This chapter shows us two sides of Jesus’ power. The miracle in Cana shows his miraculous power (vv. 1-11) and the cleansing of the temple shows his authoritative power (vv. 13-22).

Jesus’ first miracle, “water to wine,” was different from the others he performed. Jesus’ other miracles relieved the suffering of others through healing or provided for their human physical needs (such as the feeding of 5000). But this miracle merely saved a young couple from social embarrassment. To run out of wine as they did (v. 3) was bad form in Jesus’ society. It indicated either poor planning or poverty or stinginess--none of which was good. This miracle saved the couple from losing social status but it didn’t restore anyone’s limbs or life.

So why did Jesus do it? His mother (indirectly) asked him to do it (v. 3) so it honored her. But, more importantly than that, it “was the first of the signs through which he revealed his glory; and his disciples believed in him” (v. 11b). Disciples were already following Jesus (v. 2a); this miracle--which was mostly private (v. 9)--showed his miraculous power to the disciples. This display of power authenticated Jesus’s message and called for faith from those who were following Jesus.

That was the purpose of all the miracles--to show the truth of Jesus’s message. Those who had already believed his message (or were getting close to believing it) saw divine power that matched the inner conviction in their spirits to his message. Those who disbelieved Jesus’ message also discounted his miracles. Their choice to reject Jesus would not be overturned, even in the face of great, miraculous power.

Although we don’t expect to see miracles ordinarily today, have you seen God work in your life in powerful, unexpected ways? Others around you might explain that work of God as coincidence or be unaware of it altogether. But if you’ve seen God answer specific prayers you’ve prayed, you know that he is real and powerful.

The same is true if you’ve seen God act in some other way in your life. Have these works of God in your life stimulated in you to even greater faith? The miracles of Christ authenticated his message about himself and his kingdom. They were written down for us so that we would believe that Jesus is God in the flesh.

So take confidence in Jesus and don't lose faith in him. And, if you're not a Christian, come and follow Jesus with us. He is God in the flesh and he proved with miracles like this so that you can believe that he died for your sins and rose again to save you.

I have often puzzled over and even lamented John’s use of “Word” in John 1:1. It is clear to me that John 1:1 and 14 indicate that Jesus is the “Word” and therefore “was God” (v. 1). But some people do not see that connection clearly. I have talked with enough of those people that, at times, I wish John has written something else. I wish he'd written something like, “In the beginning was the Father, Son, and Spirit. The Son and Spirit were with God and each of them is God.” That phrasing would help us with the deity of Christ and the doctrine of the Trinity.

But, that’s not what John wrote. Instead he wrote, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” Why did John use the title, “the Word” to refer to Jesus?

First of all, “Jesus” refers to the man--the human named Jesus. The Son of God was not called “Jesus” until he was born, so it would be incorrect and improper for John to say, “In the beginning was Jesus....”

Although John did want to establish the deity of Christ, that purpose--in this passage, at least--was secondary to describing the function Jesus performs in the Trinity. By calling him “the Word,” John taught us that Jesus’ role was communication. This is why he was the one who created (v. 3) and why he “became flesh and made his dwelling among us” (v. 14a). He did these things because his “job” in the Trinity is to communicate, to reveal God.

That’s a very important role because verse 18a says, “No one has ever seen God....” We know the Moses saw God and that Isaiah saw a vision of God. Jesus himself said, “Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father” (Jn 14:9). So what did John mean here in John 1:18 when he wrote, “No one has ever seen God...?”

The answer is that no one has ever seen God in his essence, as he truly is, in his unobscured self. God is invisible (Col 1:15), so anyone who “sees” him has seen only a manifestation of God, a presentation that God has chosen to make, not the true essence of God. Nobody has seen that.

Except Jesus, for verse 18 goes on to say, “the one and only Son, who is himself God and is in closest relationship with the Father, has made him known.”

It would be impossible for us to know God or understand a thing about him on our own. Unless God choses to reveal himself, all we can do is see the result of his existence--creation and his power--not God himself.

But God has chosen to reveal himself “at many times and in various ways” (Heb 1:1) and Jesus is the ultimate expression of that.

Want to know what God would say about anything? See what Jesus said about it.

Want to know what God would do in any situation? See what Jesus did in that situation.

