Day: October 17, 2018

Friends, we have completed four
topical devotion series on Praying
through God’s Promises, Knowing,
Thanking & Praising God as well as
a two-year chronological coverage
of the Bible. Before starting an
expanded three year exposition
on the Bible in January, today
we launch the fifth topical series
on Praying through the Gospels.

The Gospel is the good news that
God in Jesus Christ has fulfilled
His promises to Israel, and that a
way of salvation has been opened
to all. But the Gospel is not just
about salvation in terms of eternal
and abundant life, it also about
the power of God and much more.
We will learn more of what the
Gospel offers and what it entails
to live out the Gospel as we
mediate on the four gospels.

Dear Almighty & All-Loving God,
I pray even as Yr People meditate
on the holy and precious Gospel
that Your Spirit minister to their
soul and Will Energise them;
that they Will Experience
the blessings of a praying life;
that their Faith Will Arise and
they Will Trust & Obey You more
each day. In His name, Amen.

The Gospels present a four-
dimensional glimpse of Jesus
the Christ. Matthew, a Jew, aims
his words at a Jewish audience,
showing from the Old Testament
prophecies that Jesus is their
promised King and Messiah.
Mark seeks to reach a Roman
audience with the Good News
of Jesus the Perfect Servant,
come to minister to the spiritual
and physical needs of mankind.
Luke the physician portrays
Jesus as the Perfect Man
who seeks and saves the lost.
John beams his message to
all mankind, showing from Jesus’
miracles and messages that
He is clearly the Son of God.

We start with the Gospel of Mark
for it’s agreed by most biblical
scholars as the first gospel to be
written; of which Matthew & Luke
partly referred to in their account.
Mark’s gospel captures the two-
fold purpose of Christ’s coming
to earth: to minister and to give
His life a ransom for many (10:45).
Mark describes Jesus as the
Perfect Servant, emphasising
more the actions of Jesus & gives
briefer treatment to His teachings.
Jewish customs are explained as
story moves briskly to completion
of Jesus’ earthly life and ministry.

We will cover Mark Gospel in
two weeks over five divisions:-
M1-3: Servants of the Servant
M4-7: Service of the Servant
M8-10: Sayings of the Servant
M11-13: Sermons of the Servant
M14-16: Suffering of the Servant
May Jesus’ example cause us
to be willing to serve God and
others. And we’ll do God’s work
because we love Him, remembering
all He had done for us. Amen.

We have been Chronologically
covering the Bible phase by phase.
We start the Gospels, with Jesus
presented as the Perfect Servant,
Savior of the world, Messianic King
and the Son of God, before Acts
chronicles Growth of the Church.
Then Paul urges the Galatians to
live by Faith alone, Thessalonians
to Serve ahead of Second Coming,
to Corinthians to Live Rightly,
to Romans Justification by Faith,
to Eph Living as Body of Christ,
to Colossians Doctrinal Purity and
to Philippians Unity of the Spirit;
before Paul’s pastoral letters and
then pursing Maturity in Hebrews,
Practical Christianity in James,
Maturing thro tough times in 1/2Pet
Walking in Love in the 3 letters of
John & Keeping the Faith in Jude.

And finally we reach Revelation.
Just as the first book of the Bible
– Genesis – provides the opening
chapter of God’s redemptive
program, so the last book supplies
the conclusions as it describes
the return of Jesus Christ and
the creation of a new heaven
and earth. Revelation portrays
Jesus Christ as the victorious
King and coming Judge. Writing
from exile on the Island of Patmos,
John uses a dramatic series of
symbolic word pictures to capture
the awesome holiness of the
Lamb of God coming to defeat
Satan’s forces and judge the
world in perfect righteousness.

We will cover Revelations over
two weekends in four divisions:-
R1-3: God’s Word to 7 Churches
R4-7: Worship God & 7 Seals
R8-16: 7 Trumpets & 7 Plagues
R17-22: Final Victory & All New
Lookout for them to understand
the holiness and hope in Christ.
Blessings/chris