Monthly Archives: March 2025

JESUS SAID – 7

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There is something else Jesus said that many people have misconstrued. Consider these words…

John 8:32 NLT
[32] “And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”

How many people quote the second part of what Jesus said but ignore the context.

Truth Is, first, objective. Truth is truth wherever it is, regardless of circumstance or source. Truth remains true whether we believe it or not. There is no such thing as “my truth”.

Truth applied also becomes subjective, when one believes and acts or doesn’t act on it. For example, the truth is that gravity gives weight and pulls and holds objects to the earth. Without gravity, everything not attached to the earth would be weightless and float. Now, apply the truth. If you jump out of an aeroplane without a parachute, gravity will pull you to the earth and you will be killed. Whether you believe it or not, it will happen.

Now, let’s consider the truth, including its condition, Jesus promised that, if applied, will happen.

First, there is a condition, without which the truth remains objective.

John 8:31 NLT
[31] “Jesus said to the people who believed in him, “You are truly my disciples IF you remain faithful to my teachings.”

The only ones who will ever experience the truth of Jesus’ words are those who are His faithful disciples. Objective truth without application will never happen. It’s like looking at a plate of wholesome food and declaring the truth, “That food will nourish me.” Without eating the food, it will not nourish you.

Second, there must be an application.

Knowing, believing, and and applying the truth is the process of freedom. By knowing, Jesus meant more than mere intellectual knowledge. Many people know that good food nourishes but how many choose good food over junk food?

Knowing (meaning, according to the Greek “ginosko”, coming to know, realise, learn, or ascertain), involves the conviction that what I know is true and what I do about what I know to be the truth will make the truth happen for me.

Let’s look at the way Jesus explained this truth.

Matthew 7:24-27 NLT
[24] “Anyone who listens to my teaching and follows it is wise, like a person who builds a house on solid rock. [25] Though the rain comes in torrents and the floodwaters rise and the winds beat against that house, it won’t collapse because it is built on bedrock. [26] But anyone who hears my teaching and doesn’t obey it is foolish, like a person who builds a house on sand. [27] When the rains and floods come and the winds beat against that house, it will collapse with a mighty crash.”

Having established the first principle, let’s examine the meaning of the true freedom that Jesus offered and we experience when we faithfully follow Him and obey His teachings.

John 8:34-36 NLT
[34] “Jesus replied, “I tell you the truth, everyone who sins is a slave of sin. [35] A slave is not a permanent member of the family, but a son is part of the family forever. [36] So if the Son sets you free, you are truly free.”

The core truth that Jesus revealed is that sin makes us slaves. We are slaves because we sin and…we sin because we have a sin nature that enslaves us. The bottom line is that we can’t help sinning because we are slaves to our sin nature… and we can never free ourselves from our sin nature which we inherited from the first man and with which we were born.

Romans 5:12 NLT
[12] “When Adam sinned, sin entered the world. Adam’s sin brought death, so death spread to everyone, for everyone sinned.”

This was the Apostle Paul’s struggle…

Romans 7:15, 18-20 NLT
[15] I don’t really understand myself, for I want to do what is right, but I don’t do it. Instead, I do what I hate…
[18] And I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. I want to do what is right, but I can’t. [19] I want to do what is good, but I don’t. I don’t want to do what is wrong, but I do it anyway. [20] But if I do what I don’t want to do, I am not really the one doing wrong; it is sin living in me that does it.”

Trapped in this hopeless situation, Paul discovered that there is only one way to freedom from the power of his sin nature.

Romans 7:24-25 NLT
[24]”Oh, what a miserable person I am! Who will free me from this life that is dominated by sin and death? [25] Thank God! The answer is in Jesus Christ our Lord…”

Real freedom is, then, NOT freedom from the rules or the people that enslave us from the outside but sin that enslaves us to ourselves on the inside.

Only Jesus has the power to set us free from sin’s dominion over us. He has done it, first, by perfectly fulfilling all of God’s law and then dying as a law breaker for us.

Second, by believing in Him and doing what He instructs us, He breaks the power of cancelled sin. We have His power in us, by His Spirit, to say “No” to sin and “Yes” to His commandments. We can choose not to say or do the wrong thing because He has cancelled our debt of sin and given us a new nature that hates sin.

