Monthly Archives: February 2024

THE CRUX OF IT ALL – 9

Bible Study,

John 5:39-40 NLT‬
[39] “You search the Scriptures because you think they give you eternal life. But the Scriptures point to me! [40] Yet you refuse to come to me to receive this life.”

It was a constant battle, trying to convince people who were determined not to believe in Him that He ws really God’s Messiah. Wasn’t He an ordinary person just like themselves?

Jesus was exasperated by the stubborn unbelief of His opponents, both spiritual leaders and common people. After the umpteenth miracle, they still wanted a “sign”.

However, in this battle of wills, Jesus revealed the greatest truths about Himself that we can find nowhere else in Scripture. John chapter 5 is a treasure chest of reassurances that Jesus is the Son of God.

This clash with His opponents came out of a notable miracle at the pool of Bethesda. A man, paralysed for 38 years, stood up and walked at Jesus’ command!

‭John 5:2-3 NLT‬
[2] “Inside the city, near the Sheep Gate, was the pool of Bethesda, with five covered porches. [3] Crowds of sick people—blind, lame, or paralyzed—lay on the porches….
[5] One of the men lying there had been sick for thirty-eight years.
[8] Jesus told him, “Stand up, pick up your mat, and walk!” [9] Instantly, the man was healed! He rolled up his sleeping mat and began walking! But this miracle happened on the Sabbath,… “

This “but” was the real issue for the religious leaders. That Jesus had healed a man sick for 38 years was irrelevant. That He healed him on the Sabbath was the problem. Since they were the self-appointed custodians of their people’s behaviour, they thought that they had every right to censure Jesus for what He had done.

They attacked the healed man for doing what Jesus told him to do.

‭John 5:10 NLT‬
[10] “… so the Jewish leaders objected. They said to the man who was cured, “You can’t work on the Sabbath! The law doesn’t allow you to carry that sleeping mat!”

When the healed man found out who the healer was, he believed in Him. When the religious leaders found out that the healer was Jesus, they went on the rampage.

‭John 5:16-18 NLT‬
[16]”So the Jewish leaders began harassing Jesus for breaking the Sabbath rules. [17] But Jesus replied, “My Father is always working, and so am I.” [18] So the Jewish leaders tried all the harder to find a way to kill him. For he not only broke the Sabbath, he called God his Father, thereby making himself equal with God.”

Out of this battle of wills came some of the most profound revelations of Jesus’ relationship with His Father. Would we have had such sublime insights into this union had He not clashed with His deadly enemies?

“Equal with God?” Outrageous if it were not true. In his prologue, John set out to present Jesus as the Son of God but… his proposition needed proof. Is it possible that an ordinary man could give an impossible instruction to a paralysed man and that he would do it at His word?

How could this be? Jesus explained… the union between Himself and God the Father was so close and so intimate that they always functioned together as a unit. Jesus’ authority on earth was an extention of the Father’s authority in heaven.

‭John 5:19 NLT‬
[19] “So Jesus explained, “I tell you the truth, the Son can do nothing by himself. He does only what he sees the Father doing. Whatever the Father does, the Son also does. “

To the Son was given the authority to judge all people and to give life to those who believe in Him. This union with the Father gave Him the right to act for the Father on earth.

‭John 5:26-30 NLT‬
[26] “The Father has life in himself, and he has granted that same life-giving power to his Son. [27] And he has given him authority to judge everyone because he is the Son of Man. [28] Don’t be so surprised! Indeed, the time is coming when all the dead in their graves will hear the voice of God’s Son, [29] and they will rise again. Those who have done good will rise to experience eternal life, and those who have continued in evil will rise to experience judgment.
[30] I can do nothing on my own. I judge as God tells me. Therefore, my judgment is just, because I carry out the will of the one who sent me, not my own will.”

At the resurrection, it will be the Son who sits on the throne judging individuals and nations according to their deeds. On what grounds, will He pass judgment on all who have ever lived?

To Nicodemus, He gave the charge and the evidence.

