Click here for the JOHN 8:12-20 PODCAST
12 When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” 13 The Pharisees challenged him, “Here you are, appearing as your own witness; your testimony is not valid.” 14 Jesus answered, “Even if I testify on my own behalf, my testimony is valid, for I know where I came from and where I am going. But you have no idea where I come from or where I am going. 15 You judge by human standards; I pass judgment on no one. 16 But if I do judge, my decisions are true, because I am not alone. I stand with the Father, who sent me. 17 In your own Law it is written that the testimony of two witnesses is true. 18 I am one who testifies for myself; my other witness is the Father, who sent me.” 19 Then they asked him, “Where is your father?” “You do not know me or my Father,” Jesus replied. “If you knew me, you would know my Father also.” 20 He spoke these words while teaching in the temple courts near the place where the offerings were put. Yet no one seized him, because his hour had not yet come. ~ John 8:12-20
During the feast of Tabernacles, two Menorahs were lit in the temple courts. The Menorah was the many-branched candlestick introduced to Israel in Exodus 25. It was one of the pieces which aided Israel's worship of God. It is in reference to the Menorah that the Lord Jesus says in v.12, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”
Mankind was flung into darkness when Adam and Eve ignored God's definition of life. Our text begins with, "When Jesus spoke again to the people." The Lord Jesus continues to give light to these people. In fact, He gives light to anyone who looks to Him for definition. He is the One who knows all about life, who understands it, who explains it and navigates it. He enables us to distinguish between the truth and the false, death and life. He gives us light so that we do not walk with the wrong definitions, enabling us to think and choose wisely.
Darkness keeps us from coming to the light. In v.14-19, the Lord Jesus highlights two things that keep us from opening our hearts to the light: ignorance and pride.
In v.14, the Lord Jesus said to these men, “Even if I testify on my own behalf, my testimony is valid, for I know where I came from and where I am going. But you have no idea where I come from or where I am going. That is ignorance. Then in v.19, “You do not know me or my Father,” Jesus replied. “If you knew me, you would know my Father also.” That is ignorance.
Many in our world have never heard of the Lord Jesus, and many of those who have heard of Him have heard a distorted, twisted, unreal picture of Him that makes Him appear to be what he is not in the Scripture. It is very important that we see the true Jesus. This is our task, to tell this story in such a way that people will actually see who Jesus is. Then, He will draw them to Himself. I find it unbelievable that these Jews listening to Him were ignorant of the Lord Jesus, even as He stood before them.
The Lord Jesus knew who He was and thus displayed confidence, He was able to stand up against the assaults and accusations of others. Those who do not know who they are, who are not sure exactly where they came from and where they are going are uncertain and undependable.
The Pharisees rejected the Lord Jesus on the basis of their lack of evidence about Him. They weren't willing to look at all of the evidence about Him. As a result, their minds were made up, no matter what He did before them. This was pride.
In v.15-18, the Lord Jesus said, "You judge by human standards; I pass judgment on no one. 16 But if I do judge, my decisions are true, because I am not alone. I stand with the Father, who sent me. 17 In your own Law it is written that the testimony of two witnesses is true. 18 I am one who testifies for myself; my other witness is the Father, who sent me.” Like many people today these religious leaders never bothered to look at the evidence that was there. This is, yet again, pride.
There were three ways the Father gave witness to the Lord Jesus' authenticity: First, the signs that He did. Second, there was the inner conviction of the heart. When people listened to Jesus they said, "He knows what he is talking about. This One knows life. He speaks as no other man ever spoke." (John 7:46). Third, the fulfillment of the Scriptures in and through His life.
Finally, although these men claimed to know God, they really did not know Him. Their willful ignorance and pride blinded their minds and their hearts. They did not know the Lord Jesus, thus they did not know God. We know God by knowing the Lord Jesus. May it be said of us that we gave our ignorance and pride to Him, and He dealt with both on His cross.
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Friday, October 25, 2019
Thursday, October 24, 2019
John 8:1-11
Click here for the John 8:1-11 Podcast
1 but Jesus went to the Mount of Olives. 2 At dawn he appeared again in the temple courts, where all the people gathered around him, and he sat down to teach them. 3 The teachers of the law and the Pharisees brought in a woman caught in adultery. They made her stand before the group 4 and said to Jesus, “Teacher, this woman was caught in the act of adultery. 5 In the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women. Now what do you say?” 6 They were using this question as a trap, in order to have a basis for accusing him. But Jesus bent down and started to write on the ground with his finger. 7 When they kept on questioning him, he straightened up and said to them, “Let any one of you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.” 8 Again he stooped down and wrote on the ground. 9 At this, those who heard began to go away one at a time, the older ones first, until only Jesus was left, with the woman still standing there. 10 Jesus straightened up and asked her, “Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?” 11 “No one, sir,” she said. “Then neither do I condemn you,” Jesus declared. “Go now and leave your life of sin.” ~ John 8:1-11
The religious leaders went to their homes and the Lord Jesus went to the Mount Of Olives. He always went to the Mount Of Olives to pray and to teach. Then, early in the morning He came, once again, to the temple. Then, all the people came to Him, and He sat down and taught them. Contrary to the format of today's classroom where the teacher stands and the pupils sit, in their culture the teacher sat and the pupils stood.
It was in this context that the Scribes and the Pharisees brought a woman whom they had caught in adultery. Then they asked Him, "Teacher, this woman was caught in the act of adultery. 5 In the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women. Now what do you say?" The question is: how did the religious leaders catch her in the act? And, what happened to the man with whom she was committing adultery?
The Scribes and Pharisees were trying to trip the Lord Jesus up, so, they bring this woman to Him and ask Him, "Teacher, this woman was caught in the act of adultery. 5 In the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women. Now what do you say?"
These Scribes and Pharisees remind the Lord Jesus that, according to the Law of Moses, adultery was to be punished by stoning. They expected the Lord Jesus to not punish this woman, and, if He did that, He would be contradicting the Law and they would have Him. They thought for sure they had Him trapped.
The Lord Jesus wrote on the ground, the Scribes and Pharisees thought He was stalling for time, and they kept pressing Him, asking Him again and again to answer them and tell them what He would do with the guilty woman.
Standing up, Jesus looked at the religious leaders and spoke these famous words, "Let any one of you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her." This is the only time Jesus ever employed the word "without sin" in the Gospels.
The Lord Jesus upheld the Law, and the Scribes and Pharisees were speechless! The Lord Jesus is saying, in effect, "You are no better off than she is. Your hearts are filled with murder and hatred." Again, in v.8, the Lord Jesus writes something on the ground.
According to v.9, "At this, those who heard began to go away one at a time, the older ones first, until only Jesus was left, with the woman still standing there." The Scribes and Pharisees disappeared from the oldest to the youngest until no one was left there but Jesus and the woman. The oldest departed first because they were deemed to be the first to cast a stone at the woman due to their seniority.
The point is not that judges must be sinless, the point is that righteousness and justice should be founded on a gracious spirit, and if it’s not, what you get is the heartlessness and hypocrisy of the religious.
When her accusers are all gone, Jesus ends the story saying to the woman, “Then neither do I condemn you,” Jesus declared. “Go now and leave your life of sin.” The guilty woman found herself forgiven. She has no human accusers, because the Lord Jesus had dismissed her jury.
The Lord Jesus alone had the right to condemn this woman. He was the Sinless One, the only One who fulfilled the qualifications to stone. But He did not even pick up a stone. It was because he forgave her sin. Only God can forgive sin, for it is against His standard that mankind has rebelled.
Without forgiveness, justice must be satisfied. God never dismisses sin as though it is not significant. His truth, His holy character, demands that any rebellion toward righteousness be punished. Justice must be satisfied, unless sin is forgiven. So it is clear that the basis on which the Lord Jesus said these words is that He forgave this woman of her sin.
This is the pervasive message of the New Testament: the Lord Jesus came into the world to provide grace through His cross, to establish holiness, righteousness, and justice through our experience with His grace. Then, those who have had this experience with His grace should sin no more. The Lord Jesus isn't commanding sinlessness, He is calling us to see the utter foolishness of pursuing a life not defined by Him.