2 Corinthians 5:17 NLT
[17] “This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!”

1 John 3:9 NLT
[9] “Those who have been born into God’s family do not make a practice of sinning, because God’s life (seed) is in them. So they can’t keep on sinning, because they are children of God.”

Through the power of His Word in us, we are free to live new lives not controlled by sin.

Romans 6:4, 6-8 NLT
[4] “For we died and were buried with Christ by baptism. And just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glorious power of the Father, now we also may live new lives…
[6] We know that our old sinful selves were crucified with Christ so that sin might lose its power in our lives. We are no longer slaves to sin. [7] For when we died with Christ we were set free from the power of sin. [8] And since we died with Christ, we know we will also live with him.”

Now let’s go back to what Jesus said.

When we faithfully follow Jesus, and adhere to His teachings, we will understand the truth that He has died to set us free from our enslavement to sin. Now we can live free from the guilt, shame, and fear that sin brought on us.

John 8:35-36 NLT
[35] “A slave is not a permanent member of the family, but a son is part of the family forever. [36] So if the Son sets you free, you are truly free.”

Hallelujah! This is true freedom!

JESUS SAID – 6

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John 3:18-19 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.”

Have you ever wondered why so many people hate God and run from Him? Some have even made themselves believe that there is no God! So, they hate and run from someone who doesn’t exist! Now that’s strange!

This shows me that even atheists know that God is real but won’t admit it because they want to sin! They conveniently believe, against what is indelibly written on their hearts from birth,

Ecclesiastes 3:11b NLT
[11] “He has planted eternity in the human heart…”

… that when they die, they cease to exist.

So, for them, sinning doesn’t matter because there is no God, no accountability, and no judgment.

Psalms 14:1 NIV
[1] “The fool says in his heart, “There is no God (for me – understood).” They are corrupt, their deeds are vile; there is no one who does good.”

However, for these people, it’s okay to believe what is not true as long as they are willing to accept the consequences.

Now, let’s look at the real reason Jesus said people hate God or want to believe that there is no God.

“… People loved the darkness more than the light, for their actions were evil.”

The bottom line is that people will always follow what they love. This is a truth that applies everywhere and on every level in life.

For example, what about our use or abuse of money? We master money or money masters us by who or what we love.

Luke 18:18, 20-25 NLT
[18] Once a religious leader asked Jesus this question: “Good Teacher, what should I do to inherit eternal life?”
[20] But to answer your question, you know the commandments: ‘You must not commit adultery. You must not murder. You must not steal. You must not testify falsely. Honor your father and mother.’” [21] The man replied, “I’ve obeyed all these commandments since I was young.” [22] When Jesus heard his answer, he said, “There is still one thing you haven’t done. Sell all your possessions and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.” [23] But when the man heard this he became very sad, for he was very rich. [24] When Jesus saw this, he said, “How hard it is for the rich to enter the Kingdom of God! [25] In fact, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the Kingdom of God!”

Matthew 6:24 NLT
[24] “No one can serve two masters. For you will hate one and love the other; you will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and be enslaved to money.”

In the end, we decide where we will spend all of eternity, not by what we say or what we do but by what we love! Isn’t that amazing? We demonstrate what we love by what we say and do. God’s judgment is so just that He allows us to be our own judge.

Proverbs 8:13 NIV
[13] “To fear the Lord is to hate evil; I hate pride and arrogance, evil behavior and perverse speech.”

How can we become lovers of God more than the lovers of money or anything else?

There is only one way. The Holy Spirit in us draws us to the love of God when we spend time contemplating God’s love for us.

2 Thessalonians 3:5 NIV
[5] “May the Lord direct your hearts into God’s love and Christ’s perseverance.”

Our love for God is our response to His love for us.

1 John 4:10, 13, 19 NIV
[10] “This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins…
[13] This is how we know that we live in him and he in us: He has given us of his Spirit…
[19] We love because he first loved us.”

Our love for God then, motivates us towards obedience and submission to Him. Jesus’ interaction with Peter after Peter’s denial reveals the core of our trust in and obedience to Him.

