Three appearings of our Lord Jesus in Hebrews

I am sure these thoughts will probably not be new to most people but as I have been looking at Hebrews recently I was reminded of these thoughts and thought I would share them here with you now. Here is the section I have been interested in:

Hebrews 9:24-28  For Christ is not entered into the holy places made with hands, which are the figures of the true; but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us:
Nor yet that he should offer himself often, as the high priest entereth into the holy place every year with blood of others;
For then must he often have suffered since the foundation of the world: but now once in the end of the world hath he appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself.
And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment:
So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for him shall he appear the second time without sin unto salvation.

I have been enjoying thinking of these in the following way; PAST, PRESENT, FUTURE.

PAST - There can be no doubting the fact that as verse 26 states, Christ has appeared in order to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself. This is incredible and should thrill us and encourage us as we live our lives for him! There was a time when God came down into this world, as a man amongst men! Great is the mystery of godliness (1 Tim 3:16) that God was manifest in the flesh... this indeed should never cease to amaze us! Our verse in Hebrews however tells us the reason why he came, to put away sin. Other verses reinforce this mission, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners (1 Tim 1:15) and indeed this was the reason for this first appearing - so that he might deal with the question of sin and make a way of salvation for us. As the verse tells us though, it involved the sacrifice of himself! Remember that the sacrifices of old were all about the shedding of blood, in order to answer the claims of God against sin. Leviticus 17:11 tells us that it is the blood that makes atonement for the soul, and so it is with the precious blood of our Lord Jesus Christ, which cleanses us from all sin (1 John 1:7). Of course the difference between these sacrifices is made clear in our verses, he only needed to appear ONCE to put away sin, this is a once and forever final act that does not need to be ever repeated! We are reminded again of the superiority of our Lord Jesus Christ and the perfect completeness of that work on the cross.

PRESENT - The great news for the believer is that today the Lord Jesus lives and is in the presence of God where he ever lives to make intercession for us (Romans 8:34), what a wonderful truth is this! Even today he is concerned with us, his people. This is his great occupation now, he appears in the presence of God on our behalf, where he gives us grace to help us in time of need and presents our prayers before God for us. Hebrews teaches us that he is our Great High Priest, and we should look through this book to learn more about what that means, it will certainly encourage us! I also find it lovely to think that our Saviour has passed into heaven itself, into the presence of God the place from where he had came. He returned home! He tells us in John 14 that he is preparing a place for us, those who have trusted in him for salvation, his blood-bought people.

FUTURE - I like that the Word of God distinguishes this third appearing from the other two. Not now is he appearing to deal with sin (like in the first) or to carry our burdens or intercede for us (as in the second), but now he appears to bring to full salvation those who are looking for and expecting the imminent return of the Lord Jesus. I certainly believe that this is referring to the Rapture, or the second coming of Christ, as outlined in 1 Thess 4:16-17 and as the lord himself promised in John 14:3. There is lots to cheer the believer here, as we have this lovely promise brought before us again - our future is with him! He is coming to take us home to be with him, surely there can be no better prospect than this?! Remember the words of Paul that he desired to be with Christ which is far better... We have a challenge here as well though, as the words in the AV rendered look for him should better read eagerly, constantly and patiently waiting for and expecting Him (AMP)... I wonder if we are truly marked by that eager expectancy, or by that daily state of mind that looks forward to his second appearing? This has been an immense challenge to me, as all too often the daily grind of life and the distractions of the world can easily overcome our spiritual vision and focus. Let us be challenged once again and set our lives in order, in accordance with that truth, that Christ is coming again, and quickly!

I trust that these few simple thoughts will be a blessing, challenge and encouragement to us all.

Yours in Christ, Mark.

Christ the spotless Nazarite

So this week I have been looking through Numbers chapter 6 and learning something about the vow of the Nazarite. It has been a really useful study with plenty of practical challenges about living a separated life for God and bringing him glory and pleasure through our walk and Christian life for Him.

