Watching Daily At Wisdom's Gates

 Matthew 28:6 ESV He is not here, for he has risen, as he said. Come, see the place where he lay.  It seems so simple, so understated. Yet 'he has risen' is one of the most profound statements ever. Jesus hadn't just risen from sleep, but from death itself. As the old hymn goes, 'because he lives, I can face tomorrow'. The implications of Christ's resurrection are profound. Because he beat death, there is hope for humanity. Christianity isn't just an idea or philosophy. It's based on history. Because Jesus rose again historically, we can too. The resurrection didn't happen out of the blue. Christ had promised that it would take place. Sure enough, it did. 'Heavenly Father, we praise you for raising your Son from the dead, by your Spirit. May we ever live to praise you, in your resurrection power. In Christ's name we ask this, amen'.

 Matthew 28:19 ESV  Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,  A lot of evangelism is 'come and see': attend this event we've put on. Jesus emphasises that we are to 'go and tell' people who might never otherwise darken the door of a church building. Many refuse to come and see, but if we go and tell, people can't help but to hear the good news. We're to tell people the gospel whether they want it or not. It is objectively good news that everyone needs to hear whether they want to or not. Jesus told a parable about compelling people to come to the heavenly celebration. I wouldn't go as far as they did in Augustine's day: literally forcibly baptising people, as though they could force them to be saved. Dunking people in water against their will isn't going to save anyone! Yet we don't need permission to tell of Christs salvation. We're not just to call pe...

 1 John 3:16 ESV By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers.  What is love? If someone dies for you, you know they probably love you. While we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. If Jesus loves us to death, we should be prepared to die for our brethren. Moses told us to love our neighbours as we love ourselves. Jesus defined our neighbours as everyone we come across in life. Christ raises the bar even higher than Moses. He commands us to love one another as he has loved us. We're to love each other to death if need be. As John Bunyan said, we're spiritually lame. The law commands us to walk but provides no legs. Grace calls us to fly and gives us wings. 'Loving Lord, may we love you as you have loved us. For your glory, amen'.

 Isaiah 53:5 ESV But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed. If this verse meant we will never get sick or will always be healed physically, it wouldn't ring true. We all eventually face death. The Bible is a spiritual book, not a doctor's manual. By Jesus's wounds we are healed of our spiritual sin sickness. We might still have symptoms. Yet we're not going to die in our sins if we trust on Jesus. We deserve to be cursed for our sinfulness. Christ took that upon himself on the cross. He went through that for us. The Father didn't twist the Son's arm to save us. He willingly died for us. We are to thankfully live for him. 'O Lord, please heal us of our spiritual sin sickness, and bring us safe home to you in glory. For your honour we ask this, amen'.

 John 16:33 ESV I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.” Jesus wants to give us peace. Nevertheless, he's realistic. He lets us know that troubles are inevitable in this life. We can be encouraged even in the midst of troubles. Suffering won't be the end of our stories. Jesus has gone to prepare a place for us in his Father's house. The Bible doesn't pretend everything will be okay if we trust in Jesus. It's a realistic book. Thankfully it's hopeful too. Christ has overcome the world. He's beaten our great enemy of death. Nothing can hold us down ultimately. 'Father in heaven, we praise you that your Son has overcome the world. Please give us peace in him in the midst of troubles. In his name we ask this, amen'.

 Hebrews 12:2 ESV looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God. Jesus isn't sadistic. He didn't enjoy the cross. Yet he knew that beyond the cross would come his glorification. Christ isn't just a good example to us. He is the founder and perfecter of our faith. In him we have the victory. Inevitably we will have to bear our crosses if we follow Jesus. Yet we can look forward to glory to come. Suffering isn't the end of the story. Just as Jesus is now glorified, so shall we be, through faith in him. We will join him in eternity to come if we trust in him. 'Almighty Father, please help us to endure suffering as we look to Jesus, our Saviour and Lord, in whose name we pray, amen'.

 Matthew 20:28 ESV even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” We're naturally selfish. Naturally we want to be served. By default we don't want to serve. Jesus is supernatural. He didn't come as some dictator to lord it over us. He came as a humble servant to serve us. We assume that the served are greater than the servers. Yet it doesn't require any greatness to receive a cup of tea for example. It requires more greatness to serve a good cup of tea than to drink it! We are to follow in Jesus's footsteps. We can rejoice in his service of us in salvation. Yet we too are to serve others by telling them of his great salvation. 'Dear Father God, thank you for sending your Son to serve us. Please help us to serve one another. For your glory, amen'. 

 Proverbs 3:5 ESV   Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. Even the most atheistic materialistic person trusts. They probably trust in themselves and their own understanding. We trust chairs to hold us too for example. We trust the sun to shine. Hopefully we feel able to trust our loved ones. Most importantly, we should wholeheartedly trust the Lord. God will never let us down. He literally loves us to death. He defeated death on our behalf. We often get the wrong end of the stick. It's foolish to lean on our own understanding. God is trustworthy. 'Lord our God, may we wholeheartedly trust in you, and so walk through life with confidence. In Jesus' name, amen'.

 John 1:29 ESV The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! A Lamb might seem a strange description of the Lion of the tribe of Judah. Yet in that ancient Jewish context of sacrifice, John's heaters will have known exactly what he meant. Jesus was going to give his life for his people.  The Lamb of God is innocent. He's not done anything to deserve being sacrificed. Yet he dies for the sins of the world. Did Jesus die for everyone? To be honest, I only think he died for those he saves. Otherwise, his death will have been in vain for those who spurn his love. What I think John means by Jesus dying for the sins of the world is that because of Jesus's death, this world has a stay of execution. We're not judged yet as we deserve. There's the opportunity for us to repent and be saved. 'Almighty Lord, please take away our sins, through the sacrifice of your Lamb Jesus, in whose name we pray, ame...