Tag: Messiah

  • Armageddon: The Iranian Conflict and End Times

    Armageddon: The Iranian Conflict and End Times

    Well. I finally saw the word used in association with events currently at play in the Middle East. In her post, Coston claimed that, in the last battle, the nations wouldn’t necessarily fight against Israel but against Christ. I have to say, I have never actually seen such a narrative in the text of Scripture.…

  • Jesus, The Supplier of our Faith; Devo, John 2:1-12

    Jesus, The Supplier of our Faith; Devo, John 2:1-12

    The turning of water to wine at Cana is a popular story. Many people take many details from the text to expound on them, but I think it is important to keep ourselves from saying what the text does not say. After all, we want to speak God’s explicit words and not our own. There…

  • Jesus as Prophet and The Personal Salvation Debate Among Jews in the First Century

    Jesus as Prophet and The Personal Salvation Debate Among Jews in the First Century

    In these notes, I first show the point of John 3:1-2 by offering a biblical apologetic for Jesus as having the authority of a prophet to reveal new revelation. Then, I explore the theological environment of First Century Judea in order to provide historical context for Jesus’s conversation with Nicodemus. It is no surprise that…

  • National Israel, Satan, and Jesus in Revelation

    National Israel, Satan, and Jesus in Revelation

    With the blasting of the seventh trumpet, we saw that the kingdom of Christ was at hand, and all authority was given to Jesus in His incarnation. He began to rule as the federal head of creation in His incarnation, a reality which necessarily begins His millennial reign over the earth in the First Century…

  • Seeking Signs of the End Times

    Seeking Signs of the End Times

    When will the end come? I see so many things—especially in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, social upheaval, and cultural unrest—by which people are trying to discern the times with the end of times in view. Lately, I have seen statements like, “God is preparing us for the rapture while Satan is preparing us…

  • On Knowing Jesus

    On Knowing Jesus

    We have made it through chapter 13. The previous section of Matthew’s Gospel expounded on what the kingdom of Heaven is. Tonight, we begin a new section—A section we can title The Identity of Jesus. As Matthew continues to prove that Jesus is the Messiah foretold throughout the Old Testament, He now begins to explain…

  • How Much Authority Does Satan Actually Have?

    How Much Authority Does Satan Actually Have?

    In the prelude to Jesus’ public preaching ministry, He has been led into the wilderness by the Holy Spirit to be tempted by the devil. Tonight we will observe the third and final wilderness temptation. As we work through the text and consider Matthew’s (and Jesus’) use of the Old Testament, we will ask this…

  • How Does Satan Use the Bible?

    How Does Satan Use the Bible?

    Last week, we read about the first temptation that Jesus experienced in the wilderness and we saw that the Holy Spirit led Jesus into the wilderness for the particular reason of being tempted, which was fitting to fulfill all righteousness (we talked about what this meant two weeks ago). This week, we will read about…

  • If God’s Love is Unconditional, why are there so many conditional statements in the Old Testament?

    If God’s Love is Unconditional, why are there so many conditional statements in the Old Testament?

    In chapter 3 of Matthew’s Gospel, Jesus revealed that before beginning His preaching ministry, it was fitting to fulfill all righteousness. This was done in His baptism by John and it would be done in the Temptations. Tonight, we arrive at the first temptation. We will spend the whole night on this one temptation and…

  • Why Did Jesus Receive the Baptism of Repentance From John?

    Why Did Jesus Receive the Baptism of Repentance From John?

    Last week, we started this section of Matthew’s Gospel that we are referring to as the prelude to Jesus’ preaching ministry. John the Baptist taught some very significant things concerning the kingdom of heaven, which was at hand. As he is teaching, Jesus comes to be baptized by him. Matthew 3:13-17 Then Jesus arrived from…