Category: Good News - Jethro TOOLS

Belief in One

4/13/2025

Luke 23:26-48
Good news and bad news are on the opposite spectrum. The doctor calls and says the health report is not good, or you get a call about the birth of a grandchild. We enjoy the good, but our life is build around the bad. Our brain has a way of paying attention to what is bad and looking for a solution out of the predicament. Very simply we become people that want to find the good in the midst of the bad. God has intentionally created us to be searchers. Why are we like that? We are born into a broken world as people needing answers to life and we spend a lifetime working to provide those answers. We think, read, and search for God’s good in the bad. In the crucifixion of Jesus we see the bad news play out. Some mourned (27-28) while rulers and soldiers mocked Jesus (35-37) as he was placed on a cross between two thieves (32-33). The bad news and the reality of death seemed hopeless. Yet Luke records the change that occurred in one of the thieves , the centurion and even the crowd. God was at work bringing His good out of the worst bad that could ever happen. 1 Peter 3:18 states that, “Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous to bring you to God.” The broken world of Jesus day contained people looking for something better. The centurion found a righteous man in the midst of corruption and death (47). The thief found new life at the end of his own life (42-43). God even worked in the crowd to change their thinking (48). The good news is that Jesus has taken the bad news of our sin for us. Our broken world can only show us more brokenness and death, yet Jesus came to be the way, the truth and the life (John 14:6). Belief in Jesus is good news for a broken world.

For More See LUKE

Rejected

3/9/2025

Isaiah 52:13-53:12
The unison trumpet like blast startled my peaceful quiet walk. Immediately I shifted my eyes toward the lake and scanned for the source of the racket. There, through the trees I saw four swans cruising the shore line looking for open water. Their arrival and their thunderous trumpeting honks announce the arrival of spring. The problem is, we may look around and see little evidence of that. Snow is still in piles and ice is still on the lake. We face a choice. Will we believe the message of the swans that spring is coming or will we reject their message and dismiss them as nothing but silly swans. In the book of Isaiah the people faced a similar situation. In chapter 1-39 Isaiah records God’s message of judgment for their sin and rebellion against Him. Then beginning in chapter 40-66 Isaiah records God message of hope and restoration for sinful people. And within this Isaiah records “Who has believed our message…(53:1).” Isaiah tells us that very few people have believed God’s message that a savior will come to take their sin upon Himself. The first twelve verses of Isaiah 53 describe what this suffering servant will do. Through Isaiah’s eyes the nation is to see the hope and restoration to a right relationship with God through a coming savior that is ultimately Jesus. This message of hope and restoration was declared to the these people yet many looked around and did not believe. Today, we need to hear the message and believe the message that a Savior has been sent to save us from our sin and restore us to a right relationship with God. That is a message of good news and hope that is worth believing regardless of our surroundings. Isaiah trumpets a message of hope for sinners just as swans trumpet the message of hope for the end of winter.

For More See ISAIAH or SHEBA

The Disciple's Passion

2/9/2025

Matthew 22:34-40
Valentine’s Day is right around the corner. With that, our thoughts are drawn to what we love, who we love, and how we might show that love. Love is the root of a passionate expression. We can say that we love ice cream, sports, coffee or someone, but there is always an expression of that love. In its simplest form passion is doing what we love and loving what we do. Being a person of passion is expressing the strong excited response that is based on the deeper sense of love. If there is not a connection that attracts then there will not be the action based on the attraction. The Bible lays out God’s passionate connection for all humanity in John 3:16. God loved the world so much that He gave Jesus, His only Son, to be our savior from sin. Love is the motivation for the extreme action of God’s passion. The passion displayed in the action proves the reality of the love. In Matthew 22 Jesus was asked to identify the greatest command in the law (36). In response He says, love God and people (37-39). Jesus came and displayed God’s love to us so we can display His love to others. The good news of God’s love drove His passionate display of love. Our display of love for others is to be based on our understanding and acceptance of God’s love passionately displayed for all the world to see. That is life changing love, the kind of love that God wants His committed followers to display to others. On our own we do not have the capability to accurately display God’s love. Yet, as disciples of Jesus, we are graciously given the ability to love because we have experienced God’s love (1 John 4:19). Are we actively displaying our love for God and others as God has loved us?

