Stand By Me

Jesus often modeled how we are to live; this is part of the reason He came to earth. John 1:9-14, “The true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world…to all who did receive Him, to those who believed in His name, He gave the right to become children of God…”

While His examples of compassion and power are extraordinary, He calls us to do the same kinds of things. John 13:14-17, “...I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you…” (also 1 Peter 2:21). In John 7:50-53 we have a story where Nicodemus was able to serve Jesus similarly to how Jesus served the sinful woman (John 8): "Then Nicodemus, the leader who had met with Jesus earlier, spoke up. 'Is it legal to convict a man before he is given a hearing?' he asked. They replied, 'Are you from Galilee, too? Search the Scriptures and see for yourself—no prophet ever comes from Galilee!' Then the meeting broke up, and everybody went home…"

Standing up for Jesus carried a lot of risk to Nicodemus’s reputation, similar to Jesus standing with a woman caught in adultery would damage Jesus’ reputation. It's interesting that the earliest manuscripts don't include this story about the woman caught in adultery. Yet it fits perfectly with Nicodemus’s defense of Jesus and Jesus' statement, “I am the light of the world. If you follow Me, you won’t have to walk in darkness, because you will have the light that leads to life.”

The leaders thought His words had no claim, but Jesus says, "...My judgments are correct in every respect because I am not alone. The Father who sent Me is with Me." While Nicodemus had never seen the Father, he saw something in Jesus that convinced him. The story about the woman serves as an example of how people can stand up against evil knowing that we are not alone when we stand together.

Paul says in Galatians 6:2, “Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.” James says, “If one of you should wander from the truth and someone should bring that person back, remember this: Whoever turns a sinner from the error of their way will save them from death and cover over a multitude of sins.” (5:19-20).

We never know how much our example serves as a model for someone else’s bold move for the kingdom of God.

We Saw His Glory

John 10:37-38, “Do not believe Me unless I do the works of my Father. But if I do them, even though You do not believe Me, believe the works, that you may know and understand that the Father is in Me, and I in the Father.”

Their perspective of who Christ was didn’t match up with who He really was. In Psalms 19:1, “The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands.” God wants us to see Him but from a proper perspective. Satan offered Jesus a way for the world to see God from a different perspective (Matthew 4; Luke 4), similar to how he offered a way to know God from a different perspective in the Garden of Eden (Genesis 3). But God had revealed Himself to His creation in a way that fostered deep genuine faith in Him. He wants us to see Him as trustworthy and good.

What did Jesus want to show those disciples on the mountain? Whatever it was, God wanted them to see Him from the proper perspective. He wanted them to see how all that has been written about Him and all that has been prophesied about Him all point to the character and heart of God.

Moses has often been equated with the law. For instance in Luke 16:29 which tells the parable of the rich man and Lazarus, “Abraham replied, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets; let them listen to them.” It was on another mountain, Mt. Sinai, that Moses received the 10 Commandments, and it was there that God’s glory made Moses’ face become “transfigured” and shone. God had told him while he was on the mountain, “If you obey Me fully and keep My covenant, then out of all nations you will be My treasured possession. Although the whole earth is Mine, you will be for Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation." (Exodus 19:5-6)

Elijah, whose name means “The Lord is God,” was also synonymous with the prophets, those who proclaimed the will of God. Probably the best demonstration of Elijah revealing the power and will of God was on another mountain, Mt. Carmel in 1 Kings 18 during the contest between the prophets of Baal and God. In the end, the people saw the glory of God. “When all the people saw this, they fell prostrate and cried, “The Lord—He is God! The Lord—He is God!” (Notice the connection in the names!)

The apostles would write about this event and how it gave them the proper perspective of who God is. 1 Peter 1:16-18, “For we did not follow cleverly devised stories when we told you about the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ in power, but we were eyewitnesses of His majesty. He received honor and glory from God the Father when the voice came to Him from the Majestic Glory, saying, 'This is My Son, whom I love; with Him, I am well pleased.' We ourselves heard this voice that came from heaven when we were with Him on the sacred mountain.”

A proper perspective of the events in our lives often helps us see how God is working in our lives, usually much different than what we may have originally expected. This new perspective can allow us to have a mountaintop experience with God. Take time to reflect on your own changed perspective in your walk with God, or determine if now is the time to do something about the new perspective you are experiencing in your life today.

