Tag: water

Baptism, Anointing Temptation     

Dancing in the Kingdom- Table of Contents

Dancing In the Kingdom – Part 2 – The Kingdom Revealed – Chapter 11 – The Kingdom Enters

Baptism, Anointing Temptation     

[Bible references: Genesis 3:6; Mathew 3:13-17; 4:1-11]

Jesus’ ministry was inaugurated when John baptized Jesus. When Jesus submitted to the baptism to “fulfill all righteousness,” Jesus testified that John’s baptism by water was ordained from heaven. The Spirit then affirmed Jesus’ ministry by coming down and anointing Jesus.[1] The baptism was at once followed by the Spirit leading Jesus to the desert where Jesus fasted for 40 days and submitted to being tempted by the devil. Like David, Jesus responded to the temptations by waiting for the Father. In the first temptation, Jesus waited for the Father to feed him instead of trying to satisfy his need by himself apart from the will of the Father. In the second temptation, Jesus trusted God by not testing God and foolishly putting himself in danger. In the third temptation, Jesus refused to worship and serve anybody but Yahweh. In all these cases, Jesus confirmed Hebrew scripture to be the word of God by using Hebrew scripture to refute the devil.

[1] Biblehub “Matthew 3:13” Bible Hub biblehub.com/commentaries/matthew/3-13.htm

Observe

Read Matthew 4:1-11; Genesis 3:6. What is similar to the temptations of Jesus and the temptations of Adam and Eve?

Courage and memory

Dancing in the Kingdom- Table of Contents

Dancing In the Kingdom – Part 1 – Shadows of the Kingdom – Chapter 7– Settlement

Courage and memory

[Bible references: Numbers 1; Deuteronomy 31:1-8; Joshua 1:1-9; Joshua 3-4; Joshua 5:13-14; Deuteronomy 6:10-12]

When the people of Israel first approached the Promised Land, twelve spies were sent out to scout out the land. Joshua and Caleb were the only two spies that did not bring back a report of discouragement. The discouragement brought by the other ten spies caused all the people of Israel to rebel against God as they forgot all the miracles of God’s provision in their flight from Egypt. This resulted in God subjecting the people of Israel to encamping in the wilderness for forty years. All the adults except for Joshua and Caleb, were subject to die in the wilderness before the people of Israel would enter the Promised Land.

It was therefore Joshua who was chosen to lead the people into the Promised Land at the end of the forty years. As before, the nation of Israel would encounter other people already living in the land, so Israel would need to fight for the land; it would not be easy. Before Joshua led his people into the land, God repeatedly said to Joshua, “Be strong and of good courage … do not be terrified or discouraged.” Then as a refresher, God also performed miracles as the people entered the land, causing the Jordan River to cease flowing to allow the people to cross on dry land – repeating the miracle of the parting of the sea as they fled Egypt.

Before Israel even left Egypt, the people were given gold and other wealth that was not theirs, the water from miraculously made springs and the manna that fell from the sky was not theirs. Now the homes and fields that God gave them to capture were the provision of God as well.

Reflect

Joshua was certainly encouraged when the nation crossed the Jordan River on dry land just as the nation crossed the Red Sea on dry land 40 years earlier. When trying to follow God, what encourages you?

Observe

Read Joshua 1:1-9. How might the instructions to Joshua help to give him courage?

Transcendent and Immanent

Dancing in the Kingdom- Table of Contents

Dancing In the Kingdom – Part 1 – Shadows of the Kingdom – Chapter 3 – The image-bearers

Transcendent and Immanent

[Bible references: Exodus 19:6; Psalm 139:16; Proverbs 3:5-6; Ecclesiastes 3:1-22; Acts 16:6-10; 17:24-28; 1 Peter 2]

Man appears in the visible world as the highest expression of the divine gift, because he bears within him the interior dimension of the gift. With it he brings into the world his particular likeness to God, with which he transcends and dominates also his “visibility” in the world, his corporality, his masculinity or femininity, his nakedness. A reflection of this likeness is also the primordial awareness of the nuptial meaning of the body, pervaded by the mystery of original innocence.

Thus, in this dimension, a primordial sacrament is constituted, understood as a sign that transmits effectively in the visible world the invisible mystery hidden in God from time immemorial. This is the mystery of truth and love, the mystery of divine life, in which man really participates. In the history of man, original innocence begins this participation, and it is also a source of original happiness. The sacrament, as a visible sign, is constituted with man, as a body, by means of his visible masculinity and femininity. The body, and it alone, is capable of making visible what is invisible: the spiritual and the divine. It was created to transfer into the visible reality of the world the mystery hidden since time immemorial in God, and thus be a sign of it.[1]

God has placed each one of us in a particular time and place and with particular people. Within that time, place, and people he has plans for us. Each of us has a particular mind and body with which we need to discern God’s calling for us in our time and place. Such plans are revealed in many places in scripture.

And though we are called to particular times, places and people, there are ways in which God’s transcendent character spills over onto us. The mark of his transcendence is even placed in each of our hearts. The expressions of transcendence are impossible to avoid in our day and age: Although we were not born with the ability to fly, we can fly to the moon, although we were not born to live under water, we are able to spend months at a time under water even at incredible depths, although we were not born to run like a cheetah, we don’t even think about climbing into a vehicle and going more than 60 miles an hour for hours at a time, we can also create works of art that show places we have never been, we can use the resources of the earth to generate more power than we can imagine … and the list goes on.

With our gift of transcendence, God has shown that he has set us aside as his representatives, “to be holy as he is holy.” We are not to merely live as earthly creatures but as creatures who represent the living God. The challenge before us is to discern, as God’s image-bearers, to what end God can use our particular bodies, emotions and minds in the particular family and community into which we are placed, to fulfill the purpose he has intended for each of us.[2]

[1] Paul II, John. “The Redemption of the Body and Sacramentality of Marriage (Theology of the Body)” Man Enters the World As a Subject of Truth and Love, p. 49 28 Nov 1984

[2] Russell, Chris. “8 Steps to knowing God’s will for your life” Bible Study Tools 11 Oct 2018 www.biblestudytools.com/bible-study/topical-studies/8-keys-to-knowing-god-s-will-for-your-life.html; WEC International “How to Find God’s Plan” WEC International wec-uk.org/mission-resources/articles/how-to-find-gods-plan; Renner, Rick. “Discerning God’s Plan for your life” Renner Ministries renner.org/article/discerning-gods-plan-for-your-life/

Reflect

List the ways in which we exhibit transcendence.

Observe

Read Acts 17:24-28; 1 Peter 2:9. How are we, as a nation of priests, an expression of God’s transcendence and immanence?