Chapter 2: Gideon and His Fleece
1. Judges 2:15. Sometimes God uses rather unexpected means to get our attention.
2. This is what is called a theophany, which is a temporary manifestation of God himself on the earth. To be even more specific, this occurrence of the Angel of the Lord is likely a Christophany, which is a preincarnate appearance of Jesus Christ, the second person of the Trinity.
3. These insights into Gideon’s heart and his inner struggles prior to his acceptance of and fulfilling God’s call come from a sermon by Dr. William Rice, “The Things That Could Be,” January 3, 2016, Calvary Church, Clearwater, Florida.
4. The idea that if man saw God face-to-face he would die is from Exodus 33:20, where Moses met with God on Mount Sinai but was unable to see God in his fullness or absolute holiness. As fallen sinners, we must be made perfect before we encounter God in this way, which makes us long for heaven.
5. John MacArthur, Found: God’s Will (Colorado Springs: David C. Cook, 1977), 58.
1. Kenneth Mathews, The New American Commentary, Genesis 1–11:26 (Nashville: Broadman & Holman, 1996), 257.
2. Victor Hamilton notes the text highlights Abel’s “firstfruits” offering whereas there is no mention of Cain’s offering being of the “firstfruits.” However, “the text does not indict Cain for not presenting the firstfruits.” Victor Hamilton, The Book of Genesis, Chapters 1-17: The New International Commentary on the Old Testament (Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans, 1990), 223.
3. Mathews, New American Commentary, Genesis 1–11:26, 268.
4. Hamilton, The Book of Genesis, Chapters 1–17, 232.
5. Mathews, Genesis 1–11:26, 278.
Chapter 4: Jonah and the Big Fish
1. The Bible never says Jonah was swallowed by a whale, though it may be the most likely candidate based on our current maritime knowledge.
2. I wonder if there is an area of your life that God has been convicting your spirit about, but you might not be listening, or worse yet, you’re not willing to listen. But God won’t go away. Jonah knew what was right, and he didn’t do it. My hope is that we will listen to God when conviction comes, so we don’t end up at the bottom like Jonah.
3. Wayne Grudem provides this helpful definition of repentance in his Systematic Theology: An Introduction to Biblical Doctrine (Grand Rapids. MI: Zondervan, 1994), 713.
Chapter 5: The Woman Caught in Adultery
1. Interestingly, this supposed excuse for sin—“I’m only human”—is a misnomer. For Jesus was fully human, yet without sin (Hebrews 4:15). Further, prior to the fall, both Adam and Eve were without sin and were rightly considered to be fully human. Therefore, the phrase “I’m only human” is merely an excuse for a sinful life in a fallen world. For in the new heaven and the new earth, when we are made morally perfect and have received our glorified, resurrected bodies, we will be fully human in the ideal sense.
2. There is more than one controversy surrounding this story. Many question whether it was part of the original Scriptures or if it was added later by a scribe and not John himself. It is not found in many early manuscripts. Furthermore, the words and vocabulary used don’t sound like John, even though that is not an automatic disqualifier. Many of the early church fathers in the centuries after the early church do not quote or comment on this passage either. Still, even after all of this, the weight of evidence suggests that the story is authentic because it fits the literary flow of the book of John and seems to characterize Jesus in a consistent manner with the rest of the book. According to his commentary, William Hendriksen states that a disciple of John named Papias may have authenticated this story. For within the pages of the ancient historian Eusebius’s book Ecclesiastical History, he states, “The same writer (Papias) has expounded another story about a woman who was accused before the Lord of many sins. . . .” Ecclesiastical History¸ III, xxxix, 17, in Hendriksen, John: New Testament Commentary (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Book House, 1953), 35. Hendriksen also states that St. Augustine, in the fourth century, “stated definitively that certain individuals had removed from their codices the section regarding the adulteress, because they feared women would appeal to this story as an excuse for their infidelity” (ibid.).
