Q.

When a person is Born Again…?

A.

This is a very good question Let me take a minute

It requires a confession and a belief of faith to take the first step

Romans 10: that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. 11 For the Scripture says, “Whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame.”12 For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, for the same Lord over all is rich to all who call upon Him. 13 For “whoever calls on the name of the LORD shall be saved.”

When we take that step of faith the seed of salvation is planted in us.

Then we must take steps to make sure that seed takes root, lest it dies aborning… and we do that by changing our hearts….and seeking to do the works that God has prepared for us.

Ephesians 2: For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, 9 not of works, lest anyone should boast. 10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.

Works do not cause salvation, but they follow them and when you are saved…when that seed is planted in you, it should begin to grow take root and manifest itself in good things…we call works

The anology here is as a seed drops to the soil and bursts with the energy contained in the seed it must quickly put down roots and beging to grow or it will wither away. This is demonstrated by Jesus’ Parable of a sower and the seed

Mark 4: 1 And again He began to teach by the sea. And a great multitude was gathered to Him, so that He got into a boat and sat in it on the sea; and the whole multitude was on the land facing the sea. 2 Then He taught them many things by parables, and said to them in His teaching:
3 “Listen! Behold, a sower went out to sow. 4 And it happened, as he sowed, that some seed fell by the wayside; and the birds of the air[a] came and devoured it. 5 Some fell on stony ground, where it did not have much earth; and immediately it sprang up because it had no depth of earth. 6 But when the sun was up it was scorched, and because it had no root it withered away. 7 And some seed fell among thorns; and the thorns grew up and choked it, and it yielded no crop. 8 But other seed fell on good ground and yielded a crop that sprang up, increased and produced: some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some a hundred.”
9 And He said to them,[b] “He who has ears to hear, let him hear!”
The Purpose of Parables

10 But when He was alone, those around Him with the twelve asked Him about the parable. 11 And He said to them, “To you it has been given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God; but to those who are outside, all things come in parables, 12 so that

‘ Seeing they may see and not perceive,
And hearing they may hear and not understand;
Lest they should turn,
And their sins be forgiven them.’”[c]
The Parable of the Sower Explained

13 And He said to them, “Do you not understand this parable? How then will you understand all the parables? 14 The sower sows the word. 15 And these are the ones by the wayside where the word is sown. When they hear, Satan comes immediately and takes away the word that was sown in their hearts. 16 These likewise are the ones sown on stony ground who, when they hear the word, immediately receive it with gladness; 17 and they have no root in themselves, and so endure only for a time. Afterward, when tribulation or persecution arises for the word’s sake, immediately they stumble. 18 Now these are the ones sown among thorns; they are the ones who hear the word, 19 and the cares of this world, the deceitfulness of riches, and the desires for other things entering in choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful. 20 But these are the ones sown on good ground, those who hear the word, accept it, and bear fruit: some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some a hundred.”

I hope that helps

I was recently asked this question

Hello, i am a struggling Christian. i am losing faith in God and Jesus because i cant think of any proof of their existence. Do you know any proof?

My response was:

Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things unseen  - Hebrews 11:1

Faith is required, as far as proof goes….when was the last time you took a breath….EVERYthing that exists…is proof of God

What you need to do is connect Jesus and your hear together, so that the the relationship gives you all the verification you need
Pray:

Jesus you are the Lord of my life and I need you. I can’t see you with my eyes, any more than I can see love….but I know you are there.

Holy Spirit come dwell within me and let me feel your presence new every morning
Father I will follow your way and your will until the day you bring me home.

Amen

Trying to find God with your head, is like trying to see a rainbow with your eyes closed. It is by the heart, and not the head that we perceive the existance of God. You must believe.

^{To catch up, this next passage happens right after Jesus forgives the woman caught in the act of adultery. This whole scene was constructed by the pharisees to trip up Jesus, to cause him to make a mistake, and since Jesus thwarted them in that attempt and finished by saying}

¹² Then Jesus spoke to them again, saying, “I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life.”

