When Santa Learned The Gospel

Everyone is on the naughty list until they receive God's perfect gift.

Video: When Santa Learned The Gospel

Follow Santa's journey in this unique Christmas fable as he learns about Jesus' message of grace and discovers what it means for both the naughty and the nice.

This video sits alongside the book, written by Simon Camilleri and published by 10Publishing.

(No compensation for any links.)

From Naughty

Romans 3:10-12 As the Scriptures say, "No one is righteous- not even one. 11 No one is truly wise; no one is seeking God. 12 All have turned away; all have become useless. No one does good, not a single one."

Ephesians 2:12 NLT In those days you were living apart from Christ. You were excluded from citizenship among the people of Israel, and you did not know the covenant promises God had made to them. You lived in this world without God and without hope.

All around the world the message has been told that trying to be good enough is good enough. That's the message that we are told in the story of Santa, it's the best that Santa could hope for, if people were good enough then he would get to keep his job.

According to God's standards, no matter how well you do at being nice and keeping the rules, you are still on the naughty list. God's requirement for us is to be righteous, a word that we over use in our culture, so we fail to realize that the standard of righteousness is defined by God's holiness.

Holiness sounds like a crazy goal for anyone to be required to obtain, even God's people in the church neglect this principle so that we can be more acceptable to the world and not be seen as strange. But when you dig into God's word you will find out that the Bible has over 900 references to the holiness of God and it also tells us that we are required to be holy.

To Nice

2 Corinthians 5:17 This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!

1 Peter 1:21 Through Christ you have come to trust in God. And you have placed your faith and hope in God because he raised Christ from the dead and gave him great glory.

We need a rescue from our sin nature but we had no way to get away from the consequences that we deserved. Our situation was just like God's chosen people in Egypt, enslaved to the kingdom of darkness, we didn't have any hope of getting out unless God sent a rescuer.

The good news of the gospel is the only way that we can get on God's list that he will check. When he opens the Book of Life my name will be on his list because of his forgiveness that I could have only received from him by accepting Jesus work on the cross.

RELATED ARTICLES

Why Do I Need A Savior? (thebonhoefferproject.com)

Jesus Didn't Call Us To Be Nice (relevantmagazine.com)

Why Do We Need A Savior? (gotquestions.org)

Perfect Gifts: Mercy

Our mistakes do not have to haunt us.

John 8:7-11 They kept demanding an answer, so he stood up again and said, “All right, but let the one who has never sinned throw the first stone!” 8 Then he stooped down again and wrote in the dust.

9 When the accusers heard this, they slipped away one by one, beginning with the oldest, until only Jesus was left in the middle of the crowd with the woman. 10 Then Jesus stood up again and said to the woman, “Where are your accusers? Didn’t even one of them condemn you?”

11 “No, Lord,” she said. And Jesus said, “Neither do I. Go and sin no more.”

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Do you think that your life has been full of mistakes and poor choices and you think that God couldn't want to have a relationship with you? It's pretty easy to see that we all deserve some pretty severe consequences for the things that we have done against God but God does not want our relationship with him to be full of fear and despair.

As good and perfect as God is, we can easily see that we fall way short of his standard but we don't have to live with this hopeless situation hanging over our heads, in an incredible display of mercy, God has given us the opportunity to receive eternal life if we believe on his son.

We are as bad off as the adulteress with a group of Pharisees hanging around with rocks in their hands. Even the most popular person needs to realize that it is short lived, we will never measure up to the world's standards for very long, even the best of us will have someone that is ready to throw rocks at us.

Beyond our inability to measure up to the world's standards is the God's standards. God is the only one that has the right to throw rocks at us and we deserve it just as much as she did but thankfully he has given us a way out of judgement. 

God's love is merciful

Titus 3:3-5 Once we, too, were foolish and disobedient. We were misled and became slaves to many lusts and pleasures. Our lives were full of evil and envy, and we hated each other. 4 But "When God our Savior revealed His kindness and love, 5 He saved us, not because of the righteous things we had done, but because of His mercy. He washed away our sins, giving us a new birth and new life through the Holy Spirit.

The only way out of our desperate situation is his perfect mercy that is beyond comprehension.  Sin takes us places that we really don't want to go and it cost us more than we think that it will but as Christ followers we have received the wonderful gift of mercy which completely eliminates the judgment that we deserve. 

Without Jesus we are foolish and disobedient rebels making choices that are rooted in our rebellious thoughts. But God, the judge of the universe, is so full of kindness and love to us that he gave us mercy!

John 3:16,36 “For God loved the world so much that he gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. 36 And anyone who believes in God's Son has eternal life. Anyone who doesn't obey the Son will never experience eternal life but remains under God's angry judgment."

It's hard to imagine a God of perfect justice would also have perfect love for us to the point that he would give us the opportunity to receive his perfect mercy. The perfect wrath of God is upon us before we accept his son as our substitute, the death and punishment we deserve is no longer in our future!

"Mercy Came Running" by Phillips, Craig and Dean

I was bound by the chains, from the wages of my sin
Just when I felt like giving in, mercy came running
Like a prisoner set free, past all my failures to the point of my need
When the sin that I carried, was all I could see
And when I could not reach mercy, mercy came running to me. 

The woman that was surrounded by judges that found her deserving of death but mercy came running to her at her greatest need. What an incredible picture of my life, I was sought out by God to receive the gift of mercy without doing anything to deserve it. 

