Posts by Jonathan Rodriguez

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John 15

In this passage we come to the last of the seven I am statements. Jesus says, “I am the true Vine.” Jesus uses this illustration to teach his disciples what the only way of bearing fruit comes from. Here are two things to notice....

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John 9

Amazing grace! How sweet the sound, that saved a wretch like me! I once was lost, but now I am found, WAS BLIND, BUT NOW I SEE. In December of 1772 John Newton started to write the song that is so well known, Amazing Grace. I am not aware of every verse that inspired John Newton to write this song, but I do suspect that John 9 could have been used. If it wasn’t, it is st...

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John 7

Today we come to one of the celebrations of Israel that holds much significance for us today. Let’s dive in....

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John 1

Today we come to the pilot episode of creation. Do these words sound familiar to you, “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” What came first, the Word or the heavens and earth? The apostle John starts this gospel account with a direct parallel account of creation. W...

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Jude

Today we come to the book of Jude, which is a book that is overlooked most of the time along with Philemon, and 2 & 3 John. Many scholars believe that the writer was the brother of Jesus, meaning that he was born from Mary, and it also seems like Jude main audience is Jewish due to the amount of Old Testament references he uses. This book has some unique things in it like ...

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James 4

One of the things I have been learning recently is how quickly the Lord can humble us. One moment I can feel strong and able and in a swift moment the ability to do things for myself is taken away for a season. It is truly humbling to know and remember how frail we are as humans even though there are moments when we think we are on top of the world. One of the main things ...

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James 2

This chapter at first glance seems like it will contradict the teaching of justification in faith alone because of what James says in verses 14-26. James is not teaching something contrary to scripture, but I think what can be summed up is the commandment to “love your neighbor as you love yourself.” Taking the chapter as a whole, I think that loving your neighbor as y...

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Philemon

Philemon is the third shortest book in the New Testament and being that we are covering the entire book in one shot I will write a little longer than usual. Philemon is probably a man that is wealthy, first because only wealthy people had enough room in their houses to gather multiple people, secondly because he owned a slave. I think it is important to keep in mind that s...

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Hebrews 12

I think there are very few people who would say that they enjoy it when they are disciplined. I remember being disciplined as a child and it was not fun. That is because being disciplined is uncomfortable and it hurts. Even though it is an uncomfortable thing, we see in this chapter how good it can be through the eyes of God. Here are three things that discipline does....

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Hebrews 10

If you remember from the first notes, I sent out on Hebrews we establish that this book has an emphasis on Jesus being THE High Priest. The writer of Hebrews continues by showing us the importance of the sacrifice. We know that every year on the day of atonement the high priest would enter the most holy place, make an animal sacrifice, and then sprinkle the blood of the an...

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Hebrews 6

No matter how big a ship is it will still require the use of an anchor. The size of the ship does not matter when it comes to mother nature and the strength of the ocean's current or the winds that blow in storms. Anchors are used to keep a ship on course and to keep it in the same place when the ocean and wind are trying to move it in the opposite direction. In this chapt...

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Hebrews 4

One thing that you will notice through the book of Hebrews is a big focus on the office of priest. Jesus is often referred to in this book as the high priest. If you are familiar with the Old Testament, you will know that the office of the high priest was the most important role/job within the Israelite community. ...

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Hebrews 2

This chapter of Hebrews is very humbling, for two main reasons, it shows us the humility of Christ and it shows how much God is mindful of us....

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Colossians 4

I am sure you have heard this expression before “Take it with a grain of salt.” When people use this phrase, usually it is used to tell someone not to take what someone says too seriously. This expression may not seem so bad, but in reality, this is not something we want people to say about us when we talk to others. Let me explain....

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Colossians 2

Within the human race there is a natural tendency toward self-righteousness and legalism. As humans we like to make rules and regulations that we think will give us some type of credibility or gain some favor from God. Even though we might not say it out loud, the way that we live shows it clearly. Sometimes we may even equate someone with being a mature Christian because ...

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Philippians 4

We have come to an end to this short but rich letter. There are two things that Paul mentions in this chapter that I think we all struggle with… Anxiety and contentment. Anxiety is a worry or fear we have of something that might take place in the future, while contentment is a present state of satisfaction with how things are. Most of us when we think of anxiety don’t ...

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Philippians 2

When you consider the fact that Jesus came down to live among us, what do you think about? Do you think about his great love for us? Do you think about his mercy and grace that he has toward us? These are all wonderful things to meditate on because they are all true, but how many times do we think about the deep humility of Christ by adding a human nature to himself? ...