However, from a devotional point of view I was thinking about how the Nazarite ultimately speaks of the Lord Jesus and in Him we see the perfect fulfilment of the Nazarite vow.

If we read Numbers 6 we will there realise that the ultimate purpose of the vow was to bring honour and glory to God. This was made possible by the individual following strict rules and showing tremendous discipline! It required human effort, willingness and endeavour in order to fulfil the law concerning the Nazarite.

Of course when we come to our Lord Jesus Christ we shall see that he did not need to vow the vow of the Nazarite in order to show his devotion to God. He did not need to strive from a human point of view to fulfil that Nazarite law, and there was no need for discipline or effort on his part to walk a pathway that brought pleasure and glory to God! He did this intrinsically because of who he was - the sinless, spotless Son of God. God manifest in the flesh! We love to remember that the Lord Jesus was daily his Father's delight, he did always those things that pleased the Father, and the Father was well pleased with Him. The life of the Lord Jesus brought infinite pleasure and glory to God!

However, we may remember that one of the Nazarite conditions was not to be in contact with or near any dead thing, even if it was close family that had suddenly died. This was because he would be defiled and made unclean. We recall that on several occasions the Lord Jesus was in contact with dead bodies, but praise God he could never be defiled or tainted by sin! Heb 7:26 tells us that he is "holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners..." 

I looked at just this one feature of the Old Testament Nazarite and found much that touched my heart concerning our Saviour. I am thinking now in particular of those 3 occasions recorded in the gospels, let's look at them briefly here now.


Remember there was Jairus' daughter (Matt 9, Mark 5, Luke 8), that 12-year-old girl tragically struck down in her young years. Here I am struck by the power and authority of the Lord Jesus. Remember that the Saviour spoke of her as being merely asleep, and the people laughed him to scorn for saying this. But to our blessed Saviour, her dead state was to him just as if she was asleep, he could easily awake her from death such was his power! It was God that breathed life into man in the first instance, now here he could restore life again just as simply! We remember the people who had once mocked the Saviour were now overcome with amazement! This same Jesus is our Lord and Saviour, he is powerful today and mighty to save and transform lives just as he did then.

Now I turn to Luke 7 and see that tragic scene at the gates of the city of Nain. Here the only son of a widow has died and is being carried out in the funeral procession. Notice how that nobody actually tells the Saviour the facts of this sad situation, he knows all things. He knew that this was the only son of this poor woman, he knew that she had also lost her husband and so would have known much sorrow, anxiety and concern for the future. He sees her, he has compassion on her, he reassures her and he touches the coffin. He restores to that woman her only son, he brings in life where death was, he gives her back her joy, comfort and support and hope for the future with just one act! Here I marvel at his wonderful grace and compassion, and surely this has been shown and bestowed upon us as sinners saved by grace!

Finally I look at John 11 and the raising of Lazarus, the dear friend of the Lord Jesus. Here I notice his deep love, for at the tomb of his friend he wept and the Jews commented "behold how tenderly he loved him!" (Amp). How this should move us and warm our hearts to see the Saviour who is all-powerful and knows all things, moved to tears as he contemplates the sadness and sorrow that sin has brought into the world. It touches the lives of everyone, and here the Saviour stands at the grave of his friend whom he loved dearly. I am reminded of such scriptures as "the Son of God who loved me and gave himself for me", "he loved them unto the uttermost", "greater love hath no man than this..." and "hereby perceive we the love of God..." Surely we have known, experienced and have come to appreciate the tremendous love of the Lord Jesus Christ! Praise God that he loved us and died for us at the cross of Calvary.

There at the cross we see that he "offered himself without spot to God" (Heb 9:14). The perfect example of the Nazarite - holy and sinless not only in his life, but also in his death, he offers himself as a perfect sacrifice for sin.

Let us kindle our hearts in thanks and praise for our blessed Saviour!

"A perfect path of purest grace, unblemished and complete,
was thine thou spotless Nazarite, pure even to the feet!"