I need to remember to regift this extravagant gift to the people around me. God, help me follow your example and be just as passionate about giving mercy to help those that don't deserve it.

Perfect Gifts: Heaven

I have a priceless inheritance because of Jesus.

Ephesians 1:5, 11, 14  God decided in advance to adopt us into His own family by bringing us to Himself through Jesus Christ. This is what He wanted to do, and it gave Him great pleasure.

11 Furthermore, because we are united with Christ, we have received an inheritance from God, for He chose us in advance, and He makes everything work out according to His plan.   

14  The Spirit is God's guarantee that He will give us the inheritance He promised and that He has purchased us to be His own people. He did this so we would praise and glorify Him.

1 Peter 1:4  and we have a priceless inheritance, an inheritance that is kept in heaven for you, pure and undefiled, beyond the reach of change and decay.

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God was very pleased to adopt me into his family and he would love for you to be a part of his family as well. Did you know that God loves adoptions? All of his family has been adopted even though none of us deserved the honor, it is just part of his perfect kindness and love for mankind.

I am not talking about an adoption that is tainted with favoritism, to God an adopted child has the same rights as a natural born child, we all have the same rights that his own Son has. Because of Jesus we have an inheritance that is beyond equal anywhere else. 

Jesus has been preparing my inheritance for a long time now and he is using building materials that make our construction supplies look like junk. What we have in store when we leave this earth is beyond our imagination.

This world and it's pleasures that we strive to obtain and love to hold onto are going away. As good as we may have it here, all of the goodness of this life is just a peek at the ultimate goodness that we will enjoy in our eternal home.

What's in your future?

Revelation 21:1-4,7  Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the old heaven and the old earth had disappeared. And the sea was also gone.  2  And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven like a bride beautifully dressed for her husband.  3  I heard a loud shout from the throne, saying, "Look, God's home is now among His people! He will live with them, and they will be His people. God Himself will be with them.  4  He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain. All these things are gone forever." 7  All who are victorious will inherit all these blessings, and I will be their God, and they will be My children.

We usually keep God and man separate, we think of God living in heaven and our place to live is here on earth, but there is a day coming when we will be together again similar to the relationship that mankind had before sin.

We will all have eternal life BUT to spend eternity in heaven with God you must make the decision to accept Jesus and his perfect gift of salvation now!

Experience The Goodness Of God

Can’t you see that his kindness is intended to turn you from your sin?

1 Chronicles 16:34 Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good! His faithful love endures forever.

Psalm 23:6 Surely your goodness and unfailing love will pursue me all the days of my life, and I will live in the house of the LORD forever.

Romans 2:4  Don’t you see how wonderfully kind, tolerant, and patient God is with you? Does this mean nothing to you? Can’t you see that his kindness is intended to turn you from your sin?

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Every one of us has experienced God's goodness in their life to some degree and most of us have experienced a very high level of God's goodness in comparison to thousands of other people that have lived. But despite how good he is God's people always need to be reminded of this fact.

We have a difficult time appreciating the goodness of God, it goes all the way back to the garden of Eden, no matter how good we have it we always think there is more that we should have. Living in the garden was the greatest experience of God's goodness that mankind has ever known but that didn't guarantee the best outcome. 

If Adam and Eve can feel that there is something that they were missing then we are surely guaranteed to doubt the vast amount of God's goodness as well. In our social media world we have the ability to compare ourselves and the stuff that we have with a multitude of other people. We need a way to stay focused when we have the fear of missing out that causes us to doubt God's goodness.

Taste

Psalm 34:8 Taste and see that the LORD is good. Oh, the joys of those who take refuge in him!

To focus on God's goodness you need to taste it and taste it again just like you would taste again and again a delicious food. Don't be satisfied with just the aroma, don't walk by the kitchen and catch a whiff, step in and grab a plate and have a taste!

The joy of tasting is a personal experience, somebody else can help you know a little bit about the taste but you must have your own taste. The flavor is something that you can know only through your own experience. A taste this good should motivate you to taste it again and again.

Trust

Nahum 1:7 The LORD is good, a strong refuge when trouble comes. He is close to those who trust in him.

Thankfully the most powerful being is also the most good! Very few people with power are very kind, if you or I were powerful we would probably do like everybody else and use it for our own advantage, but thankfully the most powerful is perfectly good. 

If the most powerful was any less good we couldn't trust him enough to draw near, we wouldn't have a strong refuge that we can trust and draw close to.

We need to remember that we cannot measure the goodness of God with problem free living. The person with the most trouble in this life may be living the most in God's will. Just like the religious leaders that Jesus rebuked, we cannot accurately discern why they have the trouble so we should not blame them for their situation. Nobody in the Bible was rewarded with an easy life as a reward for obedience.

Isaiah 48:10  I have refined you, but not as silver is refined. Rather, I have refined you in the furnace of suffering.

The goodness of God is always there, even in suffering, our holiness is usually becoming more perfect in difficulty. This is a reality that will change your perspective of "good" and "bad" circemstances. 

How can anything be bad if God is using all things for my good? (Romans 8:28, Hebrews 12:10) We all want the easy life but the most important thing to God is for us to be like him. 

A more difficult truth to accept is maybe the hard time you are going through has nothing to do with you?  Just maybe your country, your church or your family is being disciplined and you are affected by what God is doing in others. How much did good people suffer in the Old Testament because the rest of the group was being punished by God? 

