John 16:7 “It is to your advantage that I go away; . . .”

Much of what Jesus said was shocking to the ears of the disciples. He spoke with a wisdom that was otherworldly. They may have become used to the fact that Jesus was going to say things that surprised them, but I do not think anything could prepare them for the statement Jesus made here. Earlier, He had been speaking about His betrayal and death, He now declares that they will be better off without Him. For over three years these men have been with Jesus. They have watched as He transformed lives, and listened as He declared truths about the Kingdom of God. Now He is speaking about leaving, and declaring that they will be more effective with Him out of the way. I know Peter is the one who is known for objecting to Jesus…

Deuteronomy 16:16
“Three times a year all your males shall appear before the Lord your God in the place which He chooses: at the Feast of Unleavened Bread, at the Feast of Weeks, and at the Feast of Tabernacles; and they shall not appear before the Lord empty- handed.”

God established three retreats in the calendar year for His people. Three times a year they would gather together to celebrate the Lord, and what He had done for them. At the Feast of Unleavened Bread, they were to remember the way they were supernaturally delivered from Egypt. At the Feast of Weeks, they were to remember they were once slaves in Egypt. And at the Feast of Tabernacle, they were to rejoice over the new life they had in the land.

It would do us good to come to the House of the Lord with that same focus. When we…

Deuteronomy 15:16-17

“And if it happens that he says to you, ‘I will not go away from you,’ because he loves you and your house, since he prospers with you, then you shall take an awl and thrust it through his ear to the door, and he shall be your servant forever. Also to your female servant you shall do likewise.”

Even in ancient times, life was often difficult. Conditions, beyond the control of an individual, would leave him in a place where he could not pay his debts. To address this issue, God set up a system in Israel where a person could become an indentured servant for a period of seven years. During this time the work done by the individual was treated as payment for the debt owed. At the end of seven years his debt was considered as paid in full and he was set free. This…

John 15:8 “By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit; so you will be My disciples.”

God desires that we live fruit-filled lives. When we do, He is glorified and we are blessed. A fruit-filled life is marked by the characteristics of Christ. In Galatians five, Paul listed many of the “fruits” that God desires us to bear. These are inward qualities that are a result of being transformed by Jesus.

Galatians 5:22-23 “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, long-suffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness,   self -control. Against such there is no law.”

When our lives are filled with these qualities, God is glorified, others are drawn to Him, and we are blessed. Think about it. Don’t you want to be filled with love, joy and peace? Isn’t life better when you are patient and kind? Jeremiah contrasted two lives. He…

Deuteronomy 14:1
“You are the children of the Lord your God; you shall not cut yourselves nor shave the front of your head for the dead.”

Among many of the pagan cultures, it was a common practice to cut yourself, as a sign of mourning for the loss of a loved one. This practice served to show others the deep sorrow you were experiencing, as a result of your loss. Moses makes it clear, the children of God are NOT to follow this custom. The reason behind this command was that the child of God is not to mourn like the heathen mourn. Years later, Paul wrote to a group of Christians in Greece, who were dealing with the difficulty of death. He said,

” But I do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning those who have fallen asleep, lest you sorrow as others who have no hope.”

John 14

We live in troublesome times. Many face the fear of cancer or some other illness. The economy has shattered the comforts we once thought we had, or would enjoy. And after thousands of years of written history, the heart of man has not improved. We read of nations on the brink of war, violent crime haunting even the most peaceful communities, and global acts of terrorism on the rise. All this, and sadly much more, cause us to fear for our own safety, and for the future for our children and grandchildren.

But in the midst of this, Jesus gives us His great and precious promises. This chapter begins with a simple exhortation that is followed up with promise after promise, which makes the exhortation possible. Jesus says,

John 14:1 “Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me.”

A troubled heart is…

Deuteronomy 12:8

“You shall not at all do as we are doing here today—every man doing whatever is right in his own eyes—”

Ignoring the Word of God, and doing whatever we determine to be right, has always been a problem for mankind, and is a reoccurring theme within Scripture. It was the driving force behind the problems recorded in the book of Judges, and was the ultimate cause of Israel’s civil war, and their fall to Assyria and Babylon. Here, this self-reliant attitude is used as it relates to the way people chose to worship. God declared, once Israel entered into the promised land they were to set the tabernacle in a designated location, and there the people would congregate to worship God. No one was allowed to set up their own altar on a hillside or under a tree. God established a centralized location for worship that would…

Deuteronomy 11:7
“. . . but your eyes have seen every great act of the Lord which He did.”

There is no question, the children of Israel made mistakes. Their years in the wilderness were marked by complaining, doubt, fear and outright disobedience. Yet, things could have been worse. They could have remained in Egypt, never experiencing any of the great acts of the Lord. Moses reminds the people of what they saw because they were willing to follow the Lord. He recalls the parting of the Red Sea, their provision in the wilderness, and the judgment of those who rebelled.

I wonder, what does your list include? When you look back over your Christian experience, where has your willingness to follow the Lord led you? Can you remember times when you stepped out in faith to serve or follow the Lord, and found that He was faithful to His…

John 13:10 

“He who is bathed needs only to wash his feet, but is completely clean;…”

Living in Israel at the time of Christ, it was impossible to walk the streets of Jerusalem without getting dirty. Open-toed sandals in a desert climate made for dirty streets and dirty feet. One solution for was the custom of foot washing. Whenever a guest entered a home, the host was responsible for ensuring that the feet of the guest were washed. When Jesus gathered with the disciples for the Passover meal, he took on the role of the host, and began to wash their feet. As expected, Peter had something to say about the actions of Jesus. First he resisted, to which Jesus explained,

“If I do not wash you, you have no part with Me.”

In response Peter replied,

“Lord, not my feet only, but also my hands and my head!”

To which…

Deuteronomy 10:1-2

​ “At that time the Lord said to me, ‘Hew for yourself two tablets of stone like the first, and come up to Me on the mountain and make yourself an ark of wood. And I will write on the tablets the words that were on the first tablets, which you broke; and you shall put them in the ark.’”

Every generation likes to think of themselves as more advanced than the one before them. I recall one of my children, when he was about four, asking what life was like back when things were in black and white. He really thought color was only seen by his generation and the rest of us had grown up in the gray hues of a silent movie. This vantage point on life may be the force behind people thinking that the Bible is antiquated. They might say, “while the Bible might…