Yours in Christ, Mark

New things

As we look towards another New Year my mind has been exploring some 'new things' that we read of in the scriptures. I hope these thoughts are encouraging and uplifting and may spark further study among you.

New doctrine - Mark 1:27

"And they were all amazed, insomuch that they questioned among themselves, saying, What thing is this? what new doctrine is this? for with authority commandeth he even the unclean spirits, and they do obey him."

Correctly rendered, the question is more of an exclamation; "what new or fresh teaching!". As we approach the end of 2012 and look to the year ahead, we do well to continually meditate upon the incredible earthly ministry of our Lord Jesus Christ. The people of his day had never seen anything like it! Time and again we read in the gospels that the people were 'astonished', 'amazed' or that they 'marvelled' in fact there are over 40 mentions of these 3 expressions alone. Shouldn't we ever be amazed by the life of our Saviour whilst down here upon this earth? His walk, his ways and his words, every facet was filled with power, purpose and authority. Surely testifying to that truth that here was one who is God manifest in flesh!

A new testament - 1 Cor 11:25

"After the same manner also he took the cup, when he had supped, saying, This cup is the new testament in my blood: this do ye, as oft as ye drink it, in remembrance of me."

There are several passages that relate the institution of the remembrance supper, and each brings out a subtle shade of meaning:

• Paul here brings out the remembrance aspect. When we gather on a Lord's Day morning, it is always to remember him, his person and his work. Sometimes we may dwell almost exclusively on his death on Calvary, or on our blessed position and our future in heaven with him, but Paul correctly reminds the believers that it is to remember him.


• Matthew in his account identifies the cup as speaking of his blood which was shed "for the remission of sins", and this too brings out another aspect. Remission means pardon, deliverance, forgiveness and all this has been made possible by the shedding of his precious blood.


• Mark says that it was "shed for many" and we should thank God daily that we are included in the many!


• Finally Luke brings a more personal meaning as his account says "shed for you" and this should move us as we hear the words of the Saviour to us personally. How it should move us to serve him and worship him with all the more dedication and fervour!

A new tomb - Matt 27:57-60

"And when Joseph had taken the body, he wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, And laid it in his own new tomb, which he had hewn out in the rock..."

This reference reminds us that the Saviour became despised and rejected by men, and suffered and died on the cross. However, throughout this tremendous event we as believers can rejoice in that we see God's will being carried out and fulfilled to the letter at Calvary! Nothing was done that should not have been, and all things were done that should have been. Matthew tells us that the new tomb was Joseph's own, fulfilling the prophecy found in Isaiah 53:9 "And they assigned him a grave with the wicked... yet he was with a rich man in his death" Surely here was a perfect work, finished and completed by our blessed Lord and Saviour. As we go into a new year we take heart in the fact that God's Word is perfect and endures forever, and his purposes will be fulfilled, always!

A new song - Psalm 40:3

"And he hath put a new song in my mouth, even praise unto our God"

Now finally as we close these thoughts my mind went to this verse in the Psalms, which reminds me of the daily occupation of worship and the joy that should be ours as we consider our Saviour and offer praises to God.

David, the sweet psalmist of Israel tells us 3 important things about the new song:

• It is FROM God - He has given us this new or fresh song, and has put it into our mouths.


• It is ABOUT God - the subject and character of the new song is spiritual, as the word song here means a psalm or a hymn and it is described as praise unto God.


• It is TO God - He is the object and recipient of the praise!

What a lovely thought as we celebrate the beginning of a new year - To be found meditating upon the person of Christ and occupying ourselves with the praise and worship of God! We have been given a new song when we came to know him as Lord and Saviour, so let us live with this in mind for 2013!

May God richly bless his people everywhere and may we all be encouraged and strengthened in our testimony, both collectively and as individuals.