‭John 3:18-21 NLT‬
[18] “There is no judgment against anyone who believes in him. But anyone who does not believe in him has already been judged for not believing in God’s one and only Son. [19] And the judgment is based on this fact: God’s light came into the world, but people loved the darkness more than the light, for their actions were evil. [20] All who do evil hate the light and refuse to go near it for fear their sins will be exposed. [21] But those who do what is right come to the light so others can see that they are doing what God wants.”

Why did the Jewish leaders never get it?

Jesus gave them the clear answer. Despite all the evidence under their noses that He was who He claimed to be, they missed the conclusion. Their very own Scriptures, the book they claimed to revere and obey, pointed to Him from cover to cover but they missed Him because they were blinded by unbelief.

‭2 Corinthians 3:14 NLT‬
[14] “But the people’s minds were hardened, and to this day whenever the old covenant is being read, the same veil covers their minds so they cannot understand the truth. And this veil can be removed only by believing in Christ.”

John 5:39-40 NLT‬
[39] “You search the Scriptures because you think they give you eternal life. But the Scriptures point to me! [40] Yet you refuse to come to me to receive this life.”

And so the world today plunges on in its unbelief. Jews search the Scriptures but prejudice blinds them to the truth. Gentiles run after every false god down every false trail of sensual pleasure or philosophical gobbledegook but they miss the simple truth about Jesus.

There is a solution for those who sincerely search for truth.

‭John 20:30-31 NLT‬
[30] “The disciples saw Jesus do many other miraculous signs in addition to the ones recorded in this book. [31] But these are written so that you may continue to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing in him you will have life by the power of his name.”

Jesus said that we hold our destiny in our hands. To those who believe in Him, more truth will be revealed. For those who are hardened by unbelief, what little they have will be taken away.

MOLLY AND ME – SAFELY INSIDE

Christian Life, ,

Every morning, at the crack of dawn, I take Molly outside to empty her “tanks” after a night of sleep. She moons around, looking for the right place, with exactly the right smell, to do what she must do!

When she has successfully accomplished her business, she continues to mosey around in the garden to ensure that everything is exactly as she left it the night before.
Sometimes she stays outside for quite a while.

Although we live in a secure place, I still feel a little restless until she is safely inside. She is a small, defenseless little animal. Raptors flying around in our area are known to have carried off pets from their own garden. I can rest again when she appears at the door after her surveillance mission.

How like our Father in heaven! He may not be restless, as I am, until we are safely at home with Him but He certainly watches over us until it’s time to call us from this earth.

He has pledged to guard us, not only from the evil world around us but also from the evil nature within.

‭Jude 1:24-25 NLT‬
[24] Now all glory to God, who is able to keep you from falling away and will bring you with great joy into his glorious presence without a single fault. [25] All glory to him who alone is God, our Savior through Jesus Christ our Lord. All glory, majesty, power, and authority are his before all time, and in the present, and beyond all time! Amen.

‭Psalms 121:3 NLT‬
[3] “He will not let you stumble; the one who watches over you will not slumber.
[5] The Lord himself watches over you! The Lord stands beside you as your protective shade.
[7] The Lord keeps you from all harm and watches over your life. [8] The Lord keeps watch over you as you come and go, both now and forever.”

‭Psalms 91:9-12 NLT‬
[9] “If you make the Lord your refuge, if you make the Most High your shelter, [10] no evil will conquer you; no plague will come near your home. [11] For he will order his angels to protect you wherever you go. [12] They will hold you up with their hands so you won’t even hurt your foot on a stone.”

And so many more promises of His love, care, and protection.

‭Philippians 1:6 NLT‬
[6]” And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns.”

Among His many promises to care for and protect us is this one. Not only does He guarantee His protection from harm and danger in this life, but He also promises to finish what He started. We WILL BE TRANSFORMED into the image of Jesus for, when we see Him, we shall be like Him.

‭1 John 3:2 NLT‬
[2] “Dear friends, we are already God’s children, but he has not yet shown us what we will be like when Christ appears. But we do know that we will be like him, for we will see him as he really is.”