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1 but Jesus went to the Mount of Olives. 2 At dawn he appeared again in the temple courts, where all the people gathered around him, and he sat down to teach them. 3 The teachers of the law and the Pharisees brought in a woman caught in adultery. They made her stand before the group 4 and said to Jesus, “Teacher, this woman was caught in the act of adultery. 5 In the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women. Now what do you say?” 6 They were using this question as a trap, in order to have a basis for accusing him. But Jesus bent down and started to write on the ground with his finger. 7 When they kept on questioning him, he straightened up and said to them, “Let any one of you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.” 8 Again he stooped down and wrote on the ground. 9 At this, those who heard began to go away one at a time, the older ones first, until only Jesus was left, with the woman still standing there. 10 Jesus straightened up and asked her, “Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?” 11 “No one, sir,” she said. “Then neither do I condemn you,” Jesus declared. “Go now and leave your life of sin.” ~ John 8:1-11
The religious leaders went to their homes and the Lord Jesus went to the Mount Of Olives. He always went to the Mount Of Olives to pray and to teach. Then, early in the morning He came, once again, to the temple. Then, all the people came to Him, and He sat down and taught them. Contrary to the format of today's classroom where the teacher stands and the pupils sit, in their culture the teacher sat and the pupils stood.
It was in this context that the Scribes and the Pharisees brought a woman whom they had caught in adultery. Then they asked Him, "Teacher, this woman was caught in the act of adultery. 5 In the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women. Now what do you say?" The question is: how did the religious leaders catch her in the act? And, what happened to the man with whom she was committing adultery?
The Scribes and Pharisees were trying to trip the Lord Jesus up, so, they bring this woman to Him and ask Him, "Teacher, this woman was caught in the act of adultery. 5 In the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women. Now what do you say?"
These Scribes and Pharisees remind the Lord Jesus that, according to the Law of Moses, adultery was to be punished by stoning. They expected the Lord Jesus to not punish this woman, and, if He did that, He would be contradicting the Law and they would have Him. They thought for sure they had Him trapped.
The Lord Jesus wrote on the ground, the Scribes and Pharisees thought He was stalling for time, and they kept pressing Him, asking Him again and again to answer them and tell them what He would do with the guilty woman.
Standing up, Jesus looked at the religious leaders and spoke these famous words, "Let any one of you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her." This is the only time Jesus ever employed the word "without sin" in the Gospels.
The Lord Jesus upheld the Law, and the Scribes and Pharisees were speechless! The Lord Jesus is saying, in effect, "You are no better off than she is. Your hearts are filled with murder and hatred." Again, in v.8, the Lord Jesus writes something on the ground.
According to v.9, "At this, those who heard began to go away one at a time, the older ones first, until only Jesus was left, with the woman still standing there." The Scribes and Pharisees disappeared from the oldest to the youngest until no one was left there but Jesus and the woman. The oldest departed first because they were deemed to be the first to cast a stone at the woman due to their seniority.
The point is not that judges must be sinless, the point is that righteousness and justice should be founded on a gracious spirit, and if it’s not, what you get is the heartlessness and hypocrisy of the religious.
When her accusers are all gone, Jesus ends the story saying to the woman, “Then neither do I condemn you,” Jesus declared. “Go now and leave your life of sin.” The guilty woman found herself forgiven. She has no human accusers, because the Lord Jesus had dismissed her jury.
The Lord Jesus alone had the right to condemn this woman. He was the Sinless One, the only One who fulfilled the qualifications to stone. But He did not even pick up a stone. It was because he forgave her sin. Only God can forgive sin, for it is against His standard that mankind has rebelled.
Without forgiveness, justice must be satisfied. God never dismisses sin as though it is not significant. His truth, His holy character, demands that any rebellion toward righteousness be punished. Justice must be satisfied, unless sin is forgiven. So it is clear that the basis on which the Lord Jesus said these words is that He forgave this woman of her sin.
This is the pervasive message of the New Testament: the Lord Jesus came into the world to provide grace through His cross, to establish holiness, righteousness, and justice through our experience with His grace. Then, those who have had this experience with His grace should sin no more. The Lord Jesus isn't commanding sinlessness, He is calling us to see the utter foolishness of pursuing a life not defined by Him.
To contribute to BYM, click here
Wednesday, October 23, 2019
John 7:45-53
Click here for the John 7:45-53 PODCAST
45 Finally the temple guards went back to the chief priests and the Pharisees, who asked them, “Why didn’t you bring him in?” 46 “No one ever spoke the way this man does,” the guards replied. 47 “You mean he has deceived you also?” the Pharisees retorted. 48 “Have any of the rulers or of the Pharisees believed in him? 49 No! But this mob that knows nothing of the law—there is a curse on them.” 50 Nicodemus, who had gone to Jesus earlier and who was one of their own number, asked, 51 “Does our law condemn a man without first hearing him to find out what he has been doing?” 52 They replied, “Are you from Galilee, too? Look into it, and you will find that a prophet does not come out of Galilee.” 53 Then they all went home. ~ John 7:45-53
The chief priests sent the temple guards out to arrest the Lord Jesus. They returned without Him because it was not His time to be judged, yet. From the perspective of the temple guards, as they were listening to the Lord Jesus, “No one ever spoke the way this man does.” The chief priests then in v.47 accused the guards of being deceived.
An arrest of the Lord Jesus, would have caused a riot, because some of the people in the crowd were believing in the Lord Jesus. So, the Pharisees, in v.49, explain it away as deception and a curse. But who is really deceived here?
The religious leaders accused the temple guards and the common people as being deceived. They marginalize the common people as not knowing the law and being cursed. Then, these religious leaders put themselves forward as non-cursed because they understood the law. When we are opposed, we resort to marginalizing our opponent. But, the religious leaders were actually the ones who were deceived.
Nicodemus, a Pharisee who had come to the Lord Jesus at night back in John 3 gives a word of caution in v.51: “Does our law condemn a man without first hearing him to find out what he has been doing?” Then the Pharisees accuse Nicodemus of bias in v.52: “They replied, ‘’Are you from Galilee, too? Look into it, and you will find that a prophet does not come out of Galilee.”
Rather than being open to Nicodemus’ concern to know the facts before they condemn the Lord Jesus, these religious leaders say, in essence, the only reason you would want to give Him that kind of chance is that you’re part of his clan, you Galileans must all hang together.
So the guards are blinded by deception. The crowds are blinded by a curse. And Nicodemus is blinded by his Galilean bias. The religious leaders, once again, were sarcastic, pompous, cynical, and calloused. This is often the reaction of those who know not God and who do not have a relationship with the Lord Jesus.
Let's consider the words of the temple guards in v.46, “No one ever spoke the way this man does.” This is the key in this passage. The teaching of the Lord Jesus either drives the unbelieving away or it draws the believing closer.
The last thing Jesus had said before the temple guards returned empty-handed is found in John 7:37–38, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.’”
When God entered our lives and opened our eyes to His activity in our lives, we gradually began to let go of our old life. Even though we are born again, we still struggle with the pressure of the lure of the old life. On certain days, the old life screams loudly, while His voice is drowned out. Our old way of thinking, our old life will creep in from time to time. There will be times when it dominates our lives. It dominates the world around us. The Lord Jesus will always address this false way of thinking and living. That’s what got Him in trouble in the first pace.
So as we follow Him, His life, will not only fill our existence, but it will flow out of our lives. As a result, this life will not be an easy ride. Experiencing His life, which is the living waters, will, at times overwhelm ours. Then, there will be times when His life does not overwhelm ours, because we are still fallen and we will lose sight of our success, the Lord Jesus Himself. Instead of being a steady incline toward perfection, this new life will be spasmodic, experienced at different moments. As we are convinced that His life is the best life, we will forsake the wrong way of thinking and living.
The OT prophet, Ezekiel, gave us the picture of the river that flows from the throne of God:
I saw water coming out from under the threshold of the temple toward the east (for the temple faced east). The water was coming down from under the south side of the temple, south of the altar. He then brought me out through the north gate and led me around the outside to the outer gate facing east, and the water was trickling from the south side. As the man went eastward with a measuring line in his hand, he measured off a thousand cubits and then led me through water that was ankle-deep. He measured off another thousand cubits and led me through water that was knee-deep. He measured off another thousand and led me through water that was up to the waist. He measured off another thousand, but now it was a river that I could not cross, because the water had risen and was deep enough to swim in—a river that no one could cross. (Ezekiel 47:1-5)
Ezekiel's image speaks of the abundance of God, his unending, unceasing, inextinguishable LIFE, pouring forth from his Presence. The image is repeated in Revelation, where it makes clear this river is the River of Life: Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations. (Revelation 22:1-2)
The Life of the Lord Jesus, for His people, flowing as a river. The Lord Jesus doesn’t keep His life to Himself; He pours it forth for all receivers. We know He wants us to draw upon His life, for He said He came that we might have His Life, and have it abundantly (John 10:10). To the extent that we access His life is the extent that we appear changed in the eyes of others. But, we know better, it is not us, it is Him.
