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Mt. Baker Beacon 2024
Vol. 03, No. 20 May 19, 2024
Your word is a lamp to my feet Mount Volume 03, Number 20 Published by Location: Sunday: Web site: Mt. Baker church
| In this issue: When Jesus celebrated the Passover with His inner circle for the last time and instituted the new observance of the Lord's supper that they would carry into their life in the kingdom, He also had some final conversations with them about important things. One bombshell that He dropped was the revelation that one of the twelve would soon betray Him. The ensuing discussion is fascinating and has several applications for us. The concept of betrayal was shocking. "And as they were eating, he said, 'Truly, I say to you, one of you will betray me.' And they were very sorrowful…" (Matt. 26:21-22a). The disciples knew that Jesus had enemies. The religious leaders of their community hated Jesus and tried to undermine Him at every turn. They made false claims about Him (Matt. 12:24), asked insincere questions and demanded signs in an attempt to trap Jesus (Matt. 12:38-42; 16:1-4; 19:3-9; 22:15-22; John 8:3-11; etc.), and plotted to kill Him (John 11:45-57). They saw Him as a threat to their power and one who upset the status quo. It would not be surprising for the disciples to hear news that Jesus had caught wind of a new conspiracy against Him. But what Jesus actually told them was entirely unexpected. One of the twelve disciples was working against Jesus and would hand Him over to His enemies. How could that possibly be? Who could spend these three years learning from Jesus, seeing His miracles, and teaching others about the kingdom of God only to throw it all away and turn against Him? Judas was not the obvious betrayer of Jesus. "And they were very sorrowful and began to say to him one after another, 'Is it I, Lord?'" (Matt. 26:22). When Jesus made this announcement, the disciples didn't all turn and look at Judas (or anyone else) and cry out, "I knew you were up to no good!" It was not at all obvious who the traitor would be, and so they mourned and wondered. This had to mean that Judas was a real disciple. Peter would later say that he was "numbered among us and was allotted his share in this ministry" (Acts 1:17). Judas was judged to be qualified to hold the group's funds-not a responsibility that would be given to just anyone (John 13:29). He was not a sleeper agent biding his time for the perfect moment to betray Jesus. He was not destined for evil, as some have claimed. He was chosen by Jesus, followed Him for a time, and then was corrupted by sin and greed. Judas was not the only one capable of this betrayal. Peter was impulsive and cared too much what other people thought of him. He also would later deny that he even knew Jesus, so it's not clear that he was as committed as he said he was. James and John were ambitious to a fault and overly harsh toward those who wouldn't listen Jesus. Simon was a political radical and could easily have been frustrated with Jesus' unwillingness to lead a revolution against Rome. If we knew more about each disciple, we would probably be able to point out many flaws that Satan could exploit to turn them against Jesus. The disciples' reaction proves that it was not a clear eleven versus one. Humble introspection. It would be one thing if each disciple thought within himself, "I know it isn't me, but which of the others is it?" They went a step further: could I be the one who betrays Jesus? One by one, over the course of the dinner, they ask Jesus, "Is it I, Lord?" Each one recognized that their faith was not perfect. They had weaknesses and character flaws that could lead them to betray Jesus if they made the wrong choices. What am I capable of? As a disciple of Jesus, I am being trained in righteousness every day. I have been forgiven of my sins and I work in the kingdom of God. That does not mean I am immune to temptation. My desires can lead me away from God if I give in to them (James 1:14-15). I am capable of:
That list is not comprehensive. Every disciple of Jesus must be keenly aware of the danger of sin. Satan tempts each one of us every day, and though we do grow stronger in faith and righteousness, we cannot let our guard down. Learn from the Scriptures how to please God in every area of life. Pray to God for forgiveness when you fall and for strength to overcome the devil. A DESTROYING WIND "Behold, I will raise up against Babylon, against those who dwell in Leb Kamai, a destroying wind" (Jer. 51:1). (Leb Kamai was a code word for Chaldea or Babylonia.) This verse declares that "whirlwinds" of fierce, destructive power are gathering (Isa. 21:1-2). The Meads and the Persians destroyed Babylon in 539 B.C. (Dan. 5). Is a fierce, destroying wind ominously gathering for our nation? Are there ungodly and unrighteous (Rom. 1:18) activities fueling these potentially destroying winds of calamity upon our society? Let us briefly delineate at least some of the moral, spiritual, and ethical problems that we face in our nation. While there is still a remnant of "God fearing" souls, thankfully, in our nation, there are vast multitudes that do not take God or His Word seriously. Violations of Biblical teaching abounds. There is a growing number (according to national polling) who do not believe in the God of the Bible. Church attendance has been in a serious decline for a number of years. God is often referenced by many who do make a serious effort to seek out His will for their lives. A strong relationship with God is not important with a large percentage of Americans. Involvement with a church is, at most, a very casual concern with millions of our fellow citizens. "There is no fear of God before their eyes" (Rom. 3:18). Sums up the spirit of our age in America. Most religious practitioners (teachers of seminarians, priests, pastors, preachers, etc.) are either modernist, liberals, or false teachers that lead the people into error (Jno. 8:31; Matt. 15:7-9, 14). Many of the large churches preach pop psychology (or feel-good pablum) each week instead of solid Bible doctrine concerning sin, the Savior, faithfulness to God, eternal judgment, etc. If true Bible doctrine began to be preached in these mega churches, the crowds would thin out in a hurry. Only a small remnant would remain (Matt. 7:13-14; Jno. 6:59-68). The educational system is waging a war against God by teaching evolution (kindergarten through university). Many school textbooks, at the same time, promote the LGBTQ+ agenda. And this is merely the tip of the iceberg of the misinformation being indoctrinated into our youth at every level of schooling. The mainstream media, which millions watch every night or read daily, promote the false science of evolution, the Bible is full of errors, LGBTQ+, the far-left agenda, etc. in their programing. Entertainment with its movies, TV specials, plays, novels, music lyrics, big stars, etc. promote a life style that is contrary to Biblical morality and mores. Liberalism that goes too far, and lowers one's respect for Bible authority, has become a stumbling block for many of our people, who think that they are being broad minded in their views concerning God and the word of God. They do not wish to be thought of as being intolerant, but they take this concern too far, and begin to compromise Bible truth. One can remain faithful to God and true to His word without being obnoxious or ugly with people. One must teach the truth in love (Eph. 4:15). Post-modernism has taken many away from the Lord. There is much, much more in our society that is very troubling to those who love God, their fellow man, Biblical truth, righteousness and godliness, but enough for now. We fear the destroying wind of God's righteous judgments are upon us unless we repent and begin to respect God in this sinful nation. Created by John Bass, last updated. 05/15/2024 The Mount Baker Beacon is a weekly publication of the Mt. Baker church of Christ, Bellingham, WA. |
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