A great example of this is Joseph in an Egyptian prison or Daniel and his friends in Babylon. We focus everything on ourselves but God's story is not all about us.

Treasure

Ephesians 1:7-8  He is so rich in kindness and grace that he purchased our freedom with the blood of his Son and forgave our sins.  8  He has showered his kindness on us, along with all wisdom and understanding.

To remember God's goodness we need to treasure the most important gift ever! God made the most extravagant purchase ever, what an incredibly high price for such lowly, undeserving creatures.

You may be so kind that you would die for your family or a small group of friends but God showed us perfect kindness by taking his perfect wrath upon himself, through his perfect son. God's awesome goodness could stop there and we should be eternally grateful but there is more goodness coming our way eternally if we accept Jesus sacrifice. (Romans 8:32)

1 John 4:9-10  God showed how much he loved us by sending his one and only Son into the world so that we might have eternal life through him.  10  This is real love—not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins.

The greatest gift, the one that I really needed the most, is the reason we celebrate Christmas but his arrival was just the beginning of the story of God's plan to destroy the work of Satan so that everything bad can be made good. Don't take his kindness for granted.

RELATED ARTICLES

Perfect Gifts Series (diggingtheword.blogspot.com)

Thank God! - Psalm 116

Worship God for who he is and what he has done.

I Love the Lord, Who Has Heard My Prayer.

Psalm 116:1-4 I love the LORD because he hears my voice and my prayer for mercy. 2 Because he bends down to listen, I will pray as long as I have breath! 3 Death wrapped its ropes around me; the terrors of the grave overtook me. I saw only trouble and sorrow. 4 Then I called on the name of the LORD: "Please, LORD, save me!"

The Lord Deals Bountifully with His Own.

Psalm 116:5-7 How kind the LORD is! How good he is! So merciful, this God of ours! 6 The LORD protects those of childlike faith; I was facing death, and he saved me. 7 Let my soul be at rest again, for the LORD has been good to me.

You Delivered My Soul from Death.

Psalm 116:8-11 He has saved me from death, my eyes from tears, my feet from stumbling. 9 And so I walk in the LORD's presence as I live here on earth! 10 I believed in you, so I said, "I am deeply troubled, LORD." 11 In my anxiety I cried out to you, "These people are all liars!"

How Shall I Show My Thanks to Him?

Psalm 116:12-19 What can I offer the LORD for all he has done for me? 

13 I will lift up the cup of salvation and praise the LORD's name for saving me. 

14 I will keep my promises to the LORD in the presence of all his people. 15 The LORD cares deeply when his loved ones die. 16 O LORD, I am your servant; yes, I am your servant, born into your household; you have freed me from my chains. 

17 I will offer you a sacrifice of thanksgiving and call on the name of the LORD. 

18 I will fulfill my vows to the LORD in the presence of all his people- 19 in the house of the LORD in the heart of Jerusalem. Praise the LORD!

Thank God For Who He Is
Faithful (Lamentations 3:23) Constant (James 1:17) True (John 14:6) Good (Matthew 7:11) Gracious (Romans 3:20–24) Longsuffering (2 Peter 3:9) Merciful (Hebrews 4:16) Powerful (1 Chronicles 29:11) Loving (John 3:16) Saving (Acts 4:12)

RELATED ARTICLES

Ten Reasons To Thank God (answersingenesis.org)

Knowing God

The world has many ideas about him but are they true?

Exodus 33:11,13,17 Inside the Tent of Meeting, the LORD would speak to Moses face to face, as one speaks to a friend. Afterward Moses would return to the camp, but the young man who assisted him, Joshua son of Nun, would remain behind in the Tent of Meeting.

13 If it is true that you look favorably on me, let me know your ways so I may understand you more fully and continue to enjoy your favor. And remember that this nation is your very own people."

17 The LORD replied to Moses, "I will indeed do what you have asked, for I look favorably on you, and I know you by name."

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In the book of Exodus we have seen that God's people have had amazing experiences with him that should have led to a close friendship. In the previous post we saw some of the miraculous ways that God displayed his power and protection on their behalf, but we also saw almost everyone turned from God as if his amazing care for them meant nothing.

Despite the equal opportunity to know God, it did not lead to equal outcomes, it seems that Moses was alone in his desire for spiritual growth. The crowd knew God and knew that he was incredible in his kindness and protection but that was enough for them.

Most of God's people are just like that, we know just enough about God and his plan to redeem us and make us his own children so that we can escape hell but few of us have the desire to know our Heavenly father beyond that. 

We are content to believe in him from a distance or we settle for knowing inaccurate information about him. Both of these conditions are very dangerous.

What is the best thing in life, bringing more joy, delight and contentment than anything else? Knowledge of God.

-J. I. Packer "Knowing God"

We don't have the privilege of seeing God work like his people did in the Old Testament, we have to rely on the Bible to really know him. That's the reason that God preserved his word, the book may be very old but because he never changes we can truly know him by what he has revealed in the Bible.

The outline below is from Going Deeper with God with my thoughts added.

God's Word Shows Us:

God's Holiness

Leviticus 19:1-2 The LORD also said to Moses, 2 "Give the following instructions to the entire community of Israel. You must be holy because I, the LORD your God, am holy.

We like to think that this requirement was for the people of the Old Testament but the command for holiness is in the New Testament and it is still in effect today. (1 Peter 1:15)

It's interesting that the Bible doesn't give us the command to be holy until after God's people have been redeemed from Egypt. 

