PT-2 “Their Significance”

 

MORNING SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 6/14/2026 9:54 AM 

My Worship Time                                                                     Focus:  PT-2 “Their Significance”

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                                            Reference: “None”

            There is no Bible Reference in this SD that comes from John MacArthur’s commentary, and perhaps this will not be the only time when he does not use one in this series on the twelve Apostles, we will see.  MacArthur writes: 

            Second, the apostles lacked humility.  They were, frankly, egotistical, self-centered, and proud, focused on who among them was the greatest.  On one occasion Jesus ‘began to question them, ‘What were you discussing on the way?’ But they kept silent, for on the way they had discussed with one another, which of them was the greatest’ (Mark 9:33-34).  On another occasion

an argument started among them as to which of them might be the greatest.  But Jesus, knowing what they were thinking in their heart, too a child and stood him by His side, and said to them, ‘Whoever receives this child in My name receives Me, and whoever receives Me receives Him who sent Me; for the one who is last among all of you, this is the one who is great.’ (Luke 9:46-48).

Even the Lord’s dramatic announcement at the Last Supper that He would be betrayed was followed by ‘a dispute among [the apostles] as to which one of them was regarded to be greatest’ (Luke 2:24).  James and John angled for the most prominent places in the kingdom by having their mother approach Jesus on their behalf (Matt. 20:20-21).  Jesus responded to the apostles’ self-seeking pride by setting an example of humility for them to follow (John 13:1-15).”

(Matt. 20:20-21)

“20 ¶  Then the mother of the sons of Zebedee came up to him with her sons, and kneeling before him she asked him for something.”

(John 13:1-15)

“1 ¶  Now before the Feast of the Passover, when Jesus knew that his hour had come to depart out of this world to the Father, having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end. 2  During supper, when the devil had already put it into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon’s son, to betray him, 3  Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands, and that he had come from God and was going back to God, 4  rose from supper. He laid aside his outer garments, and taking a towel, tied it around his waist. 5  Then he poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples’ feet and to wipe them with the towel that was wrapped around him. 6  He came to Simon Peter, who said to him, “Lord, do you wash my feet?” 7  Jesus answered him, “What I am doing you do not understand now, but afterward you will understand.” 8  Peter said to him, “You shall never wash my feet.” Jesus answered him, “If I do not wash you, you have no share with me.” 9  Simon Peter said to him, “Lord, not my feet only but also my hands and my head!” 10  Jesus said to him, “The one who has bathed does not need to wash, except for his feet, but is completely clean. And you are clean, but not every one of you.” 11  For he knew who was to betray him; that was why he said, “Not all of you are clean.” 12  When he had washed their feet and put on his outer garments and resumed his place, he said to them, "Do you understand what I have done to you? 13  You call me Teacher and Lord, and you are right, for so I am. 14  If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another ’s feet. 15  For I have given you an example, that you also should do just as I have done to you.”

            “Third, the apostles were weak in faith.  Fearing that their boat would be swamped, they cried out, ‘Save us, Lord; we are perishing!’ (Matt. 8:25).  Jesus’ response was a rebuke for their inability to trust: ‘Why are you afraid, you men of little faith?’ (v. 26).  When Peter began to sink after joining Jesus in walking on the Sea of Galilee, ‘Immediately Jesus stretched out His hand and took hold of him, and said to him, ‘You of little faith, why did you doubt?’’ (Matt. 14:31).  The Lord also rebuked the apostles’ lack of faith in Matthew 16:8, demanding of them, ‘You men of little faith, why do you discuss among yourselves that you have no bread?’’ Jesus responded to the  apostles’ doubt by performing miracles to strengthen their faith (cf. John 20:30-31).”

(cf. John 20:30-31)

“30  Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; 31  but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.”

            Fourth, the apostles’ (especially Peter [Matt. 26:69-75]) deserting of Jesus when He was arrested (Mark 14:50) demonstrates their lack of commitment.  The Lord’s answer for that sinful weakness was to pray for the apostles to remain faithful (Luke 22:31-32; John 17:11-26).”