They came at Him directly,. John as has been noted writes his gospel in an entirely different way that Matthew Mark or Luke.   Matthew and Mark  write about the man Jesus ….who was also God.  Dr. Luke writes a thesis focusing on both the Man hood and Godhood of Jesus, but John focuses more strictly on the godhood of Jesus.

In Matthew and Mark they stress when Jesus referred to himself as the “Son of Man”  which is a role Jesus embraced, as the sacrifice for men.   But in John we here when Jesus expressed who he was….more than the other Gospels….again and again John relates to us the times when Jesus says  “I Am” as he did right here.

And so the pharisees come after Jesus and Jesus defends both who He is of Himself, and Who He is in the Father who sent Him

¹³ The Pharisees therefore said to Him, “You bear witness of Yourself; Your witness is not true.”

In simpler terms, “You’re a liar”   And Jesus answered this accusation.

Exhibit 1
¹⁴ Jesus answered and said to them, “Even if I bear witness of Myself, My witness is true, for I know where I came from and where I am going; but you do not know where I come from and where I am going.

This is a fascinating  start of the argument because there are many ways we can address arguments, and Jesus has used them all. You can quote scripture, you can  invoke the will of God, but here Jesus starts with the simple….I know who I am.  And Christians can borrow from this, when challenged on our faith “How do you know you are actually saved and not just wishful thinking”  our answer can be a simple, “I know who I am in Christ”  a simple statement of the facts sometimes is more effective than arguments.

With the pharisees specialization in legalism however Jesus goes on to further His case.

Exhibit 2

¹⁵ You judge according to the flesh; I judge no one.

Who are you?  What authority, what knowledge do you possess that you can accuse me?  He places their own status in question, for while the pharisees had puffed themselves up, I think in their heart of hearts they knew they were corrupt and Jesus was not…for his mere presence convicted them of their sin.

Exhibit 3

¹⁶ And yet if I do judge, My judgment is true; for I am not alone, but I am with the Father who sent Me.

“But even if you had the right to judge me, I have the authority and the backing of the Father”  Jesus is building His case here,   He first established His Identity, now He establishes His authority

Exhibit 4

¹⁷ It is also written in your law that the testimony of two men is true. ¹⁸ I am One who bears witness of Myself, and the Father who sent Me bears witness of Me.”

By tying everything He has said to the Law which the pharisees claimed to be their final authority, Jesus sealed the  argument and made it unassailable.  But as we often find when dealing with those people who are only using the word of God to back their personal agenda….they still will not accept the truth
¹⁹ Then they said to Him, “Where is Your Father?” Jesus answered, “You know neither Me nor My Father. If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also.”

And at the end of His defense, when the argument was made, and sealed….Jesus did not let them engage Him past this point.  Again they knew who he was, and who they were…this was not an honest attempt to put down a false prophet by the pharisees, but rather an attempt to discredit Jesus, to cover Him with the mud they were soaked in , to ease the conviction they felt.
²⁰ These words Jesus spoke in the treasury, as He taught in the temple; and no one laid hands on Him, for His hour had not yet come.

Many times in John we see that the Jews sought to harm Jesus , from stoning to accusation to incarceration, but none of that was possible  until it was allowed to happen in the time of God.

Because above all, from beginning to end, Jesus remained guiltless.

Let me preface this by saying that this is in effect a repentance on my part. That I have been dragged away by issues, concerns and worries from the things I have been called to do by God and I am coming back to the heart of service and worship, by admitting my failing in this forum.

——–

Thorns and weeds, they can grow in any one’s garden, and the minute we think it can’t happen to us, and  we take our eyes off them…..they pop up in our lives. And I am here to confess they happened in mine.

They are insidious little plants. they sneak up on you.  And if your not careful, they soon can be  the main thriving point in your garden while the plants that produce as gasping for survival.  What does this have to to with Christianity? Weeds are a representation Jesus used to explain the effect of the cares of the world on our faith.

