PASSOVER NIGHT!
It is Passover night, March 28th in the year 2010. It is the
night to be much observed by those who have Jesus Christ as their
PERSONAL Savior. It should be a night of no hurry, of Scripture
reading, of meditation on the LIFE and the DEATH of our Savior,
and the FREEDOM from sins and death that is given to us. It may
be a night of staying up later, even at the expense of less sleep
that usual, for it is a night like no other in the calendar of
God. It is written in Exodus 12 that it is a night to be much
observed. Of course during this night all in Christ, all baptized
members of the body of Christ partake of the symbols of LIFE -
the unleavened bread and the cup of the fruit of the vine.
I have determined to read through the book of the Gospel of
John in the next 24 hours or so. I would like to share with you
some of the wonderful truths that are found therein.
The Word was in the beginning, the Word was God, and the
Word was with God (Two eternal beings were in the beginning as the
Godhead). This One God being was the Word, and it was He that did
the creating, and nothing that is made, was made without
Him. And in Him was LIFE. This Word was made flesh (He was the
Immanuel to come as Isaiah told - God with us), and He came to
His own (created people in His likeness, as well as coming from
the tribe of Judah). The Old Testament law was given through
Moses but grace and truth (in its fullness) came through Jesus
Christ, the Word (John 1:1-17).
No man has EVER seen God the Father! It was the Son of God
that has declared Him in all His splendor of perfection and grace
and love. John, the baptist that is, was sent to bear witness to
that Word of light and truth. He was chosen to prepare a people
for the coming of God in the flesh. "The next day John seeing
Jesus coming unto him, says, "Behold the Lamb of God, which takes
away the sins of the world" (John 1:29). Yes, our sins can be
taken away, blotted out by the blood of Christ.
A master in Israel called Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews,
came to Him by night. Jesus taught him about His purpose: "And as
Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the
Son of man be lifted up. That whoever believes in Him should not
perish, but have eternal life. For God so loved the world, that
He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him
should not perish, but have eternal life" (verses 14-16). Yes,
LIFE you can have. It is there for the taking, but the taking
means as Jesus went on to teach: "And this is the condemnation,
that LIGHT is come into the world, and men love darkness rather
than light, because their deeds were evil. For every one that
practices evil hates the light, neither comes to the light, lest
his deeds should be reproved. But he that practices truth comes
to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are
performed in God" (verses 19-21).
Do YOU, enjoy LIGHT? Do you WANT it more than darkness? Do
you love to find TRUTH? Do you want to be corrected, to grow in
grace and knowledge? Do you hunger and thirst after
righteousness? And what is righteousness? It is interpreted for
you in Psalm 119:172!
Maybe during this Passover/Unleavened Bread feast you could read
through the letters of the apostle John. They contain clear as a
cloudless day in the sun, what the LOVE of God IS!
Jesus must needs go through Samaria, and He meets the woman
at the well. He tells her about the true water that if a man
drinks he will never thirst again, but that water will spring up
into everlasting life (John 4:1-14).
Jesus tells the woman about her life, and the truth that God
wants people who will worship Him in "spirit and in truth" (God's
word is truth - see John 17:17; and we are to live by every word
of God - see Matthew 4:4) - verse 23-24. Jesus reveals God is a
Spirit, that is He is made of Spirit - His form and shape is
eternal spirit (verse 24).
Jesus' food is to do the WILL of the Father, and to finish
the work He is given (verse 34). Are YOU in tune with Jesus my
friends, if you are, YOUR desire above all else, will be as
Jesus' was. And your work .... well that is for the Father to
point you to, it varies for every person in Christ. But be
assured you do have a work to do, be it in your family or
community or larger yet. Everyone in the body of Christ has work
to do for Him. We are not all an eye, or a nose, or hand, or
foot, or head, or arm or leg, or toe-nail, but we all have a work
and working our work, means Jesus' work moves forward and outward
to the world and those who need His light and truth.
Ah, from this woman at the well comes many from her town and
they entreated Jesus to stay, and He did, for two whole days,
teaching and instructing. The result: "And many more BELIEVED
because of His own words; And said unto the woman, Now we
believe, not because of thy sayings; for we have HEARD HIM
OURSELVES, and know that this IS INDEED the Christ, the SAVIOR of
the world!" (verses 40-42).
If YOU want Jesus, if you want the light of man in your
life, then LISTEN to Him speak! READ His words in the four
Gospels! Let them touch your heart and mind, drink them in, let
them become part of you. Love them, meditate on them. Then you
will have a PERSONAL relationship with Jesus. Yesterday I
received an email from a man who had read my "short biography" on
this Website but asked me if I had accepted Jesus as my personal
Savior. Obviously the man had not read very much of my Website,
or my writings. I was sent to a "church school" at age 6. I "fell
in love" with the Bible. I fell in love with the Gospels. I fell
in love with the words of Jesus. By the time I was 12 years old I
had accepted Jesus as my Savior, I was having a personal
relationship with Him and the Father. Well that was me, that was
God's doing in my early life. Oh, I was yet to learn the deep
things of God (my that is really a life time as we are always to
grow in grace and knowledge), but YOU, whatever your age, you can
have right now a personal relationship with Jesus and the Father.
Just like those Samaritans, they had only two days, but because
they were willing to HEAR Him, with a right heart, they BELIEVED,
and they walked with him. It does not take years friends to "get
a relationship" with Jesus or the Father. It just takes a right
heart reading and listening to Their words.
Jesus healed a man in chapter 5 verses 1-14. A little later
that day (a Sabbath day) Jesus finds the man, and says: "Behold
thou art made whole: sin no more, lest a worse thing come unto
thee" (verse 14).
As we ponder on "sin" during this feast of Unleavened Bread,
we need to acknowledge that SOME sins carry a physical penalty.