For More See MATTHEW or 1 JOHN or DISCIPLESHIP

Message of Joy

12/29/2024

Isaiah 6:1-3
The Christmas letter… Long or short, it has turned into an annual feat that tests our writing skills and organization. As we attempt to summarize a year in words, or even photos we find ourselves being forced to become even more concise. What is the main idea that we want to communicate? What happened this year? What matters most that others need to hear? How can we communicate those key, life defining highlights of the past year? Have no fear, Christmas cards are here. If you are like me you will notice that many of the Christmas cards carry a theme of peace, hope or joy. Notice that the card companies do not promote happiness. Why is that? Happiness is a short term pleasure, whereas joy is long term sense of satisfaction that all is well. As we turn to Isaiah 61, we find that message of joy. This chapter opens with God’s select servant declaring the message of good news that He will bring (1). This people centered savior will bring joy that is found in God’s favor (2) to those who are broken, and held captive in the darkness of sin (1). That is definitely good news of great joy that is worth celebrating. The people looked forward to the day when this savior would come and deliver them from sin and restore His joy to their life and their land. Fast forward and we see Jesus quote these same words in Luke 4:14-21 as he began His earthly ministry. In His own words He stated that He is the promised one spoken of in Isaiah 61. Jesus brought God’s good news of salvation to all people. For us, that good news should still bring a deep sense of satisfaction. That is joy worth writing about in the annual Christmas letter. The joy that we have in Jesus as our savior needs to be heard from us all year.

For More See ISAIAH or CHRISTMAS

Invitation to Stability

6/25/2023

Philippians 1:12-30
In 2020 Bruno the bear made the news. His popularity was growing, yet not everyone knew about him. However, there was a small, but rapidly growing group that wanted to tell as many people as possible about Bruno. So who was Bruno? Well, he was a male black bear that was first spotted in Wisconsin. He travelled through Illinois and into Missouri. As Bruno travelled his fan base grew. There were over 27,000 people who wanted to tell others about a traveling bear named Bruno. Are we that intense about our faith? In Philippians 1:12-30 Paul notes that we are to live for God’s glory, regardless of our life circumstances. He knew that well, because he was writing this letter from prison. What got him there? Paul was arrested and placed in chains because of his beliefs and proclamation of Jesus Christ (13). Paul knew from firsthand experience that the spread of the message of good news about Jesus is not limited by our life conditions or circumstances. Perhaps we need to reevaluate our lives. Paul understood that participation in the good news about Jesus is more than just an assent of belief. Participation in the message of the gospel is actively living life for God’s glory and communicating the transforming message of Jesus Christ, regardless of our life circumstances. So what motivates us spiritually? The distractions and pain in life can often move us away from the most important message: the message of Christ as Savior. We need to realize that God will redeem even the difficult circumstances of our life by giving us opportunities to tell others of Him, just like Paul and Bruno.

For more see PHILIPPIANS or INVITATION SERIES

Why Evangelize?

3/12/2023

2 Corinthians 5:14-21
One day a man who had not been feeling well went to see the doctor. After an examination and tests the doctor sent the man home, promising to call him with the results. The next day the doctor called and said, “Well I have good news and bad news. Which do you want first?” The man thought for a moment and asked for the good news. The doctor replied, “Good news is that you have 24 hours to live.” Confused, the patient asked, “If that was the good news what is the bad news?” “Well,” the doctor said, “the bad news is that I should have called you yesterday.” In a similar manner we, as believers in Jesus, often have a problem when it comes to telling others about Him. Often we turn the truth of scripture into a hammer and try to beat people into belief in Jesus. Then, on the other extreme, we take grace too far and it turns into friendship with no message proclaiming Christ. John 1:14 & 17 record that Jesus was full of grace and truth. He did not back away from the truth and He did not neglect to use grace. Jesus came full of grace and truth, and we should be the same. We need to speak the truth with words of grace so others will see Jesus in our message of evangelism. We need to live the truth with actions of grace so others will see Jesus in our method of evangelism. In Acts 4:12, Peter is speaks of Jesus saying, “Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved.” Christ’s love for us on the cross compels us to act on our belief of Him as savior, and serve as His messenger of good news (2 Corinthians 5:14-21) to those living with the bad news of sin.

