Category: Christ’s earthly ministry

Binding the Strong Man

Saturday, July 16, 2011

“Or else how can one enter into a strong man’s house, and spoil his goods, except he first bind the strong man? and then he will spoil his house” (Matthew 12:29 KJV).

Do you ever wonder why the Lord Jesus Christ cast out devils during His earthly ministry? Why did Christ give His apostles the power to cast out evil spirits (Matthew 10:8; Mark 16:17)? From Genesis to Malachi, the Bible is almost silent about evil spirits. When we come to the Four Gospel Records, there is a tremendous rise in devil possession. Why?

The context of today’s Scripture is Christ has just healed a devil-possessed man, who was also blind and dumb (mute) (verses 22-30). Immediately, the Pharisees blurt: “This fellow doth not cast out devils, but by Beelzebub the prince of the devils” (verse 24). The Pharisees wrongly accuse Christ of using Satan’s power to cast out Satan’s evil spirits.

Today’s Scripture is part of Jesus’ response: “I am binding the strong man.” Devil-possessed Jews is Satan’s method of hindering Christ from establishing His kingdom in the earth! In Matthew 12:28, Christ explains why He cast out devils: “But if I cast out devils by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God is come unto you.”

Israel’s kingdom is near, so Satan has polluted Israel with his evil spirits. By casting out devils, Christ is cleansing Israel of her satanic possession and preparing her for her kingdom to be established. The devils indwelling the Gadarene man “besought [Jesus] much that he would not send them away out of the country” (Mark 5:10). The “country” here is Israel.

The prophet predicted what the LORD would do one day: “I will cause the prophets and the unclean spirit to pass out of the land” (Zechariah 13:2). Whenever Christ sets up His earthly kingdom at His Second Coming, He will bind Satan in the bottomless pit for 1000 years (Revelation 20:1-3).

Today, in the Dispensation of Grace, God is not trying to reclaim the earth. Consequently, devil exorcism is unnecessary today.

A Three-Fold Temptation

Saturday, July 2, 2011

“For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eye, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but of the world” (1 John 2:16 KJV).

Every temptation in the world fits into one of the above categories. Did you know that Eve faced all three temptations at once? Compare 1 John 2:16 to Genesis 3:6:

  • “the lust of the flesh” — the forbidden tree was “good for food” (Was Eve hungry?)
  • “the lust of the eye” — the forbidden tree was “pleasant to the eye” (An awesome sight!)
  • “the pride of life” — the forbidden tree was “desired to make one wise” (Eat from it, and you can be like God, Eve!)

Using this very cunning scheme, Satan triumphed over Eve, and later Adam. Sadly, they both ate the forbidden fruit.

In Matthew 4:1-10 and Luke 4:1-13, Satan tempts Christ using the same format. However, where Adam and Eve failed, the perfect Man, Jesus Christ, triumphed. Remember that Christ has been fasting for forty days.

  • “the lust of the flesh” — Satan tempts Christ to turn stones into bread  (Christ was hungry!)
  • “the lust of the eye” — Satan tempts Christ to cast Himself from the Temple pinnacle, and have angels rescue Him (An awesome sight!)
  • “the pride of life” — Satan tempts Christ to worship him, promising to give Him the kingdoms of the world (You can have God’s power! Little did Satan know that Christ would one day have the kingdoms of the world, without having to worship Satan; Revelation 11:15.)

How did Jesus Christ triumph over Satan? The Bible says Christ properly quoted Scripture! Eve could not triumph over Satan because she did not properly quote Scripture. Find verses in Paul’s epistles that fit your temptations and weaknesses, and memorize them. Then, whenever you are tempted with sin, bring to mind the applicable grace doctrines. Do not just quote random Bible verses, quote from Paul. Properly quoting (and believing) the Bible is your key to triumphing over the three-fold temptation!

The Lost Sheep of the House of Israel

Wednesday, June 29, 2011

“These twelve Jesus sent forth, and commanded them, saying, Go not into the way of the Gentiles, and into any city of the Samaritans enter ye not. But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel” (Matthew 10:5,6 KJV).

