John 5:30-36 – “I can do nothing on My own. As I hear, I judge; and My judgment is righteous, because I do not seek My own will but the will of Him who sent Me. 31 “If I alone testify about Myself, My testimony is not true. 32 There is another who testifies about Me, and I know that the testimony which He gives about Me is true. 33 You have sent messengers to John, and he has testified to the truth. 34 But the testimony I receive is not from man, but I say these things so that you may be saved. 35 He was the lamp that was burning and shining, and you were willing to rejoice for a while in his light. 36 But the testimony I have is greater than the testimony of John; for the works which the Father has given Me to accomplish—the very works that I do—testify about Me, that the Father has sent Me.
“I can do nothing on My own. As I hear, I judge; and My judgment is righteous, because I do not seek My own will but the will of Him who sent Me.” People have asked me to talk to a non-believer but said that I will not be able to quote the Bible because that person rejects the Bible. My response is that I will quote the Bible. And I have found, that they will listen even when the Bible is quoted and if understanding is shared. The unbelievers will quote their source and I will quote my source. They may say neither side may quote a book or philosophy, but even in expressing their own thoughts they make themselves authorities from which they quote. They trust themselves and also trust others who reject God. I trust the Bible, the Word of God. Isaiah 55:11 “So will My word be which goes out of My mouth; It will not return to Me empty, without accomplishing what I desire, and without succeeding in the purpose for which I sent it.” Should I trust my thoughts, or the thoughts of other people, more than I trust God’s Word? As stated, His Word never fails. There is plenty of evidence that my words can be ever so ineffective. And Scripture declares the folly of the unbeliever as Scripture states “I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and the understanding of those who have understanding, I will confound. Where is the wise person? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has God not made foolish the wisdom of the world? (1 Corinthians 1:19-20) Use the Word of God even to those who declare they will not listen to it. Remember that Chapter and Verse are not what is holy, His Word is holy and effective. Jesus spoke to the world what the Father gave Him to tell. Our triune God has given us the Word to give to people, for their, and our, blessing.
“If I alone testify about Myself, My testimony is not true.” A person without witnesses can make boastful and untrue statements about themselves and what that person says cannot be proved or disproved. With trustworthy witnesses a testimony can be verified. The works/signs that Jesus did are a testimony of who Jesus was. Though the testimony of the Father and Spirit are the absolute testimony of Jesus. (Matthew 9:2-8)
“There is another who testifies about Me, and I know that the testimony which He gives about Me is true.” The “another” is God the Father. Matthew 3:16-17 “After He was baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending as a dove and settling on Him, 17 and behold, a voice from the heavens said, “This is My beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.” God declared Jesus His Son, making Jesus equal with Him. For someone not to believe in Jesus is not to believe the Father and that person brings judgement upon them self. Also the Old Testament scriptures testified of Him. (Isaiah 7:14, Micah 5:2, Psalm 40:6-8, Psalm 78:1-2)
“You have sent messengers to John, and he has testified to the truth.” John the Baptist testified of Him and even pointed Him out as the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. (John 1:29) The common people in Israel believed that John the Baptist was a prophet from God.
“But the testimony I receive is not from man, but I say these things so that you may be saved. 35 He was the lamp that was burning and shining, and you were willing to rejoice for a while in his light.” Jesus stepped down from His throne to come to earth and save us. He did not do it for His own sake but for ours. (Philippians 2:4-8, Romans 5:8) To help prepare the world for the coming of Jesus, John the Baptist was sent to give notice that the Messiah was coming. John zealously announced the coming of Jesus and gave witness that Jesus was the Messiah. He was a valid witness, but Jesus had a better witness.
“But the testimony I have is greater than the testimony of John; for the works which the Father has given Me to accomplish—the very works that I do—testify about Me, that the Father has sent Me.” Jesus tells them that He has a greater testimony than the testimony of John the Baptist. Some may accuse Jesus of pride here, but that is not so. I remember a very old television program with actor Walter Brennan called “The Guns of Will Sonnet.” He played the part of a man, with his grandson, looking for his son who was running from the law. The son was thought by many to be the fastest gun around. When Walter Brennan and his grandson were confronted by “bad guys” he would say one of his famous lines stating that his son was good with a gun, but his grandson was better, and Walter Brennan was the best. Then he would say “No brag, just fact.” I always remembered that. If God has blessed us with a gift, we shouldn’t deny it, but can honestly state that it is true. If a man is tall, and someone mentions it, he needn’t say “No, I’m not tall” when obviously he is. That’s not being humble, that’s just plain dishonest.
Us telling people that we know God and are loved by Him is “no brag, just fact.” God loves us, He has saved us and He blesses us as His own beloved. We are humbled by His love and blessings to us. Telling others of the love and blessings of Jesus to us is a witness to Him. Jesus brings us to the Father and we bring others to Jesus. We are also His witnesses. So even though the Father and Holy Spirit are all the witnesses that Jesus needs, He also calls us to be His witnesses. What an honor to be a witness for Christ. Let us all be faithful ones. Praise the Lord!
The Guns of Will Sonnet – https://youtu.be/K7JeaZ3HHG8
Psalm 150:6 – Let everything that has breath praise the Lord. Praise the Lord!
Micah 7:7 – But as for me, I watch in hope for the Lord, I wait for God my Savior; my God will Hear me.
Micah 6:8 – He has shown you, Oh man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you, but to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.
Numbers 6:24-26 – The Lord bless you and keep you; 25 The Lord make His face shine on you and be gracious to you; 26 The Lord turn His face toward you and give you peace.
by Bob withPsalm 51:10-12 – Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. 11 Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me. 12 Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.
