Tag Archives: Salvation

A Child of God

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Bear fruit in keeping with repentance. And do not presume to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father,’ for I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children for Abraham.”                Matthew 3:8-9 ESV1

Read Matthew 3:1-12

In the time in which Jesus walked the Earth there were groups of very religious people who were absolutely sure that they, above others, were right with God. They studied the Scriptures, followed very high standards of holiness, and taught others to do the same. Two of these religious groups were the Pharisees and the Sadducees. Shortly before Jesus began His earthly ministry, his close relative, John the Baptist, was preparing the way for Jesus by preaching, “‘Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand’” (Matthew 3:2). A great number of people from the region believed John’s message. “[They] were going out to him, and they were baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins” (Matthew 3:6). Presumably, because they were serious about matters of faith, “many Pharisees and Sadducees [were also] coming to [John’s] baptism, [and] he said to them, ‘You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come’” (Matthew 3:7)? Why was John so rude to those wanting to do the right thing?

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Introducing Others to Jesus

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The next day again John [the Baptist] was standing with two of his disciples, and he looked at Jesus as He walked by and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God!” The two disciples heard him say this, and they followed Jesus … One of the two who heard John speak and followed Jesus was Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother. He first found his own brother Simon and said to him, “We have found the Messiah” (which means Christ). He brought him to Jesus. John 1:35-36, 40-42a ESV1

Read John 1:11-51

Andrew came to faith in Jesus by the testimony of John the Baptist. Andrew had been a disciple, or a follower, of John. As is the nature of being a disciple, Andrew had likely spent a great deal of time with and listening to John. And John spent much time talking about the coming Messiah. So much so that even casual observers of John were able to say, “Everything he [John] said about this man has come true” (John 10:41). Because of his close association with John and John’s teachings, Andrew was ready to follow the Messiah as soon as John identified him. “‘Behold, the Lamb of God!’ The two disciples heard him say this, and they followed Jesus” (John 1:36b-37).

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A Home for Jesus

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And He said to them, “Why were you looking for Me? Did you not know I must be in my Father’s house?”  Luke 2:49 ESV1

Read Matthew 1:18-25 & 2:11-15; Luke 1:26-56 & 2:41-52

“God so loved the world that He gave His only Son … in order that the world might be saved through Him (John 3:16a & 17b). But before Jesus saved the world, he was a Baby who needed care, a little Boy who needed providing for and protecting, and a young Man who needed encouragement and direction. Who on Earth could God trust to raise His Son? Who could be up to the challenge of parenting all of God wrapped up in the skin of a little Boy? Both Mary and Joseph must have been exceptional people! Much can be deduced from Scripture about this couple.

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The Colorful Past of Jesus’ Ancestor, Bathsheba

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The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ … and David was the father of Solomon by the wife of Uriah … and Jacob the father of Joseph the husband of Mary to whom Jesus was born…  Matthew 1:1a & 6b,16 ESV1

Read 2 Samuel 11:1-26, 12:1-25, 1 Kings 1:5-53

Bathsheba, Jesus’ 25th Great Grandmother, was the beautiful wife of Uriah the Hittite. Uriah was one of the leading men in David’s band of the toughest military warriors who were credited with heroic feats. They fought next to David during the years Saul was trying to kill him and were an invaluable part of David’s army during the time he was king. These men fought bloody battles and did amazing, almost crazy, deeds like single-handedly taking out 300 men with only one spear, killing lions barehanded, and snatching spears out of the hands of 7 1/2 foot-tall enemies. (See 1 Chronicles 11 and 2 Samuel 23).

Because Bathsheba was married to such a wild man, I doubt she was a mousy, little woman who was afraid of her own shadow. We don’t know when Uriah and Bathsheba wed. We don’t know if Uriah was with David for the entire 8 years David was hunted by Saul. But if Bathsheba was with Uriah even part of that time, she could have lived on the run for years finding shelter in caves. She could have had her home burned and been temporarily captured (see 1 Samuel 21-31). A wife of a wild man would have had a wild life. True, opposites do attract, but my guess is Bathsheba was as rugged as she was beautiful.

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