Category: Bible Studies

God is good all the time. Read His Words and thank Him today…

Mark 13:9-31
9 “You must be on your guard. You will be handed over to the local councils and flogged in the synagogues. On account of me you will stand before governors and kings as witnesses to them. 10 And the gospel must first be preached to all nations. 11 Whenever you are arrested and brought to trial, do not worry beforehand about what to say. Just say whatever is given you at the time, for it is not you speaking, but the Holy Spirit.

12 “Brother will betray brother to death, and a father his child. Children will rebel against their parents and have them put to death. 13 Everyone will hate you because of me, but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved.

14 “When you see ‘the abomination that causes desolation’[a] standing where it[b] does not belong—let the reader understand—then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. 15 Let no one on the housetop go down or enter the house to take anything out. 16 Let no one in the field go back to get their cloak. 17 How dreadful it will be in those days for pregnant women and nursing mothers! 18 Pray that this will not take place in winter, 19 because those will be days of distress unequaled from the beginning, when God created the world, until now—and never to be equaled again.

20 “If the Lord had not cut short those days, no one would survive. But for the sake of the elect, whom he has chosen, he has shortened them. 21 At that time if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Messiah!’ or, ‘Look, there he is!’ do not believe it. 22 For false messiahs and false prophets will appear and perform signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect. 23 So be on your guard; I have told you everything ahead of time.

24 “But in those days, following that distress,

“‘the sun will be darkened,
    and the moon will not give its light;
25 the stars will fall from the sky,
    and the heavenly bodies will be shaken.’[c]
26 “At that time people will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with great power and glory. 27 And he will send his angels and gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of the heavens.

28 “Now learn this lesson from the fig tree: As soon as its twigs get tender and its leaves come out, you know that summer is near. 29 Even so, when you see these things happening, you know that it[d] is near, right at the door. 30 Truly I tell you, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened. 31 Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.

Jesus tells us it is coming. This world will pass, and the more we fight to hold on to its riches rather than the riches of God’s Word, the more we will suffer. It is necessary for us to no longer chase the victories of this world; rather, we should let the victory chase us.

Jesus tells us that we will be witnesses to Him in front of all those that are placed in high positions. What does that mean to you and me? We are His voice. We are the givers of truth through the Word of Jesus Christ. We are to speak His Gospel and no other. And we are to do it before others, not just to ourselves. 

This world will cease to exist one fateful day, but those who CHOOSE to believe in Jesus will be saved. Saved and brought into eternal life with God the Father. Eternal life with Jesus Christ in Heaven.

In two days we will celebrate the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. It is a day that we have chosen to signify the fact that God came to earth in the form of man. And when He did, He walked this earth living a perfect and blameless life. He walked the earth and taught us how to love Him. He would eventually  pick up our sins and carry them to the cross, where all sin was vanquished.

This Christmas, celebrate it differently. Choose to celebrate the birth of God as man. Give with an open and full heart in the name of Jesus. Say His name every morning and especially this Christmas morning, when Emmanuel came to be with us. #JesusSaves

Amen.
DK

The temporary world is beautiful, but only temporary. It pales in comparison to the beauty that is to come…

Mark 13:1-8
1 As Jesus was leaving the temple, one of his disciples said to him, “Look, Teacher! What massive stones! What magnificent buildings!”

2 “Do you see all these great buildings?” replied Jesus. “Not one stone here will be left on another; every one will be thrown down.”

3 As Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives opposite the temple, Peter, James, John and Andrew asked him privately, 4 “Tell us, when will these things happen? And what will be the sign that they are all about to be fulfilled?”

5 Jesus said to them: “Watch out that no one deceives you. 6 Many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am he,’ and will deceive many. 7 When you hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. 8 Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be earthquakes in various places, and famines. These are the beginning of birth pains.

A prophecy from the Creator on what is to come. This used to scare me quite a bit, but the more and more I get to know Jesus on a very personal level, I am no longer afraid. I have learned that one of the most powerful tools used by the evil one is fear. It may even be the most powerful tool.

So as we learn that this world will end, how do we not walk in fear? The first step toward eradicating fear from your life is to talk to the Holy Spirit that was left with each of us when Jesus ascended into Heaven. We can directly connect with the Holy Spirit and with that relationship comes magnificent abilities and spiritual gifts and growth. It is no secret. Jesus made it very clear that He left us with the same abilities that He had.

