look up

Posted on March 10, 2019 by Jefferson Vann
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Psalm 18:16-19

Psalm 18:16 He reached down from a height and took hold of me; he drew me out of deep water.

Psalm 18:17 He rescued me from my fierce enemy and from those who hated me, because they were too strong for me.

Psalm 18:18 They confronted me in the day of my calamity, but Yahveh was my reinforcement.

Psalm 18:19 He brought me out to a roomy place; he rescued me because he treasured me.

look up

What was the deep water that David found himself in? He had a fierce enemy, and a large group of those who hated him. They were too strong for him. They took advantage of his day of calamity and confronted him when he was most vulnerable.

But God reached down from his high place and pulled David out of the deep water. God rescued David, placing him in a roomy place.

It was not David’s praying that rescued him. It was not David’s worship that turned the situation to his advantage. God rescued David because God chose to treasure David.

Perhaps you are going through your day of calamity. Or maybe it is near. Remember God loves and treasures you. The deep water you are in is not evidence that God is indifferent to you.

Look up, because your rescuer is coming.

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ferocious deliverance

Posted on March 9, 2019 by Jefferson Vann
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Psalm 18:13-15

Psalm 18:13 Yahveh thundered from the sky; the Most High made his voice heard.

Psalm 18:14 He sent his arrows and scattered them; he hurled lightning bolts and routed them.

Psalm 18:15 The depths of the sea became visible, the foundations of the world were exposed, at your rebuke, Yahveh , at the blast of the breath of your nostrils.

Ferocious deliverance

David describes his problem with the image of a violent storm, then the clouds pass. Now, another thunder is heard. It is not the thunder of the storm. It is God’s voice.

All his enemies are scattered by lightning bolts— arrows from God’s quiver. The deep sea which had threatened to drown him is now exposed— harmless in the presence of God the rescuer.

The storm you are facing right now may be violent and threatening. But it is nothing compared to the ferocity of God’s deliverance.

Lord, help us to stand tall in the midst of our storms, and trust in your power to rescue us.

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his cloud cloak

Posted on March 8, 2019 by Jefferson Vann
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Psalm 18:10-12

Psalm 18:10 He climbed onto a cherub and flew, soaring on the wings of the wind.

Psalm 18:11 He made darkness his hiding place, dark storm clouds his cloak covering him.

Psalm 18:12 From the brightness of his presence, his clouds passed onward with hail and burning coals.

his cloud cloak

Imagine a menacing dark and violent storm. You have been praying for rescue, but now this storm seems to be the last domino of your destruction.

But wait— something has been hiding behind the dark clouds. Just when you think disaster has come, you see God riding on the storm winds. He has not forgotten you.

I don’t know what you are facing today. You might be under a great deal of pressure. You might feel like giving up. Maybe today all you see is the dark, threatening clouds.

He is right behind them. He is using the dark clouds as a cloak. Wait for him!

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Scripture is enough

Posted on March 7, 2019 by Jefferson Vann
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John 21:24-25

John 21:24 This is the disciple who is giving evidence of these things and who wrote them down. We know that his evidence is true.

John 21:25 And there are also many other things that Jesus did, which, if every one of them were written down, I suppose not even the world itself could have room for the books that would be written.

Scripture is enough

As I conclude my reflections on this wonderful Gospel record, I think about that interesting phrase “many other things.” Luke had been concerned to provide a careful and accurate history of Jesus’ activity. But John actually tells his readers here that he has left a lot of material out.

There is something uncomfortable about that confession. I find myself asking about all the miracles Jesus did that were not enscripturated. What about his sermons that never made it into print? How many conversations did he have which changed people, but were never recorded?

We do not have the whole story. But the story we have is true. We have to trust that what God has breathed out into scripture form is what we need to know until we can see him face to face.

Lord, thank you for the marvelous gift of inspired scripture. It does not tell us everything, but it tells us enough.

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What about him?