Psalm 139:7-10 “Where can I go from Your Spirit? Or where can I flee from Your presence? If I ascend to heaven, You are there; If I make my be in Sheol, behold, You are there. If I take up the wings of the dawn, If I dwell in the remotest part of the sea, Even there Your hand will lead me, and Your right hand will take hold of me.
In the days of clouds,
And of scary moments,
I know where to find,
My comfort.
I look to You Almighty God,
I look to You Precious Lord,
I draw inward to push next,
To Your Holy Spirit.
Needy is my soul,
Always I need the love and touch,
Of You.
I hide in Your love and glory,
Where I am safe and in peace.
This morning, with a joyful tear,
I am thankful,
Thankful to You my lovely God,
For You stay with me.
When I wake I find that You,
Have been guarding me,
Through the night.
During the day I cannot go,
Anywhere that You are not.
Everywhere is Your Presence,
Always in all places,
I am safely with You.
At night I recall the day,
It testifies of You,
That You Loved me.
Because of the everyday evidence,
Of Your love,
As I close my eyes to enter into sleep,
I’m at peace,
For He who keeps me will never leave me.
He who keeps me continuously,
And eternally,
Loves me.
How stunning and miraculous,
Is Your love!
Yes Lord, I am thankful,
And I am needy,
To and for You,
And You satiate the need,
While filling me with Your love,
Because You always,
And truly love me.
How great You are!
Thank You my God!
Psalm 150:6 – Let everything that has breath praise the Lord. Praise the Lord!
Micah 7:7 – But as for me, I watch in hope for the Lord, I wait for God my Savior; my God will Hear me.
Micah 6:8 – He has shown you, Oh man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you, but to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.
Numbers 6:24-26 – The Lord bless you and keep you; 25 The Lord make His face shine on you and be gracious to you; 26 The Lord turn His face toward you and give you peace.
by Bob withMatthew 10:28 And do not be afraid of those who kill the body but are unable to kill the soul; but rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.
Deuteronomy 31:6 – Be strong and courageous, do not be afraid or in dread of them, for the Lord your God is the One who is going with you. He will not desert you or abandon you.
Daniel 10:19 – And He said, “You who are treasured, do not be afraid. Peace be to you; take courage and be courageous!” Now as soon as he spoke to me, I felt strengthened and said, “May my lord speak, for you have strengthened me.”
Matthew 10:28. Jesus told us not to be afraid of anything or anyone that is not God. He said our reverence belongs to God, not to man. Really, what can any person do to us that God does not allow. And if God allows, then don’t we say “Your will Lord not mine?” With the Lord with us, what is it or who is it that causes fear. Since we know and trust the Lord and fear should not be a part of our lives.
Deuteronomy 31:6. The Lord’s message to Moses was to be strong and courageous and to not fear because God Almighty will be with him. Moses was God’s man and would use him to minister to His people. God with Him, who can be against him? And it is the same way for us. Paul wrote in Romans 8:31b “If God be for us, who can be against us?” Since that is true we should only be afraid when God is afraid and He is never, ever is afraid. We know that if the Lord has something for us to do we are utterly safe in Him. And if we are here, then the Lord has things for us to do. Fear not! Praise God!
Daniel 10:19. God also told the great prophet Daniel to not be afraid. With Daniel He added a wonderful and beautiful sentiment. He told Daniel that he was treasured by God and so he should not only not be afraid, but that he should have peace. All who serve God should be known for having peace through the fire because peace before the fire and after the fire is easy for everyone. We should have peace through the fire because He, like He did with Moses, treasures us. Isaac did not try to run from his old father as his father built an altar to sacrifice him on. He let his father bind him and put him on the altar even though he knew it meant that his father intended to plunge a knife into his chest and then burn his dead body, Isaac had faith and peace. Isaac let himself be bound, then placed on the altar, and did not flinch as Abraham’s hand, with the knife in it, began its downward descent toward his chest. We know that Isaac did not panic. He obeyed and his peace was in the faith and belief that he had in His God and in his father. (Genesis 22:1-9). Abraham also had peace in knowing God and in knowing that God had a plan. He trusted God and was about to drive the knife into Isaac’s chest because he believed that God would work it all out for His perfect and surpassing will. Abraham was in peace because he knew and trusted the Lord. Daniel was in peace because he knew and trusted the Lord. Isaac was in peace because he knew and trusted the Lord.
Acts 23:11. When the Jewish leaders had riled up a crowd against the Apostle Paul so badly that the soldiers thought the mob would tear Paul apart, the Lord spoke to Paul to be courageous and Paul, having heard from the Lord, was at peace and ready to do whatever the Lord asked Him to do. Paul knew the Lord and trusted the Lord so Paul had peace.
In John 14:27 Jesus told Paul “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.” It is because Moses, Abraham, Isaac, Daniel and Paul all knew the Lord that through the hardest trials they could have peace. All of them not only knew of the Lord, they knew Him. If one truly knows the Lord, then that one will trust Him. If we know Him and trust Him then come what may we will have peace. Our peace not based on who we are or any ability we might have, but is based on Jesus and knowing that He is more than enough in any scenario. This may sound too incredible to believe. Some would say that is too much, after all, we are only human. But know that we who serve the Lord are not “only” human. We are human with God inside. (1 Corinthians 6:19) That makes us a whole new creature. (2 Corinthians 5:17) And who we have become can have peace through the trials because of Jesus. Amen? Amen and praise the Lord!
Micah 7:7 – But as for me, I watch in hope for the Lord, I wait for God my Savior; my God will Hear me.
Micah 6:8 – He has shown you, Oh man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you, but to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.