God's Wrath and Justice

John 3:36 And anyone who believes in God's Son has eternal life. Anyone who doesn't obey the Son will never experience eternal life but remains under God's angry judgment."

We really don't like this topic, we like to dwell on God's goodness, love and grace, who doesn't like that? But you don't really know God and you have created your own "god" if you stop there.

The cross shows us a small portion of the wrath of God that will be experienced by those that are left behind when Jesus takes his church out of here. The cross was horrible but it isn't the full extent of God's wrath that is shown to us in the book of Revelation.

God's Grace

Psalms 84:11  For the LORD God is our sun and our shield. He gives us grace and glory. The LORD will withhold no good thing from those who do what is right.

Thankfully God's grace is equally as huge as his wrath but it is only available to those that believe in God's rescue plan. We can only appreciate God's grace and be amazed by it when we have an accurate understanding of God's holy wrath. 

We must go beyond the common grace that everyone on earth experiences. Common grace is a taste of what God offers that will help you draw closer to him but it isn't saving grace and it has no redemptive effect. (Romans 8:29-39, Ephesians 1:3-14)

 

God's Goodness

Exodus 33:19 The LORD replied, "I will make all my goodness pass before you, and I will call out my name, Yahweh, before you. For I will show mercy to anyone I choose, and I will show compassion to anyone I choose.

It sounds odd that God told Moses that his goodness is something that can be seen, it seems more logical to us that God's works can be seen as his goodness, but scripture teaches that God is more beautiful than anything he has ever done.

God is not a cosmic grandpa handing out treats to his children. God isn't going to give us everything we want, sometimes he will give us what we don't want but he is still perfectly good and righteous, and there is no evil or sin in him. (Psalm 92:15; 1 John 3:2–6)

So much has been done for us but instead of a stronger desire to know God more and know God accurately we settle for a surface relationship or we believe about God without knowing the whole truth. I think we have to be careful if we distort God into something he is not then we have made a "god" that pleases ourselves.

Knowing God Takes Effort

Psalm 63:1 O God, you are my God; I earnestly search for you. My soul thirsts for you; my whole body longs for you in this parched and weary land where there is no water.

Jeremiah 9:24 NLT But those who wish to boast should boast in this alone: that they truly know me and understand that I am the LORD who demonstrates unfailing love and who brings justice and righteousness to the earth, and that I delight in these things. I, the LORD, have spoken!

Developing a deep relationship with God is not a passive experience, it requires a commitment to time spent in God's word, prayer, and actively seeking to understand and apply what God is showing you.

Too many people think that knowing God is a one time event but the Bible shows us that it is actually a lifelong pursuit. Just take a look at the apostle Paul, he is probably the best example of someone that knew God like Moses did, but after approximately 25 years as a believer he still yearned for more. (Philippians 2:12-13 and  2 Corinthians 12:1-7)

Satan doesn't want you to know God accurately or with any degree of intimacy that's why he has so many ways to keep you distracted. He is okay with you knowing God the way that the Pharisees knew him but remember that this group of people received the harshest criticism from Jesus.

Help me Lord to increase in my love and desire to know you more! It is too easy to neglect our relationship and believe incorrect information about you. I want to really know you.

RELATED ARTICLES

What is the biblical account of Shem, Ham, and Japheth? (gotquestions.org)

Knowing God Personally (cslewisinstitute.org)

Knowing God (desiringgod.org)

Going With God

In the wilderness with God is better than going somewhere without him.

Exodus 32:34-35 Now go, lead the people to the place I told you about. Look! My angel will lead the way before you. And when I come to call the people to account, I will certainly hold them responsible for their sins." 35 Then the LORD sent a great plague upon the people because they had worshiped the calf Aaron had made.

Exodus 33:1-4 The LORD said to Moses, "Get going, you and the people you brought up from the land of Egypt. Go up to the land I swore to give to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. I told them, 'I will give this land to your descendants.' 2 And I will send an angel before you to drive out the Canaanites, Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites."

3 "Go up to this land that flows with milk and honey. But I will not travel among you, for you are a stubborn and rebellious people. If I did, I would surely destroy you along the way." 4 When the people heard these stern words, they went into mourning and stopped wearing their jewelry and fine clothes.

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God's people are on the way to the Promised Land after hundreds of years in Egypt, that's where God sent his people to save them from famine and then after the government turned on them, God took them out of the kingdom of darkness to lead them to their new homeland.

We don't always see God at work, they didn't realize it, but God was probably using all of the events in Egypt to prepare them for this trip. All of the difficulty they endured, all of the miracles they witnessed, should have produced a people that were strong in faith and ready to bless the nations because of the blessing they has received.

It is amazing that this is the same people that just saw God's mighty power through the ten plagues in Egypt, they saw proof that their God is the only one that can control the weather, the animal kingdom and he even has the power of life and death.

After leaving Egypt they have seen the signs of his presence as he led them to cross the Red Sea on dry ground in an area of the sea that was deep enough to drown their enemies. God continued to lead them through a cloud by day and a fire at night. (Exodus 13:18, 21)

God's people were sustained by supernatural food and water from Heaven, this too was a test for them that they would fail. (Exodus 15:25, 16:4, Deuteronomy 8:2, 16 Psalm 78:24 ) Later on they would fail the test by storing up more than their daily bread and after that they would grumble about the menu and fail the test. 