Since  this marks a returning point for me, lets return to what I consider to be the cornerstone of my faith….it is the first scripture that the Holy Spirit opened my eyes too. The parable of the sower and the seed  in Mark 4

Mark 4: ³ “Listen! Behold, a sower went out to sow. ⁴ And it happened, as he sowed, that some seed fell by the wayside; and the birds of the air came and devoured it. ⁵ Some fell on stony ground, where it did not have much earth; and immediately it sprang up because it had no depth of earth. ⁶ But when the sun was up it was scorched, and because it had no root it withered away. ⁷ And some seed fell among thorns; and the thorns grew up and choked it, and it yielded no crop. ⁸ But other seedfell on good ground and yielded a crop that sprang up, increased and produced: some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some a hundred.”
⁹ And He said to them, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear!”

Well the disciples with Jesus didn’t understand the meaning, so He explained it.

¹⁴ The sower sows the word. ¹⁵ And these are the ones by the wayside where the word is sown. When they hear, Satan comes immediately and takes away the word that was sown in their hearts. ¹⁶ These likewise are the ones sown on stony ground who, when they hear the word, immediately receive it with gladness; ¹⁷ and they have no root in themselves, and so endure only for a time. Afterward, when tribulation or persecution arises for the word’s sake, immediately they stumble. ¹⁸ Now these are the ones sown among thorns; they are the ones who hear the word, ¹⁹ and the cares of this world, the deceitfulness of riches, and the desires for other things entering in choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful. ²⁰ But these are the ones sown on good ground, those who hear the word, accept it,and bear fruit: some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some a hundred.”

Now I don’t know about you, but i have been a Christian for twenty-seven years and nothing like :

¹⁸ Now these are the ones sown among thorns; they are the ones who hear the word, ¹⁹ and the cares of this world, the deceitfulness of riches, and the desires for other things entering in choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful.

Could ever happen to me!   Oh no?  When I came back to this page I saw that my last entry was 9 months ago, and in that 9 month period I have given birth to a child of apathy.

Now I have an impressive list of excuses, reasons and why I came to this state, but in the end they all add up to a hill of beans,  I failed.  I let the concerns, cares, worries, and distractions of life turn me aside from doing what I set forth to do, what God has called me to do.

Why do I bring all this up? Well firstly…confession is good for the soul, and I am confessing my weaknesses, for when I am weak…He makes me strong. Secondly its a common failing for all Christians to get caught up in the vagaries of this life and soon they find themselves, distant or apart from what they had originally intended. These thorn and weeds are insidious little creatures  and they sneak and crawl their ways into our life without us hardly knowing it.  It starts out as a little concern , which turns into a little excuse for not doing this and that and ends up with us stranded out in the the dry places wondering “what happened” 

Also if we are not careful to root these thorns and weeds out completely they have a tendency to grow back, stronger than before because their roots are buried deep in the soul of our heart. And we find ourselves, as I have found myself, constantly vascilating  between what I should be doing and what I end up doing….. which is not much of anything.

So what brought me to the point where I am airing my dirty laundry for all to see….and why am I sharing this with you? Well we are in troublesome times my brothers and sisters, and it seems the troubles are going to get worse before they get better and soon will come a time when we will need our faith to fall back on, as the refuge of besieged. And if that time comes and we find our refuge covered with weeds and thorns it will be too late to tend to the gardening.

No matter what happens. No matter what the future holds, God will hold us in His hands, but it is by faith that we hold onto God. And it is by faith that we weather the storms in peace and surety, instead of fear and doubting.  So I am using this opportunity to encourage myself, and anyone else who might read this, that time is growing short, and we must tend our gardens. So that it will remain alive and producing, 30 60 and 100 fold, even through the storm.

God Bless

Grace and peace to you my brothers and sisters in Christ. I was put upon my heart this morning (as I was listening to Pastor Alistair Begg’s radio show Truth for Life which i heartily recommend truthforlife.org) that there is a missing part of forgiveness, that we often over look.  And that is to have the forgivers heart.  All of us have been wronged by someone at sometime or another, some of us serverely, and we find it difficult to be a forgiver. God understands this, and where we are weak, he gives us grace. But in God’s perfect will, the forgiver and the forgiven must meet in the middle.

Let me state now, and empathically that God is not asking you to expose yourself to being hurt again. God does not ALWAYS seek restoration of relationship. Especially in cases where abuse, or misuse has caused a life liong scar in our hearts. The purpose of forgiveness is to empty ourselves of bitterness and hard heartedness and to put that person into the hands of God, and out of our hands forever. The perfect scenario of forgiveness, is that BOTH sides would listen to God and Both sides would find away to restore the realtionship, but as we often know, often one side simply doesn’t not care about God…..and so we have to let them go.  And to do that we need a heart of the forgiver.

