Author: Rick Henderson

Re:Verse passage – Ephesians 4:25-32 (day seven)

“Let no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth…” vs 29a.

Have you ever mistakenly took a bite out of an apple that has gone bad? You go in for a big bite of what you expect to be a crisp, juicy apple, but you are left with a mushy, bland mouthful of something you just want to spit out. Jesus uses this analogy on multiple occasions to describe our lifestyles.

“A good tree cannot produce bad fruit…” Matthew 7:18.

The interesting thing is that the same word that Jesus uses to describe bad fruit, is the same word that Paul uses in our passage to describe bad talk (unwholesome). This isn’t just cursing. Bad talk is gossip, slander, crude joking, roasting (making fun of others). Words can go bad quicker than fruit. After they have gone out, we immediately want to retract them, but it is often too late. We are left with a mushy mouthful of bad fruit.

If a good tree cannot produce bad fruit, what do the words we use tell us about the state of our tree?

Re:Verse passage – Ephesians 1:13-14 (day seven)

“who is given as a pledge of our inheritance, with a view to the redemption of God’s own possession, to the praise of His glory.” Vs 14

The word pledge here can also be translated as down payment. We are more familiar with this terminology. A down payment on a home, car, or other large purchase is a way for us to enjoy the fullness of an item before we are able to have complete ownership. The seller allows the purchaser to pay for a portion of the item up front and will finance the rest of the payment, so that over time, the item will eventually come under the complete ownership of the purchaser.

The Holy Spirit is given to us as a down payment of our inheritance to God’s Eternal Kingdom. The Holy Spirit gives us the ability to participate in the fullness of God’s love, mercy, and work here on earth until we achieve complete ownership of this inheritance in heaven.

Re:Verse passage – Romans 14:17-19 (day seven)

I love how verse 18  is paraphrased in the NLT:

 If you serve Christ with this attitude, you will please God, and others will approve of you, too.

Have you ever been around a person who could minister to your heart in such a way that they made you feel like you were most important person in the world? A person who you could feel their love and care for your soul the moment you met them? I had a Christian studies professor like this who could call you into his office to tell you that you were failing a class and you could come out feeling like you won the lottery. We have all had these type of people in our lives: pastors, professors, teachers, Sunday school workers. What made these people different? It is evident that they are living in harmony with the Holy Spirit. Our passage uses the words peace and joy. When we allow the Spirit to permeate every part of our life in this way, not only will we be pleasing to God, but we will be cherished by others.

Re:Verse passage – Romans 8:26-27 (day seven)

I am in the midst of a DIY bathroom renovation… that began in May. Needless to say, I have a newfound appreciation for plumbers, electricians, handymen etc. The things that seem simple turn out to be projects in themselves. The most recent culprit: soldering the shower valve. I purchased a “Basic” Soldering Kit from the local hardware store. It claimed to have a trigger start that would light the torch for me. It worked! But the flame was too strong, so I turned it down… too far… the flame went out. I tried to restart it with the trigger,  but it wouldn’t stay lit long enough to be of use. Three trips to the hardware store later, I abandoned the trigger and settled for a manual start.

Driving back from the store I heard the Lord clearly, “When you become dependent on a mechanism to provide your spark, your flame will always burn out.” Trusting in events or programs alone to be the source of our spiritual well being will only result in a weakened flame. The Holy Spirit is sufficient. More so even, the Holy Spirit intercedes where I am insufficient. The Spirit is the spark that lights our flame and helps us to shine our brightest. Our mechanisms may change, but He stays the same!

Re:Verse passage – Romans 8:5-11 (day seven)

“However, you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. But if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Him.” vs 9

Notice what Paul does here. He interchangeably uses Spirit of God and Spirit of Christ to describe the Holy Spirit. He is helping shape the theology of a young church who may not fully understand a triune concept of God.  Two thousand years later, it still seems like a foreign concept sometimes, so it makes sense that Paul would emphasize this teaching. He is saying that Jesus is God, the Spirit is God, and the Father is God. No, the Bible never uses the exact word “Trinity”, but it is passages like this that help us shape Trinitarian theology.

So what does this mean for us in light of the passage? God loves you so much that He Himself became flesh and dwelt among us, and He Himself now dwells in you. As a Christian, you no longer belong to the flesh, you belong to Him!

