Bethel Baptist Church

Scripture Reading: John 10:1-18 John emphasizes the identity of Jesus in his gospel, highlighting the deity of Jesus.  John records 'signs' that Jesus did which point to His divinity as well as 'I am' statements Jesus made.  In John 10, Jesus declares "I am the door" of the sheep (Jn 10:7,9) and "I am the good shepherd" (Jn 10:11,14). In the context of these statements, this designation stands in...

Scripture Reading; John 9:1-41 A central point of this miracle, and the dialogues which follow, is that there are two kinds of blindness … physical blindness and spiritual blindness … and Jesus can heal them both. Only John records this miracle. The gospel writers record sight to the blind more than any other healing miracle of our Lord. This particular miracle, perhaps, most aptly illustrates the...

Scripture Reading: John 8:48-59 This section is the ending of John's record of a long interchange between Jesus and the Jewish leaders (and others) following the Feast of Tabernacles. The focus, increasingly, is the identity of Jesus and the reaction of His hearers to Him. Their initial perplexity at what He was saying became hostility and, finally, open violence. In our passage there is a stagger...

Scripture Reading: John 8:30-47 This section of Jesus' statements is addressed to those who believe and yet do not believe. These folks seem inclined to think that what Jesus said was true. But it is clear that they were not prepared to see themselves as sinful rebels in opposition to the God of Abraham. Thinking that being descendants of Abraham made them acceptable to God, they repeatedly justif...

Scripture Reading: John 8:12-30 One of the hallmarks of the gospel of John is the "I am" statements of Jesus. There are seven of them and only John has them in this form … "I am the bread of life" (Jn 6:48) … "I am the Good Shepherd" (Jn 10:11) … "I am the true Vine" (Jn 15:1). In today's passage Jesus says, "I am the light of the world" (Jn 8:12). Light, in the Bible, is associated with several t...

Scripture Reading: John 7:53 – 8:11 This is one of the most well-known of the stories of our Lord, probably because of the great comfort we find in the mercy of Jesus. Our hearts long for Him to show us the same mercy which we see in this passage. The Pharisees and scribes who brought the adulterous woman to Jesus were not at all concerned with holiness and justice. John 8:6 reveals that they were...

Scripture Reading: John 7:37-52 In Biblical times, every morning during the first century Feast of Tabernacles, a priest would draw water from the pool of Siloam with a golden pitcher. In a joyful procession he would lead a march to the altar in the temple courtyard. In a solemn ceremony of pomp and delight, he would pour the water into a bowl next to the altar. The water symbolized God's provisio...

Scripture Reading: John 7:25-36 The exchange in the temple between Jesus and the Jewish religious leaders continues in this passage. The opposition to Jesus is becoming clearer through this conversation and the declarations of Jesus are becoming more piercing. The confusion on the part of the people prompts Jesus to say, "He who sent me is true, and him you do not know" (Jn 7:28). It is a repetiti...

Scripture Reading: John 7:14-24

Scripture Reading: John 7:1-13 It is clear from reading the gospel of John that the author records a growing hostility toward Jesus as time goes on.  There is a mixture of confusion and disdain as the people, and particularly the Jewish leaders, become familiar with Christ. This passage gives us insight into the extent to which people did not understand Jesus.  Even Jesus' brothers did not believe...

Scripture Reading John 6:60-71 This passage presents the reader with a puzzling question. John 6:60 says that "Jesus knew from the beginning . . . who it was who would betray him." And in John 6:70 Jesus says, "Did not I choose you, the Twelve? And yet one of you is a devil." The natural question is this: If Jesus knew, from the beginning, that Judas would betray Him, why did He choose him to be o...

Scripture Reading John 6:52-65 The declarations of Jesus in this section of John could not be more indescribable in their glory. But in the ears of Christ's listeners His assertions were utterly incomprehensible. As clear as Jesus was, and repeatedly so, the Jews in the Capernaum synagogue had no idea what He was talking about. And most people today are adrift in the same spiritual darkness. In th...

Scripture Reading: John 6:41-51 This paragraph in John is yet another example of the mystery of human responsibility and divine sovereignty. Jesus chides these unbelieving Israelites for their grumbling. They, like most people today, imagined that Jesus was simply another human being like them. "They said, 'Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How does he now say,...

