus being crucified less than a week after entering Jerusalem.

Jesus did some of His most important preaching during this final week. He spoke of His second coming and told parables of the kingdom of God. Most of all He said we must put our total trust in God and put that trust into action with kindness for other people.

Questions

What is Palm Sunday?

Palm Sunday, the Sunday before Easter, is a celebration of Jesus' triumphal entry into Jerusalem. Some churches decorate with palms and distribute palm branches in memory of the greeting Jesus received from the pilgrims as He rode into Jerusalem.

Why Did Jesus Preach and Work His Miracles Among the Jews?

The people known as Hebrews, Israelites or Jews were God's chosen people. It was God's plan to bring salvation to the Jews first, then to the rest of the world through the Jews. Jesus was born a Jew and remained faithful to Judaism (the Jewish religion) throughout His earthly life. He worked and preached mainly among the Jews of Palestine, which is now the country of Israel.

Christianity began as a small sect of Judaism. It was only after many Gentiles (non-Jews) converted to Christianity that it emerged as a separate religion. God has not revoked His covenant with the Jews (Romans 11:25-29), but His salvation is now available to all people of the world.

What Does Messiah Mean?

Messiah comes from a Hebrew word meaning "the anointed one." In Old Testament times, important people like kings and priests were anointed with oil as a sign of their office. For hundreds of years, the Jews had expected God to send them a special king (Daniel 9:25-26, Isaiah 7:14-17,11:1-9, Micah 5:2). 

Jesus avoided accepting the title Messiah until the very end because the people were expecting their Messiah to be a military and political leader instead of a spiritual leader. In Greek, the original language of the New Testament,  christos means "anointed one", and that is where the word "Christ" comes from.

Good Morning Girls Devotional Week 2: Why Easter Matters

Read & S: Mark 15:37-39 (TLB)Then Jesus uttered another loud cry and dismissed his spirit.And the curtain in the Temple was split apart from top to bottom. When the Roman officer standing beside his cross saw how he dismissed his spirit, he exclaimed, “Truly, this was the Son of God!”

O: It wasn't until He breathed His last that He proved to people that He WAS the Son of God. Who else could be on the cross, ask His Father to forgive those who did that to Him, and then release His spirit and soul back to His Father? The ones who hung Jesus on the cross KNEW that He was the Promised One. The Savior. Who else could it be!?

A:  Sometimes it's hard to believe in something you can't see. And sometimes it is so hard to pray and not get an answer (or you get an answer you didn't like). We all need to remember that Jesus is very much real. I know that I have to remind myself that my faith is stronger than my doubt. That Jesus is bigger than my problems. And if I don't like the answers I get to my prayers, then I have to ask Jesus how it's going to work out. No one said it was going to be easy. Life never is. But the love of Jesus Christ is greater than all things.

 

P: Lord Jesus, help us to trust in You even though we can't physically see You. You are always there with us through the good and the bad. You hold us up when we want to fall. Our eyes may not see You, but our hearts and souls know You are there.