(Matt. 26:69-75)

“69 ¶  Now Peter was sitting outside in the courtyard. And a servant girl came up to him and said, “You also were with Jesus the Galilean.” 70  But he denied it before them all, saying, “I do not know what you mean.” 71  And when he went out to the entrance, another servant girl saw him, and she said to the bystanders, “This man was with Jesus of Nazareth.” 72  And again he denied it with an oath: “I do not know the man.” 73  After a little while the bystanders came up and said to Peter, “Certainly you too are one of them, for your accent betrays you.” 74  Then he began to invoke a curse on himself and to swear, “I do not know the man.” And immediately the rooster crowed. 75  And Peter remembered the saying of Jesus, “Before the rooster crows, you will deny me three times.” And he went out and wept bitterly.”

(Mark 14:50)

“50  And they all left him and fled.”

(Luke 22:31-32; John 17:11-26)

31  "Simon, Simon, behold, Satan demanded to have you, that he might sift you like wheat,” 32  but I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned again, strengthen your brothers."

“11 ¶  And I am no longer in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, keep them in your name, which you have given me, that they may be one, even as we are one. 12  While I was with them, I kept them in your name, which you have given me. I have guarded them, and not one of them has been lost except the son of destruction, that the Scripture might be fulfilled. 13  But now I am coming to you, and these things I speak in the world, that they may have my joy fulfilled in themselves. 14  I have given them your word, and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. 15  I do not ask that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one. 16  They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world.  17 ¶  Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth. 18  As you sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world. 19  And for their sake I consecrate myself, that they also may be sanctified in truth. 20 ¶  "I do not ask for these only, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, 21  that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me. 22  The glory that you have given me I have given to them, that they may be one even as we are one, 23  I in them and you in me, that they may become perfectly one, so that the world may know that you sent me and loved them even as you loved me. 24 ¶  Father, I desire that they also, whom you have given me, may be with me where I am, to see my glory that you have given me because you loved me before the foundation of the world. 25  O righteous Father, even though the world does not know you, I know you, and these know that you have sent me. 26  I made known to them your name, and I will continue to make it known, that the love with which you have loved me may be in them, and I in them.’”

            There is one more of these examples coming from John MacArthur and I will save that for this evening’s SD.

Spiritual Meaning for my Life today:  Now as I look at theses incidents that MacArthur brings up about Jesus and His apostles there is one thing that I think about and that is that at this time in their lives they did not have the Holy Spirit in their lives as Jesus had not yet given the Spirit to them, and would not until after He returned to heaven.

My Steps of Faith for Today:  Ever since the second chapter of Acts when the Lord gave the apostles the Holy Spirit to the apostles, that all who come to faith in Jesus Christ as their Savior and Lord receive the Holy Spirit in order to walk with the Lord, doing His will and fulfilling the gifts that the Holy Spirit has given to them.  It is my desire to do the things that the Lord has set aside for me to do through the power of the Holy Spirit.

6/14/2026 10:28 AM

 

 

 

 

PT-1 “Their Significance”

 

EVENING SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 6/13/2026 9:20 PM 

My Worship Time                                                                     Focus:  PT-1 “Their Significance”

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                                            Reference: “None”

            There is no Bible Reference in this SD that comes from John MacArthur’s commentary, and perhaps this will not be the only time when he does not use one in this series on the twelve Apostles, we will see.

            MacArthur writes:  “Despite their crucial role in the church and their proclamation of the saving message of the New Covenant, the apostles are often not given their due honor. Peter, James, and John, the three closest to the Lord, are the most familiar.  Matthew (because of his  gospel), Andrew and Philip are less well known.  Thomas, regrettably, is remembered chiefly for doubting Christ’s resurrection (though there was far more to his story than that, as will be seen in Chapter 7 of this volume), while Judas Iscariot, of course, is infamous for betraying Christ.  The rest of the apostles are largely unknown; in fact, many Christians could not even name Bartholomew (Nathanael), James the son of Alphaeus, Simon the Zealot, and Judas the son of James.  Yet all the apostles deserve respect for the vital ministry they performed—and they will be honored throughout eternity by having their names inscribed on the gates of the glorious city of New Jerusalem (Rev. 21:14).

            “The apostles were important for at least six reasons.  First, as noted above, they were the foundation of the church.  In Ephesians 2:20 Paul wrote that the church was ‘built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus Himself being the corner stone.’

            “Second, the apostles received revelation ‘which in other generations was not made known to the sons of men, as it has not been revealed to His holy apostles and prophets in the Spirit’ (Eph. 3:5).  The entire New Testament was written, the believers ‘were continually devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching ‘(Acts 2:42).  That teaching, as recorded in the New Testament, is still the only authoritative source of doctrine.

