Daily Archives: December 16, 2012

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Because Christ Came – By Dr. Charles Stanley

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This time of year, church services typically focus on the amazing narrative of Jesus’ humble birth. Unfortunately, this story can become so familiar that we take for granted the miracle of God taking on human flesh and walking among us. We also have difficulty understanding the profound impact Christ’s advent (or coming) had on humanity’s relationship to the Father. Let’s examine just a few benefits we can enjoy because of Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection.

 

1. Complete Assurance of Forgiveness

Under Old Testament law, God prescribed sacrifices and other rituals that would serve as reminders about the seriousness of sin.

In what way was the system limited, according to Hebrews 10:1-4?

Why do we no longer have to offer animal sacrifices (Heb. 9:11-12; 24-26)?

 

2. The Guarantee of Eternal Life

First John 5:13 says, “These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know that you have eternal life” (emphasis added).

Read 1 John 5:1-13, paying special attention to verses 1-5 and 11-12. What “things” does John mention to help a person know if he or she possesses eternal life?

Sum up the analogy Jesus used in John 10:27-29 to indicate the secure nature of our relationship with Him.

Even when believers sin, they don’t forfeit eternal life. Why not (Romans 8:1-2; 33-39)?

 

3. Personal Access to God’s Presence

The Hebrew temple was divided into sections. Only Jewish men were allowed into the inner court; Gentiles and Jewish women were restricted to the outer courts. Access to the Holy of Holies, where the presence of the Lord dwelled, was even more limited.

How often did someone enter the Holy of Holies (Heb. 9:6-7)? What rituals had to be observed beforehand?

What happened when Christ rose from the dead (Matt. 27:50-51)? Explain the symbolic significance of this event.

Read Hebrews 10:19-22. Who is now the high priest for all believers? Why can we approach the throne of God confidently?

Reflect on how limited access to the Father would have been under the old covenant, especially for a Gentile or woman. How does this impact your perspective on spending time alone with God?

 

4. The Indwelling Holy Spirit

Old Testament saints experienced the empowering presence of the Holy Spirit resting on them, often to help in carrying out God’s specific plans. But His presence in their lives was not guaranteed.

The first two kings of Israel, Saul and David, both had the Spirit of God rest on them. Why did the Spirit depart from Saul (1 Sam. 15:22-23; 16:14)?

Under the New Covenant, what is the requirement for receiving the gift of the Holy Spirit, according to Acts 2:38?

For believers today, fellowship with God is available all the time. How does 1 Corinthians 6:19 describe the relationship between the Spirit and a follower of Christ?

The Holy Spirit performs many functions in the life of a believer. He reminds us of Christ’s words (John 14:26), is a deposit guaranteeing eternal life (Eph. 1:13-14), intercedes on our behalf (Rom. 8:26), and equips us to speak the gospel boldly (Acts 4:31). One of the Spirit’s most important functions is that He changes our nature and empowers us to live righteously.

Describe the benefit of being a “new creation” in Christ (2 Cor. 5:17).

 

5. Freedom from the Law

Because of the advent of Christ, followers of God no longer have to carry out the rituals described in Exodus and Leviticus. For instance, Christians don’t have to avoid certain foods for spiritual reasons or make animal sacrifices to atone for our sins.

The Galatians—mostly Gentile believers—were under pressure from some of the Jewish Christians to follow the old covenant ritual of circumcision. What was Paul’s reminder to them (Gal. 5:1)?

List two cautions regarding freedom from the law (Gal. 5:13, 18).

Meditate on the fact that you don’t have to follow spiritual rules to earn your salvation (Rom. 3:28). How does that make you feel?

 

This doesn’t mean that believers have permission to live unrestrained lives, but that we are now governed internally. The Holy Spirit changes our fundamental nature so we no longer want to sin—we desire to please God with our lives (Jer. 31:31-33).

Fill your mind with biblical truth and surrender to the Spirit’s leading. He will give you the power to resist sin and accomplish God’s will (Gal. 2:20-21).

Do you have questions about how to depend on the Holy Spirit for holy living?

Trust the Lord to reveal the answers to you in His timing.

Prayer: The life, death, and resurrection of Jesus radically changed the way in which humanity can relate to the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Express your gratitude to the Father, and ask Him to show you how to meditate on His gifts in the midst of this year’s Christmas festivities.

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Charles Spurgeon’s Morning and Evening

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Morning  “Come unto me.” / Matthew 11:28

The cry of the Christian religion is the gentle word, “Come.” The Jewish law

harshly said, “Go, take heed unto thy steps as to the path in which thou shalt

walk. Break the commandments, and thou shalt perish; keep them, and thou shalt

live.” The law was a dispensation of terror, which drove men before it as with

a scourge; the gospel draws with bands of love. Jesus is the good Shepherd

going before his sheep, bidding them follow him, and ever leading them onwards

with the sweet word, “Come.” The law repels, the gospel attracts. The law

shows the distance which there is between God and man; the gospel bridges that

awful chasm, and brings the sinner across it.