God took them to Mount Sinai where he would display his glory so they could learn even more about him. While they were at the mountain they received God's commandments, which they were thrilled to get and they agreed to God's terms wholeheartedly. To ratify the covenant, over seventy of their leaders ate a covenant meal where they could see that they were up close to God.

It really looks like God's people have learned enough about trusting him to keep them from looking for a better god, but right after the meal, God called Moses further up the mountain to continue receiving instructions on how to be God's people they immediately they act like they never knew anything about God. (Exodus 24:1-18)

Exodus 32:1 When the people saw how long it was taking Moses to come back down the mountain, they gathered around Aaron. "Come on," they said, "make us some gods who can lead us. We don't know what happened to this fellow Moses, who brought us here from the land of Egypt."

After all of that! Within the forty days while Moses was up the mountain the people break their covenant by asking Aaron for a god that can lead them. The only god that Aaron could possibly create would be a powerless man made god just like the gods that was proved to be worthless back in Egypt. (Exodus 32:1-35)

We are told that God's people were very upset when God told his people to continue the journey to the Promised Land without his presence to guide them there. Out of mercy God wasn't going to be intimate with these "stiff necked" people. Their reaction is a good sign that they are not too far gone but they still need to learn more about God. (Exodus 33:1-4)

God's people need to learn:

1. The peril of God’s presence 

This is probably more difficult for God's people today to understand, the idea that God is not safe isn't a popular concept in a world full of teaching that God is love. We tend to think of God in the New Testament as a different God or a new version of God that Jesus was able to pacify but the book of Revelation proves that the wrath of God still exist.

2. The privilege of God’s presence 

Somehow Moses knew more than anyone else that being with God was a privilege and he knew that he needed a special place reserved to meet with God. Even before the Tabernacle or the Temple was ever built Moses had a tent where he could maintain his relationship with God and intercede for the nation.

3. The priority of God’s presence 

If we truly love God and have an awareness of his glory then we will desire to have his presence more and more. We will prioritize our time and energy to be in God's presence and we will be hesitant to make a move without him going along. Having a guardian angel may be good but how much more incredibly better is it to have God going in fellowship with you?

4. The promise of God’s presence 

It is a shame that out of the thousands that left Egypt to go to the Promised Land, no one else enjoyed God's presence like Moses did. God didn't grant everybody the same level of access, that was reserved for those who find favor in His sight. God's people had so much experience with him in the past that they were without excuse.

The outline above is from "God’s Presence: Dangerous, But Essential" with some of my own thoughts mixed in.

God's Man Wants More 

Exodus 33:11 Inside the Tent of Meeting, the LORD would speak to Moses face to face, as one speaks to a friend. Afterward Moses would return to the camp, but the young man who assisted him, Joshua son of Nun, would remain behind in the Tent of Meeting.

Exodus 33:15-16 Then Moses said, "If you don't personally go with us, don't make us leave this place. 16 How will anyone know that you look favorably on me-on me and on your people-if you don't go with us? For your presence among us sets your people and me apart from all other people on the earth."

With all of the experiences that God's people had with him you would think that more of them would desire to know, at a deeper level, the only God that has done so much for them. Why would you not want to maintain your relationship with someone who has treated you so well?

The only person that developed a chose relationship with him as a result of these supernatural experiences was Moses. Everyone else was upset that God wasn't going to personally lead them to the Promised Land, but they only wanted to know God the way they already knew him, but Moses desired to know more. (Exodus 13:18, 21, Exodus 33:18-20)

The same man that began to know God deeper at the burning bush kept on pushing their relationship to the next level. Moses knowledge and his faith in God continued to grow so that he would become the bold, mighty and faithful leader for God's people.

This is both the longing of the redeemed and the goal of their redemption—to behold the glory of God!

-A. W. Pink, Gleanings in Exodus

It is amazing that God treats his people so abundantly gracious and kind and very few of his people really get it.

1 Corinthians 10:3-6 All of them ate the same spiritual food, 4 and all of them drank the same spiritual water. For they drank from the spiritual rock that traveled with them, and that rock was Christ. 5 Yet God was not pleased with most of them, and their bodies were scattered in the wilderness. 6 These things happened as a warning to us, so that we would not crave evil things as they did,

We are just like the pilgrims in the wilderness, this is not our home, we need to travel with God and nurture the desire to know him more before we reach the Promised Land.

RELATED ARTICLES

Why Did The Israelites Need Manna If They Had Flocks/Herds (gotquestions.org)

We Complain Because We Forget (desiringgod.org)

God Gave Us His Word - New Testament

Believing the New Testament is very logical and reasonable.

1 John 1:1-2 We proclaim to you the one who existed from the beginning, whom we have heard and seen. We saw him with our own eyes and touched him with our own hands. He is the Word of life. 

2 This one who is life itself was revealed to us, and we have seen him. And now we testify and proclaim to you that he is the one who is eternal life. He was with the Father, and then he was revealed to us.

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In the previous post we saw that God gave us his word through the Old Testament so that when Jesus came into our world to be "God with us," we would be sure that he is really the promised Messiah. When someone makes a promise and then they come through, it helps you believe them even more when they make another promise to you, that's the main reason we can trust the Old Testament.

When you analyze the incredible amount of detail in the prophecies about who Jesus is, how he would come to be with us and what he came to do for us, it is easy to see that the Old Testament was telling us the truth.