That should not be hard to understand when we think about what
"smoking" has done to people physically. So if Jesus did heal
your lungs and body from the effects of smoking, then you can see
why Jesus said what He said to this man, obviously Christ knew
the nitty-gritty of the situation (we are not told), and so
advised the man to not physically sin any more. I mean throwing
God's grace back in His face, is not being wise at all. We need
to honor our physical body, it is the temple of God, as the
apostle Paul put it. So during this feast maybe take time to
look, or examine, your physical life. Is it in harmony with the
physical laws that God wants us to observe so a "worse thing come
not upon you." Yes, a Christian pays attention to the physical as
well as the spiritual things that are the makeup of the God we
say we want to follow and serve.
The Son does the Father's will, the Father loves the Son; as
the Father has power over death so does the Son. All judgement
the Father is committing to the Son, so men should honor the Son
as they do the Father. You cannot have one without the other. You
must have the Son and the Father (verses 19-23). Those who HEAR
the words of Christ and BELIEVE on Him that sent Him to this
world, they have everlasting life, and shall not come into
condemnation, but are passed from death to life (verse 24).
The Bible, and especially the New Testament makes it very
clear what "hearing my word" means. The apostle James likened it
to looking into a mirror, which is God's word and law, and seeing
yourself in the light of that truth and light, you go away DOING
something about it. Hearing the word of the Lord means it does
not go in one ear and out the other ear, and you continuing in
practicing sin! The first chapters of 1 John tell you about being
a Christian - it is pretty plain, to those who have their hearts
right with God. No PhD needed, no 4 years at some "theology
school" - just a few simple passages and verses tell you what the
Passover and Unleavened Bread feast means to true Christians. If
your heart is right you can be wiser in understanding salvation
and the Kingdom of God than all the PhDs in the world.
Here in this 5th chapter of John (verses 25-29), Jesus tells
us plainly about the truth of the RESURRECTION! ALL who have ever
lived will one day be raised from the dead. Some to eternal life,
and others to a resurrection that will end in judgement (not
"damnation" as the KJV gives). The truth of the RESURRECTION/S -
yes more than one, is expounded fully on this Website.
Jesus was sent by the Father. His witness to light and truth
is in full harmony with the Father. And the Father bears witness
of the Son. Jesus tells us that the voice and shape of the Father
has never been seen, as was given in chapter 1:18 (verses 30-37).
The truth of all that is given and explained in many studies
about God on this Website.
There are many professing Christians out there today, who
"think they have eternal life" but who do not, and many of them
have never, "SEARCHED THE SCRIPTURES" (verse 39). They have
either lulled themselves to spiritual sleep, or they have been
lulled by their preachers and teachers to spiritual sleep. Too
MANY are ignorant of the Scriptures, they have no clue as to what
the Bible teaches, not even to what Jesus taught in the Gospels.
And certainly when it comes to putting some EFFORT into Bible
reading and studying, they ain't "searching the scriptures."
Jesus taught people TO SEARCH the Scriptures. Are you doing so?
Do your beliefs and practices in Christianity come from the Bible
or from the teachings and traditions of men, or organizations of
men?
Jesus had to say to many people in His day "But I know you,
that you have NOT the love of God in you!" (verse 42).
Now, you should be asking, "What is the love of God?" Do you
know? How about asking the minister you may look to? How about
asking yourself and him/her (now that we have ordained women in
popular Christianity), "Please give me some clear Bible
definitions as to what is 'the love of God'." Well you or they
should be turning to the letters of John, and some verses also
later in the Gospel of John. Again, you don't need some PhD to
find the answer to this question. Why a child can understand!
Oh look at verses 43-47! How many today are looking to "men"
(or women) for Bible understanding; men who often scratch each
other's back - this one gives an endorsement of that one's book,
and visa-versa. They honor one another, and none of them SEEK the
honor that comes from God only. I try always to honor God. I have
studies on this Website that are going to kick many people, and
"church leaders" right where it hurts (and I think you know where
that is). Such do not need my accusing. The very Word of God, the
Bible, will accuse them. The religious leaders of Jesus' day were
accused by the very writings of Moses, whom they claimed to read.
Moses wrote about the truth of the coming Messiah, and they would
not believe it. Hence they would not believe the words of that
Messiah when He came.
So it is today, people will not search or believe the
Scriptures; they give honor to men but will not honor God, by
searching, reading, and believing the Word of God!
It was the Passover and Jesus went up into a mountain, and
He sat with His disciples. He lifted up His eyes and saw this
huge company coming to Him. He performed a mighty miracle of
feeding about 5,000 from just five barley loaves (they would have
been unleavened) and two small fish. Many seeing such a miracle
believed that this was indeed the "prophet that should come into
the world" (Chapter 6:1-14).
Will it take YOU seeing such a miracle to believe in Jesus
Christ as the Messiah, the Savior of the world, the One who can
wash away your sins, give you a heart of flesh (which may have
been previously stone)? I pray it will not take such a physical
miracle for you to accept Jesus as YOUR PERSONAL Savior! If
anyone reading this has still not done so, then this is now a
wonderful time of the year to do so. It just takes a little
reading, hearing the words of Jesus. Many of the Samaritans
accepted Him in just two days of hearing Him. I pray you will
walk with Him also.
.......................
To be continued
Lessons for the Passover Feast #2Truths from the Gospel of John PASSOVER LESSONS IN THE GOSPEL OF JOHN #2
by
Keith Hunt
Jesus went over to the sea to Capernaum. The next day many
of those who had been fed by that miracle the day before, came
searching for Him. Jesus knew their heart; they had not really
come wanting to hear the words of life, but hoping to fill their
bellies once more with physical food. Jesus said it was needful
to labor, put some effort into seeking the food that would endure
to everlasting life. He pointed out to them the Father had sent
Himself to give the true bread from heaven. He told them that
they had seen and heard but really did not believe on Him
(chapter 6:16-36).