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45 Finally the temple guards went back to the chief priests and the Pharisees, who asked them, “Why didn’t you bring him in?” 46 “No one ever spoke the way this man does,” the guards replied. 47 “You mean he has deceived you also?” the Pharisees retorted. 48 “Have any of the rulers or of the Pharisees believed in him? 49 No! But this mob that knows nothing of the law—there is a curse on them.” 50 Nicodemus, who had gone to Jesus earlier and who was one of their own number, asked, 51 “Does our law condemn a man without first hearing him to find out what he has been doing?” 52 They replied, “Are you from Galilee, too? Look into it, and you will find that a prophet does not come out of Galilee.” 53 Then they all went home. ~ John 7:45-53
The chief priests sent the temple guards out to arrest the Lord Jesus. They returned without Him because it was not His time to be judged, yet. From the perspective of the temple guards, as they were listening to the Lord Jesus, “No one ever spoke the way this man does.” The chief priests then in v.47 accused the guards of being deceived.
An arrest of the Lord Jesus, would have caused a riot, because some of the people in the crowd were believing in the Lord Jesus. So, the Pharisees, in v.49, explain it away as deception and a curse. But who is really deceived here?
The religious leaders accused the temple guards and the common people as being deceived. They marginalize the common people as not knowing the law and being cursed. Then, these religious leaders put themselves forward as non-cursed because they understood the law. When we are opposed, we resort to marginalizing our opponent. But, the religious leaders were actually the ones who were deceived.
Nicodemus, a Pharisee who had come to the Lord Jesus at night back in John 3 gives a word of caution in v.51: “Does our law condemn a man without first hearing him to find out what he has been doing?” Then the Pharisees accuse Nicodemus of bias in v.52: “They replied, ‘’Are you from Galilee, too? Look into it, and you will find that a prophet does not come out of Galilee.”
Rather than being open to Nicodemus’ concern to know the facts before they condemn the Lord Jesus, these religious leaders say, in essence, the only reason you would want to give Him that kind of chance is that you’re part of his clan, you Galileans must all hang together.
So the guards are blinded by deception. The crowds are blinded by a curse. And Nicodemus is blinded by his Galilean bias. The religious leaders, once again, were sarcastic, pompous, cynical, and calloused. This is often the reaction of those who know not God and who do not have a relationship with the Lord Jesus.
Let's consider the words of the temple guards in v.46, “No one ever spoke the way this man does.” This is the key in this passage. The teaching of the Lord Jesus either drives the unbelieving away or it draws the believing closer.
The last thing Jesus had said before the temple guards returned empty-handed is found in John 7:37–38, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.’”
When God entered our lives and opened our eyes to His activity in our lives, we gradually began to let go of our old life. Even though we are born again, we still struggle with the pressure of the lure of the old life. On certain days, the old life screams loudly, while His voice is drowned out. Our old way of thinking, our old life will creep in from time to time. There will be times when it dominates our lives. It dominates the world around us. The Lord Jesus will always address this false way of thinking and living. That’s what got Him in trouble in the first pace.
So as we follow Him, His life, will not only fill our existence, but it will flow out of our lives. As a result, this life will not be an easy ride. Experiencing His life, which is the living waters, will, at times overwhelm ours. Then, there will be times when His life does not overwhelm ours, because we are still fallen and we will lose sight of our success, the Lord Jesus Himself. Instead of being a steady incline toward perfection, this new life will be spasmodic, experienced at different moments. As we are convinced that His life is the best life, we will forsake the wrong way of thinking and living.
The OT prophet, Ezekiel, gave us the picture of the river that flows from the throne of God:
I saw water coming out from under the threshold of the temple toward the east (for the temple faced east). The water was coming down from under the south side of the temple, south of the altar. He then brought me out through the north gate and led me around the outside to the outer gate facing east, and the water was trickling from the south side. As the man went eastward with a measuring line in his hand, he measured off a thousand cubits and then led me through water that was ankle-deep. He measured off another thousand cubits and led me through water that was knee-deep. He measured off another thousand and led me through water that was up to the waist. He measured off another thousand, but now it was a river that I could not cross, because the water had risen and was deep enough to swim in—a river that no one could cross. (Ezekiel 47:1-5)
Ezekiel's image speaks of the abundance of God, his unending, unceasing, inextinguishable LIFE, pouring forth from his Presence. The image is repeated in Revelation, where it makes clear this river is the River of Life: Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life, bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations. (Revelation 22:1-2)
The Life of the Lord Jesus, for His people, flowing as a river. The Lord Jesus doesn’t keep His life to Himself; He pours it forth for all receivers. We know He wants us to draw upon His life, for He said He came that we might have His Life, and have it abundantly (John 10:10). To the extent that we access His life is the extent that we appear changed in the eyes of others. But, we know better, it is not us, it is Him.
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Tuesday, October 22, 2019
John 7:37-44
Click here for the John 7:37-44 PODCAST
37 On the last and greatest day of the festival, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, “Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink. 38 Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them.” 39 By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive. Up to that time the Spirit had not been given, since Jesus had not yet been glorified. 40 On hearing his words, some of the people said, “Surely this man is the Prophet.” 41 Others said, “He is the Messiah.” Still others asked, “How can the Messiah come from Galilee? 42 Does not Scripture say that the Messiah will come from David’s descendants and from Bethlehem, the town where David lived?” 43 Thus the people were divided because of Jesus. 44 Some wanted to seize him, but no one laid a hand on him. ~ John 7:37-44
John's gospel presents the Lord Jesus as the fulfillment of all things Old Testament, including the feast of Tabernacles. On the last great day of the Jewish feast of Tabernacles the Lord Jesus offered the thirsty rivers of living water. God's purpose in bringing the people out of Egypt and through the wilderness was to show his power and his love for Israel, so that Israel would trust Him and follow Him.
The Lord Jesus, in today's text, uses an analogy that implies fullness, completeness to the point of overflowing. It implies refreshment, growth and life. This life is offered only to those who are willing to enter a personal and meaningful relationship with the Lord Jesus. The experience is essential.
The precedent to this experience is thirst. All thirst, but not all thirst for God. We are afflicted and blessed with a chronic restlessness, an insatiable soul-thirst, so that we might keep seeking Him.
We were made for God. The taste buds of our souls were made to be satisfied in a personal relationship with the Son of God. But, we are fallen, and the fundamental meaning of our fallenness is thirsting for things other than God. Our sinful nature is a condition of diseased spiritual taste buds.
The Lord Jesus loudly proclaim, "Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink." Coming to the Lord Jesus is an act of the heart. We primarily meet the Lord Jesus through His Word. Drinking is the same as believing or trusting. After he says, "Come to me and drink," in v.37, He then says, "Whoever believes in me." In John 6:35, the Lord Jesus said, "He who believes in me shall never thirst." The essence of drinking the Word of the Lord Jesus is trusting it. The essence of believing in the Lord Jesus is finding in Him the satisfaction of our deepest soul-thirst. Drinking is believing, and believing is drinking.
The result of coming to the Lord Jesus and believing is: "rivers of living water will flow from within them. " The promise is not only that we will be satisfied, but that He will be satisfying. He promises not only that our cup will be full, but also that it will be overflowing. In drinking from the Lord Jesus we become not merely a receptacle, but a spring or a fountain.
Everything starts with a soul-thirst for the Lord Jesus and a drinking in of His promises by faith. Then two things happen in our hearts: first, we sense deep down that we have now discovered the source of lasting and complete joy, and our hearts crave to know more and more of Christ; and second, the water "becomes in us a spring of water welling up into eternal life."
When the people, in v.40, heard these words, they said, "Surely this man is the Prophet." According to v.41, "Others said, “He is the Messiah.” Still others asked, “How can the Messiah come from Galilee?" Not all recognized Him as the One. Some wanted to seize Him with ill desire.
Let me redirect your attention to v.39 where the Lord Jesus describes the rivers of living water. The rivers of living water is analogous of the Holy Spirit whom He gives to those who believe that He is the Messiah. It is the Spirit of God who produces this life, not us. And, the Holy Spirit gives this to those who believe and receive.
Finally, let me close with a story which illustrates the point. A new federal building had just been completed in our Nation's Capitol. A thirsty man walked down the hallway in the building, searching for a water fountain. As he turned the corner, he noticed a water fountain. Upon his arrival, he looked for a button to push or a pedal to pressed down, but there was none. Just then, a man walked up with a sign that he fixed to the wall behind the water fountain. The sign read "stoop and drink." This is our daily task: to come to the Lord Jesus and receive from Him on a daily basis. It is then that the "rivers of living water will flow from within."
