God’s Provision – Page 13 – Three Minute Bible

June 24, 2020June 24, 2020

1 Peter 1:12 (b) — Beyond Measure, Part II

Even angels long to look into these things.

In yesterday’s post, I started by saying, “Peter is telling us about salvation. Broadly speaking ‘salvation’ in this case refers to several things.” And then I went on to tell you about only one thing. Today I would like to follow up on that thought with another thing related to salvation.

As we discussed yesterday, the first thing salvation refers to is the restoration of our relationship with God. The second “thing” is that the restoration of this relationship is complicated. Human nature was irreversibly altered by the sin of Adam and Eve. In Genesis 3: 5 the serpent says,

“For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”

June 23, 2020June 23, 2020

1 Peter 1:12 (b) — Beyond Measure

Even angels long to look into these things.

Every once in awhile a verse seems to jump out of the Bible at me. This is one of those verses.

Peter is telling us about salvation. Broadly speaking “salvation” in this case refers to several things. It begins with God’s plan for redeeming His creation. Remember the story in Genesis where God says, “… you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will certainly die”? (Genesis 2: 16-17)

Interestingly, the current version of the NIV is in the minority here. Thirty-eight of fifty-two translations available at Biblegateway.com use some version of “day,” as in “… in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.” (ESV) As I understand the text, when Adam and Eve eat the forbidden fruit in Genesis 3, God’s word holds true. They “die” from God’s point of view.

June 20, 2020June 20, 2020

Jeremiah 45 — Hanging Out With The Prophets

When Baruch son of Neriah wrote on a scroll the words Jeremiah the prophet dictated in the fourth year of Jehoiakim son of Josiah king of Judah, Jeremiah said this to Baruch: “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says to you, Baruch: You said, ‘Woe to me! The Lord has added sorrow to my pain; I am worn out with groaning and find no rest.’ But the Lord has told me to say to you, ‘This is what the Lord says: I will overthrow what I have built and uproot what I have planted, throughout the earth. Should you then seek great things for yourself? Do not seek them. For I will bring disaster on all people, declares the Lord, but wherever you go I will let you escape with your life.’”

The prophets of God are an amazing group of people. Being called to be a prophet was a great honor, but the burden that went with the honor was also great. Since we are talking about prophets, and in light of the events that have been in the news recently, I wanted to share this short passage from Jeremiah.

June 19, 2020June 19, 2020

1 Peter 1: 11 (b) — The Value of Hindsight

A closeup view of a car's rearview mirror.

…when he predicted the sufferings of the Messiah …

The suffering of the Messiah is the pivotal event in all human history. Without a willing Messiah, humanity would have eventually burned itself up. In the final analysis, after all the souls were counted, God would not have had much to show for his trouble. The rest of us would have ended up in the eternal garbage bin, languishing forever in the vacuum of rejection we had crafted for ourselves.

But that is not how it played out. Instead, the God who created us became our savior. More than that, our salvation was not an impulsive gambit. It was not a last-minute effort to save the day. Instead, our God knew from the very beginning that a savior would be needed. (See Genesis 3: 14-15) He also knew who that savior would be, and the point in history when salvation needed to occur.

June 17, 2020June 17, 2020

1 Peter 1:9 — Random Thoughts

Hundreds of small multi-colored cubes floating against a black background.

… for you are receiving the end result of your faith, the salvation of your souls.

So what is the point of having faith in Jesus? Why would anyone want to believe in someone that they cannot see? Well, the answer it turns out has to do with something else we cannot see; the salvation of our souls.

Two days ago, in the post, “Testimony,” I shared the short version of how I came to believe in Jesus. Along the way, I had to come to believe in “all things visible and invisible” as it says in the Nicene Creed. One thing I firmly believe in is the existence of my soul. If I were no more than a stalk of celery or a blade of grass I wouldn’t care what happens to me. But I do care. I care a lot. And the fact that we care about what happens to us sets you and me apart from almost everything else in Creation.

June 12, 2020June 12, 2020

1 Peter 1:4(b)-5 — Funeral Time

A wood bench sits empty against a stone brick wall.

This inheritance is kept in heaven for you, who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time.

Jason sat on the bench next to the brick wall. He looked dejected. His shoulders slumped over resting on elbows supported by knees. His hands dangled.

Arthur Throckmorton III stood for a moment looking at the young man. He was only twenty years old but today he looked all of thirty. His grandfather had died two weeks ago and had been all the family Jason had known. Arthur had helped Jason with the funeral arrangements. Arthur was more than Jason’s attorney. He was also his friend. He had known Jason’s grandfather for more than fifty years and had known Jason all his life. He sat down next to Jason on the bench.

June 9, 2020June 10, 2020

1 Peter 1:2 (d) — Sprinkled

Red paint splattered on a white background

… and sprinkled with his blood…

Let’s continue with our deep dive into Peter’s opening words. We’ve talked about who and what Peter is and then moved into his description of the people he is writing to. Looking at the key concepts he has included it reads almost like a creed. We who believe are chosen by God, exiled from the world, known intimately by our Father, sanctified and continuing in sanctification to be obedient to Jesus Christ. And then we come to being sprinkled with his blood.

The thought of writing about this is daunting for me. I don’t even like the sight of blood. Yet being “sprinkled in blood” is an important part of Jewish history. It is one of the key prophetic pointers in the Old Testament that foretell the work of the Messiah.

June 7, 2020June 8, 2020

1 Peter 1: 2 (b) — Changed

The words "Look out for each other" on a chalk board.

…through the sanctifying work of the Spirit…

In his introduction to his letter, Peter identifies himself as an apostle of Jesus Christ. He identifies his audience as a group of Christians who have gone into exile 20 to 30 years after the death and resurrection of Jesus. He identifies the people he is writing to as “God’s elect” and then tells us the geographical region they live in. He explains that being “chosen” is because God already knows how things will play out.

There is a lot of information here, but Peter is not done. He still hasn’t finished his first sentence yet! Somehow the process of being chosen has something to do with the sanctifying work of the Spirit.

How?

May 18, 2020May 18, 2020

Jude 1: 20c — Whisper

… and praying in the Holy Spirit …

In Jude’s closing comments he provides some encouragement and advice for his readers. The goal he encourages us towards is eternal life. The way we get there is by believing in Jesus. We need to keep our relationship with Jesus strong by being strong in faith.

The key to successful relationships is good communication. One way we communicate with God and Jesus is by listening to Him speak through His Word and Spirit. Another way is by speaking to Him in prayer.

May 11, 2020May 12, 2020

Jude 1: 14b — Enoch’s Prophecy

several piles of gold coins each larger than the last.

See, the Lord is coming with thousands upon thousands of his holy ones to judge everyone, and to convict all of them of all the ungodly acts they have committed in their ungodliness, and of all the defiant words ungodly sinners have spoken against him.

I am a little out of my depth when we get the End Times Prophecy department. Pr. Rich is the expert in that area as far as I am concerned. So outside of taking a contextual look at Enoch’s prophecy, let’s take a specific look at this passage and see what we can learn.

First, Jude is using a source of information on this topic that is not mentioned anywhere else in the Bible. This is new information about Enoch.