3. The Bible says the “wages of sin is death” and so it is God’s prerogative to decide when and how to execute this sentence. The fact that he is often patient with us, wanting us to come to repentance, is itself an act of his grace. Stoning was God’s chosen punishment at the time in an effort to impress upon his people the absolute holiness of his character and their need to keep themselves from the stain of sin, particularly the sins of the neighboring adulterous Canaanites. It obviously would serve as a deterrent.
1. In John 6:14–15, the crowds at one point, after seeing his miracle of feeding the 5,000, were interested in making him their king by force. Truly they were looking for a miracle worker who could lead them and deliver them from their oppressors just like Moses did in leading their deliverance from ancient Egypt. The feeding of the 5,000 reminded them of the manna experience under Moses in the wilderness. Therefore, they made the connection that Jesus was the “prophet who was to come” that Moses had promised them (John 6:14). But a political and militant movement was not what Jesus came to lead. Spiritual deliverance was of more importance, and it had to be accomplished before the Lord returns a second time as triumphant King.
2. After the Israelites had defeated and burned the ancient city of Jericho, Joshua pronounced a curse on anyone who would choose to rebuild the city, saying, “Cursed before the Lord is the man who rises up and builds this city of Jericho; with the loss of his firstborn he shall lay its foundation, and with the loss of his youngest son he shall set up its gates” (Joshua 6:26 NASB). History proves that this curse came to fruition in the days of King Ahab, when a man by the name of Hiel rebuilt the city and lost his first and youngest sons when he laid the foundations and set up its gates (1 Kings 16:34).
3. John MacArthur, The MacArthur New Testament Commentary, Luke 18–24 (Chicago: Moody Publishers, 2014), 72.
4. Ferrell Jenkins, “Zacchaeus Climbed Up into a Sycamore Tree,” blog post dated October 10, 2008. Accessed May 26, 2016, https://ferrelljenkins.wordpress.com/2008/10/10/zaccheus-climbed-up-into-a-sycamore-tree/.
5. New Testament scholar Gary Burge writes, “We have no suggestion that Zacchaeus needs to repent, nor does the story imply a conversion on his part . . . as Joel Green remarks, ‘On this reading, Zacchaeus does not resolve to undertake new practices, but presents for Jesus’ evaluation his current behavior regarding money,’” Gary M. Burge, Encounters With Jesus (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2010), 68. Further, Burge suggests that Zacchaeus “is not what everyone has assumed. He has been honest; he is collecting what is demanded without corruption and abuse” (ibid.). Unfortunately, this type of reading of the story eclipses Luke’s entire point in the narrative, which is seen in the last verse (v. 10), which we will turn to shortly.
6. Elsewhere in Scripture, the scribes and Pharisees claimed Abraham as their father, but Jesus made it clear that even though they were Jews, they could not claim Abraham as their father (especially in the spiritual sense). Rather, he said, “You are of your father the Devil” (John 8:44), revealing that a true son of Abraham is a son by faith not by descent.
1. John Piper, “Six Keys to Detecting the Prosperity Gospel,” an interview dated April 14, 2014, as found at http://www.desiringgod.org/interviews/six-keys-to-detecting-the-prosperity-gospel.
2. For a helpful book on this, see Tim Challies, The Discipline of Spiritual Discernment (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books, 2007).
3. See the insights of David W. Jones in his blog article “Five Errors of the Prosperity Gospel,” June 5, 2015, Gospel Coalition, https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/article/5-errors-of-the-prosperity-gospel.
Chapter 9: The “Three” Wise Men
1. Studying the Bible is not only important because of its ability to inform our minds of the truth about God and us, it is also necessary as a means by which the Holy Spirit transforms our minds and hearts so that we desire to live a life that pleases him. As Richard Lintz once wrote, “[The Bible] is not merely a record of God’s redemption, it is an agent of redemption.” For more on studying the Bible, I recommend How to Read the Bible for All It’s Worth by Gordon D. Fee and Douglas Stuart (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2003).
