Blog Search Results

The Temptations of Jesus: Pride

Welcome to the first part of a short series I'm writing during Lent. We’re on the first Sunday of Lent, and so I’m going to be looking at the forty days that Jesus spent in the wilderness, and the temptations he endured. A new post will be up every Sunday, and you can view the series overview here: Lent 2018. Mark 1:12-13And the Spirit immediately drove him out into the wilderness. He was in the wilderness forty days, tempted by Satan; and he was with the wild beasts; and the angels waited on him. That’s all Mark has to say on that time Jesus spent there, and John doesn’t mention the forty days at all. That leaves only Luke and Matthew which mention th...

The Temptations of Jesus: Testing God

...into the wilderness from there (Mark 1:9, 12). According to Google maps (and more likely, Church tradition), the spot where he was baptised is close to Jericho. Directly next to this area is the Judaean Desert, which would be the wilderness where Jesus spent his time. On the other side of this desert is Jerusalem, which is about 27 miles away from the spot by the Jordan where the baptism took place. I’ve put together a quick map so you can get a better idea of locations: Approx. locations of events Anyway, I digress slightly. The point being, is that where Jesus was and where he was taken was not exactly just around the corner! Coupled with the fact tha...

The Coming of Jesus: The Olivet Discourse – Part 1

...em in the wilderness, pretending that God would there show them signs of liberty Next up was the warning of wars. In a time where you may think war and conflict was common, this sign holds more meaning as this was prophesied during the famous "Pax Romana" – Latin for "Roman Peace". It was a time when the Roman Empire had relative peace and harmony with everyone, and thus wars and conflict were little to none. But what we see from history, is that as time drew closer to 70 AD, seditions and rebels were rising up against Rome from within Jerusalem and Israel as a whole. Matthew 24:6 And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars; see that you are not alarm...

Is fasting an expectation for Christians?

...The season of Lent is here once again which of course brings up the topic of fasting, since the tradition of Lent comes from following Jesus’ example of his time in the wilderness (Luke 4:1–2). I wasn’t planning on writing anything specific this year like I have previous in previous years, but I felt inspired today at church from one of Gospel readings: Matthew 9:14–15 Then the disciples of John came to him, saying, “Why do we and the Pharisees fast often, but your disciples do not fast?” And Jesus said to them, “The wedding guests cannot mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them, can they? The days will come when the bridegroom is t...

The Coming of Jesus: Coming on the clouds

...into the wilderness of the peoples, and there I will enter into judgment with you face to face. Plus also see: 2 Sam 22:8-16; Isaiah 19:1; Ezekiel 30:3; Ezekiel 30:18; Ezekiel 32:7; Ezekiel 34:12; Joel 2:1-2 to name a few more! Notice a theme going on here? This brings us right back to the disciples asking "what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age" and Jesus saying that he would "come on the clouds with power and great glory." The first thing to take note of here is that the disciples as about the end of the age, although some Bible mistranslate this as "end of the world," which is incorrect since if you check out the underlyin...

Lent 2018: The Temptations of Jesus

...Lent is just around the corner, and so this year I've decided to write a short series over the next 40 days looking at the forty days that Jesus spent in the wilderness, and the temptations he faced. I'll post a new blog each Sunday of Lent looking at each temptation, and then finish the series just before Easter Sunday looking at “how was Jesus a sacrifice?”. Series outline: Temptation one: Pride (1st Sunday of Lent, February 18, 2018) Temptation two: Worship and Glory (2nd Sunday of Lent, February 25, 2018) Temptation three: Testing God (3rd Sunday of Lent, March 4, 2018) Temptation four: Complacency (4th Sunday of Lent, March 11, 2018) Topical: W...