For a description of the (Y2) reading plan, see the “About” page.
John 20
“As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.” What does that mean to you? How will you live as a “sent one” today? Jesus didn’t just send us to do a mission. He sent us to be witnesses. Everything about Jesus’ existence and presence with us was a testimony to God because God was in Him. He and the Father were one, so anyone who saw Him, heard Him, knew Him, and believed in Him, did so for God as well. This is how Jesus sent us. He sent us not so much to do something as to be something. Like Jesus, everything about us should point the world to God. This is possible because, just as Jesus was one with God, God likewise dwells in us through the Holy Spirit. So we have truly been sent just as Jesus was sent.
I think this is why Jesus ended this commission with the comment about forgiving people’s sins. Only God can forgive sin. So when Jesus said, “If you forgive anyone’s sins, their sins are forgiven” (Jn. 20:23a), He is indicating how God now works directly through us. We aren’t the ones forgiving sins. We simply bring God to others so that He can forgive them. However, if we aren’t living in faithful obedience to God, we become closed conduits, not allowing God to flow freely through us to those around us. Think about that. The scope of our surrender to God doesn’t just affect our lives, but the lives of everyone around us as well.
Mal. 1-2
How had they shown contempt for God? Is there anywhere in your life where you are offering God a blemished lamb, something less than your best? Wow – Malachi is a hard-hitting little book! I have a footnote that says that “Malachi” means “my messenger”. How very appropriate, since this book comes off as quite the precursor to Jesus’ teachings. Besides making several references to the worldwide scope of God’s plan, this little book really addresses the attitude transformation that God desires, a point we see Jesus fully stressing. As I just mentioned in John 20, belonging to God is not so much about doing as it is about being. I think the most telling statement of this comes from Malachi 2:15. “And what does the one God seek? Godly offspring.”
When we choose to follow Jesus, we become children of God. As such, we should bear a strong resemblance to Him. Children are to honor their father and mother because we are to honor God. Husbands and wives are to be faithful to one another because we are to be faithful to God. Husbands are to love and care for their wives and children because God faithfully loves and cares for us. When we fail to live Godly lives, we dishonor God because we make Him look like something He isn’t. To me, that is one aspect of taking the LORD’s name in vain. We claim to be His offspring yet we dishonor Him with our lives. If we insist on living for ourselves, it is contemptible for us to claim His name.
One last note – it is so fascinating to start seeing just how well the message of the entire Bible fits together. What I hear God saying through His messenger, Malachi, here is the same thing I hear Jesus, God’s Message, saying. This, in turn, is the same thing I hear Jesus’ apostles saying in their letters. And it is the same thing our lives should now be saying to the world around us. Because just as God sent Jesus, He sends us.