Anything that is true about God is true about Jesus because Jesus is God and he came to reveal God to us. That's why John called Jesus "the Word" here in John 1--because Jesus is God and revealed God to us! So, give thanks for God’s personal, powerful revelation of himself in our Lord Jesus. And, watch as we read through the Gospel of John to see what God reveals about himself through Christ.

Jesus has atoned for our sins. Nothing can separate us from God’s love and we are fully and finally forgiven. So why not sin and live it up?

Some people think we should. They might not put it that directly, but they encourage us not to worry about giving in to our sin nature or striving for holiness. Like a player in Monopoly who draws the “get out of jail free” card, we have a permanent fire escape from hell and it can’t be lost or voided. So, some say, don’t worry about how you live because it will turn out fine in the end.

Jude taught us in this chapter/book that those who teach this way are “ungodly people, who pervert the grace of our God into a license for immorality and deny Jesus Christ our only Sovereign and Lord” (v. 4). In what way do they “deny Jesus Christ?” They deny that he is “our only Sovereign and Lord.” In other words, they discount that he is king and, as his redeemed citizens, we live under his rules and are accountable for our lives.

Fortunately, Christ’s “rules” come with a new nature that desires holiness, the Holy Spirit that stimulates holiness within us, and a community of others to help us grow. This is why Jesus said that his “yoke is easy” and his “burden is light” (Matt 11:30). But if we fall under the false influence of ungodly teachers, we can do much damage to ourselves and others by living in ungodly ways.

Our defense against this corruption of the gospel is to “keep yourselves in God’s love” (v. 21a). How do you that? “By building yourselves up in your most holy faith and praying in the Holy Spirit.” It is so important to cultivate spiritual growth by daily learning the word, obeying what it says, and praying.

You’ve made it this far in our trek through the New Testament. I hope it has helped you grow stronger in your faith. But keep going “as you wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you to eternal life” (v. 21b)--a reference to the return of Christ.

Yes, we have eternal life because God has forgiven us, called us his sons, sealed us with the Holy Spirit, and promised us eternal life, but we don't receive that eternal life until Jesus returns and finishes the work of redemption. And so as Jude encouraged us here, keep following Jesus, build yourself up in the scriptures, be praying until Christ returns. That will strengthen you and fortify you and turn your life into a life that reflects the glory of Christ as you become more holy like he is.

A key promise of our faith is that Christ will return and he will do so “soon.” Yet it has been over 2000 years since Christ was born, so where is the return he promised?

That skeptical question has been thrown at us in each passing generation since the original disciples of Jesus lived. Here in 2 Peter 3 Peter warned us that we would face it, too. Peter called the people who asked this question “scoffers” (v. 3) and accused them of “deliberately” forgetting the creation of the earth and the flood that destroyed everyone except for Noah and his family (vv. 5-6).

Even though they “deliberately forget” these things, Peter urged us not to “forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day” (v. 8). Although it is true that many generations have passed since Christ lived, that is evidence of God’s mercy, not that he doesn’t exist or keep his promises. As Peter said in verse 9: “…he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.” It is God’s saving grace, his abundant mercy, that has led to such a long (from our perspective) time between the two comings of Christ. However, Jesus will come and, when he does, people will be surprised (v. 10a) and everything will be destroyed (v. 10b).

If you lived in a house that was going to be razed to the ground any day now so that a new road could be built through it, would you spend much time repainting the trim outside?

Would you save up to replace the old carpeting with wood floors?

Would you care if there were cracks in the sink?

Of course not.

Given that this world, as we know it, has been condemned and slated for destruction by God, “…what kind of people ought you to be?” That's the question Peter asked in verse 11, and it is still relevant to us.

Should we waste massive chunks of our time each week watching television?

Should we obsess over our handicap in golf or work 100 hours per week to make as much money as possible?

Verse 14 advocates a different way to spend your life: “…since you are looking forward to this, make every effort to be found spotless, blameless and at peace with him.” We may live out our entire lifespan on this earth but, when measured against thousands of years, 70-90 years seems like very little. Wouldn’t be wise to be careful about how we spend the precious life we have from God?

This chapter predicts strong judgment for false prophets. But the point of the chapter is not to warn the false prophets themselves; rather, the point is to warn US about them. They are sneakily deceptive according to verse 1 (“They will secretly introduce destructive heresies”). They “will exploit you” (v. 3) and “seduce the unstable” (v. 14b). Their judgment is certain according to God’s long pattern of judging the wicked (vv. 4-10), but before that judgment falls they will cause much “harm” (v. 13).