2. The Catechism of the Catholic Church states, “All who die in God’s grace and friendship, but still imperfectly purified, are indeed assured of their eternal salvation; but after death they undergo purification, so as to achieve the holiness necessary to enter the joy of heaven. The Church gives the name purgatory to this final purification of the elect, which is entirely different from the punishment of the damned” (CCC, 1030–1031). This teaching is also accompanied by the idea that prayer and offerings of the living can shorten the time of purification of the dead, thus making this concept a fund raiser for the church.
3. King Herod was not actually a Jew, but rather a descendant of the Edomites (an Idumean), whom the Romans placed in charge as King of Judea in 40 BC.
4. D. A. Carson, The Expositors Bible Commentary, Matthew 1–12 (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1995), 84.
5. The fact that these were Gentiles who came to seek after the Jewish king demonstrates that the gospel is inclusive for all peoples and that God has a heart for the nations. For in Isaiah 49:6, God says through the prophet: “It is not enough for you to be My Servant raising up the tribes of Jacob and restoring the protected ones of Israel. I will also make you a light for the nations, to be My salvation to the ends of the earth.”
6. Remember, the reason for the region being overpopulated at this time was due to the fact that each family was returning to their original home for purposes of the Romans census ordered by Caesar (Luke 2:1).
Chapter 10: The Betrayal of a Disciple: Judas
1. But notice even in the list of apostles that Matthew gave, he ended the list with Judas, and said that he was the one “who also betrayed Him” (Matthew 10:4).
2. Suicide does not preclude someone from salvation, as there have been many true believers in a moment of despair or weakness who have sinned in taking their own life and yet are covered by God’s ongoing grace. Taking one’s life is not my point here. My point is that Judas did not display any signs of repentance and faith at any point in his involvement with Jesus, especially at the end of his life, when he could have had the opportunity as feelings of remorse surfaced.
Chapter 11: The Samaritan Pentecost
1. They also say they believe in Jesus Christ. But what do you mean when you say you believe in Jesus? Is it that you believe he existed or that you believe that he is the second person of the Trinity, God’s only Son, who was God in the flesh, crucified and raised from the dead, and is the only hope of salvation for all humankind who trust in and believe that his sacrifice alone atones for human sin?
2. For more on this and other ideas concerning the Mormon view of the afterlife, see Walter Martin, The Kingdom of the Cults, rev. ed. (Minneapolis: Bethany House, 1997), 240–243.
3. For more on this verse with a fuller exposition and application, see my book The Most Misused Verses in the Bible (Minneapolis: Bethany House, 2012), 63–70.
4. The phrase “with the Holy Spirit and fire” is an additional phrase that both Matthew and Luke add on to the quotation. According to the New Testament scholar D. A. Carson, “Many see this as a double baptism—one in the Holy Spirit for the righteous and one in fire for the unrepentant (cf. the wheat and the chaff in v. 12). Fire (Mal. 4:1) destroys and consumes . . . there are good reasons, however, for taking ‘fire’ as a purifying agent along with the Holy Spirit. The people John is addressing are being baptized by him; presumably they have repented. More important, the preposition en (‘with’) is not repeated before fire: The one preposition governs both ‘Holy Spirit’ and ‘fire,’ and this normally suggests a unified concept, Spirit-fire or the like. Fire often has a purifying, not destructive, connotation in the Old Testament (e.g. Isa. 1:25; Zech. 13:9; Mal. 3:2–3).” D. A. Carson, The Expositor’s Bible Commentary, Matthew 1–12 (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1995), 105.
5. Someone may ask, “Why are all these quotations phrased a little differently if they are the same quotation from that moment in John’s ministry?” The answer is that all three gospel writers, Matthew, Mark, and Luke (it seems that the John quotation could be from a different occurrence) can be harmonized together in such a way that we understand that one author may have included some words that Jesus said while another decided to leave a few words or phrases out of his quotation. But pieced together, they all represent the basic idea of what John said concerning this baptism.