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37 On the last and greatest day of the festival, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, “Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink. 38 Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them.” 39 By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive. Up to that time the Spirit had not been given, since Jesus had not yet been glorified. 40 On hearing his words, some of the people said, “Surely this man is the Prophet.” 41 Others said, “He is the Messiah.” Still others asked, “How can the Messiah come from Galilee? 42 Does not Scripture say that the Messiah will come from David’s descendants and from Bethlehem, the town where David lived?” 43 Thus the people were divided because of Jesus. 44 Some wanted to seize him, but no one laid a hand on him. ~ John 7:37-44
John's gospel presents the Lord Jesus as the fulfillment of all things Old Testament, including the feast of Tabernacles. On the last great day of the Jewish feast of Tabernacles the Lord Jesus offered the thirsty rivers of living water. God's purpose in bringing the people out of Egypt and through the wilderness was to show his power and his love for Israel, so that Israel would trust Him and follow Him.
The Lord Jesus, in today's text, uses an analogy that implies fullness, completeness to the point of overflowing. It implies refreshment, growth and life. This life is offered only to those who are willing to enter a personal and meaningful relationship with the Lord Jesus. The experience is essential.
The precedent to this experience is thirst. All thirst, but not all thirst for God. We are afflicted and blessed with a chronic restlessness, an insatiable soul-thirst, so that we might keep seeking Him.
We were made for God. The taste buds of our souls were made to be satisfied in a personal relationship with the Son of God. But, we are fallen, and the fundamental meaning of our fallenness is thirsting for things other than God. Our sinful nature is a condition of diseased spiritual taste buds.
The Lord Jesus loudly proclaim, "Let anyone who is thirsty come to me and drink." Coming to the Lord Jesus is an act of the heart. We primarily meet the Lord Jesus through His Word. Drinking is the same as believing or trusting. After he says, "Come to me and drink," in v.37, He then says, "Whoever believes in me." In John 6:35, the Lord Jesus said, "He who believes in me shall never thirst." The essence of drinking the Word of the Lord Jesus is trusting it. The essence of believing in the Lord Jesus is finding in Him the satisfaction of our deepest soul-thirst. Drinking is believing, and believing is drinking.
The result of coming to the Lord Jesus and believing is: "rivers of living water will flow from within them. " The promise is not only that we will be satisfied, but that He will be satisfying. He promises not only that our cup will be full, but also that it will be overflowing. In drinking from the Lord Jesus we become not merely a receptacle, but a spring or a fountain.
Everything starts with a soul-thirst for the Lord Jesus and a drinking in of His promises by faith. Then two things happen in our hearts: first, we sense deep down that we have now discovered the source of lasting and complete joy, and our hearts crave to know more and more of Christ; and second, the water "becomes in us a spring of water welling up into eternal life."
When the people, in v.40, heard these words, they said, "Surely this man is the Prophet." According to v.41, "Others said, “He is the Messiah.” Still others asked, “How can the Messiah come from Galilee?" Not all recognized Him as the One. Some wanted to seize Him with ill desire.
Let me redirect your attention to v.39 where the Lord Jesus describes the rivers of living water. The rivers of living water is analogous of the Holy Spirit whom He gives to those who believe that He is the Messiah. It is the Spirit of God who produces this life, not us. And, the Holy Spirit gives this to those who believe and receive.
Finally, let me close with a story which illustrates the point. A new federal building had just been completed in our Nation's Capitol. A thirsty man walked down the hallway in the building, searching for a water fountain. As he turned the corner, he noticed a water fountain. Upon his arrival, he looked for a button to push or a pedal to pressed down, but there was none. Just then, a man walked up with a sign that he fixed to the wall behind the water fountain. The sign read "stoop and drink." This is our daily task: to come to the Lord Jesus and receive from Him on a daily basis. It is then that the "rivers of living water will flow from within."
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Monday, October 21, 2019
John 7:30-36
Click here for the John 7:30-36 PODCAST
30 At this they tried to seize him, but no one laid a hand on him, because his hour had not yet come. 31 Still, many in the crowd believed in him. They said, “When the Messiah comes, will he perform more signs than this man?” 32 The Pharisees heard the crowd whispering such things about him. Then the chief priests and the Pharisees sent temple guards to arrest him. 33 Jesus said, “I am with you for only a short time, and then I am going to the one who sent me. 34 You will look for me, but you will not find me; and where I am, you cannot come.” 35 The Jews said to one another, “Where does this man intend to go that we cannot find him? Will he go where our people live scattered among the Greeks, and teach the Greeks? 36 What did he mean when he said, ‘You will look for me, but you will not find me,’ and ‘Where I am, you cannot come’?” John 7:30-36
In so many ways, we are constantly reminded that we live in a world where we are in a battle between good and evil. We either factor in for good or for evil on any given moment. We do well when we carefully evaluate whether we are factoring in for the advancement of good or not. When we do this, we can be assured that we are abiding in His truth. This is the key for advancing good in this world: having His word abide in us and us abiding in Him.
In our text today, we are told, the religious leaders wanted to seize the Lord Jesus and kill Him. Yet, "many in the crowd believed." Herein is the battle between good and evil on display. Many of the people recognized the Lord Jesus was sent by God. The Pharisees heard the crowd speaking well about the Lord Jesus, and the chief priests and Pharisees sent officers to arrest Him with the goal of getting rid of Him. This is what we do to those who are not easily controlled; we find a way to get rid of them.
The Lord Jesus then said in v.33-34, "I am with you for only a short time, and then I am going to the one who sent me. 34 You will look for me, but you will not find me; and where I am, you cannot come." The Lord Jesus was fully aware of the sovereign plan of the Father. He knew the Father was invisibly protecting Him. He was confident that no one could touch Him until His hour to glorify His Father, and so He continues His ministry with the awareness that all the opposition against Him could go no further than God's will for Him.
This is always true for us, His followers. We can be confident
that nothing can happen to us except what He allows; and when He allows it, it is the right time for it to happen. There are times in all of our lives that we have asked the Lord, "Why?" The nature of our faith in Him is that we trust Him no matter what. J.R.R. Tolkien said it well when he said, “Faithless is he that says farewell when the road darkens.”
Then the Jews said to one another in v.35-36, “Where does this man intend to go that we cannot find him? Will he go where our people live scattered among the Greeks, and teach the Greeks? 36 What did he mean when he said, ‘You will look for me, but you will not find me,’ and ‘Where I am, you cannot come’?” This response from the Jews underscores why we miss the leading of the Lord: we think as men rather than as followers of the God of the universe. It also explains why the religious leaders wanted to kill the Lord Jesus: they could not understand or control Him. This is how we usually respond to those in our lives like this.
There is a quote that applies to this very well: "The tighter we squeeze the less we have." The more we try to hang on to something or “strangle” it, the more hurtful it can be or hard it is to hang on to. If we close our fist, how can we grab anything, whereas, if we open our hands, it will be very easy for something to fall into them. The more we walk in His truth, being defined by it, the more we will see Him with our hearts. The key, once again, is He is defining our lives.
I close today's blog with a quote from Mike Yaconelli, "I want a lifetime of holy moments. Every day I want to be in dangerous proximity to Jesus. I long for a life that explodes with meaning and is filled with adventure, wonder, risk, and danger. I long for a faith that is gloriously treacherous. I want to be with Jesus, not knowing whether to cry or laugh."
30 At this they tried to seize him, but no one laid a hand on him, because his hour had not yet come. 31 Still, many in the crowd believed in him. They said, “When the Messiah comes, will he perform more signs than this man?” 32 The Pharisees heard the crowd whispering such things about him. Then the chief priests and the Pharisees sent temple guards to arrest him. 33 Jesus said, “I am with you for only a short time, and then I am going to the one who sent me. 34 You will look for me, but you will not find me; and where I am, you cannot come.” 35 The Jews said to one another, “Where does this man intend to go that we cannot find him? Will he go where our people live scattered among the Greeks, and teach the Greeks? 36 What did he mean when he said, ‘You will look for me, but you will not find me,’ and ‘Where I am, you cannot come’?” John 7:30-36
In so many ways, we are constantly reminded that we live in a world where we are in a battle between good and evil. We either factor in for good or for evil on any given moment. We do well when we carefully evaluate whether we are factoring in for the advancement of good or not. When we do this, we can be assured that we are abiding in His truth. This is the key for advancing good in this world: having His word abide in us and us abiding in Him.
In our text today, we are told, the religious leaders wanted to seize the Lord Jesus and kill Him. Yet, "many in the crowd believed." Herein is the battle between good and evil on display. Many of the people recognized the Lord Jesus was sent by God. The Pharisees heard the crowd speaking well about the Lord Jesus, and the chief priests and Pharisees sent officers to arrest Him with the goal of getting rid of Him. This is what we do to those who are not easily controlled; we find a way to get rid of them.
The Lord Jesus then said in v.33-34, "I am with you for only a short time, and then I am going to the one who sent me. 34 You will look for me, but you will not find me; and where I am, you cannot come." The Lord Jesus was fully aware of the sovereign plan of the Father. He knew the Father was invisibly protecting Him. He was confident that no one could touch Him until His hour to glorify His Father, and so He continues His ministry with the awareness that all the opposition against Him could go no further than God's will for Him.