            “Third, the apostles were given to edify the church.  According to Ephesians 4:11-12 God ‘gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ.’

            “Fourth, not only was their doctrine authoritative, but also their lives were exemplary.  Ephesians 3:5 calls them the ‘holy apostles,’ leading Paul to exhort believers to be imitators of him (1 Cor. 4:16; 11:1; 1 Thess. 1:6).”

(1 Cor. 4:16; 11:1; 1 Thess. 1:6)

“16  I urge you, then, be imitators of me.”

“1 ¶  Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ.”

“6 ¶  And you became imitators of us and of the Lord, for you received the word in much affliction, with the joy of the Holy Spirit,”

            “Fifth, the apostles were given miraculous power to confirm their message.  The marks of a true apostle, as Paul wrote to the Corinthians, were ‘signs and wonders and miracles’ (2 Cor. 12:12).  He reminded the Romans that he had carried out his ministry ‘in the power of sings and wonders’ (Rom. 15:19).  The writer of Hebrews noted that the message of salvation ‘was confirmed to us by those who heard [the apostles], God also testifying with them, both by signs and wonders and by various miracles and by gifts of the Holy Spirit according to His own will’ (Heb. 2:3-4).

            “Finally, the apostles were greatly blessed (Luke 18:28-30) as they will be in eternity (Rev. 21:12-14).”

 (Luke 18:28-30)

“28  And Peter said, “See, we have left our homes and followed you.” 29  And he said to them, "Truly, I say to you, there is no one who has left house or wife or brothers or parents or children, for the sake of the kingdom of God, 30  who will not receive many times more in this time, and in the age to come eternal life.’

“12  It had a great, high wall, with twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and on the gates the names of the twelve tribes of the sons of Israel were inscribed— 13  on the east three gates, on the north three gates, on the south three gates, and on the west three gates. 14  And the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them were the twelve names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.”

Are you still lacking in understand also? (Matt. 15:16)

Do you not yet understand or remember the five loaves of the five thousand, and how many baskets full you picked up? Or the seven loaves of the four thousand, and how many large baskets full you picked up? How is it that you do not understand that I did not speak to you concerning bread?  But beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees. (Matt. 16:9-11)

Why do you discuss the fact that you have no bread?  Do you not yet see or understand? (Mark 8:17).

Do you not understand this parable?  How will you understand all the parables?  Mark 4:13.  (See also Mark 9:32; Luke 9:45; 18:34; John 12:16; 20:9)

(See also Mark 9:32; Luke 9:45; 18:34; John 12:16; 20:9)

“32  But they did not understand the saying, and were afraid to ask him.”

“45  But they did not understand this saying, and it was concealed from them, so that they might not perceive it. And they were afraid to ask him about this saying.”

“34  But they understood none of these things. This saying was hidden from them, and they did not grasp what was said.”

“16  His disciples did not understand these things at first, but when Jesus was glorified, then they remembered that these things had been written about him and had been done to him.”

“9  for as yet they did not understand the Scripture, that he must rise from the dead.”

“The Lord remedied the apostles’ ignorance by continually teaching them the truth (cf. Luke 24:45). Even after His resurrection, Jesus spent forty days with them ‘speaking of the times concerning the kingdom of God’ (Acts 1:3)”

(cf. Luke 24:45)

“45  Then he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures,”

            I usually do not stop in the middle of things that are numbered, but it looks like I will have to finish this section in tomorrow mornings SD, beginning with MacArthur’s second point.

6/13/2026 10:07 PM

 

“The Sending” (Luke 6:13)

 

MORNING SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 6/13/2026 10:31 AM

My Worship Time                                                                                       Focus:  “The Sending”

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                                    Reference:  Luke 6:13b

            Message of the verse:  “whom He also named as apostles”

            I have mentioned in earlier Spiritual Diaries that when I decided to use what is in the book of Luke to describe each of Jesus disciples, or apostles as they were then called to use the material that John MacArthur wrote in his commentary on the gospel of Luke.  I had studied the gospel of Matthew for five years and this kind of material was also found there but I suppose that it is a bit different in Luke so I will just quote the things from MacArthur’s commentary on Luke that speaks of all of the apostles.

