New Testament

VOTD 05.16.16 Age, Experience and Maturity

Teach the older men to be temperate, worthy of respect, self-controlled, and sound in faith, in love and in endurance. Likewise, teach the older women to be reverent in the way they live, not to be slanderers or addicted to much wine, but to teach what is good. Titus 2:2-3 

One of my co-workers had a coffee mug for years that proclaimed “You can’t stop getting older but you can be immature forever.” Unfortunately, this slogan fit him perfectly.

The very fact that Paul had to tell Titus in today’s verses to teach elements of wisdom and maturity to the older men and women is a sign that increased age doesn’t necessary mean increased maturity. (more…)

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VOTD.05.10.16 Slaves and Sons: Magdalene

Now a slave has no permanent place in the family, but a son belongs to it forever. So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.  John 8:35,36

Last time we were talking about the mysterious lack of interest on the part of the disciples to see the risen Jesus. What could account for it?

I bet Jesus wasn’t surprised. You see, He had seen all this before. Take, for example, the history of the Israelites’ rescue from Egypt. They’d seen the Egyptian nation go through 10 horrible plagues. They saw the mighty Egyptian army destroyed at the Red Sea. Even manna from heaven.

They were delivered from slavery and saw God’s pillar of fire by night and pillar of clouds by day leading them. But when the time came to see God reveal Himself on the mountain, they weren’t interested. Well, to be more accurate, they were interested, but not in God. (more…)

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VOTD.05.09.16 Believing: Magdalene

But after I have risen, I will go ahead of you into Galilee.” Matthew 26:32
“Don’t be alarmed,” (the angel) said. “You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified. He has risen! …He is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him, just as he told you.’”
Then Jesus said to (Magdalene), “Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.” Matthew 28:10

Last time we saw what did Jesus’ leadership team did with Magdalene’s startling announcement that she had seen the risen Lord Jesus: They immediately did … Nothing. But here’s the really strange thing: (more…)

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VOTD.05.02.16 One Thing: Magdalene

One thing I ask of the LORD, this is what I seek: that I may…gaze upon the beauty of the LORD and to seek him Psalm 27:4

Last time we were asking the question: Has Jesus revealed Himself to you like He did to people in the Bible? Would you want Him to?

If you are like a lot of Christians, you feel a certain obligation to answer ‘yes’ when asked if you’d like Jesus to reveal Himself to you like He did to Magdalene and others. And if you stopped to think about it, it would be a pretty safe answer because you believe that circumstance is pretty unlikely.

If you are like many other Christians you can hardly wait to emphatically shout out, “YES! And make it NOW, please!!”

Of course there would be other Christians who might honestly say, “Ummm, thanks for the offer, but…I don’t think I’m ready for this.” And these people would be right, too. (more…)

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VOTD.04.26.16 Repentance: Magdalene

The Twelve were with [Jesus], and also some women who had been cured of evil spirits and diseases: Mary, called Magdalene, from whom seven demons had come out… These women served him out of their own means. Luke 8:1-3

Last time we saw that purity of heart has to do with walking in the enabling power God gives us. God supplies whatever He requires of us. Magdalene found that to be true. When we see her washing Jesus’ feet with her tears, Jesus saw them as tears of repentance (7:47).

You see, we repent when we see things from the Father’s perspective. That’s true repentance in a nutshell. Repentance enables us to embrace the truth and that truth changes us. Anything else isn’t repentance.

The truth is, Jesus is real, sinning harms us and those around us, and God has provided us with an escape (1 Cor 10:13). Magdalene saw Jesus from the Father’s perspective. That’s all it took. She behaved in accordance with that truth. (more…)

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VOTD.04.25.16 Pure in Heart: Magdalene

Blessed are the pure in heart for they shall see God. Matthew 5:8

When Jesus told the woman caught in sin in John 8, “Go and stop sinning,” it was more than a clever way to end an awkward conversation. He meant it. God always supplies what He demands, particularly in the area of temptation (1 Cor 10:13).

We see in our verse for today, that the pure in heart are the ones who “see God”. Put another way, God reveals Himself to Christians who hearts are pure… and He is in the business of making our hearts pure. That is the Gospel in a nutshell.

