As iron sharpens iron,
one person sharpens another. (Proverbs 27:17)
“What are the facts that require explanation? Which explanation best accounts for these facts?
These two videos from William Lane Craig’s ministry, Reasonable Faith, provide an overview of answers to each.” - TGC
“God’s common grace mitigates the effects of sin that would otherwise overwhelm and direct the use of unbelievers’ abilities. Instead, these are often used for human flourishing and we all benefit.” - Ken Brown
“When you lay your head on your pillow every night, it’s as if you become ‘dead to the world.’ …you’re even lying flat and still on your back, eyes closed in a corpse-like posture. Then comes the morning.” - TGC
“I tried to show him that Jesus taught as if there was a discernible meaning in Scripture that could be known, agreed upon, and meaningfully communicated. He replied that this was only my interpretation.” - DeYoung
In 1956 Humphrey Bogart starred in one of quirkier movies, a comedy titled We’re No Angels. The year is 1895, it’s Christmas morning, and Bogart and two others are convicts on Devil’s Island, the notorious French penal colony. They escape that awful place and make their way to a coastal city in French Guiana and plot their next move.
As we enter into Palm Sunday and Passion Week, it is appropriate that we focus our attention on the discourse that Jesus gave His disciples in the Upper Room—most of it after Judas left (John 13:30)—on the night before His death.
I asserted in the previous installment that Jesus took this opportunity to reveal many new truths associated with the church age to His apostles.
“Jesus predicted in Matthew 12:39–40 that he would be in the grave for three days and three nights….Culturally, for Jews, it means part of one day, a full day, and part of the third day.” - Word by Word
“Here’s John 13:2: ‘During supper… the devil had already put it into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon’s son, to betray him.’” - John Piper
Read Part 1.
Let me offer two reasons why I believe mercy was the primary message communicated through Jesus’ gaze:
Jesus has been brought before the High Priest and the Sanhedrin. These Jewish leaders have secured false witnesses and charged Jesus with blasphemy. They proceed to beat him and spit on His face. During this time, Jesus is fully aware that His beloved disciple Peter has “followed at a distance” (Luke 22:54). He knows that Peter is among a group of spectators sitting in the courtyard (Luke 22:55). And when Jesus hears the rooster crow, He knows exactly what Peter has just done (Luke 22:59). Jesus turns completely around and, the text tells us, “The Lord looked at Peter” (Luke 22:61).
Discussion