Jesus

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Bear Witness

Posted by The Bible In Your Hand on July 30, 2018
Posted in: Christian, Christianity, Religion, Spirituality, Uncategorized. Tagged: , , , , .

March-24Bear Witness

31 If I bear witness of Myself, My witness is not true. 32 There is another who bears witness of Me, and I know that the witness which he witnesses of Me is true.  33 You have sent John and he has borne witness to the truth.  34 Yet I do not receive testimony from man, but I say these things, that you may be saved.  35 He was the burning and the shining lamp, and you were willing for a time to rejoice in his light. 36 But I have a greater witness than John’s for the works which the Father has given Me to finish – the very works that I do – Bear witness of Me, that the Father has sent Me. 37 And the Father Himself, who sent Me, has testified of Me. You have neither heard his voice at any time, nor seen His form.  38 But you do not have His word abiding in you, because whom He sent, Him you do not believe. 39 You search the Scriptures for in them you think you have eternal life; and these are they which testify of Me. 40 But you are not willing to come to Me that you may have life.

To prevent a case of he said she said, one cannot be a witness for them self.  In order for my testimony to bear any weight of legitimacy there must be another witness on my behalf.  Also the more that can testify on my behalf the more legitimate my claims become.   

This is why Christ starts out this section by saying, “If I bear witness of Myself, My witness is not true. 

Therefore, there must be another that bears witness of Christ.  We have read about John the Baptizer before.  John was born, to bear witness or shed light on the fact that the Messiah, the lamb of God was about to start his ministry.  John bore testimony to the fact that Jesus was the messiah, which was confirmed at Christ’s baptism, by the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove resting upon Christ.

Therefore Christ is building up John and John’s ministry to further his own claim he had been making before the Sanhedrin.  What was this claim? That Christ is the Messiah.  John’s message of repentance and the soon coming of the messiah was the burning of the shining lamp.  It was the gospel message being illuminated before the people.  For a while, you paid attention and were willing to rejoice in the light, but soon you tired of this light, and therefore began searching for another.  As John testified and all Heaven also testified, this is the light that John prophesied of. 

John bore witness that the Father testifies of me and has send me.  But as prolific as John’s teaching and preaching was, it pales in comparison to the works of Him who sent me which is the Father and by the Father’s will, I have performed the miracles you have witnessed.  Therefore the very works that I do bear witness of Me, that the Father has sent me. 

As the members of the Sanhedrin heard these words their hearts grew hard. Unbelief crept into their minds and so they rejected Christ that day.

You and I are not able to see the miracles that Christ performed but we are able to read the testimony of those that saw them take place.  Yet all around us our churches are filled with lives that have been changed by coming into contact with Christ through the power of the Holy Spirit. 

So as you read this and contemplate upon the things seen and learned, we each are faced with the same decision the Sanhedrin had to make nearly two thousand years ago. 

Based on the body of evidence and the testimonies of those present, will you accept Christ as your messiah, Lord and Saviour. 

Like the Jews of old, will your acceptance only be for a season, or will it last the rest of your life?

With Authority

Posted by The Bible In Your Hand on July 27, 2018
Posted in: Christian, Christianity, Religion, Spirituality, Uncategorized. Tagged: , , , , , , .

authorityWith Authority

22 “For the Father judges no one, but has committed all judgment to the Son, 22 that all should honor the Son just as they honor the Father. He who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent Him. 24 Most assuredly, I say to you, he who hears My word and believes in Him who sent Me has everlasting life, and shall not come into judgment, but has pass3d from death into life. 25 Most assuredly, I say to you, the hour is coming, and now is, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God; and those who hear will live. 26 For as the Father has life in Himself, so He has granted the Son to have life in Himself, 27 and has given Him authority to execute judgment also, because He is the Son of Man. 28 Do not marvel at this; for the hour is coming in which all who are in the graces will hear his voice 29 and come forth – those who have done good, to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil, to the resurrection of condemnation. 20 I can of Myself do nothing. As I hear, I judge; and My judgment is righteous, because I do not seek My own will but the will of the Father who sent Me.

As Christ stood before the Sanhedrin He unfolded before these illustrious men of Israel, the plan of salvation and the true role of the Messiah. In Verse 19 Christ had started speaking by saying “Most assuredly,” or “truly, truly, or “Verily, verily depending on your version of the Bible. Christ was attempting to gain the listeners and readers attention. “Hey, look, pay close attention for this is important for you to understand! “For the Father Judges no one, but has committed all judgment to the Son.” Why would this be? How is it that the Father who has been working non-stop for the restoration of mankind has committed this act of judgement to the Son?

There is a two-part answer to these questions. First the Son, being Jesus Christ is one like us, having been tempted in all ways as we are. This allows Him to understand the trials and temptations that we have endured.

But verse twenty-three gives us the second answer to these two questions. “That all should honor the Son just as they honor the Father. He who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent Him.”

The Jew’s claimed to Honor God, yet when Christ came to teach and show them the truth regarding God the Father, they rejected Christ. By rejecting Christ the Messiah they rejected God the Father. Therefore, if you profess to Honor the Father, then you should honor the Son.

Yet so many Christians claim to honor the son, yet they continue to live the same life they did before coming to Christ. Jesus, to drive the point home, again uses the term Most assuredly. “I Say to you, he who hears My word and believes in Him who sent Me has everlasting life, and shall not come into judgement, but has passed from death into life.