From the first moment of your spiritual life until you are ushered into glory,

the language of Christ to you will be, “Come, come unto me.” As a mother puts

out her finger to her little child and woos it to walk by saying, “Come,” even

so does Jesus. He will always be ahead of you, bidding you follow him as the

soldier follows his captain. He will always go before you to pave your way,

and clear your path, and you shall hear his animating voice calling you after

him all through life; while in the solemn hour of death, his sweet words with

which he shall usher you into the heavenly world shall be–“Come, ye blessed

of my Father.”

Nay, further, this is not only Christ’s cry to you, but, if you be a believer,

this is your cry to Christ–“Come! come!” You will be longing for his second

advent; you will be saying, “Come quickly, even so come Lord Jesus.” You will

be panting for nearer and closer communion with him. As his voice to you is

“Come,” your response to him will be, “Come, Lord, and abide with me. Come,

and occupy alone the throne of my heart; reign there without a rival, and

consecrate me entirely to thy service.”

 

Evening  “Yea, thou heardest not; yea, thou knewest not; yea, from that time that thine

ear was not opened.” / Isaiah 48:8

It is painful to remember that, in a certain degree, this accusation may be

laid at the door of believers, who too often are in a measure spiritually

insensible. We may well bewail ourselves that we do not hear the voice of God

as we ought, “Yea, thou heardest not.” There are gentle motions of the Holy

Spirit in the soul which are unheeded by us: there are whisperings of divine

command and of heavenly love which are alike unobserved by our leaden

intellects. Alas! we have been carelessly ignorant–“Yea, thou knewest not.”

There are matters within which we ought to have seen, corruptions which have

made headway unnoticed; sweet affections which are being blighted like flowers

in the frost, untended by us; glimpses of the divine face which might be

perceived if we did not wall up the windows of our soul. But we “have not

known.” As we think of it we are humbled in the deepest self-abasement. How

must we adore the grace of God as we learn from the context that all this

folly and ignorance, on our part, was foreknown by God, and, notwithstanding

that foreknowledge, he yet has been pleased to deal with us in a way of mercy!

Admire the marvellous sovereign grace which could have chosen us in the sight

of all this! Wonder at the price that was paid for us when Christ knew what we

should be! He who hung upon the cross foresaw us as unbelieving, backsliding,

cold of heart, indifferent, careless, lax in prayer, and yet he said, “I am

the Lord thy God, the Holy One of Israel, thy Saviour … Since thou wast

precious in my sight, thou hast been honourable, and I have loved thee:

therefore will I give men for thee, and people for thy life!” O redemption,

how wondrously resplendent dost thou shine when we think how black we are! O

Holy Spirit, give us henceforth the hearing ear, the understanding heart!

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Christ’s Eternal Existence – John MacArthur

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“Thou, Lord, in the beginning didst lay a foundation of the earth, and the heavens are the works of Thy hands; they will perish, but Thou remainest; and they all will become old as a garment. And as a mantle Thou wilt roll them up; as a garment they will also be changed. But Thou art the same, and Thy years will not come to an end” (Heb. 1:10-12).

Jesus Christ is no creature. To be able to lay the foundation of the earth and create the heavens in the beginning implies that He must have existed before the beginning. The apostle John testified to this when he said, “In the beginning was the Word” (John 1:1). Christ is eternal.

Jesus is also immutable, which means He never changes. Hebrews 13:8 says, “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today, yes and forever.” We need to hang onto this truth as we approach a day when much of what we know will change drastically.

One day what looks so permanent will fold up. Like the people Peter warned, we are tempted to think that “all continues just as it was from the beginning of creation” (2 Pet. 3:4). But Hebrews 1:11 tells us that one day Jesus will discard the heavens and the earth, just as we would a useless garment.

Even more amazing, verse 12 specifies that Christ will roll up the heavens. Revelation 6:14 says, “The sky was split apart like a scroll when it is rolled up; and every mountain and island were moved out of their places.” During the time of the tribulation, the heavens, as if stretched to all corners, will roll right up like a scroll.

But we can be confident that although creation will perish, Jesus will not, and He will create a new heaven and a new earth. Living creatures, worlds, and stars are subject to decay, but not Christ. He never changes and is never subject to change. What confidence that should give us for the daily issues of life we face each day!

Suggestion for Prayer:  Thank the Lord for His unchanging plan for your life and His ability to keep it.

For Future Study:  Read 2 Peter 3 and develop an approach to answering charges unbelievers make about biblical prophecies regarding the end times.