Freedom in the King

April 24, 2022 Background Scripture: John 8:31 - 38 Lesson Passage: John 8:31 - 38 As a teenager, I recall being frustrated with some of the "rules of the house" that seemed appropriate for children but not for older youth. Many of us were restless as we entered those latter teen years while growing up at home. The one word that captured the essence of what we sought was "freedom". We wanted to feel free to explore life beyond the house. We had lots of unanswered questions. What is it like staying out to 2:00am, or 3:00am in the morning? What about those clubs for 18-year-olds and older—but they would let you slip in if you were 16? What about some of those alcoholic drinks? They must be tasty since people can't get enough of them. We learned within a few years that the freedom we desired was very different than the imagination of a teenager. There is a great responsibility that comes along with freedom, Teenagers are not prepared to be responsible young adults. As young adults with more bills than income, we longed for the true freedom of our parents' home. The desire for freedom is not quenched through experiences, whether they are good or bad. We just develop a healthy sense of the type of freedom that is appropriate for us. We don't get to go back and relive our youth. Life does not work in reverse. We apply lessons from the past and we refine our goals. As an adult, there is still a yearning for freedom. But we have refined our quest and we are careful as to where we seek freedom. This is the reason these eight verses that make up our lesson today are so important. For those who have accepted Jesus as their personal Savior, we have found the source of real freedom. Jesus clarifies for us the inward drive to seek freedom. We know intuitively that something has us in a state of bondage. As teenagers we thought it was the rules of the house that made us feel that way. As young adults we thought it was the lack of a sufficient amount of money that was the problem. As we mature in life, we move from one vain pursuit of freedom to another. Our slave master, sin, keeps us bound internally. Neither the absence of household rules nor an abundance of money is the answer to our quest. Our internal bondage needs an inward liberation that cannot be achieved through anything external. Thus, the Jews' response to Jesus about freedom only addressed the outer person. Jesus quickly corrected their shortsightedness. Jesus explained that their bondage was the result of sin within them. The sin that is part of human flesh controls the actions and agenda of all that are enslaved. We should remember that many desires that teenagers have for freedom involve activities that are immoral and sinful. That's because of the slave master who is setting the agenda. The internal bondage drives the desire for freedom. Jesus pointed out to His Jewish followers that their desire to kill Him was evidence of what He was saying to them. Sin was provoking them to do sinful things. Jesus told them the importance of continuing to follow His words as His students. Jesus was teaching them how to experience freedom even in the presence of sin. Jesus was around sin all the time, but He was never controlled or enslaved by it. He was teaching His Jewish followers the same thing. If they continued to heed His teachings, they would be His true disciples, or students. The truth embodied in Jesus' teachings would break the chains of sin's bondage. After those chains are broken, they would find true freedom in the King. Robert C. Hudson April 9, 2022

