Page 8 - The MacArthur Daily Bible

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FIFTY-TWO KEY PASSAGES OF THE BIBLE
reveals that penetrating insight into our souls. Yes, everyone who puts their trust in Jesus Christ that sin
the Bible knows how to build us up, but it also knows is paid for.
how to convict and unmask our hypocrisy, how to cut
into our pride and self-will, how to uncover our secret Week 7
sins. But wherever God cuts, He heals, and whatever
Being confident of this very thing, that He who has
He reveals, He cleanses. And it’s that kind of cleans- begun a good work in you will complete it until the day
ing that makes me able to bear more fruit to my own of Jesus Christ...—PHILIPPIANS 1:6, page 1003
joy and to the glory of God.
The Greek verb translated “has begun” is used
Week 5 only here and in Galatians 3:3, both times in reference
to salvation. What it says is that when God begins a
Or do you not know that your body is the temple of
the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, work of salvation in a person, He finishes it, He per-
and you are not your own? For you were bought at a fects it. You need to understand that salvation has
price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spir- three phases. There is justification, which occurs
it, which are God’s.—1 CORINTHIANS 6:19,20, page 851 when you repent and put your faith in Jesus Christ.
Then the second phase begins, which is sanctifica-
The Spirit of God lives in us. We literally are a tem- tion. You are being continually separated from sin;
ple in which God lives. We’re not our own. We were that’s an aspect of salvation. And the third phase is
bought, and the price was the precious blood of Jesus glorification. That occurs when we leave this world,
Christ as a Lamb without blemish and without spot. enter into heaven, lose the residual fallen flesh, and
Therefore, we have the obligation to use this Holy the new creation is freed from any sinful impulses,
Spirit temple in such a way that brings honor to God. from any reality of sin to enter into the full perfection
and absolute holiness of eternal life. As a Christian,
I had a friend who was visiting a great cathedral in you have been justified. You are being sanctified, pro-
New York City. When he came to a shrine to St.
Joseph, there was a sign hanging around St. Joseph’s gressively set apart from sin by the work of the Holy
neck that read: Do not worship here. This shrine is out Spirit through the Word. And you will one day be glo-
of order. My friend said to himself, “I wonder if there rified, at which point you will be made like Jesus
aren’t many days when that sign should be hanging Christ. As much as glorified humanity can be like
around my neck. Don’t expect to see Christ here. This incarnate Deity, we will be like Jesus Christ!
shrine is out of order.”
Week 8
Your body is that shrine. It is that temple to the And without controversy great is the mystery of
Holy Spirit because He lives there. Sometimes I’m
afraid He is obscured. Make sure your shrine is in godliness: God was manifested in the flesh, justified in
order. Glorify God in your body and in your spirit the Spirit, seen by angels, preached among the
which are God’s. Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up in glory.
—1 TIMOTHY 3:16, page 1073
Week 6 This verse contains part of an early church hymn.
It’s uniformity, rhythm, and parallel as in the original
Surely He has borne our griefs and carried our sor- language indicates this. Its six lines form a concise
rows; yet we esteemed Him stricken, smitten by God, and summary of the truth of the gospel. The “mystery of
afflicted. But He was wounded for our transgressions,
He was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement for godliness” simply looks at Jesus Christ. The mystery
our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are is something that was hidden in the Old Testament
healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have age but is now revealed in the New Testament. And
turned, every one, to his own way; and the LORD has laid the greatest of mysteries was the mystery of God in
on Him the iniquity of us all.—ISAIAH 53:4–6, page 985 human flesh, the mystery of Jesus Christ, the glorious
reality of the Incarnation.
Isaiah speaks of God placing all our sins on His That becomes the theme for this early church
Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. He bore the grief for our hymn. God was manifested in human flesh through
sin, carried the sorrow for our lawlessness, was
wounded for our transgressions and bruised for our the virgin birth. He was righteous in His Spirit—per-
iniquities. But by whom, and why? He was stricken, fectly righteous, perfectly holy. Angels holy and fallen
smitten, and afflicted by God, because God is the acknowledged Him. He was preached among the
Judge. God alone can determine the appropriate pun- nations. He was believed on by people in Galilee and
ishment for sin; and God gave that punishment to His Judea. After His resurrection, there were over 500
Son. He did that because there was no other one who believers in Galilee. And when the church was found-
could take our place, no other spotless Lamb, no other ed on the Day of Pentecost, 3,000 believed on Him. At
perfect sacrifice. So in order for us to have peace with His ascension, He was received up into glory and seat-
God, Jesus paid the price for our sins. By His wounds ed at the right hand of the Father. So you have in that
we are healed spiritually. Every one of us has followed one verse a summation of the wonderful life of Jesus.
his own sinful path, and the Lord gathered all of our Week 9
iniquity and laid it on Him. This is the amazing reality
of Jesus Christ. He offered Himself, the sinless One, All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is
for the sinful ones. Every person has sinned, and for profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for

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