How do we avoid falling prey to these false prophets? Knowing the truth and comparing all truth claims to it is the most important way to avoid them. In addition, though, the scriptures encourage us to watch the outcome of their teaching and the lifestyle that they lead.

• Are they greedy for money (v. 3a, 14c)? That’s a telling sign.
• Does their teaching actually have tangible spiritual results? Or is it merely pious sounding talk with no real substance? Verse 17a says that they “are springs without water and mists driven by a storm.”
• Are they really different--holy--themselves? Verse 19 says that they “promise them freedom, while they themselves are slaves of depravity.”

There is so much teaching available to us now through books, radio, TV, and the Internet. These mass broadcast media make it harder to know what these teachers are really like, but you cannot hide what you are forever.

So, first of all, keep reading and learning God’s word. But beware--and wary--of the teachers you allow to influence you. Look for the substance of God’s word in their teaching and watch how they live. These things will help you know whether someone is a man of God or a false teacher.

Second Peter 1:3-4 is a passage I return to again and again in my own life as a Christian and in my attempts to teach and encourage other believers toward godliness.

The passage starts with a bold proclamation: “His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life….” If you believe in Jesus, you can become a godly person; God has provided you with everything you need to become one and nothing you need is missing. The ability and tools to grow in godliness come supernaturally and spiritually from God himself for the passage says, “His divine power has given us…”

But how exactly was it given to us? Verse 3 continues, “…through our knowledge of him who called us…” In other words, it is our knowledge of God that enables us to become godly. This is a reference to our salvation, how we came to know God, for the next phrase of verse 4 says, “…who called us by his own glory and goodness.” It was God’s grace in salvation—grace that brings glory to himself—and his goodness that caused us to come to know God and have all that we need for a godly life.

Verse 4 expands on this reality by telling us that God’s gracious salvation consists of “great and precious promises” and that the result of these promises is “that through them you may participate in the divine nature…” This is a reference to the new life that God gave us. His promise to us was that, if we believe in Jesus, we will know God, have our sins forgiven, and be given a new nature that desires to become like God in holiness. When we believed in Jesus, these promises were planted into our lives and began to bear fruit that gives us all we need to become godly men and women.

Note, though, that we don’t just passively and automatically become godly.

No, God “has given us” through “his divine power” “everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him.” When we understand this truth, Peter urges us to put it to work in our lives; verse 5 says, “For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge….” The phrase “for this reason” takes us back to all that God has done for us. Because knowing him in salvation means receiving everything he given us—everything we need—for a godly life, we should actively build faith and holiness into our lives. God does some of this for us through:

• the conviction of sin in our conscience,
• the purging effect of trials/discipline in our lives,
• the teaching of his Word and
• the sharpening effect of community in the local church.

But, as we live out our days as Christians, we must add to our faith all that God commands us to become. Since he has given us everything we need, we can become the people God calls us and commands us to be.

So don’t lose hope in your struggles against sin!

Don’t give up believing in the power within you to become holy within and without.

Keep reading God’s word, talking through it with godly teachers and mentors, and applying it to your life.

The seeds of godliness, once planted, will grow if we cultivate them. And that will cause us to be beautiful in holiness in God’s sight. In addition to being declared holy through Christ’s blood, the gospel tells us that we can become holy through faith and obedience. So, keep striving for holiness and reaching to become the kind of man or woman of God that God has called us to be.

And, when you feel yourself backsliding or becoming discouraged, remind yourself of this verse; memorize it: "His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness." Memorize it, remind yourself of it, then believe that it is true as you work on growing in Christ.

As Peter closed his first letter to the persecuted believers scattered through modern day Turkey, he urged the elders over these churches to lead God’s people well (vv. 1-4). In verses 5-7, he turned to “you who are younger” and commanded them to “submit yourselves to your elders.” My interpretation of this passage is that the “younger” refers to people in these churches who were not elders; that is, they were not God's ordained leaders for the church. Just as Christ referred to his disciples as “my children,” so Peter plays off the literal meaning of the office “elder” to speak to those who were not elders in the church.

The command to people not leading the church, then, was “submit yourselves to your elders.” Submission, in this context, means to fall into line behind the leaders. It is about surrendering control of decision making to someone else. This does not mean taking orders from the elders of the church about every detail in your life. As elders, we have no business telling you to marry this person, have four children--and we’ll name them for you, take that job, not this one, etc.