Today we will see that God gave us his word in the writing of the books that would become the New Testament. The writers were so excited about Jesus life, death and resurrection that they wanted to share their experiences with everyone. But how could they possibly remember the events and the teaching of Jesus?

God's Word Inspired

John 14:25-26 I am telling you these things now while I am still with you. 26 But when the Father sends the Advocate as my representative-that is, the Holy Spirit-he will teach you everything and will remind you of everything I have told you.

John 16:13-14 When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own but will tell you what he has heard. He will tell you about the future. 14 He will bring me glory by telling you whatever he receives from me.

Jesus told his disciples that when his ministry is finished and he returns to Heaven, the Father would send the third person of the trinity, the Holy Spirit, to represent him. Jesus wanted the disciples to know that the Holy Spirit was going to come to be their helper for a task that they wouldn't be able to do. 

The Holy Spirit would help the disciples:

• Remember vividly the events that happened over the past 3 years
• Recall and quote relevant Old Testament scripture to explain their teaching
• Reveal the truth found in Jesus teaching that they didn't understand before

So much of what Jesus taught these guys didn't make any sense until after Jesus left them and God sent the Holy Spirit. Suddenly their wisdom and insight increased greatly as they seemed to have the mind of Christ. (1 Corinthians 2:10-16)

God's Word Verified

John 19:35 This report is from an eyewitness giving an accurate account. He speaks the truth so that you also may continue to believe. 

John 20:30-31 The disciples saw Jesus do many other miraculous signs in addition to the ones recorded in this book. 31 But these are written so that you may continue to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing in him you will have life by the power of his name.

We need truth to make informed choices about God, eyewitness accounts and John’s experiences support belief in God's word, making disbelief even harder. Since it was written while the eyewitnesses were still living to verify the content, we can be sure that the information is accurate and can be trusted.

Trusting God requires faith but God also provides reasoning to support belief in Jesus for eternal life. Thankfully God protected his written word so it can be analyzed and studied as part of verifying it. Imagine how devastating it would be if we only had a verbal record of what God wants us to know.

2 Peter 1:16-17 For we were not making up clever stories when we told you about the powerful coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. We saw his majestic splendor with our own eyes 17 when he received honor and glory from God the Father. The voice from the majestic glory of God said to him, "This is my dearly loved Son, who brings me great joy."

Peter agrees with John and firmly supports the compelling case for Christ. He brings up his profound experience with Jesus during the remarkable event of the transfiguration, a significant moment when he, along with John and James, had the unique opportunity to witness this extraordinary occurrence in which Jesus' divine glory was momentarily revealed to them.

It is likely that Jesus selected these three witnesses to fulfill the legal requirement for credible testimony. In the future, they would come to fully comprehend and appreciate this revelation of Jesus' glory only after Jesus' departure and only after the arrival of the Holy Spirit to guide and enlighten them.

2 Peter 3:15 And remember, our Lord's patience gives people time to be saved. This is what our beloved brother Paul also wrote to you with the wisdom God gave him.

Peter confirmed Paul’s writings by saying Paul received wisdom from God. Their agreement in theology supported their message as well as the message of at least seven men that wrote the New Testament.

The original Bible manuscript is lost, but many copies exist that show the scribes copied it accurately. Thousands of copies in various languages keep being discovered, and they are nearly identical. This should help us take the Bible seriously as God's word. (1 Thessalonians 2:13)

Thank you God for revealing yourself to your people, allowing us to know where we came from, why we need a Savior and what you did to save us. Help me to see your glory through your written word just as vividly as it is seen in Jesus. (John 1:14)

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God Gave Us His Word - Old Testament

The Bible confirms that Jesus is our Savior.

Luke 24:21  We had hoped he was the Messiah who had come to rescue Israel. This all happened three days ago.

Luke 24:27  Then Jesus took them through the writings of Moses and all the prophets, explaining from all the Scriptures the things concerning himself.

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Just before Jesus leaves us behind here on Earth he encourages his followers to examine the Bible. He did not actually tell them to examine the scripture, instead he personally led them through the writings of Moses and the prophets to encourage his followers to find their hope again in the Messiah. 

They needed to look back at the Old Testament to understand that these things happened just as God promised. So many people that like to read the Bible do not consider the importance of the Old Testament but today I want to help us see why God gave it to us.

The Bible is mostly a book about predictions, there are over 1,800 prophecies in the Bible, the fact that almost half of them have already come true helps us to be reasonable, and logical with our faith in God and his message he preserved for us. 

The Bible is a necessary part of God's plan for his followers, without it we wouldn't be able to trust the teachings about God that are passed down orally, it would all just be rumors passed down through the ages that would have been altered each time the message was passed to the next generation.

God made it clear before Jesus came so that we can be certain and not miss his arrival.

The Messiah Will Come:

Genesis 3:15  And I will cause hostility between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring. He will strike your head, and you will strike his heel.”

God created perfection, man corrupted and brought about catastrophe and confusion. God's perfect creation included a perfect plan to redeem us and as soon as the need for redemption came the plan was revealed to the first sinners. But God's promise to Adam and Eve was just the beginning. Just look at how many times he affirmed the promise over hundreds of years.

Genesis 22:17-18  I will certainly bless you. I will multiply your descendants beyond number, like the stars in the sky and the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will conquer the cities of their enemies.  18  And through your descendants all the nations of the earth will be blessed—all because you have obeyed me.”

