Living Stones Spanish Springs

This passage can only be felt with full force when read with the biblical background on the various diseases called “leprosy” in mind. In Leviticus 13, we’re told that only appointed priests could touch someone suffering this kind of disease, and that lepers were to live alone, outside the community of God (see Lev. 13:45-46) until their disease was gone. The shock of this man approaching Jesus sh...

Because the Gospel of Mark is theological history rather than a modern biography of Jesus, events aren’t always ordered chronologically; instead, Mark often puts similar events or topics together in sections. In this week’s passage, we are told of more instances of Jesus healing and conquering demons. The difference here, though, is seen in the fact that Jesus’ ministry has reached many more peopl...

Contrary to popular thought, reports of demonic activity are pretty sparse throughout Scripture until the time of the Gospels. Demons begin to appear as Jesus announces the gospel of the Kingdom of God. As one scholar writes, “[Jesus] is authorized to proclaim the good news of the kingdom, to call followers, and to make war on Satan.” At the core of this scene is the demonstrated authority of Jesu...

Jesus did not come simply to die an atoning death and then rise from the grave. Mark will now begin to show us why Jesus not only died, but why He lived. The Spirit-empowered Anointed One humbles Himself to identify with sinners in two ways: by submitting to a baptism of repentance even when He had no sin, and by submitting Himself to the direct assaults of the evil one at His weakest moments. The...

John the Baptist is considered the last Old Testament prophet because he’s the last messenger from God before Jesus begins His ministry. There are several crucial details to notice in these verses: the wilderness setting, the Old Testament quotes, the description of Jesus, and the essence of John’s message, which is, “Get ready for the Son of God by repenting and being baptized!” John was sent by...

Jesus is God with ten toes, blood vessels, and eyebrows. He has exhaustive knowledge of all events, organisms, and potentialities; He also knows what it’s like to have a toothache, because Jesus is truly God and truly human. Jesus is, at the exact same time, the supreme royal ruler longed for throughout the entire history of God’s people; He is the great King kids were told about as they were put...

Starting the new year off by looking back at our Advent series as well as our series through the Book of Hebrews. Questions of submission, pastoral authority, homosexuality, transgenderism, diversity within the church and more.

This passage is part of the Apostle John’s introduction to the identity and mission of Jesus, and the reality that even as Jesus came directly to His own people - the nation of Israel - with powerful signs, profound teaching, and tremendous grace, He was rejected by them. Yet there were those, even amongst the Jewish people, who trusted in Jesus, and they were given the ultimate privilege of being...

This passage takes place within what has been called the Olivet Discourse, a sermon that Jesus delivered on the Mount of Olives which was an area that directly overlooked the temple in Jerusalem. Within the Olivet Discourse, Jesus teaches His disciples about two critically important events: (1) the forthcoming judgment upon the nation of Israel that would take place 40 years after Jesus’s ministry...

The entire sermon to the Hebrews culminates in a call to humility, and a profound prayer for the equipping of God. The glory and greatness of Jesus, and His provision of not just eternal joy in a renewed reality but loving leaders, leads the author to call Jesus “the great shepherd of the sheep.” The Lord has a flock, and He cares well for His flock. In this passage, Christians are encouraged to h...

Jesus was the original outcast. The Apostle John summarizes a good portion of Jesus’s ministry when he writes, “He came to His own, and His own people did not receive Him.” But Jesus’s rejection was 7 intended, for it was by His suffering outside the gate (i.e. outside of Jerusalem, where the worst criminals were killed) that His people have been once-and-for-all sanctified. It is in this place -...

It’s sometimes thought that justification (being declared righteous by God) is God’s work and sanctification (the process of truly growing in righteousness and holiness) is our work. But Scripture says different: “Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. He who calls you is faithf...

In the past, God descended upon Mount Sinai in terrifying power to deliver the covenant Law to His people; now God has come in Christ, and invites His people to the heavenly Mount Zion to celebrate all that He is and all that He has done. To reject the far superior New Covenant is to invite upon oneself unmitigated, relentless, and eternal wrath. But for those who endure through reverent worship o...

Imagine a runner coming toward the close of the longest marathon that she has ever run, and collapsing in exhaustion twenty feet before the finish line. The author returns to the race metaphor of 12:1-3 as he calls the church to continue moving ahead in external peace toward others and internal holiness toward God, holding one another up to God’s standards for community until the Lord takes them h...

The temptation for these believers was, in part, to grow weary and fainthearted in the face of cultural resistance, personal temptation, and wavering trust in Christ. In response, their pastor now exhorts them to once again “consider Jesus”, while also adding an additional layer of truth: in their difficulties they are being treated as God’s sons. Even good earthly fathers bring loving discipline...

With a wealth of faith-filled history in tow, the author now transitions to an exhortation to remain in the race of following Jesus by setting our minds, hearts, and eyes upon Him. As we look behind us and see the endurance of both sinners and our sinless Lord, we can follow suit and throw away anything that might hinder us. The author doesn’t want us to simply read the Old Testament and move on w...

Putting God first in a world that is against Him has been a struggle for centuries. But God remains committed to His people and His glory. Though He remains beyond our sight, God is at work to motivate the obedience of His people even in the midst of His enemies. Throughout this passage the author reminds his readers of the trials and faith of saints who came before, pointing to the power and pres...

There is never a conflict between biblical faith and facts, but there may be times in our lives when faith demands our hope in God’s promises, shown in actions that are at odds with our circumstances, feelings, or the best advice of those around us. In this passage, the author explains what it meant for saints of the Old Covenant to live by faith in a place not their own. By examining their action...

This week we look at the Preacher's definition of Faith, and begin to study some examples of faith walked out in the lives of the Old Testament saints of Abel, Enoch and Noah.

This week we look at how Christ as our high priest frees us from offering sacrifices for the forgiveness of sins. Because our sins are atoned for in Jesus, we now offer our lives up as a living sacrifice to God.