Who is Jesus?

The top of Mount Everest is 29,032 feet. From “the top of the world,” you can see approximately 211 miles (on a clear day). You can also begin to see the difference between the atmosphere and outer space! Standing at the summit is awesome.

But is that enough to prove the existence of God? For those that summit mountains, standing at the top can cause many to reflect on their maker. Throughout history, people have made images that try to help them capture the majesty of God. All the nations, including Israel, made idols to honor ‘gods.’ But God had said in Exodus 20:4, “You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath…”. 

During Jesus’ ministry, He reminded His followers, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me. If you really know Me, you will know My Father as well. From now on, you do know Him and have seen Him.” (John 14:6-7) 

He had given them ample reasons to trust His claim to be the Messiah, “Don’t you believe that I am in the Father, and that the Father is in Me?” (14:10) This conversation was after He had taken them to Caesarea Philippi, where the Cave of Pan was located. This was believed by the pagans to be the ‘Gate of Hades.' This entrance into the underworld, the place of the dead, was the place the Greeks and Romans claimed to have received visions from Pan, the "seer." 

Jesus took His disciples to this place as well, a place considered sacred by many cultures throughout the world. Perhaps it was while they were standing at the overlook of the Cave of Pan that He asked them, “Who do people say I am?” They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, one of the prophets.” “But what about you?” He asked. “Who do you say I am?” Peter answered, “You are the Messiah.” (Mark 8:27-30) 

Whatever Jesus’ reason for taking them to that place, it was important that they understood that the kingdom that Jesus came to reveal was not like other kingdoms. His was not a kingdom built upon man or false gods, but on the “Word that became flesh” (John 1:1). An important lesson to His disciples (and us) that we don’t build our hopes on man-made things or on speculative mysteries, but rather on the truths revealed by God. 

All that Jesus had done pointed to who He was so “that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in His name.” (John 20:30-31). Sadly, many of the people who had followed Jesus would forget that fact and turn their back on the one who had shown them so much evidence of His power. As John writes in John 1:10-11, “He was in the world, and though the world was made through Him, the world did not recognize Him. He came to that which was His own, but His own did not receive Him.” 

Where would Jesus need to take you to convince you of God’s deity and His power?

Risk

  

On August 7, 1782, George Washington ordered the creation of the first U.S. military decoration, the Purple Heart, awarded for bravery in action. It’s believed that only three men received it during the American Revolution, all of them noncommissioned officers. It was forgotten until its reinstatement in 1932, and since then, it is a highly distinguished medal of honor. Receiving this medal tells everyone that this person is willing to make the ultimate sacrifice for someone else, no matter what. Jesus said in John 15:13, “Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.” He also said, “...love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven” (Matthew 5:44-45) While it’s easy to recognize the high value of loving your neighbor even more than yourself (Philippians 2:3-4; Romans 12:3), actually living that out is challenging. In fact, the story of the Bible reveals just how challenging that is for us. Jeremiah 17:9, “The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?” A verse that helps to explain Paul’s statement in Romans 3:23, “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God…” Instinctively we realize that those willing to give their life for someone else is a rarity and therefore honorable, and even though we may realize the value of that sacrifice, it still seems to be an action few are willing to take. Sacrifice is risky: “What if my sacrifice is ignored or is relatively meaningless to society?” Jesus describes a scenario of the kind of heart God is looking for in his children. In Matthew 25:14-30, He tells the parable of the talents (each talent is about a 20-year salary). Each of the three servants in the parable received a sum of money based, presumably, on their ability to do something with it. After distributing the money, the master left for a long time. Upon his return, he evaluated the “return on investment” from the servant’s efforts. While the first two doubled their money, the last one did nothing with it. His excuse to his master was, “I was afraid and went out and hid your gold in the ground. (25)” The risks involved in multiplying what his master gave him were too great for him. While the master’s response may seem harsh, it should help us realize the urgency from God’s perspective in multiplying, or “making disciples of all nations.” Outreach takes risks (as Jesus modeled in His own ministry). With no risk, there’s no reward. Consider the risks we are willing to take to strengthen, encourage, teach, train, and shape someone’s life right in front of us. Remember the reward we gain for taking risks in doing that is much greater than a medal we put around our neck, but instead it is eternity!