            “Having chosen the Twelve, Jesus named or designated them apostles. Apostolos (‘apostle’) refers to a messenger, ambassador, or representative invested with the full authority of the one who sent him.  The concept of an apostle can be traced to the Jewish concept of the shaliach, which also referred to a messenger sent with full authority to act on behalf of another.  Some rabbis, for example, were sent to the Diaspora (Jews living outside of Palestine) with authority to act on behalf of the Sanhedrin on various matters.  A shaliach could also act on behalf of an individual, similar to the modern-day legal concept of power of attorney.  Thus in Jewish practice, the shaliach was the same as the one who  sent him (cf. John 13:20; Gal. 4:14).”

(cf. John 13:20; Gal. 4:14)

“20  Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever receives the one I send receives me, and whoever receives me receives the one who sent me.’”

“14  and though my condition was a trial to you, you did not scorn or despise me, but received me as an angel of God, as Christ Jesus.”

“David, for example, proposed marriage to Abigail through messengers, and she signified her acceptance of his proposal by washing their feet (1 Sam. 25:40-42).”

(1 Sam. 25:40-42)

“40  When the servants of David came to Abigail at Carmel, they said to her, "David has sent us to you to take you to him as his wife." 41  And she rose and bowed with her face to the ground and said, "Behold, your handmaid is a servant to wash the feet of the servants of my lord." 42  And Abigail hurried and rose and mounted a donkey, and her five young women attended her. She followed the messengers of David and became his wife.”

“Jesus’ designating the Twelve to act on His behalf would thus have been understood by everyone in that culture.

            “But before being sent out by Jesus, the Twelve needed to be personally mentored by Him.  Mark 3:14 notes that the Lord chose them ‘so that they would be with Him.’  Only after that time of preparation did He ‘send them out to preach.’  Their call to the apostles was not an end in itself, but merely the next step in the sequential process of preparing them to carry on Christ’s gospel ministry after His death.  First, they believed in Him (cf. John 1:35-51).”

(cf. John 1:35-51)

“35  The next day again John was standing with two of his disciples, 36  and he looked at Jesus as he walked by and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God!”37 ¶  The two disciples heard him say this, and they followed Jesus. 38  Jesus turned and saw them following and said to them, “What are you seeking?” And they said to him, “Rabbi” (which means Teacher), “where are you staying?” 39  He said to them, “Come and you will see.” So they came and saw where he was staying, and they stayed with him that day, for it was about the tenth hour. 40  One of the two who heard John speak and followed Jesus was Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother. 41  He first found his own brother Simon and said to him, “We have found the Messiah” (which means Christ). 42  He brought him to Jesus. Jesus looked at him and said, “You are Simon the son of John. You shall be called Cephas” (which means Peter).43 ¶  The next day Jesus decided to go to Galilee. He found Philip and said to him, “Follow me.” 44  Now Philip was from Bethsaida, the city of Andrew and Peter. 45  Philip found Nathanael and said to him, “We have found him of whom Moses in the Law and also the prophets wrote, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.” 46  Nathanael said to him, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” Philip said to him, “Come and see.” 47  Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward him and said of him, “Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom there is no deceit!” 48  Nathanael said to him, “How do you know me?” Jesus answered him, “Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you.” 49  Nathanael answered him, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!” 50  Jesus answered him, “Because I said to you, ‘I saw you under the fig tree,’ do you believe? You will see greater things than these.” 51  And he said to him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, you will see heaven opened, and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man.’”

“Second, He called them to leave their occupations and follow Him full time (Luke 5:6-11, 27-28).

(Luke 5:6-11, 27-28)

“6  And when they had done this, they enclosed a large number of fish, and their nets were breaking. 7  They signaled to their partners in the other boat to come and help them. And they came and filled both the boats, so that they began to sink. 8  But when Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying, “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord.” 9  For he and all who were with him were astonished at the catch of fish that they had taken, 10  and so also were James and John, sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon. And Jesus said to Simon, “Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching men.” 11  And when they had brought their boats to land, they left everything and followed him.”

“27 ¶  After this he went out and saw a tax collector named Levi, sitting at the tax booth. And he said to him, “Follow me.” 28  And leaving everything, he rose and followed him.”

“Third, He chose them to be apostles.  Fourth, He sent them to preach the gospel to Israel (Matt. 10:1-6).”

(Matt. 10:1-6)

“1    And he called to him his twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal every disease and every affliction. 2  The names of the twelve apostles are these: first, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother; James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother; 3  Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew the tax collector; James the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus; 4  Simon the Zealot, and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him.  5    These twelve Jesus sent out, instructing them, "Go nowhere among the Gentiles and enter no town of the Samaritans, 6  but go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.’