This is always true for us, His followers. We can be confident
Then the Jews said to one another in v.35-36, “Where does this man intend to go that we cannot find him? Will he go where our people live scattered among the Greeks, and teach the Greeks? 36 What did he mean when he said, ‘You will look for me, but you will not find me,’ and ‘Where I am, you cannot come’?” This response from the Jews underscores why we miss the leading of the Lord: we think as men rather than as followers of the God of the universe. It also explains why the religious leaders wanted to kill the Lord Jesus: they could not understand or control Him. This is how we usually respond to those in our lives like this.
There is a quote that applies to this very well: "The tighter we squeeze the less we have." The more we try to hang on to something or “strangle” it, the more hurtful it can be or hard it is to hang on to. If we close our fist, how can we grab anything, whereas, if we open our hands, it will be very easy for something to fall into them. The more we walk in His truth, being defined by it, the more we will see Him with our hearts. The key, once again, is He is defining our lives.
I close today's blog with a quote from Mike Yaconelli, "I want a lifetime of holy moments. Every day I want to be in dangerous proximity to Jesus. I long for a life that explodes with meaning and is filled with adventure, wonder, risk, and danger. I long for a faith that is gloriously treacherous. I want to be with Jesus, not knowing whether to cry or laugh."
Friday, October 18, 2019
John 7:25-29
Click here for the John 7:25-29 PODCAST
25 At that point some of the people of Jerusalem began to ask, “Isn’t this the man they are trying to kill? 26 Here he is, speaking publicly, and they are not saying a word to him. Have the authorities really concluded that he is the Messiah? 27 But we know where this man is from; when the Messiah comes, no one will know where he is from.” 28 Then Jesus, still teaching in the temple courts, cried out, “Yes, you know me, and you know where I am from. I am not here on my own authority, but he who sent me is true. You do not know him, 29 but I know him because I am from him and he sent me.” John 7:25-29
The opposition and threats of the Jews toward the Lord Jesus is now on a rapid rise, and the people are taking note of the desire of the religious community to kill Him. Yet in the midst of all this the Lord Jesus openly preaches in the courts of the temple.
According to Malachi 3:1, it was long expected that the Messiah would suddenly appear in his temple in Jerusalem. The Rabbis took that to mean that no one would know his background. So these people are saying, "Have the authorities really concluded that he is the Messiah? 27 But we know where this man is from; when the Messiah comes, no one will know where he is from."
In the minds of the gathered Jews, Jesus couldn’t be the Messiah because He was from Nazareth. They didn’t realize that He was born in Bethlehem fulfilling the prophesy in Micah 5:2. Little did they know that, by saying those words about Jesus in v.27, they were fulfilling prophesy. The prophet Isaiah says in Isaiah 53:3 writes, “He was despised and forsaken of men . . . He was despised, and we did not esteem Him.” The Lord Jesus was not surprised by the response of these people.
The rest of v.27 tells us what caused the people to change their minds in such a hurry. They reverted back to what they had been taught by the religious leaders. The Rabbis taught that the Messiah would make Himself known suddenly and without warning. They held the popular belief that the ancestry of the Messiah would not be known.
In spite of all the prophecies of Scripture that the Lord Jesus has already fulfilled by His birth, His life, His words, and His miracles, these Jews of Jerusalem believed in sayings and speculations that aren’t even found in the Scriptures. This was yet another reason they did not recognize the Lord Jesus as the Messiah.
In v.28, the Lord Jesus ignores these mistaken conclusions and identifies the heart of their problem. “Yes, you know me, and you know where I am from. I am not here on my own authority, but he who sent me is true. You do not know him." In essence, the Lord Jesus underscores, once again, the reason they did not recognize Him as the promised Messiah: they didn't have a personal relationship with God.
Rather than argue with them about His human origin, the Lord Jesus reminds these gathered in the Temple of His mission. There’s more to the story than just human geography. Before He was born, He was sent. That makes Him greater than the prophets, who were called by God at a specific time in their lives and sent out to proclaim His message, whereas Jesus was sent before He was born.
Once again, the Lord Jesus adjusts the focus of our attention, moving it away from Himself and placing it upon the Father. He describes His Heavenly Father with these words: “He who sent Me is true.” The word “true” means “real”, “authentic”, “genuine”. To know Him personally and intimately is the reason the Lord Jesus came to the earth. There are many today who discourage this kind of a relationship with God, citing arrogance as the motivation for someone speaking as if they have this intimate and personal relationship with God. Yet, this is why the Lord Jesus came.
This revelation about God is followed by a rebuke, as the Lord Jesus reveals what’s true concerning His listeners. After describing the Father who sent Him, the Lord Jesus looks around at them and says “you do not know Him.” He has said this many times before and He’ll be saying it again. They did not know God because they did not know the Lord Jesus. We can’t know one without the other. They are inseparable.
In v.29, the Lord Jesus gives the basis for this kind of a relationship with God. He says, “I know him because I am from him and he sent me.” Notice that everything begins with the Father and is carried out by the Son. This is the posture of the one who believes. This disposition of the believer is discovered in the bowing of our will to the Father.
I close this study with the words of J.I. Packer, “Once you become aware that the main business that you are here for is to know God, most of life's problems fall into place of their own accord.”
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25 At that point some of the people of Jerusalem began to ask, “Isn’t this the man they are trying to kill? 26 Here he is, speaking publicly, and they are not saying a word to him. Have the authorities really concluded that he is the Messiah? 27 But we know where this man is from; when the Messiah comes, no one will know where he is from.” 28 Then Jesus, still teaching in the temple courts, cried out, “Yes, you know me, and you know where I am from. I am not here on my own authority, but he who sent me is true. You do not know him, 29 but I know him because I am from him and he sent me.” John 7:25-29
The opposition and threats of the Jews toward the Lord Jesus is now on a rapid rise, and the people are taking note of the desire of the religious community to kill Him. Yet in the midst of all this the Lord Jesus openly preaches in the courts of the temple.
According to Malachi 3:1, it was long expected that the Messiah would suddenly appear in his temple in Jerusalem. The Rabbis took that to mean that no one would know his background. So these people are saying, "Have the authorities really concluded that he is the Messiah? 27 But we know where this man is from; when the Messiah comes, no one will know where he is from."
In the minds of the gathered Jews, Jesus couldn’t be the Messiah because He was from Nazareth. They didn’t realize that He was born in Bethlehem fulfilling the prophesy in Micah 5:2. Little did they know that, by saying those words about Jesus in v.27, they were fulfilling prophesy. The prophet Isaiah says in Isaiah 53:3 writes, “He was despised and forsaken of men . . . He was despised, and we did not esteem Him.” The Lord Jesus was not surprised by the response of these people.
The rest of v.27 tells us what caused the people to change their minds in such a hurry. They reverted back to what they had been taught by the religious leaders. The Rabbis taught that the Messiah would make Himself known suddenly and without warning. They held the popular belief that the ancestry of the Messiah would not be known.
In spite of all the prophecies of Scripture that the Lord Jesus has already fulfilled by His birth, His life, His words, and His miracles, these Jews of Jerusalem believed in sayings and speculations that aren’t even found in the Scriptures. This was yet another reason they did not recognize the Lord Jesus as the Messiah.
In v.28, the Lord Jesus ignores these mistaken conclusions and identifies the heart of their problem. “Yes, you know me, and you know where I am from. I am not here on my own authority, but he who sent me is true. You do not know him." In essence, the Lord Jesus underscores, once again, the reason they did not recognize Him as the promised Messiah: they didn't have a personal relationship with God.
Rather than argue with them about His human origin, the Lord Jesus reminds these gathered in the Temple of His mission. There’s more to the story than just human geography. Before He was born, He was sent. That makes Him greater than the prophets, who were called by God at a specific time in their lives and sent out to proclaim His message, whereas Jesus was sent before He was born.
Once again, the Lord Jesus adjusts the focus of our attention, moving it away from Himself and placing it upon the Father. He describes His Heavenly Father with these words: “He who sent Me is true.” The word “true” means “real”, “authentic”, “genuine”. To know Him personally and intimately is the reason the Lord Jesus came to the earth. There are many today who discourage this kind of a relationship with God, citing arrogance as the motivation for someone speaking as if they have this intimate and personal relationship with God. Yet, this is why the Lord Jesus came.
This revelation about God is followed by a rebuke, as the Lord Jesus reveals what’s true concerning His listeners. After describing the Father who sent Him, the Lord Jesus looks around at them and says “you do not know Him.” He has said this many times before and He’ll be saying it again. They did not know God because they did not know the Lord Jesus. We can’t know one without the other. They are inseparable.