Scripture Reading: John 6:30-40 There are many mysteries which rise from the pages of the Bible … wonderful mysteries.  How could it be otherwise when the Bible reveals the infinite God to our very finite minds?  The eternal existence of God is a mystery to us.  The triune nature of God is a mystery to us … as is the union of divinity and humanity in the person of Jesus. In today's passage we are...

Originally Presented: October 30, 2016 Scripture Reading: Hebrews 2:5-9 In this paragraph the author picks up the theme of Christ's superiority to angels. To this point in the book, to buttress the idea that Jesus is superior to angels, the line of reasoning has centered on His divinity. Christ is seen as the Son (1:5), king (1:8), God (1:8), creator (1:2,10), unchanging (1:12). Now the argumentat...

Scripture Reading: John 6:22-29 On the heels of the feeding of the 5,000 we have this interchange between Jesus and some of the people who ate Christ's miraculous food. Having followed Jesus to the western side of the Sea of Galilee, our Lord confronted them with a blunt and searching indictment … "Truly, truly, I say to you, you are seeking me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your...

Originally Presented: October 23, 2016 Scripture Reading: Hebrews 2:1-4 To this point in Hebrews there has been no command. The author did not tell his readers to do anything in the first chapter. It was all declaration, wonderful declaration, about the glorious supremacy of Jesus. He is the radiance of the glory of God. Now comes some implications which issue from what is being said in chapter on...

Scripture Reading: John 20:1-18 (Biblical references to Mary Magdalene, in chronological order) Lk 8:2 - Jesus had cast out seven demons from Mary Magdalene Jn 19:25 - Mary standing by the cross Mt 27:56 - Mary standing afar off when Jesus died (Mk 15:47) Mt 27:61 - Mary watched to see where Jesus was buried (Mk 15:47) Mt 28:1 - Mary came early Sunday morning to anoint the body of Jesus (Mk 16:1;...

Originally Presented: October 16, 2016 Scripture Reading: Hebrews 1:4-14 Having begun this letter with seven statements describing the exalted position of Christ (Heb 1:1-4), the writer now displays the preeminence of Jesus over angels. The author utilizes seven Old Testament quotations to make a case showing Christ to be superior to angels. Angels were held a high position in the minds of first c...

Scripture Reading: John 12:12-26 All four gospel writers contain the stirring story of the triumphant entry of Jesus into Jerusalem one week before His death on the cross. The account tells the story of a very public declaration, in no uncertain terms, that Jesus is king. All secrecy about Jesus is now gone. The Passover festival was one week away when Jesus rode the two miles from Bethany to Jeru...

Scripture Reading: Hebrews 1:2,3 Few Biblical passages laud the excellencies of Christ like these opening verses of Hebrews 1. The position which Jesus occupies, both as the second person of the Godhead and as conquering Redeemer, is described in unrivalled and supreme terms. Jesus is "heir of all things" through whom the world was created (Heb 1:2). He is "the radiance of the glory of God" and "t...

Scripture Reading: John 6:14-21 As if the miracle of Jesus feeding the 5,000 is not astounding enough, Matthew, Mark, and John all follow up the account of that miracle with another breathtaking display of power and authority. This is the miracle of Jesus walking on the water. Jesus deliberately sent His disciples away in a boat at night (cf. Mt 14:22; Mk 6:45). It is not stretching the story to s...

Scripture Reading: Hebrews 1:1-9 The author of Hebrews does not begin his letter with the usual identification of the writer and the recipients. Instead he immediately plunges into the theme of his letter, namely the indescribable majesty and unapproachable glory of God the Son. What the readers had not understood deeply was the strength-giving wonder of the person and work of Jesus. The descripti...

Scripture Reading: John 6:1-15 This long chapter (71 verses) is all about Jesus being bread. The main point of the miracle of the feeding of the 5,000 is to say, not only that Jesus gives bread, but the Jesus is bread … the bread of life (Jn 6:48,51). The only miracle Jesus did that is recorded in all four gospels is the feeding of the five thousand. Involving easily more than ten thousand people...

Originally Presented: Sept 25, 2016 Scripture Reading: Hebrews 1:1-14 It is a tonic for the spiritually debilitated. The study of this epistle leads us beneath the surface of things to the profound depths of our evangelical faith, and enriches and establishes our understanding of the grace of God manifested on our behalf in the incarnation, self-offering, and exaltation of him who is the Apostle a...