God’s intention in forming the nation Israel was to establish them as a vessel to preach His salvation to the whole world. He promised to form them into “a kingdom of priests” (Exodus 19:5,6; Isaiah 60:1-3; et al.). When Israel’s King-Messiah Jesus finally arrived, Israel was spiritually impotent, unable to reach lost Gentiles because she too was lost! Sadly, Israel had forgotten why God formed her in the first place.

During Christ’s earthly ministry, God’s covenant people are “scattered abroad, as sheep having no shepherd” (Matthew 9:36). Israel, for the most part, was rebellious toward God in Christ’s day. Her Temple was corrupt, and her priesthood was apostate. There was only a remnant of believing Jews.

Christ called them “the lost sheep of the house of Israel” (today’s Scripture). He explained that He came “to save that which was lost” (Matthew 18:11; Luke 19:10) and “I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel” (Matthew 15:24).

In Matthew 18:12-14 and Luke 15:3-7, Christ tells the parable of a man who owned 100 sheep, one of which is lost. The man leaves the 99 sheep, and seeks out the one sheep. This parable is symbolic of God seeking the nation Israel. Unfortunately, the vast number of Israelites could not care less about God seeking them and rescuing them from their corrupt and poor spiritual state. The one sheep represents the believing remnant in Israel.

Today, in this the Dispensation of Grace, Israel is still lost, spiritually blinded (Romans 11:11,15,25). The day is coming, however, when God will reconcile national Israel unto Himself. At Christ’s Second Coming, Israel will be saved, God will forgive Israel, and God will blot out her national sins (Acts 3:19-21; Romans 11:26-29).

The Jews have a hope! They will not always be “the lost sheep of the house of Israel.”

One (God)Man Fulfilled What?!?!

Saturday, June 25, 2011

“And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel” (Genesis 3:15 KJV).

Today’s Scripture is the first reference to the coming of the Messiah, the Lord Jesus Christ. Here, Scripture says He will be a man, a descendant of Adam and Eve. The Old Testament goes on to make hundreds of prophecies regarding Israel’s Messiah. In fact, Jesus Christ fulfilled 332 of those prophecies during His First Advent.

Here are some rather incredible prophecies fulfilled in Christ’s life (notice how specific they are):

  • Son of Abraham (Genesis 12:3 cf. Matthew 1:1).
  • Son of Isaac (Genesis 17:19 cf. Luke 3:34).
  • Son of Jacob (Numbers 24:17 cf. Matthew 1:2).
  • Son of Judah (Genesis 49:10 cf. Luke 3:33).
  • Son of King David (2 Samuel 7:12-16 cf. Luke 1:32).
  • Born in Bethlehem-Judaea (there were two Bethlehem’s) (Micah 5:2 cf. Matthew 2:1).
  • Mother was a virgin (Isaiah 7:14 cf. Luke 1:26-35).
  • Betrayed by a friend who ate bread with Him (Psalm 41:9 cf. John 13:18-27).
  • Rejected by His own people (Psalm 118:22 cf. Acts 4:10,11)
  • Sold for 30 pieces of silver (Zechariah 11:12 cf. Matthew 26:15).
  • Smote on the head/face with a reed (Micah 5:1 cf. Matthew 27:30).
  • Given vinegar to drink (Psalm 69:21 cf. Mark 15:36).
  • None of His bones were broken (Exodus 12:46 and Numbers 9:12 cf. John 19:36).
  • He would die by crucifixion, predicted centuries before crucifixion was invented! (Psalm 22:16,17 cf. John 19:37).
  • Buried in a rich man’s tomb (Isaiah 53:9 cf. Matthew 27:57-60).