Yours in Christ, Mark

Fire - first 3 mentions in Bible

Genesis 19:24-25 - God's judgement against sin

Interesting the first and last mention of fire in our Bible's is in relation to the judgement of sinners. In Genesis 19 God steps in and judges the sinful people of the plain, and in Revelation 20 and 21, the wicked and unrepentant are cast alive into the lake of fire, described as the 'second death'. I don't want to dwell on this today, only to say that we are reminded again that our God is holy and righteous and must and will judge sin!

But, it reminds us afresh that we live in a day of grace, for God has not intervened in our day as he did with Sodom and Gomorrah! The Bible says that "God is not willing that any should perish" despite the sin on every corner today - such is his long-suffering with man! It also reminds us that our Lord Jesus Christ has died to provide us with a way of salvation, so that believers now fear no condemnation, we have passed from death unto life. Christ bore that fearful judgement for our sin so that we would not have to! There is now no judgement or fire for the believer, praise God!

"Jehovah lifted up his rod; O Christ it fell on thee!

Thou wast sore stricken of thy God - There's not one stroke for me"

 

 Genesis 22:5-8 - Sacrifice and worship

Not now judgement, but the second fire reference speaks to us of worship and sacrifice as Abraham takes his only son Isaac up Mt Moriah with the fire in his hand, ready to offer him to God. God was testing the depth of his devotion, the question was would he withhold his only son, that which he treasured most? Abraham was willing to offer him, such was his love for his God.

The account points forward to the ultimate sacrifice in the giving of the Lord Jesus Christ, God's only Son on Calvary for us. Interestingly similar words are used: "He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all" - He was not withheld! What love was shown for us there at Calvary.

Bearing in mind our first point about fire - who can tell the fierce temperature of the flame there at Calvary? The magnitude and intensity of that all-consuming fire that was borne by our Saviour there at the hands of a righteous sin-hating God? He was 'made sin for us' and 'offered himself without spot to God'...

Exodus 3:1-4 - His presence and guidance

Here in the third mention in our Bible, the fire reminds me of another aspect of Gods character - his desire to be with us and speak with his people, guiding them daily. Here God appears to Moses and converses with him! Remember also that God led his people by night through the wilderness by a pillar of fire, assuring them of his presence and guidance - He did not leave them alone in the dark hours!

We remind ourselves of this for our mutual encouragement, in fact we often sing "he walks with me and talks with me along life's narrow way". No matter how difficult life gets, or how bleak the outlook may appear, remember that we have the assurance of God's presence with us and his guiding hand always.

Think about the situation in Exodus 3, the situation could hardly have been any bleaker - the people were oppressed, captive and in bondage in a land that was not theirs! All seemed hopeless, but it is at this time that God steps in and assures them of his presence and guidance. He had not left them, he still cared for them and had a purpose and design for his people! We do well to remember this when our spirits fail us, remember Romans 8 -

"Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified... Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?"

We trust these simple thoughts will be of blessing and encouragement to all.

Yours in Christ, Mark

The 7 Sayings on the Cross (3)

"Woman behold thy son! ...behold thy mother"

This is the third saying from the cross and I have twinned it with a recurrent comment from the foot of the cross, and one that was absolutely true:

"He saved others..."

His life was all about others, and so was his death both in terms of its sacrificial nature and that even on the cross the Saviour is here thinking of others. He turns to his mother and ensures that she is cared for and provided for in the days, weeks and months following the Saviour's death and eventual ascension.

We mentioned in our previous post that some people who were at Golgotha that day were affected for eternity, such as that thief on the cross. But in this instance we see that there were also individuals at the cross who were affected for the rest of their earthly lives, and here is such an example. How touching that in the most traumatic and sorrowful of circumstances there at the foot of the cross, these 2 individuals were brought together by the Saviour and given a solution that would bring them blessing for life! Here in this new relationship they would find comfort, solace, support and encouragement at a time when they would most need it.

I find it no coincidence at all that it is John who is chosen by the Lord for this particular task - was he not the 'disciple whom Jesus loved', the one who leaned upon the bosom of the Lord Jesus? John presents Christ as the Son of God in his Gospel, yet also understood something of his incarnation(John ch 1).  Mary also knew that He was the Son of God, as she had been told this from the very beginning (Luke ch 1) but of course she was also best placed to understand the fact that He was the Son of Man also, God manifest in flesh!

