You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.
Summary: Ron is undergoing surgery today (Thursday). Please pray for a successful surgery and quick recovery.
Continue reading “John 14:14 — Prayer Request”John 14:14 — Prayer Request
Welcome Bethel Retreat Attendees!
Ecclesiastes 7:8 — The End of the Beginning
The end of a matter is better than its beginning, and patience is better than pride.
Dear Reader,
The beginning of this daily blog was in response to two things: One was a personal challenge, the other was a perceived need.
Continue reading “Ecclesiastes 7:8 — The End of the Beginning”Sharing
I received an email asking if it is okay to share ThreeMinuteBible.com with others. The answer is yes! Absolutely!
This is not a commercial site, but that doesn’t mean we can’t share it. The mission here is simply to help people hungry for God’s Word to dive in deeper. The hope is that by exploring God’s Word in-depth, we grow stronger in our faith, and we find answers to questions along the way.
Continue reading “Sharing”Jude 1: 21b — Waiting for Jesus
…as you wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you to eternal life.
Why all this effort? Jude would have us building ourselves up in holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit, keeping ourselves in God’s love. And then what? We wait???
Yes, we wait.
We are waiting for something …
Continue reading “Jude 1: 21b — Waiting for Jesus”A Monster Named Desire – James 1: 14-15
…but each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own evil desire and enticed. Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.
Inside each of us is a monster. In this passage, James gives the monster a name. He calls it, Desire. This particular monster has a twin, whose name is Desire, too. This other desire is good. The Good Desire longs to be with Jesus and do his will. The Bad Desire… Well, Bad Desire is one that leads us away from God’s will.
The monster named Desire is hard to recognize because it is so adept at changing size and shape. Look around inside your head and your heart. Are you burning with desire? Is there something you want more than anything else? Is it a good desire or a bad desire? When we are content, Desire shrinks down into the shadows. Desire hides, but it never leaves.
Continue reading “A Monster Named Desire – James 1: 14-15”Words – John 21: 25
Jesus did many other things as well. If every one of them were written down, I suppose that even the whole world would not have room for the books that would be written.
Do you journal? I do. Every evening I write down a few short notes about the day. I have trained myself to be very brief because there is so much that goes on in a day it would be impossible to write it all down. And that is one day!
John spent about three years with Jesus. He was with him almost every day, all day. Discipleship was not something that was an eight to five job with weekends off. Discipleship was a lifetime commitment, 24/7, 365 days a year (or about 355 days if you are using the Hebrew calendar!).
During that time John heard Jesus preach over and over again. It seems likely that Jesus would have repeated his teachings many times as they went from village to village. When they had time away from the crowds, the disciples would be able to sit and listen to Jesus in private and have their questions answered.
Jesus healed many people. The stories of Jesus’ miracles in John’s gospel are only a small sample of what he related to us. Luke relates how, “…all tried to touch him [Jesus], because power was coming from him and healing them all.” (Luke 6:19b) There was a lot John could have written about.
Application: John’s gospel was written under the direction of the Holy Spirit. We know this because John was a disciple of Jesus and the disciples received the Holy Spirit from Jesus. (See “Breath of God”) What John and the other New Testament writers have given us is exactly what we need and what our Creator wants us to have.
Food for Thought: If there is one thing in the gospel accounts that you would like to know more about, what would it be?
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Continue reading “Words – John 21: 25”Third Person – John 21: 24
This is the disciple who testifies to these things and who wrote them down. We know that his testimony is true.
How do you talk about yourself? When you go to the store do you say, “We are going to the store,” when it is really only you that is going? Or do you say, “I am going to the store”?
When you come back from the store do you say, “The one who has returned from the store has arrived,” or do you say, “I’m here!”?
The first example is called the “Royal We.” When royalty speaks, a king or queen speaks not just for themselves, but also for the nation they represent. And so they talk funny. “We are not amused,” means the king or queen is not happy with you. It can also mean that the whole country is not amused and may choose to come down on you like a ton of bricks for displeasing the head of state. The Royal We speaks from a position of authority and entitlement.