Below is an enitre bible book that discusses just this. It is the book of Philemon  (don’t worry it’s only one chapter long (25 verses) And is speaking about a servant of Philemon, Onesimus, who fled from him and in the process of time ended up with Paul who was imprisoned in Rome.  In his process of salvation is is assumed that Paul askrd him to make his past right, including returning to Philemon. This letter was a re-introduction of Onesimus to Philemmon with a request/insistance for Philemon to accept back, Onesimus in the grace of God.

Philemon 1
 1 Paul, a prisoner of Christ Jesus, and Timothy our brother,

To Philemon our beloved friend and fellow laborer, 2 to the beloved[a] Apphia, Archippus our fellow soldier, and to the church in your house:

3 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
  
4 I thank my God, making mention of you always in my prayers, 5 hearing of your love and faith which you have toward the Lord Jesus and toward all the saints, 6 that the sharing of your faith may become effective by the acknowledgment of every good thing which is in you[b] in Christ Jesus. 7 For we have[c] great joy[d] and consolation in your love, because the hearts of the saints have been refreshed by you, brother.

8 Therefore, though I might be very bold in Christ to command you what is fitting, 9 yet for love’s sake I rather appeal to you—being such a one as Paul, the aged, and now also a prisoner of Jesus Christ— 10 I appeal to you for my son Onesimus, whom I have begotten while in my chains, 11 who once was unprofitable to you, but now is profitable to you and to me.
12 I am sending him back.[e] You therefore receive him, that is, my own heart, 13 whom I wished to keep with me, that on your behalf he might minister to me in my chains for the gospel. 14 But without your consent I wanted to do nothing, that your good deed might not be by compulsion, as it were, but voluntary.
15 For perhaps he departed for a while for this purpose, that you might receive him forever, 16 no longer as a slave but more than a slave—a beloved brother, especially to me but how much more to you, both in the flesh and in the Lord.
  
17 If then you count me as a partner, receive him as you would me. 18 But if he has wronged you or owes anything, put that on my account. 19 I, Paul, am writing with my own hand. I will repay—not to mention to you that you owe me even your own self besides. 20 Yes, brother, let me have joy from you in the Lord; refresh my heart in the Lord.
21 Having confidence in your obedience, I write to you, knowing that you will do even more than I say. 22 But, meanwhile, also prepare a guest room for me, for I trust that through your prayers I shall be granted to you.
  
23 Epaphras, my fellow prisoner in Christ Jesus, greets you, 24 as do Mark, Aristarchus, Demas, Luke, my fellow laborers.
25 The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. Amen.

There are many lessons to glean from this message. But Pauls imperative for Philemon to be accepting of Onesimus, regardless of his offense, because Onesimus had changed his heart. We too have to have the same heart as this, that we are WILLING to accept our offenders back into fellowship IF (and only if) they truly are repented and have changed their life to serve God. Only if we are willing to go the full measure, can we be truly free in our hearts. This is the heart of God, that while we were yet still sinners, He sent his Son to die for us. If we who have greatly offended God in our sins, can be accepted back into full fellowship, with no condemnation…..we must be willing to do the same for those who have hurt us.

Peace to you.

We take up with the challenge of Jesus to the established rule of the pharisees. A rule based on a desire to keep and maintain power, rather than to serve God. Jesus has just answered one of the Pharisees, Nicodemus , who we know to be an ardent seeker of God, while still numbering himself a Pharisee. Jesus has is still something of an unknown quantity to people as the day ends.

John 7: 53 And everyone went to his own house

John 8:1 But Jesus went to the Mount of Olives.

Jesus as always, goes to pray to His Father. This must be a trying time for him. I know in my discussions with scoffers and unbelievers I am easily fatigued, and find it easy to lose traction. But getting alone with God, and praying and praising, has a away of restoring. To Jesus, this time with God was utter restoration.
2 Now early in the morning He came again into the temple, and all the people came to Him; and He sat down and taught them.