Begin today. Begin a strong and intimate relationship with the Holy Spirit by speaking to Him every day. It is time to move past the dry friendship that exists between you and Him. Our God is not a distant, uninvolved God. He is Emmanuel. He is “God with us!” Now that you know. Turn to Him and talk to Him. Talk to Him like you love Him. Then, love Him more than you love any person on this earth. He deserves it and wants it. You will be rewarded. #JesusSaves

Amen
DK

Mark 12:41-44
41 Jesus sat down opposite the place where the offerings were put and watched the crowd putting their money into the temple treasury. Many rich people threw in large amounts. 42 But a poor widow came and put in two very small copper coins, worth only a few cents.

43 Calling his disciples to him, Jesus said, “Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put more into the treasury than all the others. 44 They all gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in everything—all she had to live on.”

Faith looks different for everyone. To try and qualify someone by what we see is impossible. It is through Jesus that we have all been qualified and empowered. Money cannot do it. Giving from what you have been given is the way, and there is no true set amount that will make you Holy or holier than someone else.

Our eyes deceive us consistently. It is one of the many trials and issues that we face as we walk this foreign land. Many of us can fall into a comfortable groove and be fooled into thinking that we are somehow finished without mission. Truth is, our mission on this earth does not end until we pass on to eternal life with Him. We must be pressed into trial so that we can get to know and love ourselves more. It is through these times of difficulty that our faith will shine brightest. #JesusSaves

Amen.
DK

Ouch… this obviously applies to all teachers of the law. So don’t teach law. Teach GRACE and unmerited favor. That is real…

Mark 12:38-40
38 As he taught, Jesus said, “Watch out for the teachers of the law. They like to walk around in flowing robes and be greeted with respect in the marketplaces, 39 and have the most important seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at banquets. 40 They devour widows’ houses and for a show make lengthy prayers. These men will be punished most severely.”

To teach by law is restrictive and does not advance the Kingdom of God. In order to expand, grow, learn, and teach, love is required. Not law.

I once read somewhere that to restrict love as punishment is debilitating. However, to pour out love without restraint is invigorating and fulfilling. Let love be the deciding factor, not anger, frustration, hate, or disdain. For it is in those that we fall back on law.

Law leads to breaking of law. There is no success in strictly adhering to law. Ask the Jews of the Old Testament. After all, they all failed, which led to Jesus letting them know that all people would be saved. Even a Gentile like me…David Keith. (Saved in 2003, Surrendered, January 1st, 2014)

God is good, all the time. Even when I cannot see or feel Him, He is good. He watches over and takes care of me. He sent His Holy Spirit to watch over me until He returns. The Holy Spirit watches over me and loves on me like nothing I have ever known. It is eternal and overwhelming at times. He sends me blessings of smiles, hugs, and love. He sends me sunrises and sunsets. He sends me tears and laughter, hugs and shrugs, handshakes and avoidance. All so that I can learn how to love.

God bless you as you read this. Your eyes able to read. Your lungs able to breathe. Your heart able to beat. These are the blessings the Lord God has given us. Let us not overlook the fact that without fail, we have been given this daily bread.

Amen.
DK

Jesus is letting us know that to walk through life without wonder, without questions, without His knowledge and guidance, we are confused and lost…

Mark 12:35-37
35 While Jesus was teaching in the temple courts, he asked, “Why do the teachers of the law say that the Messiah is the son of David? 36 David himself, speaking by the Holy Spirit, declared:

“‘The Lord said to my Lord:
    “Sit at my right hand
until I put your enemies
    under your feet.”’[h]
37 David himself calls him ‘Lord.’ How then can he be his son?”

The large crowd listened to him with delight.

Something as simple as who He was is the question at hand. I don’t blame the teachers of the law. They had grown up in a world of tradition and movement without true understanding of who God was. Like many today, they assumed that if they walked a certain way, talked a certain way, prayed a certain way, that all things would be taken care of by the law. Confusion and a lack of a personal relationship with God were present. They didn’t know.

So, along comes the Savior, Creator, Deliverer, Messiah, and they can’t see Him. He tried to tell them, still they can’t see Him. He urged them, rebuked them, corrected them, loved them, but they refused to see past their own sight. They refused to rely on Faith. They refused pure and pristine and strong love from the Father. Instead they leaned on law. Law that is only destined to sink all of us and lead us straight to the evil one.