One author calculated the mathematical probability of all 332 prophecies being fulfilled in one man’s life. His answer was astronomically high:

___________________________1___________________________

840,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,

000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,

000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000

In other words, 1 in 8.4 x 10^(98)! Wow! Can you imagine a number with 97 zeroes?! When Jesus Christ came to Israel, they should have recognized Him. Him fulfilling all those Old Testament prophecies should have caught their attention. Unfortunately, they could not care less.

One Man fulfilled all those prophecies… one (God)-Man!

Sit Thou at My Right Hand

Tuesday, June 21, 2011

“The LORD said unto my Lord, Sit thou at my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool” (Psalm 110:1 KJV).

Where is Jesus Christ today?

Recall that His physical body ascended into heaven to return to His heavenly Father (Acts 1:9-11). Currently, Jesus Christ is sitting at His Father’s right hand in glory. Today’s Scripture, written by King David 1000 years beforehand, is a prophecy of the ascension of Jesus Christ. In today’s Scripture, God the Father tells His Son Jesus Christ to sit at His right hand. Nevertheless, this is not permanent because God the Father says, “until….”

When Jesus Christ came to earth and presented Himself to His people, the nation Israel, they “received him not” (John 1:11). The climax of Israel’s rejection of their Messiah-King Jesus occurred when they demanded that Pilate crucify Him (John 19:14,15).

In the early Acts period, Israel was given a renewed opportunity of repentance. Yes, they killed their Messiah Jesus, but God raised Him from the dead. Israel could have repented and been water baptized, and ultimately received Him as their King. This was the Apostle Peter’s message to Israel in Acts 2:22-40 and Acts 3:12-26.

In Acts 7, a year after Acts 2, we learn that the nation Israel is still unrepentant and rebellious. Israel’s prophet Stephen warns them, saying: “I see the heavens opened, and the Son of Man standing on the right hand of God” (Acts 7:56). Israel knew judgment was coming: they remembered Psalm 110:1. Christ would sit at His Father’s right hand only until God’s wrath would be poured out on His enemies… them! In anger the Jews stoned Stephen. Even at this point, God was gracious.

God, in His loving-kindness, poured out His grace, not His wrath, in Acts 9, by saving Saul of Tarsus. The Lord made him Paul the Apostle and interrupted Israel’s program with our Dispensation of Grace. God’s wrath—the seven-year Tribulation—is currently postponed. Jesus Christ is still sitting at His Father’s right hand… for now, anyway….

No Ordinary Fishing Trip

Thursday, June 16, 2011

“And he saith unto them, Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men” (Matthew 4:19 KJV).

In Matthew 4:18, the Lord Jesus found two brothers, Simon Peter and Andrew, fishermen casting their net into the Sea of Galilee. Today’s Scripture documents what Jesus told them. Verse 20 says “they straightway [immediately] left their nets, and followed him.” In the succeeding verses, Jesus calls two other fishermen, James and his brother John.

For the next three years, these four men would not be fishing ordinarily. They would be fishing with Jesus Christ. For what would they be fishing? The souls of lost Jews. Surely, it was going to be no ordinary fishing trip! Notice verses 23 and following:

“And Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing all manner of sickness and all manner of disease among the people. And his fame went throughout all Syria: and they brought unto him all sick people that were taken with divers diseases and torments, and those which were possessed with devils, and those which were lunatick, and those that had the palsy; and he healed them. And there followed him great multitudes of people from Galilee, and from Decapolis, and from Jerusalem, and from Judaea, and from beyond Jordan.”

These fishermen—now “fishers of men”—were serving with their Messiah Jesus of Nazareth. They saw Him perform amazing miracles as He demonstrated the powers of the world to come (Israel’s kingdom; Hebrews 2:3-5). For three years, these “fishers of men” would hear the words of eternal life from the lips of God Himself. Furthermore, they had the privilege of preaching “the gospel of the kingdom” to their fellow Jews.

Jesus later promised them that He would give them the power to teach and do what He did. God would utilize these “fishers of men” to reel in thousands of Jews’ souls to repentance (see Acts 2:41 and Acts 4:4). Surely, for all eternity, they will remember… that was no ordinary fishing trip!