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Ephesians 6

It is highly probable that when Paul wrote this he was actually chained up to a Roman soldier. That means that Paul was able to carefully study the soldiers gear, armor, and weaponry and to use it to describe how we as Christians should gear up. We will take a very very brief look at each piece of equipment mentioned because there can be long studies on each piece of gear....

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Ephesians 4

In verse one, Paul urges us to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which we have been called. In other words, Paul is telling us to lead a life that is in step with God’s grace, to be governed by the Spirit, and to lead a life that is consistent with the implications of the gospel. This may sound simple to do, but in reality, we fight every day to walk in such a ma...

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Ephesians 2

Ephesians 2 - June 23rd In biblical history there has always been a dividing wall between Jews and Gentiles. Gentiles are those who are everyone of different nations, people, language, tribe, that are not Jews. That means that all of us who are not Jewish fall into that category. So, if you and I lived in the era of the Old Testament, we would not be able to take part in ...

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Galatians 6

One of the things I have been encouraged by is seeing time and time again how Paul roots all of his theology back to the gospel. Chapter 6 is a practical picture of someone who is living by the Spirit and not the flesh, which was rooted in the gospel (vs) 5:24 says “and those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.” The way th...

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Galatians 4

If you notice in this chapter Paul takes a very parental approach when addressing the Galatian church. That is because he deeply cares for their soul, and he sees the dangers of turning to legalism. We will divide this into two parts....

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Galatians 2

The integrity of the Gospel...

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Romans 16

We have come to the end of this theologically rich book, what I will do today is start with the last verses of the chapter and work my way back to the beginning from the end....

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Romans 13

What we will see in Romans 13 are three exhortations that Paul gives to the Roman church and for all Christians. This is a continuation of the marks of a Christian that Paul started in chapter 12. The three exhortations are as follows....

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Romans 11

The Doxology...

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Romans 7

Released from the Law...

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Romans 4

The nature of faith...

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Romans 2

Both Jew and Greek have no excuse for their sin and God will judge all because he shows no partiality...

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Matthew 28

The Resurrection...

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Matthew 26

The Steadfast love of Christ...

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Matthew 24

No one knows the day...

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Matthew 22

We are image bearers of God...

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Matthew 20

Sovereign generosity...

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Matthew 18

Jesus does not make light of sin...

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Matthew 16

But who do you say that I am?...

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Matthew 14

Three things we can observe in the person and work of Christ...

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Matthew 6

Issues of the heart......

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Matthew 4

Two Parallels that are shown in the temptation of Jesus in the wilderness....

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Matthew 2

Jesus Birth...

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Acts 15 - August 15

Paul and Barnabas had just returned from their first missionary journey and were giving reports to the church in Antioch that had sent them out. In verse 1 of chapter 15 it says, “But some men came down from Judea and were teaching the brothers, ‘Unless you are circumcised according to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved.’” This verse is the beginning of a lon...

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Acts 16 - August 16

Today we are covering Paul’s trip to Macedonia. Many events have taken place in this chapter but, if I can sum it up in one sentence it would be God’s providential plan for our lives is much better than what we can plan. Brian Davis, a pastor at Del Ray Baptist church, in the opening of his sermon on this chapter says, “God often says no to very good things.” Which...

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Acts 17 - August 17

Today we will be focusing on verses 16-34. Paul is now in Athens, the capital city of Greece. Athens was a city known for its religious idols and devotion, for its intellectualism, and as you can guess its philosophical culture. According to Paul there were many statues of gods and goddesses all around. This was an extremely pagan city that Paul was in. There are a few thi...

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Acts 18 - August 18

Today we see Paul’s missionary trip to Corinth. It is here where Paul meets the famous Priscilla and Aquila people mentioned a few times in the New Testament. They had come from Italy (shout out to the Loverde’s). What we have in this passage are normal things that we have seen in other passages. We see Paul pleading with the Jewish community, making his case from the ...

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Acts 19 - August 19

Growing up in a Pentecostal church, many times people would refer to the miracles of Paul where they would take his handkerchiefs or aprons and touch other people with it to be healed. Which is what we see in this chapter. They would try to reenact those very things. There are two issues with that; Firstly, Paul and the twelve disciples had apostolic authority that was giv...

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Acts 20 - August 20

Has there ever been a time where you had to say goodbye to a person you would never see again? The emotions that come with that are overwhelming, and that is what we find in verses 17-36. Paul is being led by the Holy Spirit to return to Jerusalem and he calls the Ephesian elders to come meet him at Miletus. Keep in mind that from the time that Jesus departed from the disc...

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