God knew this. He realized this, so He sent us His Son. The man that would live a perfect life. The man that would fulfill all prophecy and change not only people. The revelation and clarification that He brought would remove the thick boundaries between man and God…forever. He has given us one-to-one access to the most powerful, the Most High, the Alpha and Omega, the Beginning and the End. We now walk in His protection, no longer afraid of death. For we are His now. We have been saved. #JesusSaves

Amen
DK

Clarification is required for all of us that can easily muddle up the commandments left by Moses. Jesus was sent for many things, clearing up our perversions of the law is one of them…

Mark 12:28-34
28 One of the teachers of the law came and heard them debating. Noticing that Jesus had given them a good answer, he asked him, “Of all the commandments, which is the most important?”

29 “The most important one,” answered Jesus, “is this: ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one.[e] 30 Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’[f] 31 The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’[g] There is no commandment greater than these.”

32 “Well said, teacher,” the man replied. “You are right in saying that God is one and there is no other but him. 33 To love him with all your heart, with all your understanding and with all your strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself is more important than all burnt offerings and sacrifices.”

34 When Jesus saw that he had answered wisely, he said to him, “You are not far from the kingdom of God.” And from then on no one dared ask him any more questions.

One of the bright spots in the many conversations between the teachers of the law and Jesus is this particular instance. It seems that is was not time for Jesus to instruct harshly or rebuke, but rather it was time for teaching. It seems, at least in this account, that they were receptive.

Being “closet to the Kingdom of God” is what we should all strive for. When Jesus says this, He is referring to the fact that this man was able to quote directly from the Bible and therefore spoke with truth and love. The Pharisee was agreeing with Jesus in public, which confirms the fact the Word of God was living in the man’s heart. Jesus could see his heart, and therefore confirmed that fact for him and all who were listening.

We all have the ability to grow closer to the Kingdom of God. How? Read His Word. Pick up the Bible and read it. If you have an app on your phone or IPad or tablet that’s fine too, but read. The words will begin to seep into your heart and souls, and they will change you from the inside out. Just the way that had changed this teacher of the law.

The Greatest Commandment is Love. It is the most powerful action that anyone can perform, and it is free, and it requires no special training. It only requires that you stop trying to love by yourself, and ask God to help you to love. He will show you. #JesusSaves

I love you all. I pray for you this day that you receive today’s bread. I pray that you receive His revelation and His will is fulfilled in your lives.

Amen.
DK

The human experience…

Mark 12:18-27
18 Then the Sadducees, who say there is no resurrection, came to him with a question. 19 “Teacher,” they said, “Moses wrote for us that if a man’s brother dies and leaves a wife but no children, the man must marry the widow and raise up offspring for his brother. 20 Now there were seven brothers. The first one married and died without leaving any children. 21 The second one married the widow, but he also died, leaving no child. It was the same with the third. 22 In fact, none of the seven left any children. Last of all, the woman died too. 23 At the resurrection[c] whose wife will she be, since the seven were married to her?”

24 Jesus replied, “Are you not in error because you do not know the Scriptures or the power of God? 25 When the dead rise, they will neither marry nor be given in marriage; they will be like the angels in heaven. 26 Now about the dead rising—have you not read in the Book of Moses, in the account of the burning bush, how God said to him, ‘I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob’[d]? 27 He is not the God of the dead, but of the living. You are badly mistaken!”

We have a tendency to worry and toil over the mundane and meaningless. However, it seems to be a good question, particularly if you have had many wives or husbands. Who will be married in Heaven?

About the only thing good in this question is that at least the person asking the question is asking a Kingdom question. The problem is that the question involves worldly titles and gain in Heaven from what is not done for the Father here on earth.

The answer is that it doesn’t matter. When you get there, all of the worldly nonsense will slip away, and chances are you will want to praise the Lord for all of eternity in His presence.

What matters is what God wants you to do in your life, not what you can do with it. Give it to Him. #JesusSaves

Amen
DK

Jesus is fair and righteous!

Mark 12:13-17
13 Later they sent some of the Pharisees and Herodians to Jesus to catch him in his words. 14 They came to him and said, “Teacher, we know that you are a man of integrity. You aren’t swayed by others, because you pay no attention to who they are; but you teach the way of God in accordance with the truth. Is it right to pay the imperial tax[b] to Caesar or not? 15 Should we pay or shouldn’t we?”

But Jesus knew their hypocrisy. “Why are you trying to trap me?” he asked. “Bring me a denarius and let me look at it.” 16 They brought the coin, and he asked them, “Whose image is this? And whose inscription?”

“Caesar’s,” they replied.