It can’t get better than that!

‭Psalms 116:15 NIV‬
[15]”Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his faithful servants.”

I wonder why He wrote these words in Scripture. Does He mean that He is happy when His children are safely inside?

I think so.

THIRST? – 8

Bible Study, ,

John 4:13-14 NLT‬
[13] “Jesus replied, “Anyone who drinks this water will soon become thirsty again. [14] But those who drink the water I give will never be thirsty again. It becomes a fresh, bubbling spring within them, giving them eternal life.”

God had a quarrel with His people. Despite His goodness to them and His many instructions and warnings about idolatry, the Israelites were bent on worshipping the idols and following the evil practices of the wicked nations around them.

‭Jeremiah 2:4-7, 11-13 NLT‬
[4] “Listen to the word of the Lord, people of Jacob—all you families of Israel! [5] This is what the Lord says: “What did your ancestors find wrong with me that led them to stray so far from me? They worshiped worthless idols, only to become worthless themselves. [6] They did not ask, ‘Where is the Lord who brought us safely out of Egypt and led us through the barren wilderness— a land of deserts and pits, a land of drought and death, where no one lives or even travels?’ “
[7] “And when I brought you into a fruitful land to enjoy its bounty and goodness, you defiled my land and corrupted the possession I had promised you….
[11]” Has any nation ever traded its gods for new ones, even though they are not gods at all? Yet my people have exchanged their glorious God for worthless idols! [12] The heavens are shocked at such a thing and shrink back in horror and dismay,” says the Lord.

His diagnosis was simple.

[13] “For my people have done two evil things: They have abandoned me— the fountain of living water. And they have dug for themselves cracked cisterns that can hold no water at all!”

In their thirst for a life-giving faith, God’s people looked everywhere else but to the Lord, indulging every fleshly lust that their idols could offer them. The outcome was wicked behaviour in the extreme. They were often led by their kings and priests who should have been the custodians of righteousness and truth.

Jesus came to bring us the water of the Spirit who would quench our spiritual thirst with the truth that satisfies forever.

‭‭John 7:37-39 NLT‬
[37] On the last day, the climax of the festival, Jesus stood and shouted to the crowds, “Anyone who is thirsty may come to me! [38] Anyone who believes in me may come and drink! For the Scriptures declare, ‘Rivers of living water will flow from his heart.’”
[39] (When he said “living water,” he was speaking of the Spirit, who would be given to everyone believing in him. But the Spirit had not yet been given, because Jesus had not yet entered into his glory.)

The life Jesus promised is often pictured as a spring of fresh, crystal-clear water bubbling up from underground. How different from the pools of stagnant water or the muddied streams from which His people drank.

Jesus’ encounter with the Samaritan woman at the well outside Sychar is a poignant reminder of the consequences of drinking at the wrong fountain.

She was a sinful woman, an outcast, full of fear, guilt, and shame. She came alone at midday to fetch water, not with the women of the town. She tried to hide behind religion, but Jesus knew her life and He knew her heart.

‭John 4:16-18 NLT‬
‭
[16] “Go and get your husband,” Jesus told her.
[17] “I don’t have a husband,” the woman replied. Jesus said, “You’re right! You don’t have a husband—
[18] for you have had five husbands, and you aren’t even married to the man you’re living with now. You certainly spoke the truth!”

Imagine her shock at Jesus’ disclosure! His words hit her right between the eyes.

‭John 4:28-29 NLT‬
[28] “The woman left her water jar beside the well and ran back to the village, telling everyone, [29] “Come and see a man who told me everything I ever did! Could he possibly be the Messiah?”

What did this encounter with Jesus mean to this woman? She came face to face with the truth about her life. For all her years of shame, she was trying to slake her thirst at the wrong fountain! The so-called “love” of a man, especially not a husband, was nothing more than lust, cheap pleasure at her expense.

Her longing for real love was never satisfied, and never would be if her source was a polluted fountain.