Instead, the meaning of "submit yourselves to your elders" is to let the elders of the church lead the church. If the elders decide to start a ministry, support the ministry in whatever way you can. If the elders choose to shut down a ministry--especially one you love--then understand that it is their decision to make before the Lord, not yours.

It also means listening to the wisdom of your elders in the moral aspects of your life. We, as elders, would never tell someone whom to marry. But we have told professing believers in our church not to marry--or to date--unbelievers. We have also told people in our church that we have concerns about someone they intend to marry. Our goal is not to control their lives but to help them apply Biblical truths.

Sometimes people listen to us and do what we tell them is right. Those people have obeyed the command in this passage to “submit yourselves to your elders.” Others have pushed back--hard, at times--against what we have told them. Inevitably, their pushback does not come from a place where they interpret the scriptures differently than us. The resistance we get as elders usually is about avoiding the application of scripture, not its interpretation. People are really good at justifying what they want to do. When we try to help them make godly and wise decisions, they will often give reasons why the biblical principle, which they admit is true, does not apply to them. People often think they are the exception to God’s word. Sometimes God is gracious to them anyway, but more often than not things turn out exactly as we warned them they would.

If you have godly elders, like the ones described here in verses 1-4, you can trust them. Submission is about trust. It is not about agreement; it takes no effort to “submit” to someone that you agree with. You’ve both made the same decision, so there’s no submission involved.

Submission only happens when you disagree: You want something different from what your leaders think is wise and best. If you trust them, and trust the Lord’s command here in 1 Peter 5:5, you will do what your elders advise you to do, because (a) you know they want to glorify the Lord, (b) you believe that they want what is best for you which is the will of God, and (c) because the Lord commands you to submit.

This takes humility (vv. 5b-6) and it is never easy. But look at the Lord’s promises: “Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time. Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you” (vv. 6-7).

Could you benefit from godly counsel in your life right now? Are you making decisions within the will of God or are you hoping to be an exception? Godly leadership--in the family, in the church--will protect you from bad choices, from the self-deception that operates so powerfully within us all. Do yourself a favor--seek counsel from your elders and submit to what we tell you. We are not perfect or infallible, but we know the scriptures, want to see God glorified, desire the very best for you, and have seen a ton of stuff over the years. Is it wise to ignore all of that?

Suffering is a key theme in this book and in this chapter. The suffering that caused Peter to write was persecution (vv. 12-16). Peter knew, however, that what he taught about suffering applied to any kind of suffering caused by doing good, not just persecution (v. 4).

People who are doing good suffer and are persecuted for one reason--to silence them. Whenever we witness for Christ, we point out to unbelievers that they are sinners and accountable to God for their sins. Unless the Spirit moves to create repentance, that message of the gospel will be offensive to unbelievers.

It is not just our words of witness that cause conviction, guilt, and retaliation in unbelievers, however. The godly choices we make to live a sober, disciplined life are offensive to unbelievers as well. Verse 3 here in 1 Peter described how pagans live, “in debauchery, lust, drunkenness, orgies, carousing and detestable idolatry.” Those who live this way due to unbelief “are surprised that you do not join them in their reckless, wild living, and they heap abuse on you” (v. 4). That last phrase, “they heap abuse on you,” shows how convicting a godly life is to the unsaved-ungodly. They “heap abuse” to try to silence us, to get us to conform to the undisciplined norm.

Peter discussed persecution at the beginning of this chapter (vv. 1-6) and at the end (vv. 12-18). In between those two paragraphs, he commanded us to serve each other within the church in various ways, reminding us that our service to each other is ultimately done by God through us, for God and for his glory (vv. 7-11). This section on service is not a digression, however. It is important to the teaching on suffering and persecution because the point of persecution (and any suffering brought on by Satan) is to shut down your witness for Christ and your service for him. If God’s enemies can discourage you, they can stop you from witnessing and from serving the body of Christ.

So what do you do if you feel discouraged by how people treat you as a Christian?

Two things: First, remember that God’s enemies will be held accountable (vv. 5, 17-18). Second, have faith in God. As verse 19 put it, “So then, those who suffer according to God’s will should commit themselves to their faithful Creator and continue to do good.” That last part, “continue to do good” is so important. Don’t let the insults and discouragements of others stop you from serving the Lord! Part of living life by faith is to continue to do what is right even when you don’t want to. What kind of faith would you need if you only served and obeyed God when you felt like it? But if you commit yourself to him and keep serving him when you are discouraged, then you will be living by faith.