17 Then Jesus said to them, “Give back to Caesar what is Caesar’s and to God what is God’s.”

And they were amazed at him.

Awe and wonder are the very first steps of belief. True belief. If you are not moved to awe when you read of not only Jesus’ miracles, but His teachings and answers, then a major part of faith is missing. You must be amazed. Even the Pharisees who sought to discredit Him were amazed.

Time and time again our Creator has shown us that even as man, as mortal man, the miraculous is possible when faith is present. The answer given to those who were intent on trapping Him is nothing short of amazing. He told them not to quarrel about worldly things. To do so would only detract from your faith and assured growth with the Father. And growth is promised once you seek Him. It’s guaranteed and promised.

Let’s do something today for Him. Find somebody closest to you and tell them one thing about Jesus. Tell them that He amazes you every time you hear of Him. Tell them a story about how he told those who had never sinned to cast the first stone, or how he told those that sought to ensnare Him to give to Caesar what is Caesar’s and to God what is God’s. In doing so, you will have shared your faith. Then ask them if they know Jesus. Then tell them how you know Him, and ask how they know Him.

That sounds like a fantastic lunch conversation. It’s the perfect season for it. The birth of our Lord and Savior is upon us. God be with you today as you share Him with others. Do not be afraid. #JesusSaves

Amen
DK

This is Jesus letting them know that He knows…

The Parable of the Tenants
12 Jesus then began to speak to them in parables: “A man planted a vineyard. He put a wall around it, dug a pit for the winepress and built a watchtower. Then he rented the vineyard to some farmers and moved to another place. 2 At harvest time he sent a servant to the tenants to collect from them some of the fruit of the vineyard. 3 But they seized him, beat him and sent him away empty-handed. 4 Then he sent another servant to them; they struck this man on the head and treated him shamefully. 5 He sent still another, and that one they killed. He sent many others; some of them they beat, others they killed.

6 “He had one left to send, a son, whom he loved. He sent him last of all, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’

7 “But the tenants said to one another, ‘This is the heir. Come, let’s kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.’ 8 So they took him and killed him, and threw him out of the vineyard.

9 “What then will the owner of the vineyard do? He will come and kill those tenants and give the vineyard to others. 10 Haven’t you read this passage of Scripture:

“‘The stone the builders rejected
    has become the cornerstone;
11 the Lord has done this,
    and it is marvelous in our eyes’[a]?”
12 Then the chief priests, the teachers of the law and the elders looked for a way to arrest him because they knew he had spoken the parable against them. But they were afraid of the crowd; so they left him and went away.

Fear of man… That is what the Pharisees were afraid of…man! Wow! I’m not saying that they should’ve killed Him immediately, after all Jesus knew by the direction of the Father what was to happen.

So, Jesus lets them know that He is the cornerstone rejected. That is the message that we need. We all need to know that when He came, legalists rejected Him. He then became not just the Messiah for the Jews, but the Savior of the entire world. It opened the door for us.

When I first read the Gospel, I was mad at the Pharisees, but now I feel like I owe them a huge thank you. What they did by not listening and not believing is provide access to all of us. All Gentiles now had access to all the gifts originally reserved for the Jews. Jesus changed it all. He came for all of us. #JesusSaves

Amen.
DK

Jesus was a man, but with an extraordinary ability to see what was coming. Every move carefully planned by the Father…

Mark 11:27-33
27 They arrived again in Jerusalem, and while Jesus was walking in the temple courts, the chief priests, the teachers of the law and the elders came to him. 28 “By what authority are you doing these things?” they asked. “And who gave you authority to do this?”

29 Jesus replied, “I will ask you one question. Answer me, and I will tell you by what authority I am doing these things. 30 John’s baptism—was it from heaven, or of human origin? Tell me!”

31 They discussed it among themselves and said, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will ask, ‘Then why didn’t you believe him?’ 32 But if we say, ‘Of human origin’ …” (They feared the people, for everyone held that John really was a prophet.)

33 So they answered Jesus, “We don’t know.”
Jesus said, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I am doing these things.”

In this amazing question and answer session with the legalist Pharisees, Jesus asks them a question about the last Old Testament prophet to come.

In this way Jesus was able to flip the very question they asked Him back to them. Believe it or not, He was teaching. Teaching all of those legalists that were questioning Him, teaching His followers, and now teaching us. For if Jesus were to tell them who He was publicly, He knew that the reason He was sent would not happen. The temptation to do so must have been great.

Thank you Jesus! #JesusSaves

Amen
DK