Numbers 6:24-26 – The Lord bless you and keep you; 25 The Lord make His face shine on you and be gracious to you; 26 The Lord turn His face toward you and give you peace
by Bob withJohn 5:16-29 – For this reason the Jews were persecuting Jesus, because He was doing these things on a Sabbath. 17 But He answered them, “My Father is working until now, and I Myself am working.” 18 For this reason therefore the Jews were seeking all the more to kill Him, because He not only was breaking the Sabbath, but also was calling God His own Father, making Himself equal with God. 19 Therefore Jesus answered and was saying to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, unless it is something He sees the Father doing; for whatever the Father does, these things the Son also does in the same way. 20 For the Father loves the Son and shows Him all things that He Himself is doing; and the Father will show Him greater works than these, so that you will be amazed. 21 For just as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, so the Son also gives life to whom He wishes. 22 For not even the Father judges anyone, but He has given all judgment to the Son, 23 so that all will honor the Son just as they honor the Father. The one who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent Him. 24 “Truly, truly, I say to you, the one who hears My word, and believes Him who sent Me, has eternal life, and does not come into judgment, but has passed out of death into life. 25 Truly, truly, I say to you, a time is coming and even now has arrived, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live. 26 For just as the Father has life in Himself, so He gave to the Son also to have life in Himself; 27 and He gave Him authority to execute judgment, because He is the Son of Man. 28 Do not be amazed at this; for a time is coming when all who are in the tombs will hear His voice, 29 and will come out: those who did the good deeds to a resurrection of life, those who committed the bad deeds to a resurrection of judgment.
“For just as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, so the Son also gives life to whom He wishes.” It is true that did the signs that were foretold the Messiah would do. He healed the sick and raised the dead. It was plain for all to see that Jesus was a man from God as Nicodemus revealed that even the Jewish leaders knew Jesus was from God. (John 3:2) Like Nicodemus (who saw things with natural thought) they did not see the spiritual that Jesus was revealing. God gave Adam and Eve physical life and also spiritual life as they had not yet sinned and were spiritually alive. (Genesis 2-3) In Ezekiel 37 we see a picture of God first putting the bones back together and though their bodies were whole, they were lifeless. It was not until the Spirit breathed life into them that they will come alive. Ezekiel 36:26 speaks of God, in the later days, giving His people a new heart and a new spirit within them. In Joel 2:28-29 the Lord speaks about an outpouring of His Holy Spirit and blessing and changing His people which we saw in Acts 2. In V21 shows that it is God who raises the dead and gives life and we know that it is Jesus who also moves the dead (now all people are born spiritually dead) as they believe Him and follow Him. John 3:18 and John 3:36 clearly show the spiritual death that all are born into (because of Original Sin) and that it is through Jesus souls are moved from spiritual death to spiritual life. Jesus, both physically and spiritually, raised the dead.
“22 For not even the Father judges anyone, but He has given all judgment to the Son, 23 so that all will honor the Son just as they honor the Father. The one who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent Him.” The Father has given the power of judgement to the Son. That judgement comes by a person’s own decisions in life. Romans 3:23 clearly shows that eternal life is only through Jesus, as the salvation plan of God clearly states. (1 John 5:11-12) The judgement that leads to the second death is clear, it is for those who reject Jesus. Some will say they are “spiritual” but they will not believe the Gospel exclusively. Therefore, because of their relationship with Jesus eternal judgement is made known.
‘“Truly, truly, I say to you, the one who hears My word, and believes Him who sent Me, has eternal life, and does not come into judgment, but has passed out of death into life.”’ The one who does not believe who rejects Jesus has also rejected God’s witness of Jesus (The Old and New Testaments). Such a person not only calls Jesus a liar, but also calls God the Father a liar. That will earn a person a permanent place in Lake of Fire. The good news is that all who love and believe the Father and Jesus, will be removed from the path of eternal death and will be put onto the path of eternal life. Praise God!
“Truly, truly, I say to you, a time is coming and even now has arrived, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live. 26 For just as the Father has life in Himself, so He gave to the Son also to have life in Himself; 27 and He gave Him authority to execute judgment, because He is the Son of Man. 28 Do not be amazed at this; for a time is coming when all who are in the tombs will hear His voice, 29 and will come out: those who did the good deeds to a resurrection of life, those who committed the bad deeds to a resurrection of judgment.” We remember that when Jesus says “Truly, Truly” we better listen, listen. Everything Jesus said was important, but when He said that, He was telling something great importance. He was telling the Jews and us who He was. Jesus was God incarnate. I have heard people say that they would believe if God appeared to them and spoke to them. Family and Friends, Jesus was God in the flesh and He told us everything we needed to know concerning the salvation of our souls. He had and gave to us the words of life. Let’s receive Him and His words through Scripture and His Spirit. We all were born spiritually dead because of the fallen nature of all mankind. The words of Jesus will bring us from spiritual death to spiritual life. Jesus will come in and live with us and change our fallen nature to a living and vibrant born again life. He will take us out of death and into life. The secret to an abundant eternal life is Jesus and the secret is being spread throughout the world. The big question is if one will hear and believe.
There is a time coming when all those who loved Jesus and have died will be resurrected to be eternally with Him. (Revelation 20:6, 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18) Dear Family and Friends it is a blessing to enjoy our life on earth, but to be happy here is not the goal. The goal, the sure promise is that Jesus will bring us to live eternally with Him. John 14:1-3 ““Do not let your heart be troubled;believe in God, believe also in Me. 2 In My Father’s house are many rooms; if that were not so, I would have told you, because I am going there to prepare a place for you. 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I am coming again and will take you to Myself, so that where I am, there you also will be.” That is a promise of eternal peace and joy. That is what we strive for, it is our high and sure hope. Let our lives be lives that are lived through and for Jesus. That is what the Lord wants for our lives. Truly, I hope to see you all in eternity with Jesus. Praise God.