The lesson of all this is brought out in the following
verses starting with: "All that the Father gives me shall come to
me; and him that comes to me I will in no wise cast out" (verse
37). It is the Father's will that all that He gives to Jesus, He
will loose none, but raise them up in the last day (the first
resurrection as Revelation 20 tells us). It is the Father's will
that those who believe of Christ (and we have already seen what
"believe" means - the rest of the Gospels also make it very
clear) shall have eternal life and be in that first resurrection
(verses 38-40).
The Jews could not understand at all, what Jesus was meaning
by saying He was the bread from heaven. They looked at Him as a
man born of a woman, whose mother and father they had known; to
them it was impossible that He could have come from heaven. They
were in complete spiritual blindness (verses 41-42).
Jesus knew the truth, He knew they could not understand, for
as He went on to tell them: "No man can come to me, except the
Father which has sent me, DRAW him, and then I will raise him up
at the last day. For it is written in the prophets, And they
shall all be taught of God. Every man therefore that has heard,
and has learned of the Father, comes to me .... truly then, I say
unto you, he that believes on Me has everlasting life; for I am
the bread of life" (verses 44-48).
This is a basic truth of the plan of salvation that the
Father has determined. These verses and also verses 63-65, are
simple to understand; they tell you that ALL people are
spiritually BLINDED, and CANNOT come to the Father and Christ,
UNTIL that spiritual blindness is removed. So people can hear and
hear and hear the words of God, the words of the Bible being
read, spoken, preached, even from the house tops, and STILL not
understand, still be in complete blindness. They just do not have
their mind opened to understanding and digesting the truth of
God. It takes a MIRACLE from God to open a person's mind to
spiritual light. God is just NOT trying to save the whole world
at this time, nor in the time when Jesus walked and taught on
this earth. Think about it, when Jesus was teaching that He was
the only true light, that He alone was the way to eternal life,
that He was the only Shepherd that could lead into the sheep
fold, the people in North America and South America, over in
China and India, in Korea, or down in Australia, had no idea he
was even on earth. They could NOT have eternal life in them at
that time. Even most of the ones hearing Jesus speak, were NOT
called, they could not understand spiritual truth, just as Jesus
is here telling them. But Christ has quoted from the prophets
that ALL will be taught of God. But it is in God's time PLAN of
salvation that ALL will be taught and have their opportunity for
salvation. This is all full expounded on this Website with
studies like "The Great White Throne Judgement."
So if YOU have been called to understand the spiritual
truths of God, and when you try to explain it to friends or
relatives, and you just get a blank look on their face, or you
realize you may just as well talk to the wall or the trees, then
it is more certain than not that they just have not been called
to have the spiritual blindness removed. Now you continue to be a
light, notice I said light, not a car horn that is stuck in the
mode of sounding off none stop; it is possible that sometime down
the road God will call your friend, neighbor, or family member,
BUT the bottom line is, it is God that must remove the blindness.
This is one of the reasons I ain't a missionary in the flesh
in some hostile place on earth, where you can be killed, and
maybe even eaten, by the natives. The false teaching and idea
that God is trying to save the entire population of the earth at
this time, is so false, and if you do not get to those people,
they are going to fry in hell for eternity, is so crazy and so
silly a teaching, for if it was true, then the facts of history
are that God is pretty weak and ineffective, does not have as
much power as Satan the Devil, who is out to keep people under
deception and sin. But this idea that salvation is only for the
NOW, and God and Satan are in some tug of war battle .... well
such theology is incredibly stupid, but it is still being taught
by many ... and as we have just seen the MANY are in spiritual
blindness, that's the reason they teach such illogical ideas in
the first place. Well if all I've said kinda shocks you, then you
need to slowly read through Romans chapters 9 through 11.
Jesus goes on to tell them that He was the LIVING bread, not
the bread their fathers ate during the wilderness time before
entering the Promised Land. He then goes into some strange talk
(well we see many thought it very strange) about eating His body
and drinking His blood. Even MANY of Jesus' disciples could not
understand this talk of His. He tells them the easy to understand
truth of it all in verse 63, "It is the spirit that gives life;
the flesh profits nothing: the WORDS that I speak unto you, they
are spirit, and THEY are LIFE!"
Jesus was not teaching cannibalism! He was not saying they
were to literally eat His flesh and literally drink His blood!
There would not be enough of His physical body to go around, if
He was talking about anything physical. Well, as I said many
times, the Bible interprets the Bible. Jesus interprets for us
what He is really meaning. To eat the flesh of Christ, to drink
His blood, is to imbibe into your mind and heart ALL that Christ
was - the WORD of God in the flesh. It did not matter what He
looked like, how tall He was, how many pounds He weighed. Jesus
was God's WORD personified! And you drinking in that word and
acting upon it, changing your life to conform to the Father's
word, that was then eating and drinking Christ. That's where the
rubber meets the road friends. That's where James was inspired to
write that we should be DOERS of the WORD, and not hearers only!
But, even AFTER Jesus explained the truth in simple
language, as to what He was meaning, STILL, notice it, STILL some
of His VERY DISCIPLES went back, and walked NO MORE with Him
(verse 66)! Ah, again Jesus reiterated, "Therefore said I unto
you, that no man can come unto me, EXCEPT it were GIVEN unto him
of my Father" (verse 65).
You need to read (if you have never done so) my study called
"The Great White Throne Judgement" on this Website.
And it came to be the time of the Feast of Tabernacles.
Chapter 7. What did Jesus think generally of the world of His
time? The answer is found in verse 7, "The world cannot hate you;
but me it hateth, because I testify of it, that the WORKS thereof
are EVIL!"
