The Bible Standard - Re-Discover the Truth.

AS A SERVANT

Jesus. Our Messiah, our Saviour, our Lord, our Master, our Shepherd. He is the King of kings and Lord of lords, the Alpha and Omega, the First and the Last, and the Son of God. Jesus is so much greater than any one of us no matter who we are or what we do. Yet if we had been in that upper room in the evening when Jesus and his disciples had the Passover meal and the last supper, this great man would have washed our feet too. What a humbling experience that must have been to the disciples who were there – especially as they had been arguing about who was going to be the greatest in the kingdom. Now, here was their Lord washing their feet like a servant when they were the ones who should have been washing his feet.

The answer to their argument about who was to be the greatest in the kingdom was Jesus. He would be the greatest in the kingdom. Yet he came to them as a servant, as an example to all who want to be great. He came to serve and we should serve each other too.

Jesus said, "Now that I, your Lord and teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet. I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you… Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them."

So just as Jesus came as a servant, let us become servants to each other.

Robert Prins [Auckland - Pakuranga - (NZ)]

Self talk can be one of the most important things we do. The things that we say to ourselves, especially out loud and repeatedly, are the things that we end up believing. For instance, the person that wakes up in the morning, saying, "This is the day that the LORD has made, I will rejoice and be glad in it," will become a rejoicing and God honouring person.

Robert Prins [Auckland - Pakuranga - (NZ)]

He was 120 years old. He had lived one of the most remarkable lives that any human being could have lived. He had seen first hand the great signs and wonders that had been done in Egypt as the LORD rescued the Children of Israel from the hand of Pharaoh. He had seen the waters of the Red Sea part and had led God's people through between the waves. He had seen the way God provided Manna and quail every day for over a million people. He had seen the glory of the Tabernacle and the fire of God on the mountain. He had personally seen the glory of God, he had experienced the righteousness and wisdom of God in the Law. And most recently he had seen the power of God as the novice army of Israel, with the help of the LORD, defeated the massive and battle hardened veterans of Sihon king of Heshbon and Og king of Bashan.

At 120 years old and after all these experiences, Moses said this: "O Sovereign LORD, you have begun to show your servant your greatness and your strong hand. For what go is there who can do the deeds and mighty works you do?" (Deut 3:24)

At 120 years old and after all these experiences Moses realized that God had only begun to show him his greatness. What Moses saw was just the start! With this in mind we can begin to appreciate the blessings of resurrection and immortality with unlimited time to experience God's unlimited greatness. Wow!

Robert Prins [Auckland - Pakuranga - (NZ)]

As Israel began to take the land on the east of Jordan, Og the king of Bashan and Sihon the king of Heshbon marched out against Israel. Israel engaged in battle with them and the LORD handed them over to Israel. Moses said, "At that time we took all his (Sihon's) towns and completely destroyed them - men women and children. We left no survivors." And about Og, king of Bashan, Moses said, "We struck them down, leaving no survivors."

Robert Prins [Auckland - Pakuranga - (NZ)]

Bro Dave Jennings

The second coming of Christ will be a momentous event, far bigger than anything we’ve ever experienced. The world as we know it will come to an end, possibly comparable to this temporary pause in normality we’re currently experiencing. A friend of mine recently suggested that what we’re experiencing with the coronavirus pandemic could be a “practice run” for whatever God has in store for us before the return of our Lord. That idea is not without scriptural precedent. In our reading from Deuteronomy 2 the Israelites are right on the brink of crossing the Jordan and entering the Promised Land. Forty years have passed since the spies brought back their negative report and they started their wilderness wandering. The situation in the land hasn’t changed since then; it’s still as scary as it was before, full of giants. But what this new generation has just experienced is a practice run.....read more https://bibletruthandprophecy.com/its-the-thought-that-counts-the-second-coming-of-christ/

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"AND IT WAS NIGHT"  April 20

Our readings in the Gospel of John from today forward appear to be an almost verbatim account of conversations of Jesus with his disciples covering just a few hours. Ch. 13 tells us of our Lord washing his disciples feet – setting an example of serving one another – but it was not a command for regular foot washing as it would have just become a ritual. After this Jesus tells them, “one of you will betray me” [v.21] causing much heart searching – and that is not a bad thing! We all need to ask ourselves, ‘Am I letting Christ down in something I do?’

Jesus hands Judas a “morsel of bread, he immediately went out. And it was night.” [v.30] Darkness had fallen, it was probably about 7 pm. Today is spiritual night – the darkness is becoming really dark – are we taking regular morsels of God’s word? Or are we going out into the night? We should be constantly seeking the fellowship and strength of the faithful. But are the faithful themselves feeling the chill of the night and the darkness?

The end of ch. 13 tells us how Jesus said to Peter, “Truly, truly, I say to you, the rooster will not crow tillyou have denied me three times.” So this is the final night of darkness in the mortal life of Jesus, by the time darkness comes again he will be dead. The next few chapters must be a largely verbatim account of what happened in the next few hours. Jesus tells them they are to receiver a ‘Helper’ “even the Spirit of truth … the Holy Spirit” [14 v.16,17,26] which, among other things, will enable you to “bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.”

John’s own gospel wonderfully illustrates this - from here to the end of ch. 17 are some of the most heart searching and challenging words in the whole of Scripture!

Ch. 18 tells us they then went to where there “was a garden which he and his disciples entered.” [v.1] The other Gospels tell us what happened in that garden and how the 3 disciples closest to him were nearby, but kept falling asleep. But not so Jesus! Imagine the intensity of his mind as that night progressed!!

In the middle of the night comes a “band of soldiers with lanterns, torches and weapons … “[18 v.3] There were still hours to go before the cock would crow three times! What a night that was – how the disciples were frightened out of their wits by it all.

It is night now! How are we coping? Peter who was so crushed in spirit by the events of that night was to later write of the night that confronts us. “But the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night, and then the heavens (rulers) will pass away with a roar … the earth and the works that are done in it will be exposed. Since all these things are thus to be dissolved, what sort of people ought you to be in lives of holiness and godliness”

The Pharisees held some very strong views. They were leaders in the time of Jesus and held a great influence among the people and especially on their followers. One of the official Pharisee beliefs was that Jesus was not the Messiah because he performed miracles on the Sabbath and challenged the Pharisee's authority. But the teachings of Jesus made so much sense, especially as they were accompanied by so many amazing miracles that left no other explanation other than that Jesus was the Messiah, many of the Jewish leaders did believe. In fact, of all the Jewish leaders, it was the Pharisees that ended up being the most readily converted to Christianity after the resurrection. But here we read of a problem. "Yet at the same time many even among the leaders believed him. But because of the Pharisees they would not confess their faith for fear they would be put out of the synagogue; for they loved praise from men more than praise from God."

As Israel stood on the border of the territory of Sihon king of Heshbon, God said a very interesting thing to Moses. He said, "See, I have begun to deliver Sihon and his country over to you. Now begin to conquer and possess his land." (Deut 2:31) In a work unseen by the children of Israel, God had begun the battle with Sihon king of Heshbon. God had put a spirit of terror and fear on Sihon and his people. Now it was up to Israel to conquer and possess the land. Having had God begin the work, Israel had a responsibility to go in and continue it. With God's help they would bring it to completion.

Robert Prins [Auckland - Pakuranga - (NZ)]