In v.29, the Lord Jesus gives the basis for this kind of a relationship with God. He says, “I know him because I am from him and he sent me.” Notice that everything begins with the Father and is carried out by the Son. This is the posture of the one who believes. This disposition of the believer is discovered in the bowing of our will to the Father.
I close this study with the words of J.I. Packer, “Once you become aware that the main business that you are here for is to know God, most of life's problems fall into place of their own accord.”
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Thursday, October 17, 2019
John 7:19-24
CLICK HERE FOR JOHN 7:19-24 PODCAST
19 Has not Moses given you the law? Yet not one of you keeps the law. Why are you trying to kill me?” 20 “You are demon-possessed,” the crowd answered. “Who is trying to kill you?” 21 Jesus said to them, “I did one miracle, and you are all amazed. 22 Yet, because Moses gave you circumcision (though actually it did not come from Moses, but from the patriarchs), you circumcise a boy on the Sabbath. 23 Now if a boy can be circumcised on the Sabbath so that the law of Moses may not be broken, why are you angry with me for healing a man’s whole body on the Sabbath? 24 Stop judging by mere appearances, but instead judge correctly.” ~ John 7:19-24
In today's text the emphasis is on the difference between saving faith and unbelief. The Lord Jesus redirects our attention back to the healing of the lame man at the pool of Bethesda on the Sabbath. In response, the religious leaders of the Jews were accusing Him of being a lawbreaker because He healed the man on the Sabbath.
In v.19 the Lord Jesus questions the religious leaders, essentially saying, "You break the Law as much as you accuse me of doing." In v.20, the crowd enters the conversation by saying, "You are demon-possessed. Nobody is seeking to kill you."
In v.21-24, the Lord Jesus reminds these accusers that they were equally guilty by circumcising eight day old boys on the Sabbath. Then the Lord Jesus informs these ill-educated onlookers that they fail to observe life in a realistic way by God's definition of things. Only then can a correct judgment be arrived upon.
The difference between belief and unbelief is a matter of eternal life and death. Of course the object of our faith is of ultimate importance, and this is what makes us right before the just God of the Bible.
In addition, the only faith that saves anyone is the type of faith that endures. This kind of faith lasts by feeding on the word of God. We come to faith through the word of Christ (Romans 10:17), and we remain in the faith through the word of Christ. This is the subject of abiding as seen in John 17.
In v.24 of today's text, the Lord Jesus gives us the where with all to size up something as true or not. He is answering the question: How can you know if anybody is true? The answer is when our desires are God’s desires, when our pursuits are God’s pursuits, then our minds will be able to see the Lord Jesus for who He really is. When our will is aligned with God’s will, we will be in sync with the truth.
The evidence that we have arrived upon the truth is when we have a passion for God-exaltation rather than self-exaltation. When we stand for the will of God, we will grow in our love to live for His glory. This is why these religious leaders did not know the Lord Jesus as the Messiah. They couldn't because their will was not surrendered to God.
Finally, rather than focusing on the failure of these religious leaders, we do well to take inventory of our own souls. The deepest obstruction to knowing the truth is heart-obstruction rather than head-obstruction.
This is an issue of our will, not an issue with our understanding. This is why the Lord Jesus puts such emphasis on our need to give safe haven in our souls to humility. We need to will God-exaltation more than we will self-exaltation. We need to love making much of God more than we love making much of ourselves. Being opposed to this is the greatest obstacle to knowing God. We can not know the Lord Jesus until our will is to do God’s will.
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19 Has not Moses given you the law? Yet not one of you keeps the law. Why are you trying to kill me?” 20 “You are demon-possessed,” the crowd answered. “Who is trying to kill you?” 21 Jesus said to them, “I did one miracle, and you are all amazed. 22 Yet, because Moses gave you circumcision (though actually it did not come from Moses, but from the patriarchs), you circumcise a boy on the Sabbath. 23 Now if a boy can be circumcised on the Sabbath so that the law of Moses may not be broken, why are you angry with me for healing a man’s whole body on the Sabbath? 24 Stop judging by mere appearances, but instead judge correctly.” ~ John 7:19-24
In today's text the emphasis is on the difference between saving faith and unbelief. The Lord Jesus redirects our attention back to the healing of the lame man at the pool of Bethesda on the Sabbath. In response, the religious leaders of the Jews were accusing Him of being a lawbreaker because He healed the man on the Sabbath.
In v.19 the Lord Jesus questions the religious leaders, essentially saying, "You break the Law as much as you accuse me of doing." In v.20, the crowd enters the conversation by saying, "You are demon-possessed. Nobody is seeking to kill you."
In v.21-24, the Lord Jesus reminds these accusers that they were equally guilty by circumcising eight day old boys on the Sabbath. Then the Lord Jesus informs these ill-educated onlookers that they fail to observe life in a realistic way by God's definition of things. Only then can a correct judgment be arrived upon.
The difference between belief and unbelief is a matter of eternal life and death. Of course the object of our faith is of ultimate importance, and this is what makes us right before the just God of the Bible.
In addition, the only faith that saves anyone is the type of faith that endures. This kind of faith lasts by feeding on the word of God. We come to faith through the word of Christ (Romans 10:17), and we remain in the faith through the word of Christ. This is the subject of abiding as seen in John 17.
In v.24 of today's text, the Lord Jesus gives us the where with all to size up something as true or not. He is answering the question: How can you know if anybody is true? The answer is when our desires are God’s desires, when our pursuits are God’s pursuits, then our minds will be able to see the Lord Jesus for who He really is. When our will is aligned with God’s will, we will be in sync with the truth.
The evidence that we have arrived upon the truth is when we have a passion for God-exaltation rather than self-exaltation. When we stand for the will of God, we will grow in our love to live for His glory. This is why these religious leaders did not know the Lord Jesus as the Messiah. They couldn't because their will was not surrendered to God.
Finally, rather than focusing on the failure of these religious leaders, we do well to take inventory of our own souls. The deepest obstruction to knowing the truth is heart-obstruction rather than head-obstruction.
This is an issue of our will, not an issue with our understanding. This is why the Lord Jesus puts such emphasis on our need to give safe haven in our souls to humility. We need to will God-exaltation more than we will self-exaltation. We need to love making much of God more than we love making much of ourselves. Being opposed to this is the greatest obstacle to knowing God. We can not know the Lord Jesus until our will is to do God’s will.
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Wednesday, October 16, 2019
John 7:14-18
Click here for John 7:14-18 PODCAST
14 Not until halfway through the festival did Jesus go up to the temple courts and begin to teach. 15 The Jews there were amazed and asked, “How did this man get such learning without having been taught?” 16 Jesus answered, “My teaching is not my own. It comes from the one who sent me. 17 Anyone who chooses to do the will of God will find out whether my teaching comes from God or whether I speak on my own. 18 Whoever speaks on their own does so to gain personal glory, but he who seeks the glory of the one who sent him is a man of truth; there is nothing false about him. 19 Has not Moses given you the law? Yet not one of you keeps the law. Why are you trying to kill me?” ~ John 7:14-18
In our text we learn the Lord Jesus went to Jerusalem in the middle of the feast of Tabernacles, privately, not "out there" as his brothers had suggested in the previous verses. Instead of performing miracles, He goes into the temple and begins to teach which prompted the Jews to ask, "How did this man get such learning without having been taught?"
In Jesus' day a Jewish boy went through a process that qualified him to be a disciple and then maybe a Rabbi. The first step to becoming a disciple involved the memorization of the first five books of the bible – Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. The second step involved the memorization of the rest of the Old Testament from Joshua to Malachi. The third step, the budding disciple would seek out a Rabbi who would grill the fourteen year old and find out what he knew because the Rabbi wanted to know if he had what it took to follow him. Many would be turned down. Only the best of the best of the best were invited to come and follow the Rabbi. Those chosen would leave EVERYTHING behind, his family, trade, home and village, to be taught by the Rabbi.
It appeared to those who asked the question in v.15 that the Lord Jesus had not gone through this process. Of course, He qualified because His Father wrote the whole Old Testament and He was intimately familiar with it. He was/is the word, the truth, and had the people known His identity, they would have not asked such a question. They asked the question, in part, because every Jewish Rabbi began his teaching with words such as, "the sages say," or, "the Talmud teaches," or, "the Mishnah explains." But Jesus never quoted an authority other than the Scriptures.
According to v.16, the Lord Jesus responded with, "My teaching is not my own. It comes from the one who sent me." Then in v.17, the Lord Jesus gives the key to understanding His words: "Anyone who chooses to do the will of God will find out whether my teaching comes from God or whether I speak on my own." This is to say, "when we have trouble understanding what the Lord is saying, He tells us to obey his words, to walk in His truth. Then we will know from this inside knowledge that no one can take away that which He says is true, because His teaching is in line with reality. In actuality, reality is in line with the truth.
