Thursday Devo
Scripture:
Matt 5:17
17 “Don’t misunderstand why I have come. I did not come to abolish the law of Moses or the writings of the prophets. No, I came to accomplish their purpose.
17 “Don’t misunderstand why I have come. I did not come to abolish the law of Moses or the writings of the prophets. No, I came to accomplish their purpose.
Commentary:
5:17 abolish the Law or the Prophets. The “Law” or “Torah” refers to the first five books of the OT, while the “Prophets” includes the rest of the OT, all of which was held to have been written by prophets (cf. Matt. 13:35, which cites Ps. 78:2; on “Law [and the] Prophets,” cf. Matt. 7:12; 11:13; 22:40; Rom. 3:21). but to fulfill them. Jesus “fulfills” all of the OT in that it all points to him, not only in its specific predictions of a Messiah but also in its sacrificial system, which looked forward to his great sacrifice of himself, in many events in the history of Israel which foreshadowed his life as God’s true Son, in the laws which only he perfectly obeyed, and in the Wisdom Literature, which sets forth a behavioral pattern that his life exemplified (cf. Matt. 2:15; 11:13; 12:3–6, 39–41, 42; also Luke 24:27). Jesus’ gospel of the kingdom does not replace the OT but rather fulfills it as Jesus’ life and ministry, coupled with his interpretation, complete and clarify God’s intent and meaning in the entire OT.
Questions:
- The first takeaway from Sunday was that it's ALWAYS been about Jesus. Stephen's lengthy sermon pointed this fact out as he talked about Abraham, Joseph and Moses. He made the point that at every turn in the Israelites history they have rejected everyone God sent, and they did it again with Jesus. Stephen's sermon contained many references to Old Testament Scripture, which is extremely common throughout the Bible. To illustrate this point, Brandon showed Bible visualization chart, shown below. It shows how the Bible speaks to itself; all the textual cross-references within it. Every book and chapter of Scripture can be seen along the bottom, and every colorful arc is a connection from one book to another... 63,799 of them. This is astounding given the fact that the Bible is a collection of 66 books and letters written by more than 40 authors over a period of about 1,500 years. And every bit of it, from start to finish, points to Jesus. Take a minute and just marvel at God's Word. When was the last time you felt gratitude that God gave us Scripture? When was the last time you thanked him for it?
- It is our prayer that our church family would fall in love with Scripture... value it, study it, let it transform them. Can you say that you LOVE God's Word? How often do you crave reading and studying it? How do we stir our affections for Scripture?
Prayer Topics:
- That you would be grateful for God's Word.
- That you would value it and have a newfound appreciation for it.
This Week's City 7:
Try to commit to memory!
3. Why did Jesus have to die on the cross? Since “all have sinned” and the “wages of sin is death,” Jesus had to die on the cross to pay the fine for my sin so I could be right with God.
(Romans 3:23, 5:8, 6:21-23, 2 Corinthians 5:21; Ephesians 2:1-6; Colossians 1:13-14, 21-22)
(Romans 3:23, 5:8, 6:21-23, 2 Corinthians 5:21; Ephesians 2:1-6; Colossians 1:13-14, 21-22)
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