For more see 2 CORINTHIANS or DISCIPLESHIP

Christmas & Influence

12/27/2022

Luke 1-2
Influence is the ability to bring change to a situation or person based on insight, knowledge, and power. An influencer is someone who uses their personal ability to promote the change. In our world of technology, companies will contract influencers to promote their product. Those who watch and follow these influencers are then influenced to use the product them selves. However, there is not a single influencer who is able to influence everyone. In contrast, as we consider the events of Christmas, we see that God uses His influence and sovereign power to bring necessary change into our world. First, God displays His sovereign influence over nature and the rules of conception, as seen in Mary; and the standard operation of the sky, as seen with the shepherds and wise men. Second, God displays His sovereign influence over people, as He gathers a cast of unrelated and unconnected characters to converge on the little town of Bethlehem. Mary and Joseph traveled from the North, shepherds came from the fields and wise men traveled from the East. All these people were under the influence and direction of God, and submissive to His leading and plan. This leaves one last group, us. We, as people, are easily overwhelmed and influenced by schedules, events, catastrophes, and changes to our individual world. However, the Christmas season brings us face to face with the reality that the sovereign God has brought hope and change to our world through the birth of Jesus. The good news of Jesus’ birth and salvation should continually influence us. When changes come, do not fear, but submit and trust God like Mary and Joseph. When information is given by God, respond with joy and tell others like the shepherds. When God’s direction is made clear, follow wholeheartedly like the wise men.

For more see LUKE or SYMBOLS OF CHRISTMAS

Empowered

8/21/2022

Acts 1:1-8
The courtroom is packed. Witnesses are called to tell the truth of what is known; while everyone else is there to hear the outcome of the trial. Most of the time when we think of a witness we think in terms of a courtroom setting. However, in the book of Acts, there is a description of witnesses that are to go anywhere and everywhere. Luke, the author of Acts, provides a record of the early church and its growth. Luke simply records how the gospel is communicated in the present culture and cross-culturally in such a way that the message of Jesus Christ is spread around the world. In the first chapter of Acts, Jesus gathers His followers and gives them a promise. He tells them that they will be empowered to be His witnesses (8). The source of power is the Holy Spirit and the purpose of the power is to be witnesses of Jesus. The future task of His disciples is to tell others what they know about Him. The disciples of Jesus are to start witnessing where they are and go to the ends of the earth proclaiming the good news that Jesus is the Savior. From the beginning of this book, Luke reports that God’s Spirit works through God’s people to spread God’s message. The same is true for us today. The spreading of the gospel message begins where you are. Some will be called to take the message of Jesus to other cultures in the remotest parts of the earth while others will be witnesses to friends, neighbors, and coworkers at home. The point is that all who claim Jesus as their Savior are to be witnesses of who He is. In a court of law, if witnesses were called, would there be enough evidence to convict you of being a committed witnessing follower of Jesus?

For more see ACTS

Act Justly: The Results of Corruption

6/5/2022

Micah 2:3-13
This past year I have noticed an orange spot developing in front of my house. Upon closer inspection I found it to be rust that is dripping from a developing rust spot on the car that is always parked there. Rust is the visible result of weakened metal due to a corrosive process called oxidation. This process is accelerated by the exposure to moisture, salt and the chemicals that are put on the icy roads in the winter. The only way to remove the rust from the vehicle is to remove the car from the corrosive environment and remove the rust. That requires taking the car to an automotive body shop where a technician will cut out the rusted metal and replace it with good new metal. Like the rust on the car Micah 2 records the results of ongoing corrupting sin. In a way Micah describes a courtroom scene where charges are brought against the guilty. The charge of civil corruption is leveled against those who operated out of personal greed and took land that was not allotted to them by God (4-5). Next is the charge of spiritual corruption where the people rejected God and His somber message (6-7). The final charge is one of moral corruption (8-11). The people and the prophets were guilty of using falsehood for their own personal benefit. In view of these serious charges God still offers hope and a cure for sin (12-13). Hope is given, salvation is promised and a savior is coming. That is good news for us even today. God will provide an accurate assessment of our life and the corruption of our sin, but he also offers hope and a cure for sin through Jesus and His gift of salvation. God displays His justice to us and we are to display His justice though our lives to our world.

For more see MICAH