John 21:15 NIV
[15] When they had finished eating, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon son of John, do you love me more than these?” “Yes, Lord,” he said, “you know that I love you.” Jesus said, “Feed my lambs.”

The Apostle Paul testified…

2 Corinthians 5:14-15 NIV
[14] “For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. [15] And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again.”

So, we must all answer this question, “Who or what do you love the most?” In this context, our words and deeds will provide the answer.

JESUS SAID – 5

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John 10:27 NIV
[27] “My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me.”

One thing Jesus didn’t say which He could have said!…

“My sheep listen to my voice, and then they do their own thing!”

Some translations render “akuo” as “hear” and others as “listen to”, both of which are the meaning of akuo to which we can add a third meaning, “to comprehend by hearing”.

In the context of Jesus’ words, which, do you think, is the most accurate meaning? There is a difference between “hearing” and “listening”. We are hearing things all day, sounds that go on around us all the time. Most of the time, we don’t pay attention to these sounds because they don’t directly affect us…vehicles passing by, aeroplanes flying overhead, neighbours talking loudly, dogs barking, birds twittering…these have no meaning for us.

However, what we hear becomes what we listen to when the sounds have a direct influence on us. We listen during a conversation between ourselves and another. We listen for the sound of a vehicle when we anticipate the arrival of a significant person and so on.

Jesus said, “My sheep listen to my voice.”

Since Jesus is a significant person in our lives by faith, and since we have confessed Him to be Lord, what He says to us on our daily walk with Him is vital for our spiritual wellbeing. He speaks to us because He and we are in vital union. “I know them…” This means that we are intimately connected to Him.

Jesus will say to those who claim His attention because they do things “in His name”, i.e., as His representatives, but…He does not acknowledge their connection because He will say, “I don’t know you.”

Matthew 7:22-23 NIV
[22] “Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ [23] Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’”

Evildoers? Why did Jesus call people who claimed to prophesy and do miracles in His name “evildoers”? Isn’t that a bit harsh?

For one simple reason…He had no intimate connection with them. They were not united.

This faith union with Jesus qualifies us to

Belong to Him
Listen to His voice
Follow Him

It’s this connection that makes all the difference between those who do all the right things but will still be rejected and those who follow Jesus because they belong to Him and listen to (comprehend by hearing) His voice.

Listening, not for, but to His voice, means that first, Jesus is constantly speaking to us through our circumstances, through the people around us and, most of all, through His Word and His Spirit.

We have to make choices and decisions throughout our day. We walk a tightrope of truth over a minefield of temptation. Our only guarantee of safety is to listen to His voice. The Holy Spirit is Jesus’ representative in us, His other self, who was given to us at our new birth…

John 16:13-14 NLT
[13] “When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own but will tell you what he has heard. He will tell you about the future. [14] He will bring me glory by telling you whatever he receives from me.”

Do you get the picture? Jesus and His Spirit are in intimate connection in the fellowship of the Trinity. The Holy Spirit lives in us as His “other self”. The Spirit receives from Jesus everything we need to know to follow Him. Jesus speaks through His Word; the Spirit speaks in us what Jesus speaks; we listen and follow Him and so…

Romans 8:14 NLT
[14] “All who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God.”

Listening and following the Shepherd are the guarantee and safeguard against getting lost in a world of sin and evil. The more we listen, the more we are able to hear His voice in the cacophony of voices that demand our attention.

“My sheep listen to my voice.” Are you listening to His voice?

JESUS SAID – 4

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John 12:47-48 NLT
[47] “I will not judge those who hear me but don’t obey me, for I have come to save the world and not to judge it. [48] But all who reject me and my message will be judged on the day of judgment by the truth I have spoken.”

We have, somehow, developed the idea, that, on Judgment Day, when all people stand before God to give an account of their lives, God will interrogate them thoroughly, digging through all their words and actions to uncover attitudes and motives. This sounds like a very long process, given the vast number of all who ever lived and will still live. Imagine the terror of having to wait your turn!

What does the Bible say about Judgment Day?