“Finally, He sent them out to evangelize the world (Acts 1:8). Because of their central role in the ministry of the gospel to Israel, Luke mentions them six times in his gospel.  But emphasizing their foundational role in the church, he mentions them almost thirty times in Acts.”

(Acts 1:8)

“8  But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.’’

Spiritual Meaning for my Life today:  It is my desire to continue to write my Spiritual Diaries and to put them onto the internet where I pray most everyday that the Spirit of God will use them to bring salvation to the lost and also to cause believers to grow in grace and in the knowledge of Jesus Christ. 

My Steps of Faith for Today:  I am continuing in prayer to the Lord that He will have mercy on my wife as she is suffering with the cancer that she is battling at this time, and in considerable amount of pain.

6/13/2026 11:05 AM

 

 

 

“The Selecting” (Luke 6:13a)

 

EVENING SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 6/12/2026 8:27 PM

My Worship Time                                                                                      Focus:  “The Selecting”

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                                Reference:  “Luke 6:13a”

            Message of the verse:  “And when day came, He called His disciples to Him and chose twelve of them,”

            “In answer to our Lord’s fervent, night-long intercession, God revealed His will as to which of the disciples were to be selected for special training and apostolic commissioning.  Therefore when day came Jesus called His disciples to Him.  Disciples translates the plural form of mathetes, which means, ‘student,’ ‘follower,’ or ‘learner.’  In Greek and Jewish culture prominent rabbis, orators, philosophers, or teachers would attach followers, who would travel with them from place to place.  Because His powerful, unparalleled teaching (John 7:46; Matt. 7:28-29), ability to heal any disease, cast out demons, raise the dead, and perform other miracles (e. g., 5:4-9; Matt. 14:14-21, 25-32; 15:32-38; John 21:5-11), the Lord Jesus Christ attracted a large number of disciples.  Those with Him in the grain fields (6:1), for example, would have included more than merely the Twelve, who had not yet been chosen.  The miraculous feedings of the five thousand and four thousand men (which would also have included thousands of women and children) indicate the vast size of the crowds that followed Jesus (cf. 12:1).  Not all, of course, were genuine followers.  Unwilling to accept the demands of following Christ (John 6:53-65).  ‘many of His disciples withdrew and were not walking with Him anymore’ (v. 66).

            “Out of the large group of disciples, some of whom came to Him on their own and others that He specifically called to follow Him (5:8-11; 27-28), Jesus chose twelve of them.  As He would later remind them, ‘You did not choose Me but I chose you’ (John 15:16; cf. 6:70; 13:18).  Although Jesus chose the Twelve at this time, He did not officially commission them and grant them authority to heal and cast out demons until later (Luke 9:1)

            “That the Lord chose twelve men is not random, because that number was symbolic of the twelve tribes of Israel.  The  importance of the number was underscored by the addition of Mattias to take Judas’s place (Acts 1:23-26).  Since Israel and its leaders were apostate, the Twelve were to serve as the leaders of the new, true Israel of God—the redeemed, believing remnant.  Jesus made the connection clear in Luke 22:29-30) when He told the Twelve that they would reign over Israel in the millennial kingdom: ‘Just as My Father has granted Me a kingdom, I grant you that you may eat and drink at My table in My kingdom, and you will sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel.’

            “There are four lists of the twelve apostles in the New Testament (cf. Matt. 10:2-4; Mark 3:16-19; Acts 1:13).  The names on all the lists appear in three groups of four, always in the same order, though the names in each groups are arranged in order of decreasing intimacy with Christ.  The first group consists of two pairs of brothers: Peter and James, and John and Andrew; the second of Philip, Bartholomew (Nathanael), Matthew, and Thomas; the last of James, the son of Alphaeus, Simon the Zealot, Judas the son of James, and Judas Iscariot.  Peter’s name is always first in all four lists, and Judas Iscariot’s last (except in Acts).  The order of the names within each group sometimes varies, but Peter’s name, as noted, is always first in group one, Philip’s is always first in group two, and James the son of Alphaeus’s always heads group three.  Those in group one, Peter, James, John, and Andrew, were the first four called by Jesus to be His disciples (John 1:35-42), the most intimate with Him, and those about whom the most is known.  While there is some information about those in group two, very little is known about group three.

