ALPHA MAAMA (A.M.)

Friday January 6, 2017

“Trinity in trials”

16 And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever— 17 the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you. 18 I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you (John 14:16-18)

I.  Knowing is for Living

The most well known of Jesus’ sermons, are the Sermons of Mount. We took a brief look at some yesterday and how they reveal the characters of God in practical terms. We continue to examine other great sermons, such as Matthew 24 – 25; Mark 13 and Luke 21:5-36. These passages deal with “the Last Days” and are often referred to as “The Little Apocalypse.” In spite of how they have been interpreted in various ways in the history of the church, one thing is clear, Jesus taught them to enable them to live in a truly Christian way whatever the circumstances of their lives.

This is all the clearer in Jesus last sermon to the eleven gathered in the upper room. He is facing his own greatest crisis. He is troubled in the spirit (John 13:21). His disciples were also obviously under great pressure and in distress. Their hearts were also troubled (John 14:1, 27). What does Jesus do? How does he respond? Our Lord himself concentrates on what we would nowadays regard as the highest and grandest of Christian doctrines.

Jesus’ mind soars to the doctrine of the Trinity: I will ask the father, and he will give you another helper, to be with you forever, even the Spirit of truth (John 14:16 – 17). If you had known me, you would have known my father… Whoever has seen me has seen the father… I am in the father and the father is in need… (John 14:7, nine, 10). All that the father has his mind; therefore, I said that he will take what is mine and declare it to you (John 16:15).

The point to be underscored is that these great troops, which we tend to isolate into a category of doctrines, are in fact the very foundation of Jesus encouragement of his disciples and even himself in an hour of great practical need. For too many Christians for too long, ‘doctrine’ has been thought of as impractical, stodgy and relatively useless. I cannot obediently cheer our Lord (surely the most practical man who ever lived), if we turn away from his doctrine. For he teaches doctrine in order to fill our lives with stability and grace.

Challenge: Try to identify “doctrines” in passages of Scripture we are reading in the Bible reading plan. Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal His truth to you.

This Day in Christian History:

January 6 – “Look, young man! Look! Look to Christ!” This is what an unknown preacher in a small Methodist church said to 15 year old Charles Spurgeon. When he arrived home later, his mother exclaimed, “Something wonderful has happened to you.” Indeed, the young man who would become the “Prince of preachers” was born again!

Bible Reading Plan: (52 weeks; 5 days a week)

Week 1 – Catch-up read