What do you think Jesus would say about the world today? Do
you think He'd say it was pretty good, enlightened, more
civilized, than two thousand year ago? I know He would not, for
He told us that before He came again, the LOVE of MANY would wax
COLD, and EVIL would ABOUND! That's found in Matthew 24.
Actually this is one of the main reasons that a Christian
cannot have anything to do with the politics of this world, nor
any political party. Jesus later in this Gospel said though His
servants would be in the world, He prayed the Father they would
be kept FROM the world. You can read all that in chapter 17, if
you want to skip ahead to that chapter. THIS WORLD IS EVIL! And
you as a Christian are not to be part of the EVIL that is in
EVERY country and EVERY political party, and EVERY Government of
men on this earth. Many of the laws of nations are SIN and EVIL.
Yes, even some of the founding laws in the "constitution" of
nations (and yes the USA included) WERE laws of EVIL! Do you
really think God inspired the constitutional law of the USA that
everyone should be allowed to take up fire-arms against an
oppressive Government? Do you really think God wants His people
taking part in KILLING others for what YOU consider is their
evil? Do you think God wants His children hating and killing
others by a so-called freedom to have guns, bows and arrows,
knives, or Tomahawks, and to use them on other humans you
disagree with over some matter? If you do then you need to read
the words of Christ in the Gospels again! If you think such men
as the founding fathers of the USA were "godly" men, then you
need to read the Bible more and study closer the history of those
times. They were men not called by God, men blinded to the truths
of the Bible, men in the deceptions of false religion, even if
called "Christian" - just as the leaders of today's nations are
deceived by their own heart or a religion that calls itself
"Christian."
A Christian is to come OUT of the world. To come out of its
politics, its ways of thinking, its carnal interests, its blood
filled wars, its mixed up ideas, its calling evil good and good
evil.
Jesus said of His day that He testified of it as the WORKS
of it being EVIL! He would, with Matthew 24:12 in mind, hardly
say any LESS of today's world!
This is a time of the year to meditate on SIN and
RIGHTEOUSNESS. To see the truth of it from the Bible. To see
where sin lies in the world, and where it still may lie in US,
AS INDIVIDUALS.
Then knowing we can do little to change the sin in the world,
only vote on an issue if your country allows you to vote on an
issue (here in Canada we're not allowed to vote on any issue that
would effect laws coming on the books of State or Federal
Governments - some of the States do, like voting on "gay
marriages" - I'd be the first in line if I could vote on such
issues here in Canada), we then live in the world, but not a part
of the world. And so we must look to ourselves to see what
changes we need to make in our lives, to move further way from
evil and closer to the righteousness of God.
............................
To be continued
Passover Lessons from the Gospel of John #3Sin and Mercy and Seeing! by
Keith Hunt
Jesus was in the Temple teaching, about half way through the
Feast of Tabernacles (John 7:10-15). He said: "My doctrine is not
mine, but His that sent me. If any man will DO His WILL, he shall
know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of
myself. He that speaks of himself, seeks his own glory: but he
that seeks His glory that sent him, the same is true, and no
unrighteousness is in him" (verses 16-18).
There is one sure way to KNOW the doctrines of God, and to
know who speaks the truth of God, and that is for that individual
to be DOING the WILL of God. Now you may not fully know all the
will of God, but if your heart is right, and you continually want
to do God's will, then you will be led into MORE truth (see John
16:13) and you will be led to know, among all those who go out
preaching and teaching the word of God, who it is that teaches
the correct doctrines of the Father. If your attitude is to not
DO the will of God, then you will continue in your deception.
There are far too many preachers and teachers out there that
SEEK their own glory. They love to write, and write more and more
books about God, they love to preach to huge audiences, have the
acclaim of people, even be respected by the world as some great
teacher of Christianity. But they have forgotten what Jesus said,
"Woe unto you when all men speak well of you, for so did their
fathers to the false prophets" (Luke 6:26). Those who speak the
truths of God, who seek only the glory that belongs to the
Father, they will not be popular, they will not have people
flocking to be taught by them, they will have no popularity with
the masses of those who call themselves "Christian."
This Website of mine is not to gather a huge following and
be praised among the Christian world. It is here to teach the
truths of God, and to warn the nations of what will come upon
this earth before Jesus returns. It will be a small few I know,
whom the Father will call to see His truths and to DO His WILL,
as proclaimed here. I seek no glory, only the glory of the Father
that has granted me the open door of the Worldwide Internet to
teach His word to those near and those far away.
The Jews got angry with Christ for making a man whole on the
Sabbath day (verse 23) but He told them to "Judge not according
to appearance, but judge righteous judgment" (verse 24). There
are times, many times in fact, where we need to judge what is
right and correct and what is incorrect and sin. I have given you
a full in-depth study on this Website called "Righteous Judgment"
- you need to study it and find another truth of God.
Jesus told them that in a little while He would be gone,
they would seek Him, but would not find Him - they could not
understand that either. To them this Jesus guy was a pretty mixed
up fellow (verses 32-36).
It was now the LAST DAY of the Feast of Tabernacles, the day
called "the great day" - not the 8th or Octave day, as some have
mistakenly thought, but the 7th day of the Feast of Tabernacles.
The truth of that question is on this Website also, called, "The
Truth of John 7:37."
Jesus stands up and cries, saying, "If any man thirst, let
him come unto Me, and drink. He that believes on Me, as the
Scripture has said, 'Out of his belly shall flow rivers of
water'" (verses 37-38).
He was as the next verses tell you, speaking of the Holy
Spirit which they who would believe on Him would receive, after
His glorification.