Posted on March 6, 2019 by Jefferson Vann
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John 21:20-23

John 21:20 So Peter turned around and saw the disciple Jesus loved following them, the one who had leaned back against Jesus at the supper and asked, “Lord, who is the one that’s going to betray you?”

John 21:21 When Peter saw him, he said to Jesus, “Lord, what about him?”

John 21:22 “If I want him to stay until I come,” Jesus answered, “what is that to you? As for you, follow me.”

John 21:23 So this rumor got out to the brothers and sisters that this disciple would not die. Yet Jesus did not tell him that he would not die, but, “If I want him to stay until I come, what is that to you?”

What about him?

I have spent countless hours in prayer with the Lord asking questions very similar to Peter’s here. He had just been told by Jesus that his life would end at someone else’s call because of his commitment to Christ. He looked at John, and asked the Lord “what about him?”

Every pitfall, every false start, every seeming failure in my ministry, I have asked the Lord why so-and-so has not experienced this. I know, that sounds very selfish. Guilty as charged.

When I think back on my life and ministry, I am extremely grateful. I would not trade my life for anyone else’s. But, like Peter, I do ask the question.

Lord, help us to trust your plan for our lives.

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after the end

Posted on March 5, 2019 by Jefferson Vann
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John 21:18-19

John 21:18 “I honestly tell you, when you were younger, you would tie your belt and walk wherever you wanted. But when you grow old, you will stretch out your hands and someone else will tie you and present you where you don’t want to go.”

John 21:19 He said this to indicate by what kind of death Peter would make God glorious. After saying this, he told him, “Follow me.”

after the end

Jesus had just been telling Peter that his role was changing and he would now be primarily responsible for taking care of Jesus’ flock. He would be ministering to the church.

Now Jesus explains the excellent retirement plan that will accompany that ministry career. He will be arrested and taken to his own crucifixion.

We know that Peter’s apostolic ministry was a major success. But Jesus did not tell Peter about that. The book of Acts records many miracles and significant events that Peter was involved in. But Jesus did not mention them here.

What if God’s plan for us does not end successfully? What if our retirement looks like Peter’s did? Can we trust God with our time even if we do not get what we aspire to?

Peter began his apostolic ministry knowing that it would “end “ in disaster. He trusted Christ for a new beginning after the end.

Lord, thank you for the promise of a resurrection. Because of this promise, we look forward to a new beginning after the end.

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from devotion to ministry

Posted on March 4, 2019 by Jefferson Vann
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John 21:15-17

John 21:15 When they had eaten breakfast, Jesus asked Simon Peter, “Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these?” “Yes, Lord,” he said to him, “you know that I care about you.” “Feed my lambs,” he told him.

John 21:16 A second time he asked him, “Simon, son of John, do you love me?” “Yes, Lord,” he said to him, “you know that I care about you.” “Shepherd my sheep,” he told him.

John 21:17 He asked him the third time, “Simon, son of John, do you care about me?” Peter was grieved that he asked him the third time, “Do you care about me?” He said, “Lord, you are aware of everything; you are aware that I care about you.” “Feed my sheep,” Jesus said.

from devotion to ministry

Some translations do not highlight the different Greek words which John used in his narrative here. I chose to accentuate the difference between phileo1 and agape2 by translating the former as “care about “ and the latter as “love.” I will leave it to the scholars to debate the fine points of the difference between those words.

It seems to me that John is pointing out the transition that Peter is going through. All of the tests he went through as a disciple of Christ were to establish his loyalty and devotion to Christ. The tests he would face as an apostle would all be for the purpose of feeding and taking care of the flock.

Ministry is not an enemy of devotion to Christ. It is a means of demonstrating it.

1φιλέω (Jn. 5:20; 11:3, 36; 12:25; 15:19; 16:27; 20:2; 21:15-17).

2ἀγάπη (Jn. 5:42; 13:35; 15:9-10, 13; 17:26.).

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fish story

Posted on March 3, 2019 by Jefferson Vann
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John 21:1-6

John 21:1 After this, Jesus made himself public again to his disciples by the Sea of Tiberias. He made himself public in this way:

John 21:2 Simon Peter, Thomas (called “Twin”), Nathanael from Cana of Galilee, Zebedee’s sons, and two others of his disciples were together.