First, Jesus said that we will be judged by His words…

John 12:48 NIV
[48] “There is a judge for the one who rejects me and does not accept my words; the very words I have spoken will condemn them at the last day.”

He also said that we would be judged by our words!

Matthew 12:36-37 NIV
[36] But I tell you that everyone will have to give account on the day of judgment for every empty word they have spoken. [37] For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned.”

As I was pondering this statement, several Scriptures came to mind.

First, everyone will judged by the standard of God’s Word, Jesus Himself.

Revelation 19:13, 16 NIV
[13] “He is dressed in a robe dipped in blood, and his name is the Word of God…
[16] On his robe and on his thigh he has this name written: king of kings and lord of lords.”

Second, what about our words? Jesus asked His disciples one question that everyone must answer…

Matthew 16:15 NIV
[15] “But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?”

Every human will have to give an answer by which he/she will be judged.

John 3:18 NIV
[18] “Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son.”

Paul said,

Romans 10:9 NIV
[9] “If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.”

This is the only response God requires of us to be saved from the ravages of our sin.

However…this confession is only the first step. Some words spoken can be empty, that is “idle” or “careless”. To authenticate this confession, there must be a lifetime of confirmation.

Luke 6:46 NIV
[46] “Why do you call me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say?”

Matthew 7:21-23 NIV
[21] “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. [22] Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name and in your name drive out demons and in your name perform many miracles?’ [23] Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’

To stand before the Judge, then, and to be declared, “Not guilty!” requires only two steps…

Faith in Jesus as Lord,
Obedience to His word.

Long before we ever face the Lord on judgment day, the Apostle John assures us…

1 John 3:19 NIV
[19] “This is how we know that we belong to the truth and how we set our hearts at rest in his presence:”

1 John 3:23 NIV
[23] “And this is his command: to believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ, and to love one another as he commanded us.”

The New Covenant has condensed all of the 613 laws and requirements of the Old Covenant into two simple commands.

The evidence that our confession of Jesus as Lord is true, lies in the way we have obeyed His teachings and confirmed our union with Him.

John 14:18-21 NIV
[18] I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. [19] Before long, the world will not see me anymore, but you will see me. Because I live, you also will live. [20] On that day you will realize that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you. [21] Whoever has my commands and keeps them is the one who loves me. The one who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love them and show myself to them.”

Jesus speaks of an intimate union with Him that demonstrates the truth of His declaration,

John 15:5 NIV
[5] “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; APART FROM ME YOU CAN DO NOTHING.”

Judgment Day, then, is not about how good or bad we have been. For the unbeliever, his sinful life will expose his unbelief in Jesus as Lord. For the believer, his union with Jesus as close as a branch in the vine, will be on display by the fruit of that union…God’s love at work through him.

Let’s look at it this way. Simultaneously, every person appears before the Lord. What does He see? Light and darkness…that’s all. Those who have embraced Jesus as Lord and lived by His Word will be alight with His light. Conversely, those who rejected His word and loved by their own standards will be in darkness.

1 John 1:5-7 NIV
[5] “This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all. [6] If we claim to have fellowship with him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live out the truth. [7] But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin.”

And so, Paul encourages us,

Ephesians 5:8-10, 12-13 NIV
[8] For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light [9] (for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth) [10] and find out what pleases the Lord.
[12] “It is shameful even to mention what the disobedient do in secret. [13] But everything exposed by the light becomes visible—and everything that is illuminated becomes a light.”

Joyfully or reluctantly,

Philippians 2:10-11 NIV
[10] “… At the name of Jesus, every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, [11] and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”

…those who are proved true disciples according to His Word and our words, or those who are judged and condemned by the Word.

JESUS SAID – 3

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John 4:5-7 NLT
[5] Eventually he came to the Samaritan village of Sychar, near the field that Jacob gave to his son Joseph. [6] Jacob’s well was there; and Jesus, tired from the long walk, sat wearily beside the well about noontime. [7] Soon a Samaritan woman came to draw water, and Jesus said to her, “Please give me a drink.”

Have you ever considered the impact Jesus’ words had on this Samaritan woman?

Let’s follow the thread of their conversation.

John 4:7 NLT
[7] “Soon a Samaritan woman came to draw water, and Jesus said to her, “Please give me a drink.”