Psalm 150:6 – Let everything that has breath praise the Lord. Praise the Lord!
Micah 7:7 – But as for me, I watch in hope for the Lord, I wait for God my Savior; my God will Hear me.
Micah 6:8 – He has shown you, Oh man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you, but to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.
Numbers 6:24-26 – The Lord bless you and keep you; 25 The Lord make His face shine on you and be gracious to you; 26 The Lord turn His face toward you and give you peace.
by Bob withJohn 5:16-29 – For this reason the Jews were persecuting Jesus, because He was doing these things on a Sabbath. 17 But He answered them, “My Father is working until now, and I Myself am working.” 18 For this reason therefore the Jews were seeking all the more to kill Him, because He not only was breaking the Sabbath, but also was calling God His own Father, making Himself equal with God. 19 Therefore Jesus answered and was saying to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, unless it is something He sees the Father doing; for whatever the Father does, these things the Son also does in the same way. 20 For the Father loves the Son and shows Him all things that He Himself is doing; and the Father will show Him greater works than these, so that you will be amazed. 21 For just as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, so the Son also gives life to whom He wishes. 22 For not even the Father judges anyone, but He has given all judgment to the Son, 23 so that all will honor the Son just as they honor the Father. The one who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent Him. 24 “Truly, truly, I say to you, the one who hears My word, and believes Him who sent Me, has eternal life, and does not come into judgment, but has passed out of death into life. 25 Truly, truly, I say to you, a time is coming and even now has arrived, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live. 26 For just as the Father has life in Himself, so He gave to the Son also to have life in Himself; 27 and He gave Him authority to execute judgment, because He is the Son of Man. 28 Do not be amazed at this; for a time is coming when all who are in the tombs will hear His voice, 29 and will come out: those who did the good deeds to a resurrection of life, those who committed the bad deeds to a resurrection of judgment.
“Therefore Jesus answered and was saying to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, unless it is something He sees the Father doing; for whatever the Father does, these things the Son also does in the same way. 20 For the Father loves the Son and shows Him all things that He Himself is doing; and the Father will show Him greater works than these, so that you will be amazed.” If someone had ever come up to me and said I heard you had a heated argument with your Mom so I want to tell you that killing her is against the law and a grave sin. I would have responded in wonder why that would be said to me. It matters not to me whether it is against the law or a grave sin, harming my Mom in any way was not in my heart, or my mind. It would not enter my mind to harm her. It would have been against all that I am to do so. To do that would not only betray the Lord, break the law, harm her, but would be against the essence of who I am.
Jesus loves the Father. He did not come to disobey the Father but to do the will of Him. If He had not then He would have sinned having broken the fifth commandment and thereby would have sinned. (Exodus 20:12) We know that Jesus never sinned (Hebrews 4:15, 1 Peter 2:22), if He had sinned then He would not have been the spotless lamb to die for our sins. (Hebrews 9:14, 1 Peter 1:19) Even more so than I not having the thought to harm my mother, Jesus never had the thought to not do the will of the Father. Disobeying the Father was not, in any way, part of who He was. With a pure love Jesus loved the Father. Where the Spirit is there is pure love and against the fruits of pure love there is no law. (Galatians 5:22-23) I am not stating that Jesus could not be tempted to sin, but that sinning against the Father was not something that Jesus would or could do. Temptation is not sin. Jesus never entertained not doing the Father’s will even from an early age. (Luke 2:41-49) Jesus would do the Father’s will for Him. (John 6:38)
Father God showed Jesus what Jesus was to do. Jesus was here saying, in our vernacular, you haven’t seen anything yet. Praise God!
Jesus said that if we love Him we will obey Him. (John 14:15) Family and Friends, this is not at odds with the fact that we sometimes (often?) don’t obey Him. It’s a statement of how completely and purely we love Him. Our love for God continues to mature and to be purified as the Holy Spirit sanctifies us. Though we profess great love to our Savior and Lord, none of us have arrived at the desired goal, just as the Apostle Paul confessed in Philippians 3:12 “Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me.” So the truth is we need to grow in the pure love of God that we so richly receive and benefit from. His pure love purifies us and changes us so that who we are and what we are changes to become a new creation that glorifies Him. (2 Corinthians 5:17) The hard to hear truth is that we sin because we can love ourselves more than God. Yet, though we need to repent, we need not despair. (1 John 1:9) Because though we may sometimes be unfaithful, Jesus never is. (2 Timothy 2:13) Since Jesus is faithful then we know, no, we are convinced (!) that He will complete His work in us. (2 Timothy 1:12) How wonderful and true the salvation we have freely received through Jesus our Savior and Lord! That is worth celebrating every day! So fellow saints “The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, be with you all.” Be joyful, God has great things planned for us! Praise God!
Psalm 150:6 – Let everything that has breath praise the Lord. Praise the Lord!
Micah 7:7 – But as for me, I watch in hope for the Lord, I wait for God my Savior; my God will Hear me.
Micah 6:8 – He has shown you, Oh man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you, but to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.