Re:Verse passage – Romans 8:1-4 (day seven)

“Therefore there is now no condemnation”

When I talk with our young people about reading scripture, I tell them anytime there is a “therefore” in scripture, we must ask “what is the ‘therefore’ there for?” This will help us understand the context surrounding this verse, and therefore, understand the passage at hand more clearly.

What is this “therefore” there for? Paul is pointing us back to three things that he has covered thus far in Romans. One, the passage immediately prior to this in 7:23-25 where there is an exclamation of victory “through Jesus Christ our Lord!” Which also connects us secondly to 7:6 where Paul first outlines for us that we are released from the old law to “serve in newness of the Spirit.” Lastly and more broadly, it points us back to chapters 3-5 where Paul in detail explains salvation in Christ.

Therefore, entering into chapter 8, we can read the next several verses with a foreknowledge of the argument to be laid out. We are free in Christ Jesus because of the work He has done on the cross and the gift of the Holy Spirit.

Re:Verse passage – Acts 1:8 (day six)

“And after He had said these things, He was lifted up while they were looking on, and a cloud received Him out of their sight.” Acts 1:9

What a miraculous moment this must have been! Imagine all the emotions flowing through the disciples’ minds: Astonishment at the ascension. Confusion as to when the Messianic Kingdom will be established. Fear of the unknown. Excitement of the promise Jesus has given them. Frustration that Jesus has left them again. Peace that this was what Jesus said would happen all along.

“Nevertheless, I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you. But if I go, I will send him to you.” ‭‭John‬ ‭16:7‬ ‭

Jesus’ ascension wasn’t the end of this story. It was only just beginning.

Re:Verse passage – John 1:29-34 (day six)

^“John testified saying, ‘I have seen the Spirit descending as a dove out of heaven, and He remained upon Him.’” Vs 32

The Holy Spirit was not a new concept to the first century Christians. A glance through the Old Testament will show us that the Holy Spirit was active from creation onward. All through the Old Testament, men and women of God would be filled with the Spirit to complete extraordinary tasks. Many judges, kings, and prophets had encounters with the Spirit of the Lord, but it was always temporary. Here John tells us that the Spirit remained on Jesus. This is a game changer. The unity of the Godhead and humanity in this instant insinuates a constant variable that will become the driving force for our Christian faith; the Omnipresence of the Holy Spirit. Jesus’ righteousness allows the Spirit to abide in Him, and through the cross and resurrection, we are covered in the same righteousness allowing the Spirit to abide in us as well.

Re:Verse passage – Mark 11:11-19 (day seven)

Let’s do a crash course of post-exilic Israel; Persians conquer Babylon (remember Daniel?) and they allow a remnant of Israel to return to Jerusalem to rebuild the temple. The work is impressive, but the new temple does not live up to the expectations set by the previous temple. Something is missing. The people of Israel believe that it is the ornateness of the temple (see Ezra and Haggai). The people begin weeping and mourning over the temple, but God sends encouragement, “My Spirit is abiding in your midst; do not fear!” (Haggai 2:5). It was not the architecture or grandiose of the building that made it beautiful. It was the presence of the Spirit of the Lord. 

Fast forward 500+ years. Jesus stands and looks around at the same temple. Something is missing again. The Spirit had been neglected for monetary profit.  The Incarnate presence of the Lord has come to turn the tables, both literally and metaphorically, and return the focus of the temple back to the presence of the Spirit of the Lord.

Re:Verse passage – Mark 1:1-8 (day seven)

^” I baptized you with water; but He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”

When I am explaining baptism to our  young people who have expressed interest in taking that next step, I often show them my wedding ring. I ask them some simple questions, “What does this ring mean?” Usually that question is answered correctly, “It means you are married!” Then I proceed to take my ring off and ask a set up question that usually gets mixed answers, “What does it mean if I am not wearing my ring?” Sometimes they answer in confusion and say I am not married anymore. Sometimes they get it right. Either way they answer, I lead them down the same trail of thought: The ring is an outward profession of an inward commitment to my wife. If I take that ring off, I am still very much married to my wife. I made that commitment to her and nothing can take that away. I want the world to know my love for her, so that is why I wear my ring!

Baptism is the same way, it is an outward profession of an inward commitment to the Lord. We are baptized by the Holy Spirit inwardly, and we proclaim our decision to follow Jesus outwardly through water baptism. I pray that we have many of these conversations and we fill our baptistries with public proclamations of the work of the Holy Spirit in the coming days!