The scriptures continue to speak of Jesus in the life of Abraham and his descendants. God promised to bless Abraham and then he renewed his commitment by restating the promises to Abraham's son and his grandson (Isaac and Jacob) which then passed the promise down to Abraham's great grandson (Judah). (Genesis 26:1-5, 28:13-15, 49:9-12)

Exodus 12:23  For the LORD will pass through the land to strike down the Egyptians. But when he sees the blood on the top and sides of the doorframe, the LORD will pass over your home. He will not permit his death angel to enter your house and strike you down.

The Old Testament continues to teach us about the Messiah as we remember the original Passover lambs that saved the children of God from the angel of death. They could only save their sons through their obedience to God's word and their exodus from Egypt would occur as a result of the death of the first born sons of Egypt.

Why Is The Messiah Coming

Deuteronomy 4:13 He proclaimed his covenant-the Ten Commandments-which he commanded you to keep, and which he wrote on two stone tablets.

The law of God shows us why the Messiah is needed. We are too stubborn and insist on doing things the way the world does them instead of living God's way. That's why we need the Messiah to come and give us forgiveness from sins and the power to live for God.

God's law showed us that we could never save ourselves, it taught us that God's standards are much higher than we can ever achieve, it shows us that we don't deserve to be a child of God without a Savior.

Who Will Be The Messiah

2 Samuel 7:12, 16 For when you die and are buried with your ancestors, I will raise up one of your descendants, your own offspring, and I will make his kingdom strong. 16 Your house and your kingdom will continue before me for all time, and your throne will be secure forever.'"

We already know that he will be a descendant of the family of Abraham (Isaac, Jacob, Judah) but as their family line continues throughout the ages we will see that King David is also a descendant of Abraham.

The promise was revealed to David through the prophet Nathan during a time when David's kingdom was prospering and peaceful, just as God had promised. He was living in a beautiful palace but his heart was unsettled because the Ark of God was still in the tent that was used to transport it to the Promised Land.

God's promise to David stated that the lineage of his family that started with Abraham will continue and it will become a dynasty of kings that the world has never seen before. Other kingdoms have come and gone but this one will be eternal.

Isaiah 53:5 But he was pierced for our rebellion, crushed for our sins. He was beaten so we could be whole. He was whipped so we could be healed.

The Messiah would be a king but not just any king. This king would leave the splendor of Heaven to live on earth in an unexpected lifestyle and to be treated in an unexpected manner. This isn't what a king does, kings collect taxes, make the rules and live in luxury, but not this king.

This king lived in poverty and allowed himself to be mistreated, instead of demanding his rights as king he submitted himself to the needs of his people. This king loved his people to the point of death so that he could save his people.

The Messiah Has Come

Matthew 1:1This is a record of the ancestors of Jesus the Messiah, a descendant of David and of Abraham.

After Jesus was dead and gone, Matthew connects the dots in his book, to show God's people that their Savior had arrived. Matthew helps us connect the Torah and the prophets with the life and death of Jesus. 

Matthew primarily wrote to a Jewish community close to Jerusalem, a community of Christ followers that would have to deal with the influence of the Jewish traditions in their daily life. He wants to prove to the Jews that the promises have come to pass, the fulfilment of their traditions and the promise of salvation had come.

Hebrews 1:3 The Son radiates God's own glory and expresses the very character of God, and he sustains everything by the mighty power of his command. When he had cleansed us from our sins, he sat down in the place of honor at the right hand of the majestic God in heaven.

The "god of this world" has made his word more popular than God's word, Satan doesn't care what your theology is just as long as it isn't based on God's word, just as long as it doesn't acknowledge that Jesus is God and that he came to cleanse us from our sin.

The original followers of Jesus were so confused, it was probably more difficult for them to understand that Jesus was "God with us." We can analyze the incredible amount of detail that the Old Testament gives us about who Jesus is and figure it out easily.

The Old Testament told us:

• Jesus Birth - How he would come to be with us
• Jesus Life - What he came to do for us
• Jesus Resurrection - Why he wouldn't stay dead

Very smart, logical people have studied God's word in the Old Testament and determined that there is no other way to explain the fulfilled prophecy, this must be God's promises. He gave us the promise and then he came through and made them happen.

We have the luxury of looking back at the big picture, we have God's word in our homes and on our phones, we can study it and learn for ourselves so that we can determine to build our life on God's word or on man's word.

Even today it is easy to lose our hope and get discouraged while we wait for the next arrival of Jesus. It is helpful for all of us to get into God's word and remember what he predicted in the past and that it came true. That's a great indicator that we can trust his promises for our future.

God's Appointed Times - First Fruits And Festival Of Weeks

The third and fourth annual events on God's calendar.

Leviticus 23:9-10 Then the LORD said to Moses, 10 "Give the following instructions to the people of Israel. When you enter the land I am giving you and you harvest its first crops, bring the priest a bundle of grain from the first cutting of your grain harvest.

Leviticus 23:15-16 "From the day after the Sabbath-the day you bring the bundle of grain to be lifted up as a special offering-count off seven full weeks. 16 Keep counting until the day after the seventh Sabbath, fifty days later. Then present an offering of new grain to the LORD.

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In the previous post, we discussed how God has a calendar, and by examining the events on it, we can learn a lot about Him. God wanted His people to use His calendar to know Him, remember Him, and reflect on all He has done for His chosen people.