Numbers 6:24-26 – The Lord bless you and keep you; 25 The Lord make His face shine on you and be gracious to you; 26 The Lord turn His face toward you and give you peace.
by Bob withJohn 5:16-29 – For this reason the Jews were persecuting Jesus, because He was doing these things on a Sabbath. 17 But He answered them, “My Father is working until now, and I Myself am working.” 18 For this reason therefore the Jews were seeking all the more to kill Him, because He not only was breaking the Sabbath, but also was calling God His own Father, making Himself equal with God. 19 Therefore Jesus answered and was saying to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, unless it is something He sees the Father doing; for whatever the Father does, these things the Son also does in the same way. 20 For the Father loves the Son and shows Him all things that He Himself is doing; and the Father will show Him greater works than these, so that you will be amazed. 21 For just as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, so the Son also gives life to whom He wishes. 22 For not even the Father judges anyone, but He has given all judgment to the Son, 23 so that all will honor the Son just as they honor the Father. The one who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent Him. 24 “Truly, truly, I say to you, the one who hears My word, and believes Him who sent Me, has eternal life, and does not come into judgment, but has passed out of death into life. 25 Truly, truly, I say to you, a time is coming and even now has arrived, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live. 26 For just as the Father has life in Himself, so He gave to the Son also to have life in Himself; 27 and He gave Him authority to execute judgment, because He is the Son of Man. 28 Do not be amazed at this; for a time is coming when all who are in the tombs will hear His voice, 29 and will come out: those who did the good deeds to a resurrection of life, those who committed the bad deeds to a resurrection of judgment.
For this reason the Jews were persecuting Jesus, because He was doing these things on a Sabbath.” The Jews were persecuting because Jesus healed a lame man on the Sabbath. What a horrible lack of love. Now if were ministering in today’s world He would be told by too many that the Jews were offended so now Jesus should back off. He should give them a break because, after all, it is (in their minds) the loving thing to do. Don’t keep pushing the truth but let them digest what they have and then revisit His point. They would say to Jesus, be loving, be nice, after all, “what would Jesus do.” Well, Jesus shows in the next verse what He would do, what He did. He wasn’t there to be soft on error or make allowances for the pride of men. He came to give us an exact representation of who the Father is. (Hebrews 1:3)
“But He answered them, “My Father is working until now, and I Myself am working. 18 For this reason therefore the Jews were seeking all the more to kill Him, because He not only was breaking the Sabbath, but also was calling God His own Father, making Himself equal with God. ”’ Okay, the Jewish leaders were beside themselves because when Jesus healed the lame man on the Sabbath, and so, according to their tradition (not God’s scripture), He had broken the Sabbath. They had been as angry as they thought they could be. Jesus did not back off. He who is the Truth (John 14:6) was not through bringing them the truth. He was the Truth and the Light (John 8:12) and He could be nothing else. He had come to earth to do the will of the Father (John 4:34), not to appease men. He then made the above statement equating Himself with Father God. Some might say He was not being nice.
There is no shortage of proud people who say that Jesus never said anything that proclaimed Himself as God. That’s just silly. They who live today claim to understand what Jesus said and did better than the Jewish leaders of the day. These leaders were more educated and intelligent than many, if not all of the people who today spout such quackish malarkey. Jesus knew that what He was saying would cause these Jewish leaders to overheat. In their lack of understanding (by the force of their will) they thought that Jesus would be defaming God by making Himself equal with God. These experts in the law and prophets would have instantly thought of verses like Deuteronomy 6:4 which states that God is one and Isaiah 40:25 which states that God had no equal. And He would have been trespassing if not for the fact that He was indeed God in human form (John 1:1-2, Philippians 2:6-8).
Now the Jews thought that not only had Jesus not kept the Sabbath day (according to their tradition) but He now was making Himself to be equal to God. Only God is equal to God and in their mind, there was only one, so Jesus could not be equal to God and could not be God since God was “one.” We must remember that they did not know of the Trinity. In their minds Jesus spoke like a heretic who was deserving of death.
We see that Jesus kept proceeding to give the truth, whether they could handle it or not. He did not back up. The anger of the leaders grew as Jesus spoke the truth and as they challenged Him Jesus kept answering them and so, their rage grew. We would later see this same reaction as the Apostles of Jesus would share (Acts 23:10) Family and Friends, Jesus did not back up, He did not stop speaking the truth. He was not speaking to provoke them. He merely spoke the truth and the light of the truth provoked them. (John 3:20) Light and truth was exactly what He came to share. Light and truth is exactly what Jesus sent us out to spread as we share the Gospel. People will be angry, and even hate us if we hold to the truth (Matthew 10:22), but we must nevertheless hold to it. Having expressed that, we must remember that we are not the Lord. We do not have His knowledge, insight and wisdom. So we must remember to be kind, as we never compromise the Word. We remember that the most loving and most kind thing we can do is to always tell the truth of God and to not ever apologize for it. As the Holy Spirit leads us in love, we boldly shares the Gospel. And in doing that we do what Jesus modeled for us. He did the Father’s will. We also will do the Father’s will as we honor Jesus. And that we strive to do. Praise God!
Psalm 150:6 – Let everything that has breath praise the Lord. Praise the Lord!
Micah 7:7 – But as for me, I watch in hope for the Lord, I wait for God my Savior; my God will Hear me.
Micah 6:8 – He has shown you, Oh man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you, but to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.
Numbers 6:24-26 – The Lord bless you and keep you; 25 The Lord make His face shine on you and be gracious to you; 26 The Lord turn His face toward you and give you peace.
by Bob with1 John 4:19 – We love because He first loves us.
Determination. Commitment. Zealousness. Stubborn. Lord Jesus, my lovely Savior, my Mighty Lord and God, my heart, my mind and my soul are prostrate before You. I have nothing if I don’t have You. But I do have You because You came and rescued me. So I am something, yet not I, but You who lives with me. Oh Lord, I love that!
With determination I cling to You who holds me fast. Some may say that I cannot know God, but they are wrong. You made Yourself actual, You made Yourself real to me. You have manifested Yourself every day in my life. I not only know You, I see You. In my fellow lovers and followers of You I see You in them. You are seen in the many blessings that settle upon me and around me and within me. Wherever I walk You have gone before me. Always, past, present and future You have been and are with me. You Lord God are with me and before me. I am determined because with Your love You have made me so.