This underscores a principle that serves us in every area of life: we learn by doing. When we do what Jesus says, we begin to understand with a deep conviction that He knows what life is all about and what is best for us. Intimacy with the truth is dependent upon deciding to be intimate with the truth. When truth defines us, we are granted more truth.
Have you ever wondered why some people who have been exposed to the truth for years and years never seem to grow? We grow and become strong in the faith after we have given the faith/truth safe haven in our souls.
According to v.18 we learn the mark of an authentic follower of Christ: "Whoever speaks on their own does so to gain personal glory, but he who seeks the glory of the one who sent him is a man of truth; there is nothing false about him." If someone is seeking to advance himself, much of what he says is to be questioned. Self advancement is always be an alarm of someone who is not following the will of the Father, such was the case of the Lord Jesus. This is why the favor of the Father was upon Him.
According to v.19, the Lord highlights the fact that they who cannot uphold truth are trying to undermine the truth. The truth will break us one way or another. Either our volition will be broken to the point of surrendering our definition to the truth or our unbroken volition will discover the ultimate consequence. It is better to be broken now while we have a choice in the matter rather than later when our unbroken volition will render the worse outcome for us for eternity.
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14 Not until halfway through the festival did Jesus go up to the temple courts and begin to teach. 15 The Jews there were amazed and asked, “How did this man get such learning without having been taught?” 16 Jesus answered, “My teaching is not my own. It comes from the one who sent me. 17 Anyone who chooses to do the will of God will find out whether my teaching comes from God or whether I speak on my own. 18 Whoever speaks on their own does so to gain personal glory, but he who seeks the glory of the one who sent him is a man of truth; there is nothing false about him. 19 Has not Moses given you the law? Yet not one of you keeps the law. Why are you trying to kill me?” ~ John 7:14-18
In our text we learn the Lord Jesus went to Jerusalem in the middle of the feast of Tabernacles, privately, not "out there" as his brothers had suggested in the previous verses. Instead of performing miracles, He goes into the temple and begins to teach which prompted the Jews to ask, "How did this man get such learning without having been taught?"
In Jesus' day a Jewish boy went through a process that qualified him to be a disciple and then maybe a Rabbi. The first step to becoming a disciple involved the memorization of the first five books of the bible – Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. The second step involved the memorization of the rest of the Old Testament from Joshua to Malachi. The third step, the budding disciple would seek out a Rabbi who would grill the fourteen year old and find out what he knew because the Rabbi wanted to know if he had what it took to follow him. Many would be turned down. Only the best of the best of the best were invited to come and follow the Rabbi. Those chosen would leave EVERYTHING behind, his family, trade, home and village, to be taught by the Rabbi.
It appeared to those who asked the question in v.15 that the Lord Jesus had not gone through this process. Of course, He qualified because His Father wrote the whole Old Testament and He was intimately familiar with it. He was/is the word, the truth, and had the people known His identity, they would have not asked such a question. They asked the question, in part, because every Jewish Rabbi began his teaching with words such as, "the sages say," or, "the Talmud teaches," or, "the Mishnah explains." But Jesus never quoted an authority other than the Scriptures.
According to v.16, the Lord Jesus responded with, "My teaching is not my own. It comes from the one who sent me." Then in v.17, the Lord Jesus gives the key to understanding His words: "Anyone who chooses to do the will of God will find out whether my teaching comes from God or whether I speak on my own." This is to say, "when we have trouble understanding what the Lord is saying, He tells us to obey his words, to walk in His truth. Then we will know from this inside knowledge that no one can take away that which He says is true, because His teaching is in line with reality. In actuality, reality is in line with the truth.
This underscores a principle that serves us in every area of life: we learn by doing. When we do what Jesus says, we begin to understand with a deep conviction that He knows what life is all about and what is best for us. Intimacy with the truth is dependent upon deciding to be intimate with the truth. When truth defines us, we are granted more truth.
Have you ever wondered why some people who have been exposed to the truth for years and years never seem to grow? We grow and become strong in the faith after we have given the faith/truth safe haven in our souls.
According to v.18 we learn the mark of an authentic follower of Christ: "Whoever speaks on their own does so to gain personal glory, but he who seeks the glory of the one who sent him is a man of truth; there is nothing false about him." If someone is seeking to advance himself, much of what he says is to be questioned. Self advancement is always be an alarm of someone who is not following the will of the Father, such was the case of the Lord Jesus. This is why the favor of the Father was upon Him.
According to v.19, the Lord highlights the fact that they who cannot uphold truth are trying to undermine the truth. The truth will break us one way or another. Either our volition will be broken to the point of surrendering our definition to the truth or our unbroken volition will discover the ultimate consequence. It is better to be broken now while we have a choice in the matter rather than later when our unbroken volition will render the worse outcome for us for eternity.
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Tuesday, October 15, 2019
John 7:1-13
JOHN 7:1-13 PODCAST
1 After this, Jesus went around in Galilee. He did not want to go about in Judea because the Jewish leaders there were looking for a way to kill him. 2 But when the Jewish Festival of Tabernacles was near, 3 Jesus’ brothers said to him, “Leave Galilee and go to Judea, so that your disciples there may see the works you do. 4 No one who wants to become a public figure acts in secret. Since you are doing these things, show yourself to the world.” 5 For even his own brothers did not believe in him. 6 Therefore Jesus told them, “My time is not yet here; for you any time will do. 7 The world cannot hate you, but it hates me because I testify that its works are evil. 8 You go to the festival. I am not going up to this festival, because my time has not yet fully come.” 9 After he had said this, he stayed in Galilee. 10 However, after his brothers had left for the festival, he went also, not publicly, but in secret. 11 Now at the festival the Jewish leaders were watching for Jesus and asking, “Where is he?”
12 Among the crowds there was widespread whispering about him. Some said, “He is a good man.” Others replied, “No, he deceives the people.” 13 But no one would say anything publicly about him for fear of the leaders. John 7:1-13
Some six months after the feeding of the five thousand, and the Lord Jesus' discussion with those who stopped following Him, the desire to kill Jesus by the unbelieving Jews in Judea is growing. It is the time of the Feast of Tabernacles. This week long feast of Israel occurred in early October. During this time the Jews built tents out of tree limbs, and many families actually moved out of their houses and lived in them. This feast was a reminder that the Lord led the people of Israel through the desert out of Egypt for forty years.
According to v.4-5, the four brothers of Jesus came to Him with advice. They told him, "You need a larger arena. Galilee is too small for you. Why stay here in the sticks? You need to get down to Judea, to Jerusalem. That's the capital, the heart of the country."
"In addition," they said to the Lord Jesus, "Your followers in Judea need to see you again. Their faith needs to be encouraged by your miracles." They said, "No one who wants to become a public figure acts in secret." They meant, "If you want to be recognized as the Messiah, you have got to move out onto a real stage."
This kind of reasoning sounds normal, but, there is one missing element, which John highlights in v.5: "For even his brothers did not believe in him." Faith in the Lord Jesus as the promised Messiah was missing and that is why his brothers argued the way they did. If they had believed, they would have followed His advice and trusted in His plan.
Many Christians have this same problem today. We do not believe that God knows best. We plan and ambitiously pursue own will rather than His. I truly appreciate what the late Mike Yaconelli had to say along these lines. He said, "We'd like to have it all neat and orderly. We want to be able to measure it and control it, but the reality is that Jesus is a mystery. The Christian faith is a mystery. The disciples spent their entire time following him going, "Uhh, what the heck are you doing? We don't understand what you're doing and we don't know why you're doing it." And when he would explain why he was doing it, they still didn't get it. Such is the nature of our relationship with Him, and yet, this is what makes it exciting and worth pursuing Him. We do not know what to expect from Him next, and yet, it is the best for us.
In response in v.6-9, the Lord Jesus describes the difference between His thoughts and the thoughts of puny man. The Lord Jesus understood what God had appointed, not only for Him but for all, including you and me. Our lives are in His hands, and the key is to follow His lead, even when it seems crazy. The Lord Jesus knew that His time would not be at the Feast of Tabernacles, but at the Feast of Passover. Tabernacles is in October, while Passover is in March or April, thus there were six months left before his time was to come. He knew the ceremony in the book of Exodus of the offering of a lamb and sprinkling its blood over the doorposts so that the Angel of Death would pass over the houses of Israelites and spare them from the judgment of God, was picturing that event in which he would be the central character. This is why John the Baptist's first words when he saw Jesus coming toward him were, "Behold, the Lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world," (John 1:29).