            “The Twelve were a diverse group, not only in their occupations, as noted above, but also in their political views. Matthew and Simon, for instance, could not have been further apart. Matthew was a tax collector, a traitor who served the Roman occupiers by exploiting his own people.  Simon, on the other hand, was a member of the zealots, a faction radically opposed to Rome.  Some of them, known as the Sicarii for the concealed daggers they carried, were terrorists.  They resorted to kidnapping or even murdering Romans and Jews they suspected of being loyal to Rome.  Were it not for their common devotion to Jesus Christ, Simon may well have murdered Matthew.  It was the same devotion that molded all twelve men, different as they were in occupation, temperament, and political views, into a cohesive unit.”

6/12/2026 9:02 PM

“The Setting” (Luke 6:12)

 

MORNING SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 6/12/2026 9:27 AM

My Worship Time                                                                                         Focus:  “The Setting”

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                                      Reference:  Luke 6:12

            Message of the verse:  It was at this time that He went off to the mountains to pray, and He spent the whole night in prayer to God.

            There are time when I think Satan gets  involved with me writing my Spiritual Diaries, or perhaps it is just me who can do some very dumb things.  At any rate last evening, and this is not the first time it has happened to me, instead of clicking on save to save by SD, I put copy which makes the entire SD go away, and so this morning I had to rewrite last evening’s SD.  I waited to this morning to do it because I was a little, or a lot upset last evening.  At any rate this morning’s SD will be a short one.

            “The word time does not refer to calendar time, such as a specific day, week, or month, but is a general term for season, era, or period.  It describes here the time of Christ’s intensifying conflict with the scribes and Pharisees.  They first appeared in Luke’s account in 5:17, and their hostility toward Jesus quickly manifested itself (v. 21).  Since that first incident, their opposition to Him had been steadily escalating (v. 30; 6:2, 7, 11).  In view of that mounting hostility, which would culminate in His execution less than two years later, the time had come for Jesus to choose the men who would carry on His earthly ministry after His death.  He knew that they needed intensive preparation and training in the time remaining before the cross for their roles as His official representatives.

            “Recognizing the critical importance of His choice of them men Jesus went off to the mountain alone to pray (cf. 5:16).”

(cf. 5:16)

“16  But he would withdraw to desolate places and pray.”

“The specific mountain of which the Lord prayed is not known, but there were many in the vicinity of the Sea of Galilee.  In His humanity, having set aside the independent use of His divine attributes (Phil 2:5-8), Jesus sought the Father’s will in choosing the Twelve.”

(Phil 2:5-8)

“5  Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, 6  who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7  but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. 8  And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.”

“So important was this decision to the future course of redemptive history that Jesus spent the whole night in prayer to God.  Dianuktereuon (meaning, ‘to spend the whole night’) appears only here in the New Testament.  It denotes an activity that continues throughout an entire night.  The Greek phrase translated in prayer to God is an unusual construction, and could be translated ‘in prayer of God.’  Jesus spent the long hours of darkness in unceasing, fervent, persevering, inter-Trinitarian prayer to the Father before selecting the twelve apostles.”

Spiritual meaning for my life today:  First I would have loved to hear that prayer conversation that Jesus had with His Father.  Wonder if they had different choices to go over, but probably not.  Perhaps the prayers for the Apostles were about getting them ready to do this all important job of getting the Church started.  This was an awesome responsibility and certainly was in good hands. 

My Steps of Faith for Today:  I have heard of people spending the night in prayer before and one of them, I don’t remember his name was involved in a prayer meeting in Russia right before the Soviet Union was to collapse were out in the woods hiding and praying the entire night. 

            I was praying for an hour about getting money for our church members to pray that we get enough money to pay the loan off for the church, and also giving $100,000 collected to get they Dye translation of the Bible translated.  Praying is difficult work, and yes it is work because one’s mind can wonder when you are praying.  I am  trying to be more consistent in praying for my wife’s cancer problem and as stated it is hard work. 

6/12/2026 9:55 AM

“Introduction to Common Men, Uncommon Calling” (Luke 6;12-13)

 

EVENING SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 6/11/2026 8:41 PM

My Worship Time                          Focus:  “Introduction to Common Men, Uncommon Calling”

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                                Reference:  Luke 6:12-13

            Message of the verses:  “It was at this time that He went off to the mountain to pray, and He spent the whole night in prayer to God.  And when day came, He called His disciples to Him and chose twelve of them, whom He also named as apostles.