With commitment I hold onto You. Committed to You I cling to You. More committed to You than I am to any person or anything I am committed to You. With Your arms around me, and my arms around You, I embrace You and won’t let go. Though I am weak never will my commitment to You waiver. Oh Lord, but for Your mercy! I stand, by the power of Your grace, eternally committed to You.
Zealous. Many things in my life could I have been committed to. Many things could I have strived to learn and to achieve. Yet only to you I remained zealous about. Yes, as I have followed You I have stumbled and fallen…many times. But I am zealous to get up and continue to follow. Though often the challenge has seemed too big for me I remain zealous for you. If I relied upon myself, I would have been discouraged and given up. However I don’t rely on myself, I rely upon You. Because of who You are and what You have done, I remain zealous. The fire in my heart rages for You. I live in Your approving gaze. Not that I always do right, but because of Your love and the work of Your love I forever remain approved. I am zealous because You teach me what zealousness is as I ponder your zealousness for me.
Stubbornness is a not a good thing if misapplied, if misused. If I am stubborn for my own will that can be very ugly. But if I am stubborn for You and Your Word, stubborn is then a very good thing. Lord God, I boldly proclaim to the world that I don’t understand everything and at the same time I unshakably insist that although I strive to understand, I am completely okay with not understanding. And that is so because I know that You understand everything and that relieves me of the burden of understanding. Instead, I trust You and that is all I need.
Thank You Lord for Your determination, commitment, zealousness to be and for being stubborn for me. You stubbornly loved me when there was no good reason to. Of course that’s because that is who You are. Oh Lord, I love You! Thank You Jesus! Praise God.
Psalm 150:6 – Let everything that has breath praise the Lord. Praise the Lord!
Micah 7:7 – But as for me, I watch in hope for the Lord, I wait for God my Savior; my God will Hear me.
Micah 6:8 – He has shown you, Oh man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you, but to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.
Numbers 6:24-26 – The Lord bless you and keep you; 25 The Lord make His face shine on you and be gracious to you; 26 The Lord turn His face toward you and give you peace.
by Bob with1 John 1:8-10 – If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. 10 If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word is not in us.
Recently someone challenged my faith because the person said that they have heard me say that I sometimes sin. The person said that people who sin are not Christians. The person said that If we are really truly born-again then we no longer sin. Honestly I was taken aback. I knew that this person had wrong ideas about the faith, but this was totally off. The above verses pre-suppose that during this life on earth we all will continue to struggle with sin of one sort or another. If I were to say that I don’t sin then I would either be a liar, deluded, or both and that statement would be in contradiction to the above verses.
Should my temper unnecessarily flare up, as it sometimes does, and I have said to never allow ones temper to flare up, then I may be accused of being a hypocrite. Yet my words may be that we should try to never be unjustly angry, but that is a goal and process which the Lord builds in us. So know that I know I sin, in a variety of ways. So am I a hypocrite if I say to strive to not sin but then sin? No, I have said what is in the Word and I strive every day to not sin, and yet I know I am a sinner who only strives to not let the sure sin within me reign. (Romans 6:12) I have the same lament as Paul the Apostle in Romans 7:15 “I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do.” Yet I am saved by the grace of God through Jesus our Savior. Apostle Paul admitted he still sometime sinned. I still sin, but I know the Lord helps me to daily, increasingly, overcome it. Yet, in this flesh “I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing.” (Romans 7:19) I also, as Paul did, I cry out “What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body that is subject to death?” (Romans 7:24) And the sin I sometimes do would make me crazy if not for the sure hope “Thanks be to God, who delivers me though through Jesus Christ our Lord!” (Romans 7:25)
Family and Friends, the miracle of God’s love to save us shines all the more brightly because He knew we could not stop sinning during this worldly life and yet He has loved us still. Not that He desires us to sin, but the fact that we continue to sin, and yet His love is stronger than our sins, makes the light of His glory shine brighter. Speaking as a man, we are not easy for a righteous God to love. But praise God He is not a man! Let us not be anthropomorphic in our thoughts of God, and thereby dishonor Him. He loves imperfect us. Oh how great is our God! Let us praise our Hero, our Lord, our great and wondrous Savior Jesus. Yes, be thankful and praise Him who made the way to go home, which is our great hope that Jesus gave us. (John 14:15) Praise God!
Psalm 150:6 – Let everything that has breath praise the Lord. Praise the Lord!
Micah 7:7 – But as for me, I watch in hope for the Lord, I wait for God my Savior; my God will Hear me.
Micah 6:8 – He has shown you, Oh man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you, but to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.
Numbers 6:24-26 – The Lord bless you and keep you; 25 The Lord make His face shine on you and be gracious to you; 26 The Lord turn His face toward you and give you peace.
by Bob withJohn 5:1-14 – Some time later, Jesus went up to Jerusalem for one of the Jewish festivals. 2 Now there is in Jerusalem near the Sheep Gate a pool, which in Aramaic is called Bethesda and which is surrounded by five covered colonnades. 3 Here a great number of disabled people used to lie—the blind, the lame, the paralyzed. 4 From time to time an angel of the Lord would come down and stir up the waters. The first one into the pool after each such disturbance would be cured of whatever disease they had. 5 One who was there had been an invalid for thirty-eight years. 6 When Jesus saw him lying there and learned that he had been in this condition for a long time, he asked him, “Do you want to get well?” 7 “Sir,” the invalid replied, “I have no one to help me into the pool when the water is stirred. While I am trying to get in, someone else goes down ahead of me.” 8 Then Jesus said to him, “Get up! Pick up your mat and walk.” 9 At once the man was cured; he picked up his mat and walked. The day on which this took place was a Sabbath, 10 and so the Jewish leaders said to the man who had been healed, “It is the Sabbath; the law forbids you to carry your mat.” 11 But he replied, “The man who made me well said to me, ‘Pick up your mat and walk.’ ” 12 So they asked him, “Who is this fellow who told you to pick it up and walk?” 13 The man who was healed had no idea who it was, for Jesus had slipped away into the crowd that was there. 14 Later Jesus found him at the temple and said to him, “See, you are well again. Stop sinning or something worse may happen to you.” 15 The man went away and told the Jewish leaders that it was Jesus who had made him well.