Are you feeling some sort of affliction? Let this passage encourage you not to give up--don’t give up trusting Christ, don’t give up serving him, don’t give up living a godly life, and don’t give up testifying of his grace. He is with you in this and whatever you are suffering is happening “according to God’s will” (v. 19). He allowed it and will use it to strengthen and grow you, so don’t give up!

Defensiveness is a natural human response to fear. God created us with a self-protecting instinct, so when we feel threatened, we become guarded about what we do and say. We also get ready to run away or fight, and we look signs of increasing danger.

These instincts are to protect us from physical harm but they can be triggered when someone tries to harm us with words or with deception.

If you’ve been hurt often, you are probably more defensive than you naturally would be and possibly more than others around you are. The same is true if you’ve been (or felt) threatened repeatedly. It is also true in any area of your life where you feel vulnerable. My math skills are abysmal so I feel anxious when I have to make change or do some kind of calculation in front of another person. I’m sensitive to criticism in that area and always feel like I’m being judged, so I can get defensive sometimes. [BTW: being open about my weakness there makes me less feel defensive about it].

Since you and I know that we have weaknesses and vulnerabilities, we should realize that others do as well. When people surprise us by overreacting to something we said or did, we often react with defensiveness. They attack us verbally so we hit back with words ourselves. The situation can often escalate from there into a full-blown argument.

But if, in the moment, we realize that the other person is feeling defensive because they have a history of feeling attacked or a special sensitivity in that area, we have learned to “be sympathetic” as 1 Peter 3:8, which we read today, commands us to be. That gives us an opportunity to respond with love (v. 8c: “love one another”), to feel compassion for that person’s pain or weakness (v. 8d: “be compassionate”), and to swallow our pride (v. 8e: “be... humble”). That’s the internal process that growing in Christ creates in us.

The outward result of that internal process is stated in verse 9: “Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult. On the contrary, repay evil with blessing, because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing.” If someone has ever blessed you with compassion, love, and kindness, then you know what a blessing that is. How much would our families benefit if we husbands brought that kind of consideration to our wives (v. 7) and if wives realized how attractive submission to their husbands is (v. 5)? It is so much easier to be obedient to those commands when you begin by being sympathetic to your spouse.

How much would our church benefit if we were humble enough to be sympathetic and compassionate to those around us? How would your workplace improve? Might God use your loving attitude toward others to open doors to witness for Christ (see verses 15-16)?

There is so much more to following Christ than an eternity in heaven.

An eternity with Christ is important, of course, but believing in Christ has immediate affects on our lives today. This chapter described the sense of purpose that following Jesus gives to us in this life. It begins with the community that we have now in Christ. He is the foundation, the cornerstone, of the new group we are part of (v. 4). When we come to him in faith, he not only saves us but he assembles us and all the other believers “into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood” (v. 5).

And why? So that we together will offer “spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ" (v. 5).

Verses 9 and 10 go on to describe the new nation that God is forming through all of us in Christ. We belong to Christ and are part of his people now but for what purpose?

For this purpose: so that “you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light” (v. 9). When unbelievers interact with us, they should see the greatness of Christ--his love, his mercy, his power to change lives, and more--working in our lives. Part of this, of course, is our moral growth (vv. 11-12a) through the Lord’s work in us. As we move away from sin and toward holiness in our lives, people will “see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us” (v. 12b).

That idea of "glorifying God on the day he visits us" is another way to talk about evangelism. It is the conviction that our walk with God, our community with one another, and our witness for Jesus will be used by God to bring more people into the fold so that they will be looking for the coming of Christ along with us.

The rest of the chapter applied this specifically to our relationship to the government (vv. 13-16), our relationship with other people in general (v. 17), and how those who were slaves related to their masters (vv. 18-25). It is amazing to think that following Christ can bring purpose to a person’s life even when that person is owned as a slave by someone else. Thankfully, none of us lives in that kind of bondage! But, if even slaves can find purpose as slaves through faith in Christ, how much more should we who know Christ as free men and women live lives of purpose for Jesus.

Do you think much about your reason for living? As you go about your work, live in your neighborhood, and talk with others around you, does your faith show? God has embedded you as his agent in your workplace, your family, our community, and more. What will he do through us if we remember our purpose and live in ways that glorify him?