The second example is similar but different. In the second example, the person speaks in a similar form (third person) but refers to themselves obliquely. It is a way of being humble, of not drawing attention to oneself. It is rare these days and so it draws attention because it is so seldom used.
The writer of the Gospel of John is very humble. He has taken great pains to remove himself from the story while being faithful to speak truthfully. Not only does he not speak in the Royal We, he doesn’t even speak in the first person. His way of speaking is to refer to himself, not by name, but as “the disciple whom Jesus loved.” We see this at the Last Supper (John 13:23), the crucifixion (John 19: 26), and twice in this last chapter (verses 7 and 20).
In today’s verse, John combines both the Royal We and the humble third person to affirm that he is telling the truth: “This is the disciple who testifies to these things and who wrote them down. We know that his testimony is true.”
Application: John shows us an example of extreme humility while being faithful to his testimony.
Food for Thought: How do we apply this kind of humility in our lives today?
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Continue reading “Third Person – John 21: 24”Beacon – John 21: 22-23
Jesus answered, “If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you? You must follow me.” Because of this, the rumor spread among the believers that this disciple would not die. But Jesus did not say that he would not die; he only said, “If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you?”
How many of the things Jesus has said have been misinterpreted? One? Two? Half?? The difficulty with trying to understand someone else’s words is in getting past the assumptions we bring to the table.
When Jesus said, “Destroy this temple, and I will raise it again in three days.” (John 2: 19b) the Pharisees thought he was talking about the temple that Herod was rebuilding. John explains that the temple Jesus was referring to was his body.
When talking with Nicodemus Jesus says, “Very truly I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit.” (John 3: 5) Some people feel that Jesus is saying you have to be baptized with water to be born of water. Other people say Jesus is talking about being born of flesh (a baby floats in water in the womb) and being born spiritually.
Later, after feeding the five thousand, Jesus says, “Very truly I tell you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day.” (John 6: 53b – 54) The Pharisees argued that no one could eat his flesh and almost all but the twelve disciples abandoned Jesus. Did he mean what they thought he meant?
There are many other examples. The point of this post is not to pick a fight, but to illustrate the importance of seeking God’s perspective. Instead of trying to force our interpretation on God’s Word it is best to listen carefully.
Many years later Paul would write in his second letter to Timothy, “Don’t have anything to do with foolish and stupid arguments, because you know they produce quarrels.” (2 Timothy 2: 23) Of course when we argue it doesn’t feel “foolish and stupid” at all, but that is often how it looks.
Application: Our job is to let God be God. When we assume the role of the Devine and claim to “know” what God means, we run the risk of leading someone astray. It is enough to listen to God’s Word and decide for ourselves what God means. If we understand correctly, His light will shine through our lives like a beacon on a hill.
Food for Thought: Some arguments are worth having, but they are very few. How do we tell the difference between one of the few worthwhile things to argue about and everything else?
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Continue reading “Beacon – John 21: 22-23”What About Him? – John 21: 20-21
Peter turned and saw that the disciple whom Jesus loved was following them. (This was the one who had leaned back against Jesus at the supper and had said, “Lord, who is going to betray you?”)
When Peter saw him, he asked, “Lord, what about him?”
The scene has shifted here a little. In verse 15 we are finishing up with breakfast when Jesus starts talking to Peter. In this verse, Peter and Jesus appear to be walking with John following behind.
Jesus has just told Peter how he will die. When Peter notices John following them he asks, “Lord, what about him?” I understand Peter to mean if that is what is going to happen to me, what is going to happen to him?
The phrase, “What about him?” has special meaning for me. I grew up with three younger brothers. If one got to do something special the others would cry, “What about me?” When I read Peter’s words I hear the same tone of voice I heard from my brothers when I was young.
Jesus’ answer is classic, but we will talk about that tomorrow.
Application: How much do we need to know about other people’s lives? Isn’t it enough for us to know what God expects of us? Is it unfair if God has a different expectation for someone else? Peter is about to get a lesson in minding his own business.
Food for Thought: God knows every intimate detail of every life on the planet. He knows every thought you have ever had and every tiny part of your body. What would be the benefit or harm if one person (you) could know that much about someone else?
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Continue reading “What About Him? – John 21: 20-21”