That Spirit friends is not only the seed of eternal life but
it is the Spirit that will guide you into all truth - John 16:13
- maybe not all at once, in fact usually not, but over time, as
much time as God allows in your life, that Spirit will guide you,
if you do not prevent it by a hard heart; for you do have your
part to play, the Father has made you with free choice, to choose
right or to choice wrong. Jesus said, "Blessed are they which
hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they shall be filled"
(Mat.5:6). Did you notice YOUR part?
Early the next morning, which was the 8th day or Octave, the
last annual Sabbath of the year, which was a separate Feast all
of its own, Jesus again comes to the Temple (chapter 8:1-2). The
scribes and Pharisees, they had been busy trying to catch someone
in the act of adultery; they finally found someone; they bring
the woman; why the woman only is not explained to us, maybe the
man was big and strong and so they could not drag him to Jesus. Oh
boy, they thought, do we have Him in this one, we'll see what He
thinks about the laws of Moses. They wanted Jesus to condemn the
woman to death by stoning, as the law on the books, did say could
be done. Did you notice I said "could" be done. A lot of people
do not realize or they forget, that in Israel there were judges,
to judge matters; not always was the penalty given out in its
full force. People forget there was "mercy" under the laws of
Israel. They forget that David committed adultery, but because of
his true and deep repentance, God did not kill him, or have him
stoned to death. The Father does not play favorites, He just
shows MERCY when mercy is deserved.
Jesus knew their twisted mind-set. He stooped down and wrote
on the ground. "He that is without sin among you, let him cast
the first stone at her." He stooped down again and wrote on the
ground. One by one they slunk out!
We do not know what Jesus wrote, it is not revealed to us.
But you can be sure He knew their sins, and probably they all had
some pretty BIG ones.
"Woman," said Jesus, "where are those thine accusers? Hath
no man condemned you?"
She said, "No man Lord."
Jesus said unto her, "Then neither do I condemn you; go and
sin no more" (verses 7-11).
Isn't that what God showed to David? Yes, it was MERCY!
But with "go and sin no more."
You need to be careful how you judge. Sin is sin, yes, but
you need to be careful how you handle the sins of others, for
with how you treat others you will be treated also - it is
written - Jesus said that in the Gospels. Every single one of us
has sins we would not want to be broadcasted on prime-time TV
news. We need to be thankful those and all our sins can be
covered with the blood of Christ. We all at times must hang our
head low as the publican did, and say, "Lord forgive me a sinner"
- do you remember that parable Jesus gave? Let's remember at this
Passover season the passage John wrote in his first letter or
epistle, chapter one into chapter two. You haven't read it for a
while? Then now is a good time to read it again friends.
Jesus went on to say: "I am the light of the world; he that
follows me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light
of life" (verse 12).
And that is so true. When you have truth, when you are
guided by the Spirit, when you walk with the Lord, you are in
light, truly as Jesus said elsewhere, "You shall have the truth,
and the truth shall set you free!" And that is indeed GOOD
freedom, for it gives you the knowledge that by walking in the
light of truth, you shall gain the first resurrection, which the
New Testament says, is the better resurrection. I guess so, for
you will reign with Christ for one thousand years, bringing
salvation, to countless millions who will live during that age to
come. Those who are raised in the "second" resurrection (Rev.20)
will die in their sins in this lifetime, and will miss that
wonderful age that is to come, that all the prophets of old have
spoken about. Some of Jesus' day MAY have, by not believing Him,
by choosing sin, by turning away God's call, put themselves out
of the first resurrection (verses 14-27).
Oh yes, here is the verses about truth setting you free:
"Jesus said to the Jews which believed on Him, 'IF you CONTINUE
in my word, then are you my disciples indeed. And you shall know
the truth, and the truth shall make you free'" (verses 31-32).
There is a DOING - a PRACTICING - a LIVING - to be the true
disciple of Jesus, and only those will then have the truth, which
will surely make them free!
Jesus now talks about sin. We think of sin and righteousness
during this feast of Unleavened Bread. "Truly, truly, I say unto
you, whosoever practices sin is the servant of sin. And the
servant abides not in the house for ever ... if the Son therefore
shall make you free, you shall be free indeed" (verses 34-36).
I use the word "practice" - the KJV uses "committeth" - but
the Greek means "practice" as a way of life. It is the heart
again, it is the mind-set as we call it today. If your mind is
set to practice sin as a way of life, when you know better (and
the Ten Commandments are not too difficult to understand, and
they are the basic definition of sin - 1 John 3:4 - other parts
of Scripture expound more on sin), then you are living sin, you
are its slave, you serve sin. And such a mind-set, if not
repented of, will get you eventually thrown out of the house of
the Lord. But if you take Jesus and all He IS and all He said and
taught, then He can and will set you free indeed!
There were times when Christ pulled no punches, He just
opened up with both barrels a blazing as we say. He laid the
cards on the table. He called it like it is. Shocking to some
people, but Jesus actually called some people the children of the
Devil, or "You are of your father the Devil" - same thing (verses
39-44). Satan was a "bad guy" from the beginning. Some have
wondered if Jesus is here teaching that God created an evil
spirit being. No, such is not the case. The term "beginning" can
have various meanings, the beginning of what? The beginning of
creation? The beginning of this world as it came into the
creation as outlined in Genesis chapter one and two? The latter
is the correct understanding, for other Scriptures tell us about
the creation of the being whom BECAME the Devil or Satan. All of
that truth is found in studies on this Website. Satan was a
sinner from the beginning of the creation of mankind. He was
already a liar and murderer. Look how he was there to lie to man
from the very start in the garden of Eden. He was the father of
lies. That's how he got one third of the angel (stars) of heaven
to follow him in rebellion against God (Rev.12). He lied to them
that he and they could be the rulers of the universe. He was
indeed the father of lies (verse 44).