‭Proverbs 5:21-23 NLT‬
[21] “For the Lord sees clearly what a man does, examining every path he takes. [22] An evil man is held captive by his own sins; they are ropes that catch and hold him. [23] He will die for lack of self-control; he will be lost because of his great foolishness.”

In Jesus’ promise, she discovered truth that would change her heart and satisfy her thirsty soul forever.

‭John 4:13-14 NLT‬
[13]” Jesus replied, “Anyone who drinks this water will soon become thirsty again. [14] But those who drink the water I give will never be thirsty again. It becomes a fresh, bubbling spring within them, giving them eternal life.”

The same prophet who diagnosed Israel’s disease, prescribed God’s cure.

‭Jeremiah 31:3 NLT‬
[3] “Long ago the Lord said to Israel: “I have loved you, my people, with an everlasting love. With unfailing love I have drawn you to myself.”

How must we respond to a love like this?

‭John 4:39-42 NLT‬
[39] “Many Samaritans from the village believed in Jesus because the woman had said, “He told me everything I ever did!”
[40] When they came out to see him, they begged him to stay in their village. So he stayed for two days, [41] long enough for many more to hear his message and believe.
[42] Then they said to the woman, “Now we believe, not just because of what you told us, but because we have heard him ourselves. Now we know that he is indeed the Savior of the world.”

Faith in the one who made the promise opens the heart to truth, love, peace, and security that wells up into eternal life.

Try it! I have!

AMAZED!

Bible Study, ,

Luke 7:1-10 NLT‬
[1] When Jesus had finished saying all this to the people, he returned to Capernaum. [2] At that time the highly valued slave of a Roman officer was sick and near death. [3] When the officer heard about Jesus, he sent some respected Jewish elders to ask him to come and heal his slave. [4] So they earnestly begged Jesus to help the man. “If anyone deserves your help, he does,” they said, [5] “for he loves the Jewish people and even built a synagogue for us.” [6] So Jesus went with them. But just before they arrived at the house, the officer sent some friends to say, “Lord, don’t trouble yourself by coming to my home, for I am not worthy of such an honor. [7] I am not even worthy to come and meet you. Just say the word from where you are, and my servant will be healed. [8] I know this because I am under the authority of my superior officers, and I have authority over my soldiers. I only need to say, ‘Go,’ and they go, or ‘Come,’ and they come. And if I say to my slaves, ‘Do this,’ they do it.” [9] When Jesus heard this, he was amazed. Turning to the crowd that was following him, he said, “I tell you, I haven’t seen faith like this in all Israel!” [10] And when the officer’s friends returned to his house, they found the slave completely healed.

Two things amazed Jesus, faith and unbelief!

Strange, isn’t it, that the man whose faith amazed Jesus was a Gentile, a Roman, and the unbelief that also amazed Him was from His own people, the Jews. One would have expected it to be the other way around.

What made this Roman official’s faith in Jesus so remarkable? He recognised that Jesus’ authority was authentic, that He was submitted to an Authority greater than Himself and that that Authority authorised Him to speak the word that would be obeyed because higher Authority backed up that authority by His own superior power and position. (We must remember that, during His time on earth, Jesus voluntarily subjected Himself to the Father’s authority).

This Roman officer was obviously a military-trained man. He held a position of authority lower than the Emperor but higher than the soldiers under him. Therefore, he expected obedience from his inferiors in keeping with his obedience to his superior authority.

What a picture of real faith… and Jesus was amazed that he, a Gentile, got it! This man didn’t consider Jesus’ human origin as a reason not to believe in Him. He recognised Jesus’ power over natural situations as a reason to trust Him. He was convinced by the evidence rather than put off by faulty reasoning or prejudice.

This is exactly John’s purpose for his use of signs to confirm Jesus’ claim to be the Son of God. “Examine the evidence,” he said.

‭John 20:30-31 NLT‬
[30] “The disciples saw Jesus do many other miraculous signs in addition to the ones recorded in this book. [31] But these are written so that you may continue to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing in him you will have life by the power of his name.”

