Jesus is Calling You

The New Testaments books of 1st and 2nd Corinthians were written by the Apostle Paul while he ministered in the city of Ephesus. It was in the city of Corinth that Paul met his dear friends Priscilla and Aquila who were fellow tentmakers and opened their home to him. Paul stayed in Corinth for over a year reasoning with the Jews and Greeks in the synagogue in an attempt to teach them about Jesus. And it was in Corinth, after the Jews became abusive towards him, that he resolutely declared that he was cleared from their future condemnation and would instead spend his efforts in declaring the Gospel to the Gentiles. While Paul was in Ephesus reports had come to him about trouble the young church in Corinth he founded was having. Divisions and arguments were straining the fellowship of the church and there were unaddressed sins to be dealt with. It is in 1st Corinthians we learn of the church's call to judge fellow believers who are caught in sin, and let God judge those who are outside of the Christian faith. And in Chapter 13 of the first letter to the Corinthians we learn what true love looks like in practical application. Reading the Bible is different than reading any other book. It is more than a narrative about God, it is more than a story of broken individuals and the trials they faced. It is more than a set of rules and regulations. It is even more than a love letter. It is the very essence of Jesus. It is about Him, but there is more than that. It is God's conversation with us. It is alive. It is active. It is a 2-way conversation.

This second book in the New Testament was written by Mark, also called John Mark, who is the cousin of Barnabas (Colossians 4:10). Mark travelled with the Apostle Paul and Barnabas on their evangelistic journeys and then, for reasons not mentioned in Scripture, abandoned them to return home to Jerusalem. Because of this act Paul was adamant that he would not accompany them on any future trips. Perhaps it was the family tie, or his compassionate heart, but Barnabas vehemently disagreed with Paul on the matter and the two men decided to part ways in their evangelistic ministry (Acts 15:39). Although he never mentioned the matter in his text, we can learn much from Mark's situation. The Gospel of Mark was likely written around 70 A.D. which, from a historical perspective, is almost immediately after Jesus' resurrection. Mark purposefully leaves out details of Jesus' birth and His genealogy, as his intended audience were likely Romans instead of Jews, and instead he jumps right in to Jesus' ministry. Of the four Gospels, Mark is the shortest and has been called The Gospel on steroids for Mark's use of the word, "immediately" (37 times in the Easy to Understand, Read Bible), in describing the acts Jesus performed. Reading the Bible is different than reading any other book. It is more than a narrative about God, it is more than a story of broken individuals and the trials they faced. It is more than a set of rules and regulations. It is even more than a love letter. It is the very essence of Jesus. It is about Him, but there is more than that. It is God's conversation with us. It is alive. It is active. It is a 2-way conversation.

During the Apostle Paul's third visit to the city of Corinth, around 57 A.D., he took time to write a letter to a group of Christian believers in Rome that he had never met. The letter, known as the book of Romans in the New Testament, is arguably one of the greatest letters we have from the Apostle. In 16 chapters the Apostle explains righteousness in four ways: Our need to be righteous; How righteousness has been provided for us; How we are forgiven by righteousness; and How righteousness is practiced. Romans lays out a roadmap to show non-believers the steps to be being reconciled with God and obtaining salvation. This roadmap, often called the Romans Road to Salvation, tell us that everyone has sinned, the penalty of sin is death and that by God's gift we may have eternal life. Reading the Bible is different than reading any other book. It is more than a narrative about God, it is more than a story of broken individuals and the trials they faced. It is more than a set of rules and regulations. It is even more than a love letter. It is the very essence of Jesus. It is about Him, but there is more than that. It is God's conversation with us. It is alive. It is active. It is a 2-way conversation. When we need wisdom, insight, guidance, how do we hear what God is saying to us? God has given us the Bible. It's a powerful and intimate way to listen to Him and it is the primary way God tells us about Himself. In Jesus is Calling You one or more books of the Bible is presented with steps to hearing from God, the plan of salvation and growing in faith. It is my prayer Jesus uses these books to help you hear Him.