I am sure that Mary the mother of the Lord Jesus would have appreciated the close fellowship and encouragement of the one who had seemed most close to the Lord Jesus, who seemed to understand something of His character perhaps more than the others at that time. Together they would both be able to contemplate and consider the tremendous person and work of Christ!

Is it not true that the Lord does the same work for us today? When the Lord saves us we enjoy a new relationship, one that has been made possible through the work of Christ at the cross and one that affects us for time, not just for eternity! In our last post we appreciated the eternal significance of our salvation, whereas here we contemplate the new relationship that we have with him as our Saviour, enjoying fellowship and help, strength, encouragement and guidance in our daily pathway down here.

What a wonderful salvation is ours!

Yours in Christ, Mark

Impossible!

I've been enjoying 2 scriptures from Hebrews that tell us about 2 things which are IMPOSSIBLE.

"For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away sins" (Heb 10:4)

How wonderful it is for believers to appreciate once again that our sin has been fully dealt with once and for all by the Lord Jesus Christ at the cross of Calvary! Hebrews tells us all about this better sacrifice, and it should warm our hearts as we refresh our souls and consider it once again.

The writer to the Hebrews tells us that the Lord Jesus gave himself as "one sacrifice for sins forever" and again that he "put away sins by the sacrifice of himself". Amazing words, especially when we consider that our verse here tells us that no amount of sacrifices of bulls, goats or any beasts would take away sin or deal with its penalty or power. This was an impossibility! Nothing we could ever offer to God would deal with sin and make us right with God once and for all, nothing would fully satisfy the claims of a righteous and holy God against sin. The blood of sacrificed beasts would only cover sins for a season, this was never a permanent solution.

We thank God that there was a better and perfect sacrifice in the person of his beloved Son and Hebrews tells us that he "offered himself without spot to God". This was the difference, here was a perfect spotless sacrifice! The Lord Jesus was the Lamb of God, which was sent to take away the sins of the world (as John the Baptist correctly identified). The scriptures tell us that his precious blood cleanses us from all sin, so we can have every confidence that this once and for all sacrifice has fully dealt with our sins, as he has paid the price with his precious blood and we are saved, forgiven and redeemed!

"but without faith it is impossible to please him (God)" (Heb 11:6)

We realise as believers in Christ that we were (and still are) sinners, and as such we could never offer anything to God, and we have seen this already as Hebrews makes this very clear. Hebrews also illustrates the importance of faith, and this is the response God looks for in men and women today. To respond to that perfect sacrifice by repenting of that sin that took his Son to Calvary to bear it away and to turn to him putting faith and trust in Him!

We thank God for the day we realised we were sinners and that Christ had died for our sin and put faith and trust in the Lord Jesus Christ and his finished work at Calvary.

Day by day let us remind ourselves of these things and offer thanks and praise to God!

Yours in Christ, Mark.

 

Lessons concerning the ark (1 Samuel 6)

The ark is sent back by the Philistines following 7 months in their land. They send it back on a cart pulled by 2 dairy cows and it makes its way to Bethshemesh, west of Jerusalem. The men of Bethshemesh rejoice to see the ark return to them and show their joy by offering a sacrifice to God there and then using the cows and the wood of the cart.

There can be no doubting that this was an admirable and appropriate response - they were so glad to see that which spoke of the things of God again, that they spontaneously made sacrifices to God using the available materials to hand! They didn't wait, they didn't put it off, they didn't go home to do other things first! Their hearts were ready to worship there and then and they wouldn't let anything get in the way of that. This should speak to us today...