On the other hand, Jesus’ people rejected the evidence in favour of their own reasoning and prejudice. They had a long history of unbelief in the God of their ancestors, and paid a high price for their disobedience. Despite God’s miraculous intervention in their times of distress, they still refused to believe the evidence.

‭Mark 6:1-3 NLT‬
[1] “Jesus left that part of the country and returned with his disciples to Nazareth, his hometown. [2] The next Sabbath he began teaching in the synagogue, and many who heard him were amazed. They asked, “Where did he get all this wisdom and the power to perform such miracles?” [3] Then they scoffed, “He’s just a carpenter, the son of Mary and the brother of James, Joseph, Judas, and Simon. And his sisters live right here among us.” They were deeply offended and refused to believe in him…
[5] And because of their unbelief, he couldn’t do any miracles among them except to place his hands on a few sick people and heal them. [6] And he was amazed at their unbelief… “

Instead of viewing the signs that should have convinced them that He was their Messiah, they looked at His human origin as proof that He was no more than an ordinary man.

It is natural to allow circumstances to colour our reasoning. Even John the Baptist’s faith wobbled when he was in prison and in danger of execution.

Matthew 11:2-6 NLT‬
[2]” John the Baptist, who was in prison, heard about all the things the Messiah was doing. So he sent his disciples to ask Jesus, [3] “Are you the Messiah we’ve been expecting, or should we keep looking for someone else?” [4] Jesus told them, “Go back to John and tell him what you have heard and seen— [5] the blind see, the lame walk, those with leprosy are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised to life, and the Good News is being preached to the poor…. “

Jesus sent John’s disciples back to him with this caution,

” [6] And he added, “God blesses those who do not fall away because of me.”

In times like these, we need to rein in our emotions and allow sane thinking to lead us to the truth. Like the three Hebrew men in danger of being thrown into Nebuchadnezzar’s fire for not bowing to his image, we need the kind of faith that will not be shaken by circumstances.

Our faith must grow to the point where we can say, ” But if not… we will not bow to your image.”

What demonstration of Jesus authority can be greater than this incident?

‭Mark 2:1-12 NLT‬
[1] When Jesus returned to Capernaum several days later, the news spread quickly that he was back home. [2] Soon the house where he was staying was so packed with visitors that there was no more room, even outside the door. While he was preaching God’s word to them, [3] four men arrived carrying a paralyzed man on a mat. [4] They couldn’t bring him to Jesus because of the crowd, so they dug a hole through the roof above his head. Then they lowered the man on his mat, right down in front of Jesus. [5] Seeing their faith, Jesus said to the paralyzed man, “My child, your sins are forgiven.” [6] But some of the teachers of religious law who were sitting there thought to themselves, [7] “What is he saying? This is blasphemy! Only God can forgive sins!” [8] Jesus knew immediately what they were thinking, so he asked them, “Why do you question this in your hearts? [9] Is it easier to say to the paralyzed man ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or ‘Stand up, pick up your mat, and walk’? [10] So I will prove to you that the Son of Man has the authority on earth to forgive sins.” Then Jesus turned to the paralyzed man and said, [11] “Stand up, pick up your mat, and go home!” [12] And the man jumped up, grabbed his mat, and walked out through the stunned onlookers. They were all amazed and praised God, exclaiming, “We’ve never seen anything like this before!”

This remarkable miracle should have convinced His opponents that He is who He said He is, but it did not!

QED!

THE SNAKE ON A POLE… 7

Bible Study, ,

John 3:14 NIV‬
[14] “Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up… “

What a strange symbol Jesus used about Himself! Is there some hidden meaning in this picture of a snake on a pole?

Nicodemus, as a trained religious leader, would have been familiar with the stories of Israel’s journey through the wilderness. Every detail would have been etched on his mind through years of reading and study. Every word would have been scrutinised to draw out all the nuances of its meaning.

However, his encounter with Jesus would add something completely foreign to his understanding. A man, lifted up like a snake on a pole! What could Jesus be talking about?

Nicodemus also knew the title Son of Man. After all, the son of man appears in the Old Covenant, the Tanach, with at least two connotations.