““Sir,” the invalid replied, “I have no one to help me into the pool when the water is stirred. While I am trying to get in, someone else goes down ahead of me.” He answered as we often answer when called upon “I have disabilities, nobody cares enough to help me in, and other people rush past me.” We all can make excuses can’t we? Jesus did not ask him why he was disabled, he asked him if he wanted to get better. Maybe many people had cruelly asked the man some insensitive questions or even directly criticized him and thereby had emotionally crushed him. Jesus knew the reasons, but did the man want to be helped out of his situation? Jesus loves all of us and he wants to know, do we want help? That is why He came, to lift from hopeless infernality to joyful eternal salvation. From a crippling situation to freedom. He is able to give it and will give to us our answers, even though we may not understand the answer. As it is said “Wise men still seek Him.” (Psalm 53:2) Jesus is the answer to every woe that can come upon any person, as this man is about to find out.
“Then Jesus said to him, “Get up! Pick up your mat and walk.” 9 At once the man was cured; he picked up his mat and walked. The day on which this took place was a Sabbath.” Jesus did not scold the man for giving excuses, He understood and instead Jesus healed Him. Jesus is that way with us. When we wallow in the pigsty of self-pity Jesus comes to lift us out and clean us. To give us hope. To give a reason to continue on. He not only gives hope and a reason to continue but He also gave the ability to move past the hard circumstance. James 2:15-16 “If a brother or sister is without clothing and in need of daily food, and one of you says to them “God in peace, be warmed and filled” yet you do not give them what is necessary for their body, what use is that?” Jesus gives us hope for the future, the ability to get up and walk from our circumstances, and the reason to move forward. In every situation Jesus is the answer.
For a reason John mentions that this occurred on a Sabbath day. The tradition of men had made up many extra rules. It seems that they meant well, but as they kept adding rules to the commandments given by God, what was meant to bless and protect mankind had become a very weighty burden that most, if not all, could not keep. That puts people into bondage.
People who can never seem to keep all the rules, and are always being admonished and shamed, can give up. Such was the problem with many of the manmade rules about the Sabbath. God had commanded them to keep the Sabbath and then the Jewish leaders had added things that God never intended. God had blessed men when He gave them the Sabbath. (Mark 2:27) God had given to people the blessing of the Sabbath but men had made it another heavy burden. One of the reasons Jesus came was to set us free from the slavery of man-made rules, not all rules, man-made rules. Whether from sin or manmade laws Jesus came to set us free, praise God! (John 8:31-33)
“and so the Jewish leaders said to the man who had been healed, “It is the Sabbath; the law forbids you to carry your mat.” Here is a great miracle of God’s compassion upon a man. A man who had been disabled and been beaten down by critical eyes for thirty-eight years and all these people could think was how they thought a Sabbath law was broken. Where was love and compassion? They, as many supposed scholars today are, more concerned with their learning then compassion and love. All who act this way are missing the meaning of the Word. How can they be a child of God if love is not first?
“11 But he replied, “The man who made me well said to me, ‘Pick up your mat and walk.’ ” 12 So they asked him, “Who is this fellow who told you to pick it up and walk?” 13 The man who was healed had no idea who it was, for Jesus had slipped away into the crowd that was there.” The man did not know Jesus except as the person who had healed him. In the commotion after the healing Jesus had simply slipped away.
“Later Jesus found him at the temple and said to him, “See, you are well again. Stop sinning or something worse may happen to you.” 15 The man went away and told the Jewish leaders that it was Jesus who had made him well.” We may wonder why Jesus told the man to stop sinning or something worse may happen to him. We know that in John 9:3 Jesus had said that a blind man was not blind because of sin but for the glory of God to be revealed. So do these two teachings contradict each other? No, not in any way! In our verses above this healing was also a revealing of God’s glory. Remember that Jesus instructs people from their understanding. A man lost in a dark cave is best rescued by someone going in and leading him out. Jesus met up with this man again and told him that he was well. He told the man to stop sinning or something worse may happen. What were the sins of the man? We are not told. But since the man had not known who Jesus was we can be sure that the man was not a follower of Jesus. Jesus may have been simply been telling him to leave his past lifestyle and follow Him. If the man did not, surely his destiny would be tragic. But if, after touched by Jesus, the man turned to follow Him, then the man would be joyful and not bring tragedy upon himself.
Jesus set us free. Free to worship Him and to not sin. How many times have people needed to be rescued, and cried out to God stating that He would have their eternal gratitude if only He would rescue them. Then, after being rescued, they forget their promise and do not live a life that is thankful to Him. Jesus died to rescue us from eternal death. So how do we live lives of gratitude? By loving Him with all that we are and by letting His love in us radiate to each other. Then the freedom He gave to us remains with us as a joy that no-one can squelch. Need Help? Ask Jesus to give it. But don’t restrict Him, trust Him to provide the best answer. Then follow Him and be free. His freedom is a joyous and beautiful thing. Praise God!