But as Jesus went on to say, he that is, has the right mind-
set, he that truly hears God's word, is of God. The true people
of God KNOW it is from God, for they are of God. They have the
heart and mind in the right condition so God gets through to them.
Those who cannot hear God, cannot because they are not of God,
they are as blind as a bat (which aren't really so blind at all),
they cannot see the light, and in part, that is perhaps because
they do not WANT to see the light. We do have our part to play in
God's calling, we must be of God to hear God's word. Jesus put is
pretty simple at times; you do not hear God because you are not
of God (verse 47).
Christ was trying again to tell them that He came from the
Father, that He was sent by the Father, gave honor to the Father,
who also honored Him. He told them that their father Abraham
rejoiced to see "my day, and he saw it, and was glad" (verses 54-
56). Now they really got on His case; they knew exactly what He
was saying, that He had seen Abraham (verse 57).
Jesus now says a few words that hit them like a "4th of July
fireworks, at the White House, for effect." "Truly, truly, I say
unto you, before Abraham was (living) I AM!" (verse 58). Here
Jesus was telling them that He was the "I AM" of Moses's day! Yes,
that's exactly right. And it was so, many NT Scriptures make it
plain that Jesus before His human birth as a flesh and blood
person, was the God, I AM, of the Old Testament. The God that
spoke and dealt with Moses. The truth of the Godhead - two
eternal beings - making ONE God, is indeed all over the New
Testament. We have seen at the very beginning of this Gospel,
John was inspired to write that the Word was God, and the Word
was with God, and the Word became flesh. The Bible makes clear
the truth of the Godhead. That truth can be found in many studies
about God on this Website.
The Jews knew EXACTLY what Jesus was meaning by uttering
those words "I AM" and took up stones to cast at Him. They knew
He was telling them that He was God, and to them that was
blasphemy, which in their law could put a person to death (verse
59).
Jesus heals the BLIND man - blind from birth in chapter 9.
It was still "sabbath" day - the word "the" is not in the Greek
in verse 10. It was still the 8th, Octave Sabbath day, the 8th
day of Leviticus 23 that is right after the Feast of Tabernacles,
and which is its own individual Feast. The Pharisees got
themselves in a pretty hot stew over this - doing such a miracle
on a Sabbath day was breaking the Sabbath as far as they were
concerned. Oh there was a division all right among them all -
some saying He broke the Sabbath, others that how could He be a
sinner (sin in their eyes) and still do such a miracle (verse
16).
Then "politics" entered the scene. The Pharisees, (Jews as
John wrote it) who were in charge of the local synagogues, had
decided to agree that if any man did confess Jesus was the
Christ, they would ban them from the synagogue (verse 22). Oh,
how much "politics" has been in the church - yes even the Church
of God at times. I have seen it happen, literally, to a number of
"church" organizations in my lifetime. The SIN of politics -
power gasping - is nothing new to churches and places of
worship, nothing new because carnal power-hungry human nature has
been around a mighty long time. The stories that could be told,
some of them have been told in books like "Churches That Abuse"
by Ronald M.Enroth, a book that might still be available
(published in 1992 by Zondervan), and which I recommend to you.
It will make the hair on your head stand up, so shocking it is.
Yes the SINS of church organizations is something that can be
horrid. I say "church organizations" but most of them are "cult
organizations" based on power and guilt and mind-control. Some
are cults from the beginning and some BECOME cults over time, as
power and brain-washing takes more and more hold. A classic
example for that would be the Jim Jones church/cult; you can
probably read about it on the Internet, if you Google "Jim
Jones."
So these Jews, they called the man in whom Jesus had healed
from blindness, and said, "Come on we know this man is a sinner."
"Well, I know nothing about that," replied the man, "all I
know is that once I was blind and now I can see."
That blew their top in anger, "You are His disciple, we are
Moses' disciple. We know God spoke to Moses, we do not know from
where this fellow comes from."
"Well, well ... this is marvellous," says the man, "you
don't know where He comes from, yet He has opened my eyes. We
know God does not hear those who practice sinning; but those who
do His will and worship Him, He will hear. Since the world began
it was not told that ANY man opened the eyes of someone that was
born blind. If this man is not of God, He could do nothing like
this" (verses 24-33).
Now their red faced anger turned purple, "You were
altogether born in sins, and do you teach us? And they cast him
out" (verse 34).
It's an old working of those who can't win the logical
argument; belittle, rise up in vain-glory with pomp and
scholastic self-righteousness, and belittle your opponent, then
cast them out of your flattering social strata of your conceited
religious piety club.
Jesus heard what they had done. He seeks out the man, finds
him and says, "Do you believe on the Son of God?"
"Who is he, Lord, that I might believe on Him?"
Jesus answers, "You have seen Him, and it is He who talks
with you."
"Oh yes, Lord, I believe," and the man worshipped Him
(verses 35-38).
I would think so, indeed! Born blind and be healed, I think
you would have to be willing to believe the man who could do
this, was from God. As the man said, it was never heard that
anyone could do such a miracle. Satan is allowed by the Father,
to have some power, be able to do some miracles, but there is a
limit God puts on him, never has the Devil been allowed to give
sight to a man born blind. And you talk about the HARD, STONE-
MINDED hearts of scribes and Pharisees, who were so BENT and
TWISTED in their sinful minds, as to be not able to put sense
with logic, with facts, with Scripture, and come to acknowledge
that this Jesus was indeed the promised Christ Messiah to come. I
tell you friends, this is an example of the depth of what SIN can
do to your mind. YOU should not want to go there. You should want
to stay as FAR AWAY from that SEARED mind of sin and deception as
you can!
This Feast is about coming OUT of SIN, and moving always in
the direction of truth and righteousness.
