SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 5/13/2020
8:20 AM
My Worship Time Focus: PT-2 “Historical
Context”
Bible Reading & Meditation Reference: Matthew 5:8
Message of the
verse: “’Happy
are the utterly sincere, for they will see God!’”
Yesterday we looked at an
introduction to this beatitude, and then a quote from John MacArthur on the
first main section, and then we began to look at the first sub-section “Historical
Context” which we will continue to look at this morning. Also we mentioned that we were going to
briefly talk about John the Baptist as we begin this SD today.
John the Baptist was sent from God
as a forerunner of the Messiah and his ministry was in the wilderness of Judah
where he must have been something to look at and to hear what he had to
say. Perhaps it was because the people
of Israel were tired of listening to the Pharisees and others about something
that they knew that they could never do that they came to listen to John the
Baptist. John was actually different
from the scribes, Pharisees, Sadducees, and priests, and it was obvious that he
did not bother to observe most of the religious traditions that these “leaders”
said must be done. John was a breath of
fresh air in what was a stifling, never-ending system of demands and
prohibitions. My thoughts are that in
this prophet’s teachings that those who came to him would find relief, that is
those who were really looking for relief could find some. These people looking for relief surely did
not want another rabbi with another law for them to find out that they could
not keep, and then end up feeling guilty all over again. These people who came to John the Baptist
wanted to know the real way of salvation, the real way to please God, the true
way of peace and relief from sin. I
believe that those who came to John knew that from the study of God’s Word that
there was coming the Messiah who would come not simply to demand but to redeem,
not to add to their burdens but to help them carry those burdens, not to
increase the guilt but to remove it. I
believe that many of those who came to hear the preacher from the wilderness
thought that he could be the Messiah that they were longing for and hoping to
see.
I
want to look at a prophecy from Ezekiel that perhaps some of these people
coming to hear John were thinking of: “25"Then
I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you
from all your filthiness and from all your idols. 26 “Moreover, I will give you a new heart and
put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a
heart of flesh” (Ezekiel 36:25-26).
After being in that oppressive “religion” these people were in thinking
of these two verses and finding John the Baptist must have surely brought joy
to their hearts. There is another verse
from the 32nd Psalm that David wrote after his sin with Bathsheba
that they may have been thinking of “How blessed is he whose transgression is
forgiven, Whose sin is covered! 2 How blessed is the man to whom the LORD does
not impute iniquity, And in whose spirit there is no deceit!” MacArthur adds “They knew of those
truths, and they longed to experience the reality of them.”
Now
we move onto look at another OT person, and this time a Pharisee, who actually
was looking for the truth. Nicodemus was
a Pharisee and he was a ruler of the Jews, in fact when we see what happened
when he came to Jesus we see “Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews;” and it is
believed that he was a very high ranking rule of the Jews, as he was a member
of the Sanhedrin, the Jewish high court.
As we look at his story in John chapter three we see that when he first
comes to Jesus that he does not ask a question but a testimony about
Jesus. We also see that he came at night
which suggests he was ashamed of being seen with Jesus. Even though he came by night he seems to be
sincere as he speaks to Jesus as he was looking for spiritual insight. As believers we have probably read or heard
this story many, many times, but think about having a spiritual question and
being able to go to the creator of the universe, the Savior of the world and
being able to talk to Him about what was going on in your heart. MacArthur adds “Nicodemus knew that, whatever
else Jesus might be, He was a teacher truly sent from God.”
Nicodemus
was looking at how a person can be right with God, although he did not directly
ask that question he was implying it, and we know this was on his heart because
of the answer that Jesus gives him as found in John 3:3 “Jesus answered and
said to him, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he
cannot see the kingdom of God.’” I wish
to look at the word “see” in my Greek/English dictionary to better understand
what Jesus was saying here: “AV-see 51,
take heed 5, behold
1, perceive 1, not tr 1; 59
1) to see with the eyes
2) to see with the mind, to perceive, know
3) to see, i.e. become acquainted with by experience, to
experience
4) to see, to look to
4a) to take heed, beware
4b) to care for, pay heed to
5) I was seen, showed myself, appeared.” Notice especially the highlighted portions of
this definition.
Nicodemus
was asking the same questions that many that many of us have already asked or
perhaps are asking now. “How do I please
God?” How can I be made Righteous?” “How can I be redeemed and become a child of
God?” “How can I become part of God’s
Kingdom?” MacArthur adds “Had he not had
a deep, compelling desire to know God’s will, he would not have risked coming
to Jesus even at night. Nicodemus was
honest enough to admit his sinfulness. He
was a Pharisee, a teacher of the law, and a ruler in the Sanhedrin; but he knew
in his heart that all of that did not make him right with God.”
Spiritual meaning for my life today: “I can come to Jesus in my heart and ask Him
questions that I have and just like when He was talking to Nicodemus He can
talk to me in my heart, through His Word, or from His spiritual leaders that I
listen to.
My Steps of Faith for Today: Come to
Jesus with questions that I have.
Continue to learn contentment, to seek humility, and to have joy as I
study His Word.
5/13/2020 9:36 AM
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