Psalm 150:6 – Let everything that has breath praise the Lord. Praise the Lord!
Micah 7:7 – But as for me, I watch in hope for the Lord, I wait for God my Savior; my God will Hear me.
Micah 6:8 – He has shown you, Oh man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you, but to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.
Numbers 6:24-26 – The Lord bless you and keep you; 25 The Lord make His face shine on you and be gracious to you; 26 The Lord turn His face toward you and give you peace.
by Bob withJohn 5:1-14 – Some time later, Jesus went up to Jerusalem for one of the Jewish festivals. 2 Now there is in Jerusalem near the Sheep Gate a pool, which in Aramaic is called Bethesda and which is surrounded by five covered colonnades. 3 Here a great number of disabled people used to lie—the blind, the lame, the paralyzed. 4 From time to time an angel of the Lord would come down and stir up the waters. The first one into the pool after each such disturbance would be cured of whatever disease they had. 5 One who was there had been an invalid for thirty-eight years. 6 When Jesus saw him lying there and learned that he had been in this condition for a long time, he asked him, “Do you want to get well?” 7 “Sir,” the invalid replied, “I have no one to help me into the pool when the water is stirred. While I am trying to get in, someone else goes down ahead of me.” 8 Then Jesus said to him, “Get up! Pick up your mat and walk.” 9 At once the man was cured; he picked up his mat and walked. The day on which this took place was a Sabbath, 10 and so the Jewish leaders said to the man who had been healed, “It is the Sabbath; the law forbids you to carry your mat.” 11 But he replied, “The man who made me well said to me, ‘Pick up your mat and walk.’ ” 12 So they asked him, “Who is this fellow who told you to pick it up and walk?” 13 The man who was healed had no idea who it was, for Jesus had slipped away into the crowd that was there. 14 Later Jesus found him at the temple and said to him, “See, you are well again. Stop sinning or something worse may happen to you.” 15 The man went away and told the Jewish leaders that it was Jesus who had made him well.
“One who was there had been an invalid for thirty-eight years. 6 When Jesus saw him lying there and learned that he had been in this condition for a long time, he asked him, “Do you want to get well?” This person who was an invalid for thirty-eight years was well known to people who visited the temple. He was always there, on his mat, hoping someone would help. The Jewish leaders allowed him to beg on the temple steps. The Sadducees and the Pharisees were understanding enough and merciful enough to allowed this. Now I wonder how many of the churches that we attend would allow the people who are invalids and needing help to sit outside our churches and beg and cry out to all those who pass by? Would our pastors and elders allow the needy, the truly needy to do this? Before and after services? Would we ourselves object to it? Is it too disturbing to see the hurt of others? Do we not want to feel the need to help even though God would want us to notice the need and to consider whether we could help, whether big or small? I’m not sure if I know of any church that I have attended would allow this. I know of at least one that I know chases them off their property. After all, the congregants would not want to be of our duty one to another. If that is us, how does that go along with Matthew 25:35-40 or Proverbs 3:27? The deep meaning behind these verses is not law, it is love and if we are without the love of God within us, then we are not God’s child. (1 John 4:8)
Jesus asked the invalid man if he wanted to be healed. At first this seems like a silly question. And maybe if we asked the question it would be silly. But this is Jesus, who knew all people, how they have lived their lives, and like the Samaritan woman at the well, He was asking questions to touch the soul. This man had lived as an invalid for thirty-eight years. It is very possible that he did not know if he would know how to live as a whole person. Maybe at first he hoped and prayed to be healthy and then after the many years of dashed hopes, the expectation within him of being healed had withered. Today, that can happen with us. Sometimes we can feel so beaten down that our hope has lost the “p” and has become a hoe that is a burdensome work that only seems to turn soil with no hope of producing a good crop. Perhaps we can become so beaten down that we don’t know if we would know how to survive even if things suddenly got miraculously better? Hurt and convenience may seem like all we know. Maybe this man once rushed for the stirring water and then began to not try as hard? Jesus wanted to change his perspective and let him know that his prayers were always heard and there was a day appointed for them to be answered. Perhaps that day was today. It is the state of mind that we need to live in, perhaps today the Lord will provide the answer. We already know that every day is a day for salvation (2 Corinthians 7:10) and so we know that every day is a day that God can move mightily in our favor. Every day God’s mercy is fresh and available. Lamentations 3:22-23 “Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for His compassions never fail. 23 They are new every morning; Great is your faithfulness.” Sometimes the downtrodden need a touch from God and if we love God and are yielded to Him, then we should be willing to be that needed touch. (Matthew 5:42, 1 John 3:17-18) Some say they want no help and are happy, that is not always the truth. Sometimes we need to push.
As always the two greatest commandments reveal will of God for our life. (Mark 12:29-31) Let us love and help each other. Give to the poor and not only to those who can pay us back. Yes, we can loan, but when someone cannot pay back still give. After all the Lord has given to us and we cannot pay Him back. God who gave to us watches us. We know that God who gave to us can resupply every need that arises. (Malachi 3:10) After all, we have because He endlessly loves and gives. That is what we should do. He will direct us. Let us endlessly love and give. God will resupply as we walk in faith with Him. He really is so good to us. He really does love us. Jesus will show this invalid man the truth of that. Praise God!
Psalm 150:6 – Let everything that has breath praise the Lord. Praise the Lord!
Micah 7:7 – But as for me, I watch in hope for the Lord, I wait for God my Savior; my God will Hear me.
Micah 6:8 – He has shown you, Oh man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you, but to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.
Numbers 6:24-26 – The Lord bless you and keep you; 25 The Lord make His face shine on you and be gracious to you; 26 The Lord turn His face toward you and give you peace.
by Bob with