Some of the Pharisees heard these words of Jesus, and they
asked Him if they were blind also (verse 40).
Jesus replied, "If you were blind, you should have no sin:
but now you say, 'we see' - therefore your sin remains" (verse
41).
What Jesus was saying is this. If you were blind, you would
not know you had sins to change and repent of, you would think
you were just fine. But by saying and asking if you were blind,
means your understanding this whole situation that has taken
place. So therefore you know your sins are seen, you know what is
truth, and hence your sins are there until you decide to take the
next step - REPENT and CHANGE and DO what is right. In the
specific situation they were in, their sins that remained, needed
to be taken away by accepting Jesus as the Christ, the Messiah,
the Son of God, and doing what the once bind man did - BELIEVE
and WORSHIP the "I AM" - God in the flesh that stood before
them.
I hope dear reader that YOU have come to understand WHO the
Jesus Christ of history (yes it was recorded in secular history
and a few times by the Jewish history Pharisee - Josephus of the
first century A.D.) WAS and IS - the Eternal "I AM" of old, the
Immanuel of prophecy - God with us - the person of the Godhead
that was the Word, who became flesh, to conquer sin in the flesh,
to then die for YOUR sins, so if you BELIEVE on Him, you can SEE
spiritual truths and finally inherit eternal life. And that GLORY
friends is MORE glorious than the human mind at this time can
comprehend. I pray Jesus Christ is YOUR PERSONAL Savior!
.......................
To be continued
Passover LESSONS from the Gospel of John #4Jesus' Works proved He was the Son of God!
by
Keith Hunt
The blindness removed from the man born blind on the Sabbath
of the 8th day, the Feast day after the Feast of Tabernacles, is
the glorious example and typology, of the great White Throne
Judgment period (Rev.20), when millions, nay, billions from the
past ages will be resurrected to physical life, have the books of
the Bible opened to them, and the book of life, the way of
salvation given to them, fully, without blindness, knowing with a
clear mind, what sin and grace through Christ Jesus the Messiah
is all about. They, who were never called or chosen in their
lifetime on earth (millions never even knowing that Jesus ever
lived, never hearing His name, or seeing a Bible, less reading
it) shall for the first time be given spiritual truth and
insight; they will have a chance (men, women, children) to accept
Jesus as their Savior, to have their sins washed away in the
blood of Christ; salvation will be offered to them, and they like
us, will be judged by what works they do - living in serving God,
or rejecting it all. That is the message we have just read about
in John chapter 9, the blind from birth (spiritually blind)
having their eyes opened to the books of the Bible and the book
of life - salvation presented to them. No man can come to the
Jesus unless it is given to him of the Father, Jesus taught that
in chapter 6. Now He teaches it again in chapter 10.
There is only ONE correct door into the sheepfold; he that
enters that door is the shepherd of the sheep. The sheep will
hear HIS voice; he calls them by name, he leads them in and out,
when he leads them out he goes before them; the sheep will follow
him for they know his voice. They will not follow a stranger,
they will flee from him, for they do not recognize his voice
(verses 1-5).
That is how attached sheep become to their master and leader
and protector; they get to know him in a deep personal way. We
are to be like sheep in following Christ. We need to read and
hear His words in the Gospels, then we shall know Him when He
speaks through His servants; we will recognize His voice.
Jesus says HE is the door of the sheep, anyone else is a
robber and thief, but Jesus' sheep will not hear them. Jesus is
also the door to the sheepfold, by Him if any man enter in he
shall be saved, shall go in and out and find green pasture
(verses 7-9).
Are you thinking of the 23rd Psalm right now. It's a good
time to stop for a moment and to read it.
Then if you have not done so, in the near future, or during
this Passover Feast, take the time to read Phillip Keller's book
"A Shepherd Looks at the Twenty-third Psalm" on this Website -
it's a wonderful insight of the shepherd and his sheep.
All except the good shepherd, that come to lead the sheep,
are thiefs, coming to steal and kill and plunder. Jesus is the
only true shepherd, and He has come to not only give life but
give it more abundantly. This does not mean we will be guaranteed
an easy, free from troubles, trials, and test, even persecutions,
but through all that, as it came to people like the apostle Paul,
we can have a peace that passes all understanding, an inner quiet
rest, knowing no matter what life hands out to us, what cards we
are dealt, even in death, we can go to our rest as like Paul
said, "I have fought a good fight, I've finished the race, hence
a crown of righteousness waits for me on that blessed day of the
appearing of our Lord and Savior."
It is Jesus that is the only true shepherd. Only He is
perfect and right. Only He has the truth and right pathway to
walk on. So you need to be reading, eating, drinking in, His
words, if you have a red-letter Bible, there they are, easy to
see, written in bold red. I was given a red-letter New Testament
when I was about 10 or 11 years old by an adult member of the
church I attended. It was the first time I'd ever seen one. It
became one of my prized possession during my teens, it was so
easy to read the words of Christ, which I did just about every
night in bed, before I went to sleep.
Jesus is the door, the sheep know Him, and He knows the
sheep. Jesus knows the Father and the Father knows Him, Jesus is
the one who laid down His life for the sheep. Oh yes, Christ has
other sheep that are not part of your little world, they may be
on the other side of the earth, you do not know them, may never
in this lifetime know them, but Jesus knows them, and He will
bring them to Himself, and there will be ONE fold - scattered
maybe, the salt of the earth yes, the very little flock indeed,
but they are the true sheep of Christ, they knowing Him and He
knowing them.
Jesus said He was loved by the Father because He was going
to lay down His life for the sheep; He would freely lay it down;
He had the power to lay it down or not, lay it down or take it
up; the Father was not forcing Him to lay it down. He was going
to lay it down of His own will, because He loves the sheep
(verses 10-18).