6. See Grudem, Systematic Theology, 766. Grudem’s treatment of the idea of the baptism of the Holy Spirit in chap. 39 of his work is to be commended.
7. Ibid., 768. The larger quotation by Grudem, in context, gives us even more detail as to what is happening besides our initial baptism into the Spirit and incorporation into the church. He writes, “‘Baptism in the Holy Spirit,’ therefore, must refer to the activity of the Holy Spirit at the beginning of the Christian life, when he gives us new spiritual life (in regeneration) and cleanses us and gives a clear break with the power of sin (the initial stage of sanctification). In this way, “baptism in the Holy Spirit” refers to all that the Holy Spirit does at the beginning of our Christian lives” (Ibid.).
8. Grudem, Systematic Theology, 772.
1. Though Job lost much of his wealth, it was later restored once he stood the test.
2. Darrell Bock, Luke 9:51–24:53, Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Book House, 1996), 1149.
3. The Greek word Jesus uses for “life” is unique in that it is referring to a certain kind of life, one that is purposeful and meaningful, and not merely one of existence.
4. John MacArthur Jr., The MacArthur New Testament Commentary, Luke 11–17 (Chicago: Moody Publishers, 2013), 134.
1. We are told that Jesus was discussing his impending death with these two men. See Luke 9:29–32. Interestingly, from this account we can surmise that both Moses and Elijah took on some kind of bodily form and were recognizable to the disciples, who had never met these men on earth. This may potentially tell us some things about the afterlife that might be interesting—that we will know people we meet in heaven even though we never met them on earth, and that while we are in heaven we are not like “ghosts” or disembodied spirits, but actually take on some kind of bodily form, though it would not be the promised resurrection body that would come later at the return of Christ.
2. Notice the contrast the author is making between an ongoing sacrifice versus a one-time sacrifice that ended sacrifices for good.
3. John MacArthur Jr., “Explaining the Heresy of the Catholic Mass, Part 1” (April 30, 2006), accessed July 21, 2016, https://www.gty.org/resources/sermons/90–318/explaining-the-heresy-of-the-catholic-mass-part-1.
4. A modification of the Catholic position was held by Martin Luther, who said that instead of the bread and wine actually becoming the body and blood of the Lord, Christ is present “in, with, and under” the bread taken at Communion. Wayne Grudem explains, saying, “The example sometimes given is to say that Christ’s body is present in the bread as water is present in a sponge—the water is not the sponge, but is present ‘in, with, and under’ a sponge, and is present wherever the sponge is present . . . in response to the Lutheran view, it can be said that it too fails to realize that Jesus is speaking of a spiritual reality using physical objects to teach us when he says, ‘This is my body.’” Grudem, Systematic Theology, 994.
5. Ibid., 992–993.
6. Todd Billings, “Sacraments,” in Christian Dogmatics: Reformed Theology for the Church Catholic, Michael Allen and Scott R. Swain, eds. (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2016), 352.
Chapter 14: Blasphemy of the Holy Spirit
1. This does not mean that there are contradictory accounts, but that each gospel writer may have chosen to add to or omit some information about the account in the course of their storytelling. This is one of the advantages of having three gospel accounts of this story, because when they are all pieced together, you get a bigger picture of the event, much like you would if you interviewed several witnesses to an accident, who saw with their own eyes what took place, even if from different angles. In addition, a gospel writer may give a summary account of the event and not go into as much detail as other gospel writers.
2. Yes, it is true that we also give testimony of the gospel to unbelievers through faithful lives and good deeds that bear fruit in keeping with our repentance and faith, but a life well lived is not enough. “Faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of [or through the message about] Christ” (Romans 10:17 ESV). We must testify with our lips of this good news so that people can hear and believe. In addition, the creation itself is said to testify to the glory of God (Psalm 19), but that alone is insufficient to bring someone to saving faith. The gospel must be preached and believed.