We started with the weekly event God gave us, the Sabbath day, the day God stopped creating. Then, we looked at the first two annual events on God's calendar: Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread. 

All of these events should have helped God's people stay focused on Him, but the Old Testament believers, much like us, quickly lost their focus and did not remember His goodness to them. (Judges 2:10, 8:34, Nehemiah 9:17)

God's Spring Calendar Continues With:

First Fruits - Reishit

(Exodus 23:19)

Deuteronomy 26:8-10 So the LORD brought us out of Egypt with a strong hand and powerful arm, with overwhelming terror, and with miraculous signs and wonders. 9 He brought us to this place and gave us this land flowing with milk and honey! 10 And now, O LORD, I have brought you the first portion of the harvest you have given me from the ground.' Then place the produce before the LORD your God, and bow to the ground in worship before him.

Preparations for the First Fruit celebration began on Passover day. The first barley harvest was carefully selected, bundled, and left in the field overnight. The priest meticulously chose the best barley, just as he did with the Passover lamb. 

These barley sheaves would be prepared for the priest to present as the first of the spring harvest. This offering would be waved before God, acknowledging that the land's abundance was a gracious blessing from Him.

Festival of Weeks  – Shavuot

(Exodus 34:22; Numbers 28:26)

Leviticus 23:15-17 "From the day after the Sabbath-the day you bring the bundle of grain to be lifted up as a special offering-count off seven full weeks. 16 Keep counting until the day after the seventh Sabbath, fifty days later. Then present an offering of new grain to the LORD. 17 From wherever you live, bring two loaves of bread to be lifted up before the LORD as a special offering. Make these loaves from four quarts of choice flour, and bake them with yeast. They will be an offering to the LORD from the first of your crops.

Pentecost, also known as the Feast of Weeks, is the next significant harvest celebration that occurs at the end of the fall harvest season. The word "Pentecost" is derived from the Greek word for "fifty," as it is celebrated 50 days after the observance of Passover. 

This festival is marked by the offering of the first fruits of the wheat harvest, which are prepared into two loaves of bread and waved before God. Interestingly, the rules for this bread is different than the bread of Passover, they were commanded to use yeast for this bread. Yeast representing sin in a believers life wasn't a concept until Paul wrote about it in his letter to the church at Corinth.

Pentecost was not only an agricultural celebration but also a time to remember the giving of the law and the commitment of God's people to live by His rules. It's important to note that the laws of God were originally intended to be celebrated, before religious leaders started adding more and more man made rules. (Psalm 19:7-14, Philippians 3:8)

The Ultimate First Fruit

1 Corinthians 15:20,23 But in fact, Christ has been raised from the dead. He is the first of a great harvest of all who have died. 23 But there is an order to this resurrection: Christ was raised as the first of the harvest; then all who belong to Christ will be raised when he comes back.

Revelation 1:5 He is the faithful witness to these things, the first to rise from the dead, and the ruler of all the kings of the world. All glory to him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by shedding his blood for us.

Since we don't grow our own food, these holidays don't mean much to us, we don't think much about the blessing of having extra food. But as always there is more to this holiday than just food.

Just as Jesus fulfilled Passover and Unleavened Bread, he also fulfills the First Fruit and Pentecost festivals we celebrate. The first fruit was planted in the ground to be raised up on Easter Sunday.

Jesus rose from the grave and stayed remained on the earth for 40 days to give his people plenty of proof that he is the first fruit and to give his people instructions about their next steps.

Pentecost is the birthday of the church

Acts 2:1-4 On the day of Pentecost all the believers were meeting together in one place. 2 Suddenly, there was a sound from heaven like the roaring of a mighty windstorm, and it filled the house where they were sitting. 3 Then, what looked like flames or tongues of fire appeared and settled on each of them. 4 And everyone present was filled with the Holy Spirit and began speaking in other languages, as the Holy Spirit gave them this ability.

God changed the significance of Pentecost dramatically. The festival would no longer be seen as an agricultural holiday, and the word "Pentecost" would take on a new meaning. Most importantly, God's relationship with his people would never be the same.

The Old Testament prophets had foretold that God would have a new place to live, no longer in physical places and things, but in his people. When the Holy Spirit filled the lives of believers, it was a spectacular event, just as when God had appeared in the burning bush, on Mount Sinai, or in the Tabernacle and Temple.

It's no surprise that people came running to see what was happening as this drama was confusing to most of the people that were there. A week after giving his disciples the task of being the church, Jesus gave them the power they needed to accomplish it by entering his new dwelling places on earth.

This was the promise of the new covenant, where God could now live with his people in a way even better than in the Garden of Eden. (Genesis 3:8-10, Jeremiah 31:31-33, Ephesians 1:13)

God's plan to save us from ourselves is revealed by the events on his calendar:

• Have your sins been forgiven by the ultimate Passover lamb that willingly became the sacrifice for your rebellion?
• Have you begun to walk in obedience to his teaching to begin the process of getting rid of sin in your life as you follow the true bread of life?
• Have you experienced Emmanuel, God with us, personally in your life as you walk with him through his power that dwells within you?

If you can answer yes to these questions then you are ready for the next event on God's calendar. God told us all of this so that his chosen ones would be prepared for the Feast of Trumpets! (Matthew 24:31, Revelation 8:1-11:19)

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The Spring Feasts & Why They Point to What’s Ahead (icejusa.org)

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