We need to stop and think for a moment here. This man Jesus
Christ was the "I AM" of the time of Moses - a perfect eternal
being of the Godhead. He had all that there is to have from the
Godhead next to the One we now know as the Father. Yet in His
love for us, for YOU and for ME, this perfect holy being, was
willing to put aside everything that was the Godhead, and come as
a physical man, come to die for the sins of the world, and die in
no pleasant way - die a horrible painful death, a death whereby
many of His bones could be seen (as it is written - Ps. 22:14-18
with Isa. 53), and finally be killed by having a spear thrust into
His side. He gave up the glory He had with the Father for 33 and
1/2 years so WE could obtain that glory with Him as the children
of God the Father.
Yes, at this time of the year, it is time to meditate on all
of that. To be humbled but also to be happy and to REJOICE - this
is the BITTER/SWEET Feast of the year.
We can also have confidence being the sheep of Christ, that
doing our part, there is nothing or nobody that can take us from
out of the hands of our Lord and Savior (verses 25-28). The last
days before Jesus comes again, deception will be so GREAT, Jesus
said IF it was possible even the very elect would be deceived.
But we read here in John that it will NOT be possible to deceived
the elect, the sheep of Christ, no deception from man or Satan,
can take them from the caring hands of Jesus, the elect will
remain faithful and will have eternal life and will not perish.
The Father who is greater than all, who is the supreme One of the
universe, He has given the elect to Christ and no man can pluck
them from His hand. Jesus and the Father are ONE - they are the
ONE Godhead - TWO beings but One Godhead. The Father does not
always work arithmetic as we do; He can take one plus one and
have it equal ONE! Did He not do this with Adam and Eve - did He
not say TWO shall be ONE? Yes He did! So friends the simple truth
of the Bible is that God has always been TWO eternal beings - but
ONE God. God the Father is God and the Son, the Word is God. And
the Word was in the beginning WITH God! The New Testament makes
it clear that Jesus went back to heaven to sit on the RIGHT HAND
of God the Father. He does not sit on top of Him, or inside of
Him, like some silly far out planet Pluto ideas of a "trinity"
God proclaim. God can be understood. A child as I was, reading
through the New Testament, as I did when a child, can see as I
did, that God was two beings - Jesus and the Father - being ONE,
and Jesus sitting on the right hand of the Father, and hence we
have what Paul wrote in 1 Cor. 11:3. So simple friends. There are
verses in the New Testament where Jesus is called GOD! You can
find them, just use Strong's Concordance of the Bible - do a
little work on your own, you take some time to look them up, they
are there. And God the Father is God, remember Jesus once saying,
"I ascend unto my Father, and your Father; and to my God, and
your God" - look that one up also - I'll give you a clue, it's
also in this Gospel of John.
And another simple thing about God. God the Father is the
greatest of all. Jesus sits at His right hand, not on top of Him
or inside of Him. That also throws a monkey wrench into some of
the strange teachings of the "trinity doctrine" of men.
Right here in this context of John, we find that the Jews,
the scribes and Pharisees had no trouble at all in understanding
what Jesus taught about His connection with the subject of God.
Jesus asks them which work had He done whereby they thought
He should be killed for. Look at their answer, "For a good work
we stone you not; but for BLASPHEMY; because that you, being a
man, makes yourself GOD!" (verse 33).
Yes they understood very well what Jesus taught on that
point, that He was God in the flesh, that He could rightly carry
the name of God, that He could then say He was Jesus Christ God!
Well Jesus answered them from the Scriptures, "Is it not written
in your law, 'I said, you are gods'? If He called them gods
(remember in the Greek there was no small and capital letters
mixed in, the Greek MSS were either all small letters and large
letters, one next to the other, no punctuation, no sentences, no
paragraphs, no full-stops, etc.)unto whom the word of God came,
and the Scripture cannot be broken. Say you of Him, whom the
Father has sent into the world, 'You blaspheme' because I said, I
am the Son of God?" (verses 34-36).
Jesus makes the truth here again simple. All who will be a
child, son of God, will carry as their surname "God" - if your a
son of God, you are a son of God, your not God the Father, your
not Jesus Christ God, but you are still a "son of God" and Jesus
used the Scriptures of God to back up that God gives the right
for people to be called by His name! Well I've explained it all
in my study called "A Christian's Destiny" - please make sure you
study it.
The very works that Jesus did should have been enough to
prove He was indeed the Son of God, sent by God the Father. You
take all the miracles He did, them alone should have been enough
for the religious leaders of His day to know He was from God. Now
demons have some power allowed from God, but not even Satan is
allowed to do all the miracles Christ did. Jesus clearly told
them the miracles He did was proof enough He came from God (verse
37-38). So is the DEPTHS of sin, truth can be staring you in the
face, hitting you on the head, stomping you on the toes, kicking
you in the gut, and yet people will NOT want to see it, have no
desire to see it, will come up with every excuse under the sun to
REJECT it, and even go so far as to say it comes from Satan the
Devil!
So during this season think on that, how deep can be the
working of SIN and Satan.
We also find a few more interesting verses here at the end
of chapter 10. Jesus went away to where John the baptist first
started to baptize, and many came to Him, as they realized that
John did NO MIRACLES! But what he told them about the Christ was
indeed true, and so many believed on Jesus (verses 40-42).
They used some common LOGIC! John was not a miracle working
teacher from God, but what he taught about the Christ to come was
absolutely right on the button. And Jesus was working miracles
like as never seen in all history. The logic mind can often out
do the educated PhD mind of "scholars."
John the baptist, was the first fulfilment of the "Elijah to
come" - but he did no miracles! The chances are the Elijah to
come before the day of the Lord, before Christ's return, will
also be a man that does no miracles. Preaching truth is greater
anyway than miracles.
........................
To be continued
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