The people were still very interested in Jesus, anyone with an open heart could hear the world of God being spoken to them.  There are times when I wish I could be sitting there hearing His teaching. The pharisees, with their closed hearts had already made up their mind and set about to trap Jesus

3 Then the scribes and Pharisees brought to Him a woman caught in adultery.And when they had set her in the midst, 4 they said to Him, “Teacher, this woman was caught in adultery, in the very act.

One always wonders exactly how she was caught in the act. Was this a set up, or something the Pharisee’s stumbled upon and decided to use to their advantage. I tend to think it was a set up from the word go, and in their bitter hearts set up this woman to sin, just to accuse Christ. This is how messed up our agenda becomes when we stray from God. ( And yes I know she could not do this alone….where was the man?) 

5 Now Moses, in the law, commanded us that such should be stoned. But what do You say?”

It is interesting to me here, that they referred to it as coming from Moses. This to is a sign of their disconnection from God, for they were not serving God’s law…but Moses’.  What is also interesting to me , is why this is a question. Why would they think Jesus’ answer would be any different from the law.  Yes it is true that was the penalty for such action. What was it about Jesus that would make them think, He would stry from the law? They must have, through His teachings, come to the conclusion that this new  law of Love Jesus was preaching was outside of God’s  law.  Which we know it was not.    So how do you answer a  setup?  You don’t.

6 This they said, testing Him, that they might have something of which to accuse Him. But Jesus stooped down and wrote on the ground with His finger, as though He did not hear.

There is much ado about what it was that Jesus wrote, and how and if it applied to what was going on here. the bottom line is we won’t know until we get there, but as we will see later, it is what they heard from Jesus that convicted them.
7 So when they continued asking Him, He raised Himself up and said to them, “He who is without sin among you, let him throw a stone at her first.”

Jesus did not violate the law, he simply measured them by the same law.  Jesus said elsewhere , “judge not, lest you be judged, for with whatever measure you judge with, it will be measured back to you.” 

 8 And again He stooped down and wrote on the ground. 9 Then those who heard it, being convicted by their conscience, went out one by one, beginning with the oldest even to the last. And Jesus was left alone, and the woman standing in the midst.

And here he applied it to those who would accuse the girl, and each one was convicted in his heart that he was not worthy. The plain and simple truth of God penetrates into the most hardened soul. No one is beyond reach, but each responds in his own way.

10 When Jesus had raised Himself up and saw no one but the woman, He said to her, “Woman, where are those accusers of yours? Has no one condemned you?” 11 She said, “No one, Lord.”And Jesus said to her, “Neither do I condemn you; go and sin no more.”

Romans 8: 1 There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit. 2 For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death.

There was one man in that group that was worthy of passing judgement on this woman. He could have easily condemned her and stoned her. But Jesus’ purpose is never to condemn us. But to usher in a life of mercy and grace in Christ Jesus

Mercy is God not giving us what we deserve (The stoning)

Grace is God giving us what we do not deserve (Forgiveness)

While that woman was guilty of the sin, Jesus granter her Mercy and Grace. As He does to us. Do not ever live in guilt and condemnation, for if you are in Jesus (and you are beloved brothers and sisters) then it has no part of you.

So we continue with the Challenge of Jesus Christ, to the leadership of the Jews.

32 The Pharisees heard the crowd murmuring these things concerning Him, and the Pharisees and the chief priests sent officers to take Him.

In the previous verses and studies we have seen  Jesus explain and express His divinity to the Jewish people.  This was not received well by the Jewish leaders, who, instead of looking for the Messiah and embracing His arrival, were instead looking to save their positions of power.

33 Then Jesus said to them,“I shall be with you a little while longer, and then I go to Him who sent Me. 34 You will seek Me and not find Me, and where I am you cannot come.”

He is of course talking about His upcoming death and Resurrection which will occupy the majority of the remainder of the book. He will eventually go to Him, but not yet. All of this was firmly in Jesus’ hand. Confirming that His life was not taken from Him, it was given to us. 36 What is this thing that He said, ‘You will seek Me and not find Me, and where I am you cannot come’?”
35 Then the Jews said among themselves, “Where does He intend to go that we shall not find Him? Does He intend to go to the Dispersion among the Greeks and teach the Greeks?