When we accept Christ as our saviour, then our lives should be changed. The old part of us that was made up of sin, was washed away in the watery grave of baptism. When we are lifted out of the watery grave of baptism, we are a new person. “It is no longer I that live, but Christ that lives in me” are the words written by Paul (Galatians 2:20 paraphrased).

As Jesus is standing before the Sanhedrin, He is stating a principle that should have shocked His listeners. Not to anger unless the anger was directed toward themselves because of their own lack of understanding. Christ is saying, “As I have surrendered to My Father listening to His words and doing what he would have me to do, this is what we all should be doing. We should listen to and submit to the word and will of Jesus. Because he is heavens representative to us. He shows us the Father in his every word and action. Because Christ has lived as you and I live, but remained free from sin. He remained free from sin, because he submitted His will to the father and therefore the Father has given to Him the authority to judge, because he is one like us and therefore can understand us yet remained sinless.

Christ stated that those who hear, believe and then become doers, then you will have everlasting life. This declaration is more than a promise of things to happen in the future. It is an assurance that the believer now and here may begin to enjoy life that is eternal in quality, because he is united spiritually with His Lord, whose life He shares. “The Spirit of God, received into the heart by faith, is the beginning of eternal life.

The passage “From death to life” is not only a bodily transformation at the future resurrection (second coming of Christ) but is also an experience through which every true Christian has already passed and the fruits of which he continues to enjoy. Spiritually the crucial change from death to life comes when a man is born again. This is the point Jesus made to Nicodemus and to the woman at the well. Now before the Sanhedrin, he once again pleads for them to accept Him as the Messiah, because the Father has given all power to grant eternal life unto the Messiah.

Yet Christ says, I can of Myself do nothing. As I hear, I Judge; and My judgment is righteous, because I do not seek My own will but the will of the Father that sent Me.

Just think how much more we could be as Christians if we followed the example of Christ. Where we put away our selfish desires and listen to the still small voice of our creator as he guides and directs us in all ways. But this is only possible when we submit to the will of God. Daily keeping in contact with our Lord and Saviour.

Equality

Posted by The Bible In Your Hand on July 26, 2018
Posted in: Christian, Christianity, Religion, Spirituality, Uncategorized. Tagged: , , , , , , .

equality-iconEquality

19 Then Jesus answered and said to them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, but what He sees the Father do; for Whatever He does, the Son also does in like manner. 20 For the Father loves the Son, and shows Him all things that He Himself does; and He will show Him greater words than these, that you may marvel. 21 For as the Father raises the dead and gives life to them, even so the Son gives life to whom He will.

Daniel the prophet first used the term Son of Man to describe Christ. Christ during his earthly ministry, frequently referred to Himself as the Son of man a title that emphasized His humanity and gave validity to Daniel the prophet. But this also implied His Messiahship. But in this instance, Jesus clearly means “the Son of God.” This is clear in that He uses it in connection with the Father, and from His reference to the Son of God which comes later in John 5:25.

Why is this significant? Because when the Jews accused Jesus of claiming deity, He went on to explain and amplify that claim rather than to minimize it in any way.

Christ went on to say, that “Of Himself” or “From Himself,” that is by his own accord or his own initiative He could do nothing except that which comes from the Father.

Jesus makes this statement complete by saying “sees the Father doing.” Jesus’ deeds were therefore in complete harmony with the way in which God treats mankind. Moreover, this was God’s supreme expression of HIs loving concern for man. This is why Jesus could so completely tell us of the character of the Father. For it was possible only because the Son gave His entire obedience to the Father’s will.

Yet even as the Jewish leaders condemned Him for this act of healing on the Sabbath, Jesus said, “The Father loves the Son, and shows Him all things that He Himself does; and He will show Him greater works than these, that you may marvel.” This is truly a remarkable statement by Christ.

For if we continue with verse twenty-one, Jesus states before the religious and civil authorities, “For as the Father raises the dead and gives life to them, even so the Son gives life to whom He will.

The Sadducees which where a group of priests that were a part of the Sanhedrin did not believe in life after death or the possibility of a resurrection. Jesus now stands before them saying, The Father raises the dead and gives life to them, and so do I give life to whom I will.

The Old King James version puts it this way. “the Son Quickeneth.” The statement applies both to Jesus’ power to raise the dead “at the last trump” (I Corinthians 15:52) and to His power to give new life to every Christian experiencing the new birth (see John 3:3).

Years later Jewish literature indicates that the resurrection was considered to be a work of the Messiah; in the present discourse, Jesus was not emphasizing His Messiahship, but rather His deity.

Christ was speaking not only of the resurrection of the dead, but also the spiritual resurrection of all those who are spiritually dead that accept the Messiah as their Saviour.

Let us remember that Jesus started this statement by saying, “Verily, Verily I say unto you” (KJV). In Newer translations the Verily, Verily, is changed to “Most assuredly I say to you.” John the beloved is telling us with this statement that what is about to be said by Jesus is indeed the truth. The truth that not only rests with Jesus, but also comes from the Father. The God the Father and Christ act as one, each being inseparable from the other.

This is the same relationship Christ is longing to have with each and every one of his followers. Jesus came, served and was put to death so that each of us could have this same relationship with Him and with His Father. The same relationship that God has with the Son of Man.

The decision is ours for no one can make it for us. Christ invites us to establish a relationship with Him. He will never fail us. Though tempted and through trials Satan will attempt to separate us from Jesus, Jesus has promised to always be with us as the Father was with Jesus.

Make the decision for Christ today for He longs to have a relationship with you.