Magdalene was the first one that Jesus revealed Himself to after His resurrection. I think it’s right to say that she had already been made pure in heart.

But this raises a more deep-seated question: Do we really even want to see God? The Israelites at Mt Sinai didn’t. They sent Moses to do their bidding, instead. Shepherd-boy turned king, David certainly did want to see God and even wrote about seeing Him (Ps 27:4). One glimpse of Jesus certainly turned the Apostle Paul’s life around. And the Apostle John…what more can be said? (more…)

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VOTD.04.19.16 Fanatic: Magdalene

But Mary was standing outside the tomb weeping; and so, as she wept, she stooped and looked into the tomb and saw two angels in white, seated where Jesus’ body had been. John 20:11,12

A couple of angels. Maybe they were sent to comfort her? How do you comfort grief-stricken people? You point them to Jesus.

And when she turned around, she saw Jesus standing there, and He spoke to her. “Woman, why are you crying? Who is it you are looking for?” Supposing He was the gardener, Mary pleaded with Him to tell her what had happened to her Lord. “Sir, if you have carried Him away, tell me where you have laid Him, and I will take Him away.” (vv.13-15)

Once again it was loud and clear: Magdalene just wanted to be where He was.
Then it happened. Jesus spoke to her: “Mary.” (v.16) (more…)

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VOTD.04.18.16 Intensity: Magdalene

So the disciples went away to their own homes, 11but Mary stood outside the tomb crying… Jesus said to her, “Mary.” She turned toward him and cried out in Aramaic, “Teacher.” Jesus said, “Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet returned to the Father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them, ‘I am returning to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’” Mary Magdalene went to the disciples with the news: “I have seen the Lord!” And she told them that he had said these things to her. John 20:10-18

Sometimes the best way to understand something is to compare it to something just like it only different. Like comparing the anointing of Jesus by Magdalene to the anointing of Jesus by Mary of Bethany. Other times we can learn more from contrasting behaviors. John, Peter, and Magdalene are all at the tomb of Jesus on Sunday morning. Jesus showed Himself to Magdalene, but not John and Peter. Doesn’t that seem a little peculiar? All three were there…

To be honest, it is a mystery to me. But the more I’ve thought about this the more convinced I am that today’s verses give us a significant clue into the mystery…not only a clue to why Jesus appeared to Magdalene first, but a clue to what it was about her worship that made it “in Spirit and Truth” kind of worship— (more…)

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VOTD.04.12.16 No Condemnation: Magdalene

There is NO CONDEMNATION now for those who live in union with Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit, which brings us life in union with Christ Jesus, has set me free Romans 8:1,2

But the time is coming and is already here, when BY THE POWER OF GOD’S SPIRIT people will worship the Father as he really is, offering him the true worship that he wants. God is Spirit, and only by the power of his Spirit can people worship him as he really is.” John 4:23,24

If this woman who stood accused before Jesus was truly Magdalene, as church tradition tells us, I wonder if she was delivered from 7 demons before or after being dragged into the temple to be used by the spiritual leaders in their ploy to trap Jesus. The Bible doesn’t tell us chronologically when the deliverance happened.

What if she’d already been delivered? How embarrassing. To be delivered, only to fall into sin again, and then face Jesus. Think about it. Wouldn’t it have served the religious leadership’s schemes all the better if they were bringing before Jesus a woman He had previously delivered? It sounds just like the accuser of our souls, doesn’t it? (more…)

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VOTD.04.11.16 No Accusation: Magdalene

Is there no one left to accuse you?” “No one, Lord,” she answered. “Well, then,” Jesus said, “I do not condemn you either. Go, but do not sin any more.” John 8:10,11

Last time we were looking at the woman caught in sin who Jesus spoke our verses of today to. Tradition tells us it was Magdalene. We saw how Jesus dealt with her accusers. But what about how Jesus dealt with her?

Obviously, there was no one in the story who cared about this woman except Jesus. She didn’t care about herself or she wouldn’t have been sinning in the first place. The Pharisees didn’t care about her; she was a means to an end of putting this up-start preacher in His place. The crowd would have been more excited had Jesus said, “Let the one who is the MOST SPIRITUAL among you cast the first stone.” They were there for the show. (more…)

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