Again Jesus was talking about spiritual things and the Jews were (understandably) thinking in the physical world. The Dispersion (also known as the Diaspora) were the Jews who were not living in Israel. With Roman occupation life in Israel was a little rough so many moved into the area of  Asia Minor and surrounds
37 On the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink. 38 He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.”

 Again Jesus goes against all convention here…..because He is God, and not merely man. And speaks to those gathered in the temple. He is expressing and identifying Himself as the Messiah, as the verse referenced here exclaims

39 But this He spoke concerning the Spirit, whom those believing in Him would receive; for the Holy Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.

And now we get a glimpse into the future, into the relationship God wants to have with us.   For the Jews of Abraham and Moses’ time God was above them as he spoke to them. In Jesus time, God was no longer above the people, but much closer, God walked among the people and touched the people. And finally upon His death and Resurrection , Jesus sent to us, the comforter, the Holy Spirit, who would not dwell, above or among us….but within us. With each person of the Trinity….each expression of God, being closer and more intimate.
40 Therefore many[i] from the crowd, when they heard this saying, said, “Truly this is the Prophet.” 41 Others said, “This is the Christ.”
But some said, “Will the Christ come out of Galilee? 42 Has not the Scripture said that the Christ comes from the seed of David and from the town of Bethlehem, where David was?” 43 So there was a division among the people because of Him.

And some listened with their hearts, and some listened with their heads.  And the ones relying on their knowledge, did not know the whole truth. They did not know that Jesus had in fact been born in Bethlehem. Again we see Jesus dividing, those who have an ear to hear, and those who won’t hear.

44 Now some of them wanted to take Him, but no one laid hands on Him.
45 Then the officers came to the chief priests and Pharisees, who said to them, “Why have you not brought Him?”
46 The officers answered, “No man ever spoke like this Man!”

Here we have the second witness against the Pharisees, Surely they heard this same man speak…..but they closed their hearts to Him, Jesus is the first witness. Now they hear the words of the guards, who guilelessly appreciate the special nature of this man, an ability apparently foreign to the Pharisees
47 Then the Pharisees answered them, “Are you also deceived? 48 Have any of the rulers or the Pharisees believed in Him? 49 But this crowd that does not know the law is accursed.”

And now, to further incriminate themselves, they call accursed the entire assembly of people.
50 Nicodemus (he who came to Jesus by night, being one of them) said to them, 51 “Does our law judge a man before it hears him and knows what he is doing?” 52 They answered and said to him, “Are you also from Galilee? Search and look, for no prophet has arisen out of Galilee.”

And finally the third witness against the pharisees, comes from among their own number. Nicodemus, who was by all accounts a seeker of the truth and who did have ears to hear.

It is easy for us to judge the Pharisee’s and find them guilty on the power of these three witnesses, for  they truly were guilty. But how many of us are also guilty of turning a deaf ear to Jesus so that  we may further our own agenda and interests…I certainly am one. So while I do not condone at all what the Pharisees have done, I number myself at least partially with them, and trust and believe  and HOPE that the mercy and grace of Jesus Christ will save me from my own hypocrisies.

We pick up from last week with a little review of Jesus expressing where His authority comes from. In the Jewish religion authority is often a great issue, for one speaking from their own authority were often disregarded.

16 Jesus answered them and said, “My doctrine is not Mine, but His who sent Me. 17 If anyone wills to do His will, he shall know concerning the doctrine, whether it is from God or whether I speak on My own authority. 18 He who speaks from himself seeks his own glory; but He who seeks the glory of the One who sent Him is true, and no unrighteousness is in Him.

Jesus’ Authority was clearly The God of Abraham, Issac and Jacob.

19 Did not Moses give you the law, yet none of you keeps the law? Why do you seek to kill Me?”

This was quite an indictment, to say that none of them keep the law, was an indictment against all of them, and yet when you look at their reaction….
20 The people answered and said, “You have a demon. Who is seeking to kill You?”