First, God addressed the prophet, Ezekiel, throughout his writings, as the son of man, a frail mortal, yet one God chose to deliver a stern message to His people.

Second, Daniel’s vision in Daniel 7 puts a completely different slant on the title “son of man.” Far from its flavour of frail humanity, Son of Man elevates a specific human, the Son of Man, to a position of unique authority, none other than God’s Messiah, and Nicodemus would have understood this.

‭Daniel 7:13-14 NLT‬
[13] “As my vision continued that night, I saw someone like a son of man coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient One and was led into his presence. [14] He was given authority, honor, and sovereignty over all the nations of the world, so that people of every race and nation and language would obey him. His rule is eternal—it will never end. His kingdom will never be destroyed.”

“Lifted up” would also have been a familiar practice in Nicodemus’ religious system. Part of the ritual of the first-fruits offering, the “terumah “, the first portion of the harvest, was to “lift it up” to God as an offering to Him, signifying the promise of what was yet to come.

Jesus was obviously using the symbol of the serpent “lifted up”, not as a reference to the serpent’s nature but as a symbol of healing for those who looked at the snake after being bitten by a fiery serpent.

The Greek word, hupsos, translated “lifted up” has the connotation of being elevated or exalted. It means more than the simple act of lifting up. It carries the idea that the terumah offering was an exalted offering to God.

‭Leviticus 23:10 NLT‬
[10] “Give the following instructions to the people of Israel. When you enter the land I am giving you and you harvest its first crops, bring the priest a bundle of grain from the first cutting of your grain harvest….
[20] “The priest will lift up the two lambs as a special offering to the Lord, together with the loaves representing the first of your crops. These offerings, which are holy to the Lord, belong to the priests.

The concept behind “lifting up”, also translated “wave offering” or “heave offering”, was an offering dedicated to the Lord and honouring to Him.

‭Proverbs 3:9 NIV‬
[9] “Honor the Lord with your wealth, with the firstfruits of all your crops;”

So, in those two words, was Jesus referring to the spiritual counterpart to the serpent incident in Israel’s history? In God’s economy, nothing happens without meaning. Israel’s sin, which allowed the serpents to bring God’s judgment, led to a solution that became a picture of His salvation from sin.

‭John 3:14-15 NLT‬
[14] And as Moses lifted up the bronze snake on a pole in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, [15] so that everyone who believes in him will have eternal life.

Now let’s look at Jesus’ words to Nicodemus again. Nicodemus’ question to Jesus was…

John 3:9 NLT‬
[9] “How are these things possible?”…

Born again?
Born from above?
Born of the Spirit?

Jesus’ response…

“You have to look in faith at the Son of Man, God’s Messiah, who will be lifted up on a pole as a “terumah offering,” that honours God and guarantees the complete harvest.”

Now let’s see how the Apostle Paul completes the picture.

‭1 Corinthians 15:20-23 NIV‬
[20]”But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. [21] For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man. [22] For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive. [23] But each in turn: Christ, the firstfruits; then, when he comes, those who belong to him.”

What an amazing revelation of God’s rescue plan!

A snake on a pole tells the story in a nutshell. A man, lifted up to die on a torture stake, but so much more! God’s Messiah, put to death on the cross as an atoning sacrifice for sin, becomes an acceptable sacrifice, and the firstfruits of the resurrection.

All who gaze at Him in faith are miraculously delivered from judgment and death, transferred out of Satan’s domain into the kingdom of God, and transformed inside, all by the power of God’s Spirit.

All who believe will be included in the harvest of the resurrection, of which Jesus was the “terumah” offering, the firstfruits which guarantees the full harvest.

‭John 12:24 NLT‬
[24] “I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat is planted in the soil and dies, it remains alone. But its death will produce many new kernels—a plentiful harvest of new lives.
[32] And when I am lifted up from the earth, I will draw everyone to myself.” [33] He said this to indicate how he was going to die.”

I wonder whether Nicodemus “got it”.