Jesus asked for ordinary water to quench His thirst…

John 4:9 NLT
[9]”The woman was surprised, for Jews refuse to have anything to do with Samaritans. She said to Jesus, “You are a Jew, and I am a Samaritan woman. Why are you asking me for a drink?”

The woman objects, on the basis of longstanding animosity between Jew and Samaritan as well as on cultural grounds, a man and a woman, strangers, don’t talk.

John 4:10 NLT
[10] “Jesus replied, “If you only knew the gift God has for you and who you are speaking to, you would ask me, and I would give you living water.”

Jesus introduces a contrast. Well water versus living water…which one does the job? The woman is inquisitive. What does He mean?

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 woman is surprised, confused…

John 4:11 NLT
[11] “But sir, you don’t have a rope or a bucket,” she said, “and this well is very deep. Where would you get this living water?”

Jesus’ answer is even more puzzling. She is interested.

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.”

“My water doesn’t need a bucket.” A bold claim! “My water does much more than your water!” What kind of water is this? It’s still about water but a shift from literal to spiritual. She wants this water but she is confused. Can His water relieve her of the drudgery of lugging water from the well every day?

John 4:15 NLT
[15] “Please, sir,” the woman said, “give me this water! Then I’ll never be thirsty again, and I won’t have to come here to get water.”

Jesus goes for the throat.

John 4:16 NLT
[16] “Go and get your husband,” Jesus told her.”

His instruction catches her by surprise. She instinctively dodges the implication. If Jesus is about to disclose an important truth, she must respond under her submission to her husband BUT, she doesn’t have a husband, only a “partner”! She blurts out,

John 4:17 NLT
[17] “I don’t have a husband,” the woman replied.

Jesus said, “You’re right! You don’t have a husband—… “

Jesus responds with “a word of knowledge”, a truth about the woman that He could never know without divine revelation.

John 4:18 NLT
[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!”

For the woman, this disclosure was the turning point, hit her between the eyes, and moved her in a new direction. She tried to dodge the issue by becoming “religious”. She shifts her ficus from “a man” to “a prophet”.

John 4:19-20 NLT
[19] “Sir,” the woman said, “you must be a prophet. [20] So tell me, why is it that you Jews insist that Jerusalem is the only place of worship, while we Samaritans claim it is here at Mount Gerizim, where our ancestors worshiped?”

Jesus pulls her back to His intention…it’s about God and her!

John 4:21-24 NLT
[21] Jesus replied, “Believe me, dear woman, the time is coming when it will no longer matter whether you worship the Father on this mountain or in Jerusalem. [22] You Samaritans know very little about the one you worship, while we Jews know all about him, for salvation comes through the Jews. [23] But the time is coming—indeed it’s here now—when true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth. The Father is looking for those who will worship him that way. [24] For God is Spirit, so those who worship him must worship in spirit and in truth.”

She continues her religious pose…

John 4:25 NLT
[25] “The woman said, “I know the Messiah is coming—the one who is called Christ. When he comes, he will explain everything to us.”

… until…

John 4:26 NLT
[26]” Then Jesus told her, “I Am the Messiah!”

Was she convinced? Watch her response.

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?”

A radical transformation! She is no ashamed, afraid, longer avoiding the people, drawing water at midday when she didn’t have to face the silent accusations of her fellow-villagers. What was it that convinced her, changed her, set her free ….instantaneously?

“I know you!” What a relief! No accusation, judgement, condemnation…only reassurance. Jesus knew her but she was comfortable with that!

What did this conversation reveal?

“You crave real love but you are drinking at the wrong fountain!” Five husbands didn’t satisfy her. “Shacking up” with another man was equally disappointing. There is only one source of real, infallible, satisfying love that quenches thirst and never ends, the Spirit of God who is love.

Romans 5:5 NLT
[5] “And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love.”

John 7:37-38 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.’”

How many in this world seek this love but try to find it by drinking at the wrong fountain.

Jeremiah 2:13 NLT
[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!”

Jesus called her, calls us, back to Himself as the only one who can quench our thirst for real, lasting, and satisfying love.