Are we slow to worship? Of course we are not solely talking about on a Lord's Day morning, for worship can be given at any time! Are our hearts in a state of readiness to worship?  Do we let other things get in the way of giving worship? Are we too lazy to worship, or to prepare to worship? Perhaps for the younger men who may be reading this - are you too self-conscious to worship publicly? Too concerned with what others may think of your contribution? Let me encourage you in this: prepare something simple, that your heart is taken up with and go for it. "Just do it" - as the Nike slogan says. If your nerves or insecurity is stopping you from publicly worshipping, then let me tell you, the best remedy is to take the plunge or forever sit in silence! What a tragedy this would be, but very sadly it happens.

[caption id="attachment_198" align="alignleft" width="264" caption="An aerial shot showing some ancient ruins at Bethshemesh"][/caption]

The attitude of praise from the men of Bethshemesh stands in stark contrast to what happened next. For some reason, which is not given or described, the men of Bethshemesh decide to look into the ark. Did they not know there would be consequences? Did they do it out of ignorance? Or did their curiosity get the better of them and cause them to knowingly disobey the commandment of God? We do not know, but the holiness and righteousness of God demanded that there be judgement for such a transgression, and he smote the men of Bethshemesh so that 50,070 lost their lives.

Here is what I learn from this; praise and worship is good and needful, but we must also be knowledgeable of God and his ways. We should always show reverence when handling the holy things of God and be obedient to his Word! What does Samuel later say to Saul in chapter 15:

"Hath the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams."

We do well to heed the lessons of 1 Samuel 6 - Worship is vital, it should be spontaneous, natural and also genuine and from over-flowing hearts. However we must also recognise that we deal with a holy and a righteous God when we come into God's presence, and we handle holy things when we handle his Word. But moreover, God values more than anything else obedience to his Word and a willingness to do his will, to honour him and put him first in our lives.

God give us help and discipline to put this into practice in our lives.

Yours in Christ, Mark

The 'thirds' of scripture... (part 1)

Greetings once again fellow believers, and thanks for visiting the blog! Recently I have been thinking about a series of references to 'third things' in the scriptures, in particular in reference to the Lord Jesus.

A third time - Matt 26:44

We read this verse and the preceding portion and it surely reveals something of the depth of suffering of the Saviour as he endured that agony in the garden of Gethsemane. "his soul was exceedingly sorrowful, even unto death"

We read that he took with him into the garden Peter, James and John and he charged them to "watch and pray with me". There was a desire for fellowship and companionship with his disciples! Yes there were times when he would be alone and there were things that they could not possibly share in, but the fact that the Lord wanted them with him teaches me this. The Saviour has always desired fellowship with his believing people, whether in the past while he was here, or in the present when he assured us of his presence with us in the gatherings "...there am I in the midst of them" A joyful thing to consider is that he wants us to be with him in a future day as well! "I will that they also, whom thou hast given me, be with me where I am; that they may behold my glory" What a wonderful prospect, that we shall be in heaven with him!

Unfortunately the disciples prove that men are far better at sleeping than they are praying, and the Lord returns 3 times to find them asleep. How true this is of us, we are far better at taking our leisure than concentrating our hearts and minds upon the Lord! On the third time, the Lord tells them that the time and opportunity for watching and praying with him was over for the time had come that he was going to be betrayed. This is solemn, the disciples had a unique and privileged opportunity to watch and pray with their Lord, yet they had missed out and now the opportunity was gone! We should be careful of this, as we too have a limited opportunity to watch and pray whilst we serve him down here, the day of grace will soon draw to a close and our earthly testimony will soon be over! The Lord takes delight in the simple things ("could ye not watch with me one hour?") can we do simple things faithfully for him down here? Let us challenge our own hearts.

The third hour - Mark 15:25

As we read this short yet solemn verse we marvel once again at the gospel writer's economy of words. Just 10 words are used to summarise the death of the Lord Jesus Christ! We remember with interest that John could tell us that limitless volumes could be written about the person and work of the Lord Jesus, but the death of the Saviour is here summarised in just 10 brief, simple words; "And it was the third hour, and they crucified him" The most significant event in man's history, when man took the very Son of God, the one who was God manifest in flesh and nailed him to a cross and put him to death!