Resurrection of the King

April 17, 2022 Background Scripture: Matthew 27; 28:1 -10 Lesson Passage: Matthew 28: 1 - 10 "Sir, we remember, while He was still alive, how that deceiver said, 'After three days I will rise. ' therefore command that the tomb be made secure until the third day, lest His disciples come by night and steal Him away, and say to the people, 'He has risen from the dead.' So the last deception will be worse than the first." This is the statement made by the chief priests and Pharisees to Pilate the day after Jesus' crucifixion. This is the clearest evidence that the Jewish leaders understood exactly what Jesus had prophesied. They were also aware that Jesus had raised several people from the dead during his three-year ministry. They previously stated that Jesus could not do what He did except God was with Him. They understood doctrinally what Jesus was teaching and His miracles better than Jesus' disciples understood them. How could someone understand so much of what was witnessed and heard for three years and yet refuse to accept the reality of what it all meant? Simply put, their flesh rebelled against the things of God. They knew what they wanted, and Jesus' teachings were against what they wanted. They were shown favor and given certain privileges by the Roman government. Those temporary accommodations were preferred to the delayed blessings that were promised by God for eternity. They believed they could have both. They communicated with the local Roman officials to maintain their status, and they practiced piety and religious rituals to benefit them later. Jesus taught that their religious works could never earn them eternal life. God would only give them eternal life if they would put their trust and faith in the One that God sent to them. This was something they could not control or influence, and their flesh rebelled against it. They refused to submit to the word of God even in the face of overwhelming evidence that they understood. Jesus constantly reminded them that everything He did was according to the word of God that they already knew and taught the people. Jesus pleaded with them to come to Him and be saved. They steadfastly rejected it as being beneath them to submit to Jesus. Rather than submit to Jesus, they demonstrated their political influence by arresting Him and having the Roman government administer capital punishment for them. If they were right, that would have been the end of all of that. However, they remembered what Jesus had said about His death and resurrection. Their extra step of precaution was to have Roman soldiers stationed at the tomb to ensure that no one could go in and remove Jesus' corpse. What they could not do was have someone stationed inside the tomb to ensure that Jesus could not come out. If Jesus rises from the dead and comes out of the tomb, then all that He taught them was true. They knew that God was with Jesus because of the miracles. That meant that God had sent Him. But could God become a man? Could a man be the Son of God? If so, then He would be Israel's King as He had said. The Jews expected Israel's King to lead them to fight against their Gentile oppressors, Israel's King should have delivered them from the Romans. But He did not come to deliver Israel from the Romans. He came to deliver all nations from sin. To deliver Israel would require Jesus to pick up arms and lead them into battle. To deliver the world required Jesus to lay down His life as a ransom for many. Because Israel rejected Him, the nations of the world could now be saved. And God gave His divine approval through the resurrection of the King. Robert C. Hudson April 4, 2022

Passover with the King

April 10, 2022 Background Scripture: Matthew 26:17 - 30 Lesson Passage: Matthew 26: 17- 30 Oftentimes it's the company that we keep that makes all the difference as to whether a situation becomes a fond mem01Y. This is especially true when we set out to celebrate a special occasion. When this country elects a president, there are individuals who recall being in high school with them. Little did they know that that person was destined for greatness. Sometimes we see people's potential, but many times we don't. We are left to marvel at the outcome. This was no different for those who lived at the time of Jesus' ministry on earth. What those people thought of Jesus as they looked back at their interactions with him is a matter of their perspective. Hence, each account of the gospel provides a historical presentation of Jesus from a unique perspective. Today's lesson is taken from the gospel account recorded by Matthew. Matthew's account presents Jesus as a descendant of David and heir to the throne of Israel. As such, viewing the historical events recorded by Matthew from this perspective will often yield interesting insight. Matthew opens his account with a genealogy that connects Jesus' human roots to King David. That background gives a unique perspective on the final Passover meal Jesus shared with his disciples. The Law clearly stipulated that the Passover meal was to be eaten at home with family, or with neighbors if the number of persons in the household is too small to consume the Passover lamb. No doubt, the question Jesus' disciples asked him about where he would be eating the Passover meal stemmed from the fact that he had no place he called home for the previous three years. (Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head.) The question that was asked concerning where he would be observing the meal is evidence that he had eaten the Passover meal at different places during those years. His disciples did not know until during the meal that they were sharing the Passover meal with Jesus for the last time. Neither did they know the details of Jesus' human and divine connections. And it was days later before they began to understand the revelation of who Jesus is. He was, and is, as the wise men from the East had said, the one born king of the Jews. Jesus' revelation of his divine identity to his disciples made the evening even more memorable. The other Passover meals they had eaten with Jesus probably felt like a common experience to them. Jewish families were required by the Law to observe the Passover meal every year. Therefore, they did what the Law required of Jewish men to do. But there was a whirlwind of activities happening during this last observance. Jesus did not allow any of those distractions to take from the reverence and special nature of this supper. There were many things going on that evening and Jesus made sure that the location of their meal was kept secret until the evening as they came together. Only Jesus and two of his disciples knew where they would be that evening. Once they gathered for the Passover meal, Judas, his betrayer, now knew where Jesus would spend the evening. Before the meal ended, Jesus dismissed Judas from the gathering. Jesus and the remaining eleven disciples barely had time to finish the meal and enter the Garden for prayer before his betrayer led the lynch mob to him. Judas had completed his evil deed and Jesus was now in the hands of his persecutors. The other eleven disciples would look back on that evening and know with certainty that they had observed the Passover with the King. Robert C, Hudson March 10, 2022