We live in a culture enthralled with identity. It seems every group must assert its uniqueness to make themselves feel better. We take less pleasure in being part of the whole; we set ourselves apart to find purpose. Even the church can fall prey to this idea. Older folks avoid younger ones. Married couples avoid singles. We choose our favorite preacher and define ourselves by his doctrine.

The church at Corinth was just such a church. They were a divided group of believers who chose to emphasize their differences rather than celebrate what they had in common. This left them fractured, in conflict, and unable to maintain godly discipline.

Paul confronts this attitude by reminding them that they need to avoid acting in ways that are not in accordance with Scripture (v. 6). When it comes to biblical interpretation or application, what leader you identify with is immaterial. Choosing their favorite leader and identifying with him over another is a recipe for ungodly pride. The Corinthians needed to acknowledge that God created the difference. Everything they had was given by God. So, Paul reasons, if you received it, you should stop acting like you did not (v. 7).

Imagine a needy person boasting to another needy person about how good they are because they received more food from the food pantry. They both received what they have from someone else. “Already you have all you want! Already you have become rich” (v. 8)! There is no justification for boasting! The antidote to the divisiveness of an overemphasis on identity is to remember that everything we are and everything we have is from the Lord. He gets the glory for all of it!

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Epic adventures often involve multiple story lines. While the main characters are consumed with the central conflict, along the way we see seemingly lesser characters face challenges and trials. Keeping track of multiple storylines can be difficult, but a master storyteller can keep a reader’s interest until the time is right, finally revealing how all these threads weave together into a dramatic conclusion.

As the Apostle Paul opens the book of Romans, he takes a moment to explain how God has woven the overarching story of salvation into a conclusion beyond comprehension.

The Apostle Paul begins by acknowledging the part he plays—as one “set apart for the gospel” (v. 1). But the message of the gospel did not originate with Paul. This gospel was promised long ago by God through the prophets (v. 2). The Scriptures were written “through his prophets” for later generations (including us) to read, pointing to Jesus, a descendant of David (vv. 2–3). Jesus was born a human but revealed to be the Son of God at the resurrection (v. 4). The story of salvation is an epic one that stretches from before God made the world to the moment we find ourselves in His presence forever. God has woven the thread of your life and countless others into something wonderful and powerful.

Paul explains how he was made an apostle for a specific purpose, to call Gentiles to obedience to the Lordship of Christ (v. 6). He is “eager to preach the gospel also to you who are in Rome” (v. 15). There is a sense of community in this calling; our stories are intertwined. Paul desires “that you and I may be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith” (v. 12). We are to declare the gospel, “the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes” (v. 16).

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When composers create music, they do more than just write notes on a page. They compose with specific instruments in mind. While we may hum the melody of a piano concerto, it was not written to be hummed. It was written to be played by an orchestra. Each instrument is chosen with intention and follows its own score while the hand of the composer controls.

In the years after Christ ascended, the church grew. They also faced harsh persecution (Acts 8:1). New believers were imprisoned and even killed. It would have been easy to assume the risen Christ had abandoned His flock. But He was at work in ways they could never have comprehended.

Saul, a leader among the Jewish community, obtained orders to arrest Christians in Damascus (Acts 9:1–2). He was “breathing out murderous threats against the Lord’s disciples” (v. 1). But God had other plans. While Saul was en route to that city, he was confronted by the risen Christ: “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?” (v. 4).

Blinded by this encounter, Saul was sent to meet a Christian named Ananias. But Ananias was reluctant to welcome him (v. 13). So, Jesus revealed his plan for Saul: “Go! This man is my chosen instrument to proclaim my name to the Gentiles and their kings and to the people of Israel” (v. 15). Notice how Ananias’s attitude changes as he addresses this man, once a feared enemy, as “Brother Saul” (v. 17).

God had selected Saul, who was later called Paul (see Acts 13:9), for a specific purpose. Until now the gospel had spread among Jewish people, and Jesus would use Paul to take it to Gentiles. Like an instrument chosen by a composer for its unique sound, Paul would serve the design of the Master Composer.

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Renowned artist Leonardo da Vinci was known for procrastinating! His most famous incomplete work was the “Adoration of the Magi,” which he was commissioned to complete in 30 months. But progress on his 7-foot-tall masterpiece stopped when Leonardo moved to Milan to pursue another offer. It remains unfinished to this day.

From our study of Scripture, we know that God always finishes His plans (Phil. 1:6). And as we come to the end of Jesus’ ministry on earth, we need to appreciate these final movements in the grand plan God set in motion before the foundation of the world. God decided He would redeem this fallen world through the death of Christ. What we witness at the crucifixion is the moment where this plan comes together.

After being betrayed and enduring hash treatment at the hands of the Jewish leaders and Roman soldiers, Jesus was crucified. This too was a part of God’s plan. The prophet Isaiah and others foretold that Israel would know a servant who would suffer on their behalf. He would bear their transgressions and iniquities (Isa. 53:5). Jesus did the will of the Father throughout His ministry, obedient to the point of death. “I have bought you glory on earth by finishing the work you gave me to do” (John 17:4).

While on the cross Jesus was aware that the end was near. He gave up His life according to the will of God. His final words, “It is finished” (19:30), were a statement not of defeat but of victory. His work was complete. Sin was defeated. All that remained was victory. Three days later, the Father would raise Him from the dead, the first fruits of those who would believe in Him.