According to v.10, we learn why the Lord Jesus did not want to go to Jerusalem with His brothers: because that would have attracted attention to Him. Did you notice the polarization of the crowd? Some believed and others didn't. Yet no one talked openly about Him. Everyone was afraid of being hauled in before the religious leaders, so they did not speak openly but merely whispered about him.
This is the emphasis in our text: do we openly believe in the Lord Jesus or not? I have discovered that I have no choice in this matter. Well, I have a choice, but my heart has been captured. I love the Lord too much to remain quiet about Him. And, to add to this, those who walk in darkness need to see the light. This is why God has placed you and me on this earth ... to point others to Him. There are two things in this world which will endure through eternity: the word of God and the souls of people. We must be involved in bringing these two together. Will you do it?
To help BYM, click here
1 After this, Jesus went around in Galilee. He did not want to go about in Judea because the Jewish leaders there were looking for a way to kill him. 2 But when the Jewish Festival of Tabernacles was near, 3 Jesus’ brothers said to him, “Leave Galilee and go to Judea, so that your disciples there may see the works you do. 4 No one who wants to become a public figure acts in secret. Since you are doing these things, show yourself to the world.” 5 For even his own brothers did not believe in him. 6 Therefore Jesus told them, “My time is not yet here; for you any time will do. 7 The world cannot hate you, but it hates me because I testify that its works are evil. 8 You go to the festival. I am not going up to this festival, because my time has not yet fully come.” 9 After he had said this, he stayed in Galilee. 10 However, after his brothers had left for the festival, he went also, not publicly, but in secret. 11 Now at the festival the Jewish leaders were watching for Jesus and asking, “Where is he?”
12 Among the crowds there was widespread whispering about him. Some said, “He is a good man.” Others replied, “No, he deceives the people.” 13 But no one would say anything publicly about him for fear of the leaders. John 7:1-13
Some six months after the feeding of the five thousand, and the Lord Jesus' discussion with those who stopped following Him, the desire to kill Jesus by the unbelieving Jews in Judea is growing. It is the time of the Feast of Tabernacles. This week long feast of Israel occurred in early October. During this time the Jews built tents out of tree limbs, and many families actually moved out of their houses and lived in them. This feast was a reminder that the Lord led the people of Israel through the desert out of Egypt for forty years.
According to v.4-5, the four brothers of Jesus came to Him with advice. They told him, "You need a larger arena. Galilee is too small for you. Why stay here in the sticks? You need to get down to Judea, to Jerusalem. That's the capital, the heart of the country."
"In addition," they said to the Lord Jesus, "Your followers in Judea need to see you again. Their faith needs to be encouraged by your miracles." They said, "No one who wants to become a public figure acts in secret." They meant, "If you want to be recognized as the Messiah, you have got to move out onto a real stage."
This kind of reasoning sounds normal, but, there is one missing element, which John highlights in v.5: "For even his brothers did not believe in him." Faith in the Lord Jesus as the promised Messiah was missing and that is why his brothers argued the way they did. If they had believed, they would have followed His advice and trusted in His plan.
Many Christians have this same problem today. We do not believe that God knows best. We plan and ambitiously pursue own will rather than His. I truly appreciate what the late Mike Yaconelli had to say along these lines. He said, "We'd like to have it all neat and orderly. We want to be able to measure it and control it, but the reality is that Jesus is a mystery. The Christian faith is a mystery. The disciples spent their entire time following him going, "Uhh, what the heck are you doing? We don't understand what you're doing and we don't know why you're doing it." And when he would explain why he was doing it, they still didn't get it. Such is the nature of our relationship with Him, and yet, this is what makes it exciting and worth pursuing Him. We do not know what to expect from Him next, and yet, it is the best for us.
In response in v.6-9, the Lord Jesus describes the difference between His thoughts and the thoughts of puny man. The Lord Jesus understood what God had appointed, not only for Him but for all, including you and me. Our lives are in His hands, and the key is to follow His lead, even when it seems crazy. The Lord Jesus knew that His time would not be at the Feast of Tabernacles, but at the Feast of Passover. Tabernacles is in October, while Passover is in March or April, thus there were six months left before his time was to come. He knew the ceremony in the book of Exodus of the offering of a lamb and sprinkling its blood over the doorposts so that the Angel of Death would pass over the houses of Israelites and spare them from the judgment of God, was picturing that event in which he would be the central character. This is why John the Baptist's first words when he saw Jesus coming toward him were, "Behold, the Lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world," (John 1:29).
According to v.10, we learn why the Lord Jesus did not want to go to Jerusalem with His brothers: because that would have attracted attention to Him. Did you notice the polarization of the crowd? Some believed and others didn't. Yet no one talked openly about Him. Everyone was afraid of being hauled in before the religious leaders, so they did not speak openly but merely whispered about him.
This is the emphasis in our text: do we openly believe in the Lord Jesus or not? I have discovered that I have no choice in this matter. Well, I have a choice, but my heart has been captured. I love the Lord too much to remain quiet about Him. And, to add to this, those who walk in darkness need to see the light. This is why God has placed you and me on this earth ... to point others to Him. There are two things in this world which will endure through eternity: the word of God and the souls of people. We must be involved in bringing these two together. Will you do it?
To help BYM, click here
Monday, October 14, 2019
John 6:60-71
60 On hearing it, many of his disciples said, “This is a hard teaching. Who can accept it?” 61 Aware that his disciples were grumbling about this, Jesus said to them, “Does this offend you? 62 Then what if you see the Son of Man ascend to where he was before! 63 The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing. The words I have spoken to you—they are full of the Spirit and life. 64 Yet there are some of you who do not believe.” For Jesus had known from the beginning which of them did not believe and who would betray him. 65 He went on to say, “This is why I told you that no one can come to me unless the Father has enabled them.” 66 From this time many of his disciples turned back and no longer followed him. 67 “You do not want to leave too, do you?” Jesus asked the Twelve. 68 Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. 69 We have come to believe and to know that you are the Holy One of God.” 70 Then Jesus replied, “Have I not chosen you, the Twelve? Yet one of you is a devil!” 71 (He meant Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot, who, though one of the Twelve, was later to betray him.) John 6:60-71
We come to that turning point in John's gospel where due to the teachings of the Lord Jesus, many followed Him no longer. They were turning away due to His metaphoric teaching regarding His blood and His flesh. On this side of the cross, it is not difficult for us to recognize the elements of the Lord's Supper or that memorial meeting of Believer's where we remember the Lord and His work on the cross til He returns.
I have discovered that this is frequently true of those who stop following the Lord Jesus: they are bothered when difficult doctrines are taught.
At this the Lord Jesus asks the twelve a penetrating, and searching, and heart gripping question, “You do not want to leave too, do you?” Of course, they were as committed to following Him as they could be at this point. However, miracles and doctrine are not what captures our hearts for the Lord. No, it is His love that causes us to continue following Him, along with the abiding Holy Spirit.
Those choosing to follow Him no more said in v.60, “This is a hard teaching. Who can accept it?” To this response the Lord Jesus draws our attention to the workings of the Holy Spirit in v.63. It is the Holy Spirit who imparts life. It is the flesh (the evil desires within humans) that profits us nothing spiritually. In fact, the flesh is out to destroy us (see Galatians 6:8).
God always, in the Scriptures, places little upon large numbers, in contrast with the American church today. Annually, many churches set goals for growth, usually in specific terms of percentage of increase, or even an arbitrary number, arrived at out of the blue, that they are aiming to achieve. They do not get this from the Lord and we should be leery of this, for this is not the leading of the Holy Spirit.
According to v.68, Peter puts his finger on the real issue in this passage: God's definition of life. The words of the Lord Jesus are truth about life, and if we miss them, if we follow the distortions of the world and think we have adequate wisdom of our own to work out the difficulties of life, we will be so far removed from reality.
In contrast, the words of the Lord Jesus which "are full of the Spirit and life," these who were turning away from the Lord Jesus were turning away from that which provides substance in our lives, the truth. God's words always open our eyes to truth. When we respond to the truth we see, then we will be taught more truth. Scripture warns that if we resist the truth, then we lose the capacity to see and to hear more truth.
In v.68-69, Peter, in effect says, "Lord, we have investigated what you offer and the alternatives, and we have found that you have the words of eternal life. Where else would we go?" Like Peter, we know we have come to know the One who has shown us His way and His love that is unlike any other.
According to v.70-71, the Lord Jesus chose the twelve. I find it amazing that even though Judas had been with the Lord Jesus for three years and he had seen His lifestyle and His miracles, he still chose to leave the Lord Jesus in the end. Equally, I am amazed that I continue to follow the Lord Jesus on a daily basis. I shouldn't be amazed though, for the secret is discovered in His abiding presence in my life via the Holy Spirit. As Augustine said, “He who falls, falls by his own will; and he who stands, stands by God's will.”
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