            “Throughout redemptive history, God has chosen ordinary people to do extraordinary things, a truth that the apostle Paul emphasized in 1 Corinthians 1:20-29:

20  Where is the one who is wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? 21  For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe. 22  For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom, 23  but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, 24  but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. 25  For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men. 26  For consider your calling, brothers: not many of you were wise according to worldly standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. 27  But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; 28  God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, 29  so that no human being might boast in the presence of God.

God chose Abraham, an idolater (Josh. 24:2), to be His friend (Isa. 41:8) and the father physically of Israel (Isa. 51:2; Luke 1:73; John 8:56) and spiritually of believing Gentiles (Rom. 4:16; Gal. 3:7).  Joseph entered Egypt as a slave, rose in God’s providence to be the prime minister (Gen. 41:39-44; 45:9, 26), and was used by God to preserve His people (Gen. 45:5; 50:20).  After spending forty years in exile in the land of Midian (Acts 7:23, 30), Moses, the murderer, was used by God to deliver Israel from bondage in Egypt.  A harlot named Rahab from the destroyed Canaanite city of Jericho became an ancestor of the Lord Jesus Christ (Matt. 1:5) and an example of a faithful believer (Heb. 11:31).  David went from being a lowly shepherd to delivering Israel from the Philistines by killing Goliath, and eventually became Israel’s greatest king.  And despite living in the wilderness (Luke 1:80), wearing rough clothing, and eating a wile diet (Matt. 3:4), John the Baptist was declared by our Lord the greatest man who ever lived (Matt. 11:11).

            “Consistent with that pattern, when Jesus chose twelve men to be His official representatives, He chose common, ordinary men.  The Twelve were not from the established religious elite; none were Pharisees, Sadducees, priests, Levites, rabbis, or scribes.  None were exceptionally wealthy (with the possible exception of Matthew, who gained what he had by extorting his fellow Israelites).  Nor were the    apostles chosen from the intellectual elite—the Old Testament scholars; the literate; highly educated; the theologically astute.  Instead, they were ‘uneducated and untrained men,’ noteworthy only for ‘having been with Jesus’ (Acts 4:13).  Several were fishermen, one was a tax collector and hence a traitor to his people, another was a political revolutionary.  All except for Judas Iscariot were Galileans, scorned as unsophisticated and uncouth by the more cultured Judeans.  Yet the lives and ministries of these men (Minus Judas Iscariot and including Paul) would change the course of history.

            “Before examining each of these men in detail in the next few chapter, some general background information is in order.  This introductory chapter will therefore discuss the setting for the Lord’s choosing of the Twelve, His selecting them, His sending of them as His official representatives, and conclude by looking at their significance.”

6/11/2026 9:16 PM

 

 

PT-4 “In a Synagogue” (Luke 6:6-11)

 

MORNING SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 6/11/2026 10:22 AM

My Worship Time                                                                         Focus: PT-4 “In a Synagogue”

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                                  Reference:  Luke 6:6-11

            Bible Reading & Meditation “⁶ On another Sabbath He entered the synagogue and taught; and a man was there whose right hand was withered. ⁷ Now the scribes and the Pharisees were watching Him ^[closely to see if He healed on the Sabbath, so that they might find a reason to accuse Him. ⁸ But He knew what they were thinking, and He said to the man with the withered hand, “Get up and come forward!” And he got up and came forward. ⁹ And Jesus said to them, “I ask you whether it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath or to do harm, to save a life or to destroy it?” ¹⁰ And after looking around at them all, He said to him, “Stretch out your hand!” And he did so; and his hand was restored. ¹¹ But they themselves were filled with senseless rage, and began discussing together what they might do to Jesus.”

            It is my desire to finish this section, and thus finish the first chapter in John MacArthur’s second commentary on the Gospel of Luke.  I have written about how I will be doing the next few chapters that MacArthur writes about the apostles of Jesus as he dives pretty deep in writing about each of Jesus’ apostles.  I also mentioned that while studying the book of Matthew he did something similar, and so that means that I have already written about the apostles, and it could be that I may quote from what I wrote a few years ago when I studied Matthew.  The point is that we will be looking at these men who after Jesus was crucified and then arose from the dead and then 40 days later went back into heaven that it would be these men who God will use to begin the Church age and be used by God to give out the gospel so that many people will be saved.  This first happened in the second chapter of Acts where Peter gave the first sermon in the Church age and many people were saved from their sins, so as stated these men are very important in Christ building His Church.