John 21:3 “I’m leaving to fish,” Simon Peter said to them. “We’re coming with you,” they told him. They exited and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing.

John 21:4 When daybreak came, Jesus stood on the shore, but the disciples did not know it was Jesus.

John 21:5 Jesus called to them, “Friends, you don’t have any fish, do you?” “No,” they answered.

John 21:6 He said to them “Throw the net on the right side of the boat, and you’ll find some.” So they did, and they were unable to haul it in because of the large number of fish.

fish story

Why would John choose this fish story among all the incidents in the life of Jesus and his disciples? The answer partly has to do with the lesson the disciples learned that day. They learned to seek the Lord’s timing and to expect his intervention when they were to later set out to catch people. This miraculous catch became a prediction of Pentecost.

At a more fundamental level, they might have learned that reaching people for Christ involves long periods of seemingly futile effort. In the years to come, they would remember this story and it would encourage them to keep witnessing and trust the Lord to step in and make a miracle when he is ready to do it.

Lord, when we are discouraged because of lack of results, remind us of this fish story.

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solidified trust

Posted on March 2, 2019 by Jefferson Vann
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John 20:29-31

John 20:29 Jesus said, “Because you have seen me, you have trusted. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet trust.”

John 20:30 Jesus performed many other signs in the presence of his disciples that are not written in this book.

John 20:31 But these are written so that you may trust that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by trusting you may have life in his name.

solidified trust

Seeing the resurrected Christ was all Thomas needed to solidify his trust. The same was true for the other disciples who had seen him the previous week. The outcome of that trust is one of the major themes of John’s Gospel: “life in his name.” Elsewhere, John called it “a resurrection of life”,1 “the resurrection and the life”,2 “permanent life”3 or simply “life.”4 It is the promise of a permanent life after this one, made possible by a resurrection.

Seeing the resurrected Christ enabled the disciples to trust in the promise of their own resurrection. The one who overcame death is the one who will overcome death for them… and us.

Lord, we have seen what is written and we choose to trust it, and you – to give us permanent life.

15:29.

211:25.

33:15, 16, 36; 4:14, 36; 5:24, 39; 6:40,47,54,68; 12:25, 50; 17:2, 3.

41:4; 5:21; 5:24, 26, 40; 6:27, 33, 35, 48, 53, 63; 8:12; 10:10; 14:6.

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week of doubt and darkness

Posted on March 1, 2019 by Jefferson Vann
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John 20:24-28

John 20:24 But Thomas (called “Twin”), one of the Twelve, was not with them when Jesus came.

John 20:25 So the other disciples were telling him, “We’ve seen the Lord!” But he said to them, “If I don’t see the mark of the nails in his hands, put my finger into the mark of the nails, and put my hand into his side, I will never trust that.”

John 20:26 A week later his disciples were indoors again, and Thomas was with them. Even though the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.”

John 20:27 Then he said to Thomas, “Present your finger here and look at my hands. Present your hand and put it into my side. Don’t be faithless, but trust.”

John 20:28 Thomas responded to him, “My Lord and my God!”

week of doubt and darkness

J. Vernon McGee writes “Thomas needlessly spent a miserable week of doubt and darkness (vv. 24, 25), but then he gives the highest testimony to the Lord Jesus (v. 28).”1

Our congregations are made up of all kinds of disciple, and each of us is somewhere on the doubt to faith continuum. If we stay with our friends who have doubts, and trust Christ to reveal himself to them farther along, their faith will grow. What would have happened if the other disciples had excluded Thomas on the basis of his doubt declaration? They would have missed out on the testimony he gave.

Lord, we believe and trust in you. Strengthen that faith and trust in all of us. Help us to be considerate of those among us who struggle with doubt.

1McGee, J. Vernon. “Comments for John.” . Blue Letter Bible. 15 Nov 2017. 2018. 29 Nov 2018.

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