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Social media influencers are a big deal in today’s culture. These individuals have huge followings on their social media, and brands pay to have them promote their products on their channels. While this new method of advertising has been very successful, the influencers can’t force their followers to do what they say. They can only suggest; they have no authority to require obedience.

As Jesus traveled the land of Israel, Luke records that He began to draw significant crowds (v. 17). People came for various reasons: some to see miracles (v. 18), others for healing, and still others hoping Jesus would start a revolution to drive out the Romans. But Jesus wasn’t interested in status or numbers. He was interested in changing hearts, so He challenged His audience to obey Him!

In Luke 6, Jesus rebuked those who made a pretense of calling Him Lord but didn’t do what He said (v. 46). This hypocrisy is foolish. The Light of the world stood before people and taught them, but instead of obeying, they disputed Him. To press His point, He used an illustration of a builder who built his house on the solid foundation of rock (v. 48). This person is like one who does what Jesus says to do. The one who does not obey, is like a foolish person who built a house on sand. They lost everything—“it collapsed and its destruction was complete” (v. 49).

Jesus’ point is clear. He did not come to earth as an influencer. The Son of God came to earth with a message to be obeyed. It is common today to suggest that Jesus was a nice Jewish Rabbi. But we must not forget that He was also an authoritative Teacher. His words required obedience. His most important teaching? The “good news of the kingdom of God” (Luke 8:1).

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Jesus was not whom most people expected. Mark’s Gospel paints a portrait of Jesus that looks more like a servant than the redeemer God’s people had anticipated for hundreds of years.

But we know that God’s ways are often not our ways. The Gospels record that, according to God’s plan, the second Person of the Trinity became a man, Jesus, and lived among people. They were able to observe His actions and hear His teaching. While many regarded Jesus as the long-anticipated Savior of Israel, they also hoped He would be the one who would drive the Romans from their land and restore their kingdom. This would be a glorious future, and they hoped their lives would change for the better as their leader ascended to power. But Jesus had a different mission, one that embodied service and, finally, the ultimate sacrifice.

In the Gospels, Jesus taught these values to His disciples and followers. When it became clear that two of His disciples, James and John, were thinking of themselves and not of Jesus’ mission, He corrected them. While they may have been used to powerful leaders who held their authority over others, they were to live differently (v. 42). Jesus was modeling a different way, using His power to serve others. Greatness in God’s kingdom would be achieved by serving those in need (v. 43).

By invoking the title Son of Man for Himself, Jesus drew a connection to the book of Daniel where the second Person of the Trinity appeared as a man and received power, authority, and a kingdom (Dan. 7:13–14). Jesus was saying that even the God-Man did not come to use power for Himself, but for those He came to serve. His ultimate service would be to give His life, so that many would be saved from their sins.

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Watching buildings under construction is an exercise in waiting. At times it seems like nothing is happening. Construction vehicles come and go but no structure rises above the ground. Finally, the building pokes out. Then things slow down again as work progresses out of sight. Suddenly, one day, people are living there!

Today, we begin our journey through the New Testament. After 400 years without direct revelation, God’s plan to redeem our broken world seemed not to be going anywhere. The Jewish people had returned from exile and found themselves in their homeland, but without a king and without significant blessing. They struggled with faith. The idolatry was gone, replaced by religiosity that needed a heart change. Then suddenly, God’s plan entered its next phase.

We begin the Gospel of Matthew, where the angel Gabriel appeared to Mary and informed her that she would participate with God in a miraculous way. She had been chosen to give birth to a child who would “save his people from their sins” (v. 21). This is the first of many moments in the New Testament that directly answer events of the Old Testament. In Genesis, Adam and Eve sinned, plunging the world into darkness, but Jesus (His name means Yahweh Saves) will undo the consequences of that early disobedience. Sin was humanity’s greatest challenge! Prior to this moment Israel relied on sacrifices that couldn’t completely atone for their sins. Now God would offer a sacrifice that would put sin away forever.

To remind his readers that this was always the plan of God, Matthew quotes the prophet Isaiah who predicted that the miraculous birth of a Son would signal God’s presence with Israel to deliver them. Like the grand opening of a building, the next step was finally here!

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The last few days of a semester are more important than my students realize. The final weeks present an opportunity to tie up loose ends, clarify concepts, and summarize the big picture. And as we come to the end of our grand tour of the Old Testament, the Bible returns to a major theme: God intends to undo the damage done in the garden.

Malachi reminds Israel that the promised Messiah will arrive on the scene (v. 1). But He will not telegraph His visit. He will appear suddenly, with surprise. His appearance will signal God’s commitment to the covenant He made with Israel. Long ago God bound Himself to His people by making a promise never to abandon them, but to redeem them. That redemption will require purifying them to make them fit to be with Him.

So, the coming of this messenger will be accompanied by a great refinement (v. 2). Using the image of a furnace for refining metal or a launderer with strong soap, God declares that no one will escape the purifying process. He will start with the Levites, who facilitated Israel’s sacrificial worship system (v. 3). If the worship team is sinful, the offerings they bring will be unworthy. But thankfully, God would refine them.

This refining process would involve a confrontation, a reckoning. Using judicial language, Malachi announces that evildoers would be put on trial (v. 5). It would be easy to dismiss this passage as yet another description of judgment on Israel, but there is more here. Coming as it does at the end of the Old Testament, it leaves us with the hopeful expectation that our sin problem will be finally dealt with! Even at the end, God is not done with Israel.

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