Only Mark records the time that they crucified the Saviour, the third hour (9am). I find this poignant that the gospel writer most concerned with the movement and activity of the Saviour records the time of his final movement, his final act in going to the cross of Calvary.

We would remind ourselves afresh of the personal application of that third hour, when the Saviour gave himself for us, each individual that have trusted him and that read this blog now!

"Calvary, O Calvary,

Mercy's vast unfathomed sea!

Love eternal, love to me,

Jesus we adore thee"

 

Next time we will consider the final two 'thirds' that I have been considering, and we trust that this little study will profit us all, and cause us to praise God afresh and lift our hearts in exhortation and encouragement.

Yours in Christ, Mark

 

 

 

Jesus it speaks a life of love

The title is taken from a hymn ("Jesus! How much thy name unfolds")

These thoughts came to mind particularly last week when most of the world celebrated Valentine's Day, and it started me thinking about love and in particular in relation to the Lord Jesus. Of course as we review his life it should become abundantly apparent that it was characterised throughout by love and compassion. Let us encourage ourselves with a few devotional thoughts concerning the Saviour.

Think of his love for those who came to him looking for help and blessing, the countless miracles he would perform often on the poor and needy. Those who were among the lowest of Jewish society the Saviour would take the time to help them and transform their lives, because he loved them. On a number of occasions we see the love of the Saviour specifically mentioned towards an individual, a group or a multitude.

1. Think of his love for that man who came to him asking what he should do in order to inherit eternal life:

Mar 10:21  "Then Jesus beholding him loved him"

Here the Lord Jesus beheld that young man, so pious and eager to live a righteous life and because of this the Lord Jesus beheld him and loved him! But there was part of his heart that the Lord could see would never be his, as he loved his wealth and possessions.

2. Think of his love for the multitudes:

Mat 9:36  "But when he saw the multitudes, he was moved with compassion on them, because they fainted, and were scattered abroad, as sheep having no shepherd."

So often the Saviour would look out onto the multitudes and have love for them, and it was this that would motivate him to provide for them, both physically and spiritually.

3. Think of his love for his friends:

John 11:5+36  "Now Jesus loved Martha, and her sister, and Lazarus"

In the town of Bethany, there was a little home that was close to the heart of the Lord Jesus. He loved Mary, Martha and Lazarus, how lovely that the scriptures record this! His love for them would cause him to teach them, have fellowship with them but also to correct and rebuke them as in the case of Martha in Luke 10. The Saviour calls us his friends (John 15:14) an so he will have fellowship with us, teach us, bless us and correct us as he will! The Saviours love was visible and tangible though, as on this occasion visible evidence of his love was demonstrated as he wept by the graveside of his dear friend Lazarus. It caused the Jews to proclaim "behold how he loved him!" Surely his love touches our hearts, and also challenges us with regard to our fellow believers; do we love our fellow believers like the Lord loves us? Do we demonstrate it as the Lord did? Is it manifested and visible to all?

4. Think of his love for his disciples:

John 13:1 "...having loved his own which were in the world, he loved them unto the end."

The phrase 'unto the end' does not mean as you might think 'to the end of his time here on earth', but rather the meaning is 'to the limit or to the uttermost'. The idea is that he could not have loved them more! What a lovely thought to encourage us. Are we feeling low? Discouraged? Unloved even? For the believer in the Lord Jesus we can say that we are his disciples, and he could not love us more. This would point us towards his sacrificial death at the cross, and brings us nicely to our last consideration...

5. Think of his love for us individually:

Gal 2:20 "...the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me"

We remind ourselves of his love for us, matchless, boundless, unmerited, freely demonstrated for us in that perfect and complete death at the cross of Calvary. The scriptures put it best:

John 15:13  "Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends."

Let us ever be mindful of the love of the Lord Jesus Christ for us sinners saved by grace!

"It was for me, yes all for me,

The love of God, so great so free!

Of wondrous love, I'll shout and sing,

He died for me, my Lord and King!"

Yours in Christ,

Mark