            John MacArthur writes the following: “The real issue was not the healing of the crippled man; Jesus was not concerned primarily with their attitude toward him, or whether it  was right to do good to him.  The deeper question was who was honoring God: Jesus, who wanted to show mercy to a needy individual, or the scribes and Pharisees, who wanted only to destroy Jesus?  Sabbath observance was as they defined it—a litmus test of faithfulness to God.  Paradoxically, these religious erroists scrupulously observed the minutiae of their Sabbath laws while at the same time plotting to murder the Lord of the Sabbath.  As David Gooding observes,

The religious mind is a curious thing.  It is not necessarily interested in common morality; still less in relieving human misery and affliction. It is interested in keeping rules; particularly the rules which spring from its own cherished interpretations of Scripture or tradition; and to these interpretations it will attribute the inflexible authority of God himself.  Let God incarnate, contrary to its interpretations, imterpose with a miracle of divine goodness to relieve human misery, then instead of revising its interpretations it will plan to stop miracles happening again. (According to Luke [Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1987], 116)

            “There was a long pause while the Lord waited for a reply.  But the scribes and Pharisees, shocked into silence, said nothing.  Finally, after looking around at them all ‘with anger, grieved at their hardness of heart’ (Mark 3:5), Jesus said to the crippled man, ‘Stretch out your hand!’  And he did so; and his hand was restored.  Jesus deliberately brok their Sabbath restrictions.

            “After witnessing this astonishing creative miracle, one would expect the next verse to read, ‘And the scribes and Pharisees believed.’  Such was not the case, however.  Instead, they themselves were filled with rage, and discussed together what they might do to Jesus to destroy Him (Matt. 12:14).  Anoia (rage) literally means, ‘folly,’ or ‘foolishness.’  It denotes in this context an irrational rage; they were out of their minds with fury at Jesus’ direct assault on their hypocritical religion.  Amazingly, the Pharisees even enlisted the help of their bitter enemies the Herodians (Jews loyal to the Herodians) in their search for a way to eliminate Jesus (Mark 3:6).  Such an alliance was highly unusual, since about the only thing the two parties had in common was their hatred of Jesus.”  This shows to me that just being “religious” dose not mean that you are a true believer in Jesus Christ.  Paul said “All have sinned and come short of the glory of God,” and this means that we are all sinners in the eyes of God, and the only way to have that changed is to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and what He did on the cross in order to save you soul. 

            “The Pharisees’ irrational hatred of and fury toward Jesus was motivated by self-preserving fear.  The Lord was striking monumental blows at the very heart of their religious system.  Here, long before Passion Week, the religious leaders were already plotting Jesus’ death.  Their hatred would drive their continued opposition to Christ until they finally succeeded in having Him arrested and executed.

            “These two incidents bring out the stark contrast between Jesus and the Jewish religious leaders.  It is the contrast between the representative of God’s truth, and the representatives of false religion; between divine truth and human tradition; between profound knowledge and madness; between goodness and wickedness; between compassion and cruelty; between open honesty and hidden deception; between divine power and human impotence; between the kingdom of God and the kingdom of Satan.

            “Yet God’s grace can penetrate even the most hardened heart.  Not all of the Pharisees permanently rejected the Lord Jesus Christ.  Acts 15:5 notes that there were ‘some of the sect of the Pharisees who had believed.’  One of those believing Pharisees, Saul of Tarsus, became the great apostle Paul.  The self-proclaimed foremost sinner (1 Tim. 1:15), he was called by the risen Lord to preach the gospel throughout the Roman world.”

Spiritual Meaning for my Life Today:  Looking back at the time when the Lord Jesus Christ saved me had some similarities of when the Lord saved Saul of Tarsus as I was not at home, traveling to visit a friend in Florida to do something that was good.  Paul was on the road to Damascus to do something very wrong too.  Neither Saul nor myself were looking to be saved, but to do wrong.  God stopped Saul and myself in our tracks and saved us, and I have to say that was actually the best day in my life, and I am sure that was what Paul would have said.

My Steps of Faith for Today:  To continue to write my Spiritual Diaries to bring glory to my Savior and my Lord, Jesus Christ.

6/11/2026 11:03 AM