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Week 3: John 17-21 and Romans 1-3

John keeps pointing us to Jesus and Romans gives us the solid foundation we need to build a strong faith. What stood out to you? John 19:32-33 stood out to me.


John19:32-33: 32 So the soldiers came, and broke the legs of the first man and of the other who was crucified with Him; 33 but coming to Jesus, when they saw that He was already dead, they did not break His legs.


At first glance, this looks like merely an additional fact about Jesus' crucifixion but there is much more going on. In Roman crucifixions it was common practice to break the legs of those being crucified in order to hasten their death. Without the use of their legs to push themselves up, it would have been impossible to take a breath so they would die faster. John tells us that Jesus was already dead so they didn’t need to break his legs. A few verses later, John mentions why he included this.


John19:36: 36 For these things came to pass to fulfill the Scripture, “Not a bone of Him shall be broken.”


John tells us this was a prophecy/prediction made 1,000 years before it happened and at a time that crucifixion wasn’t even practiced.


Psalms 34:20: He keeps all his bones, not one of them is broken.


Even more amazing than that is Exodus 12:46 which goes back to a time hundreds of years before the verse we just read in Psalms.


Exodus 12:46: 46 It must be eaten inside the house; take none of the meat outside the house. Do not break any of the bones.


Moses is giving instructions to the Jewish people on how to celebrate the Passover meal. The first Passover was the night that God delivered Israel from being slaves in Egypt. God told the people to take a lamb, kill it, eat it and put some of the blood on their doorpost. When the death angel came to their household to kill the firstborn the angel would see the blood and pass over them. Notice that God says specifically not to break any of its bones. Why? Because the Passover lamb points to and is a type of Jesus. This is why John, when he saw Jesus, said behold the lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world. What can you and I get from all of this? First, we can trust the Bible is God's word not man’s. Only God could know over a thousand years before that the messiah (Jesus) would be crucified (not even invented or practiced at the time it was predicted) and that unlike the common practice at the time Jesus’ legs would not be broken. I can trust that the Bible was not man’s word but God's word that he gave to people to write down. Secondly, these prophecies that came to pass in Jesus tell me I can trust that the promised messiah, Savior and Lord who would come to die for my sins was Jesus. Thus, my faith in Jesus and the

Scriptures stands strong!


Prayer for the week: Father, I thank you that my faith in Jesus and the Scriptures is not a leap into the dark rather a leap into the light.


-Pastor Keith

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3 Comments


anne massey
anne massey
Jan 22, 2023

Again, Pastor Keith, thank you for guiding us in this Month's challenge.

I love the book of John, but reading chapter 19:17-37, about the death of Jesus, it encourage me to never give up on my faith. I can't imagine the hurts, pain, and all the sacrifices that Jesus went through, as if, I can feel it. And it was all because of the unfailing love of the Father for us.


Acts 2:21

"Everyone who calls on the name of the LORD will be saved."


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Cynthia Wooten
Cynthia Wooten
Jan 22, 2023

Romans 3 God “will repay each person according to what they have done.”7 To those who by persistence in doing good seek glory, honor and immortality, he will give eternal life. There are several scriptures this week I'm glad to be reminded of. I have learned as a follower of Christ daily its not the easy path. Also most days its not the popular path. The above passage encourages me. We know as followers of Christ this world is not our home. We will be with Jesus and see our saved loved ones again. Our eternal life will be at home in heaven. It encourages me to daily continue sharing the gospel. 🙏🙏

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Joy Williams
Joy Williams
Jan 19, 2023

“For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile.”

‭‭Romans‬ ‭1‬:‭16‬ ‭NIV‬‬


The power of God that brings salvation to EVERYONE who believes! Thank you, Lord!

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