Not one argues their innocence. Instead they engage in the age old trick of slandering your enemy to discredit his message. And yet there was a contingent among them , the Pharisees who were most certainly plotting His destruction.
21 Jesus answered and said to them, “I did one work, and you all marvel. 22 Moses therefore gave you circumcision (not that it is from Moses, but from the fathers), and you circumcise a man on the Sabbath. 23 If a man receives circumcision on the Sabbath, so that the law of Moses should not be broken, are you angry with Me because I made a man completely well on the Sabbath?

The Pharisaical view of the law had become so slanted, so “missing the point” of God, they could not see past the narrow limits of their self imposed rules to see the work of God being done.   Nor could they….or would they see that the one doing this work was the son of God.

24 Do not judge according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgment.”

What is a righteous judgment? It is using God’s standard, not our own to see if something measures up to  righteous in the eyes of God. Now at this point may I say, perhaps somewhat boldly, that there are more Christians running around doing more damage than the devil could ever hope to accomplish. These Christians take the opinions of their preachers (who, instead of preaching bible truths, preach their own opinions as if they were the truth) And bash other Christians and non believers about the head with these misinformed, misappropriated untruths.  We should never ever ever (ever) take anything that a preacher tells us as the Gospel truth….unless we KNOW it is the Gospel truth. Just because someone wears a robe, or (ahem) has a website doesn’t make them harbingers of truth. It is the responsibility of EVERY Christian to take what they hear and compare it to the bible and find out if it is the Gospel Truth.

    Acts 17: 10 Then the brethren immediately sent Paul and Silas away by night to Berea. When they arrived, they went into the synagogue of the Jews. 11 These were more fair-minded than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness, and searched the Scriptures daily to find out whether these things were so.

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25 Now some of them from Jerusalem said, “Is this not He whom they seek to kill? 26 But look! He speaks boldly, and they say nothing to Him. Do the rulers know indeed that this is truly the Christ?

Oh Jesus had put the Leaders of the Jews on the spot, for apparently the people knew they were seeking to kill Jesus. More than that if Jesus knew that…what was he doing there? And why were the leaders not trying to kill him?  Again these people followed their leaders somewhat blindly and on every account here, Jesus’ and the Pharisee’s, actions seemed contrary to evidence.

27 However, we know where this Man is from; but when the Christ comes, no one knows where He is from.”

This is not exactly the truth as they knew (through prophecies) the Christ would be born in Bethlehem and live in Nazareth
28 Then Jesus cried out, as He taught in the temple, saying, “You both know Me, and you know where I am from; and I have not come of Myself, but He who sent Me is true, whom you do not know. 29 But I know Him, for I am from Him, and He sent Me.” 30 Therefore they sought to take Him; but no one laid a hand on Him, because His hour had not yet come.

Again, in a place where others might equivocate or compromise to keep the peace, Jesus redefines, and sharpens His point, causing division. If he had only been a little less direct…he might have made more friends, and less enemy. Instead he drives home the point forever alienating those who stood against Him. It is so against out inclusive tolerant thinking today, to think that Jesus would purposefully be so blunt with the truth to force people to choose sides…..instead of holding hands on a mountainside singing the coke song.  Why?

31 And many of the people believed in Him, and said, “When the Christ comes, will He do more signs than these which this Man has done?”

Because those who would believe, were also brought to a decision point. The decision to follow Christ is not to be taken lightly , nor is it to be handled without much care. The gift may be free, but in the end it still costs you a life. For to be saved you must give up your will and your life, to take on His will and His life.

Jesus did not come to bring the whole world into a harmonious state of being.

In His own words He said:

Matthew 10: 34 “Do not think that I came to bring peace on earth. I did not come to bring peace but a sword. 35 For I have come to ‘set a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law’; 36 and ‘a man’s enemies will be those of his own household.’[e] 37 He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me. 38 And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me. 39 He who finds his life will lose it, and he who loses his life for My sake will find it.

As we have seen in the last few weeks, the truth of God brings us to a point of decision, where we either  decide to commit fully to Him, or when finally faced with a truth we cannot submit to, we walk away.  There is nothing out there dear brothers and sisters in Christ to walk out to, only despair and cold cold loneliness. We have all been there. Is there a lie so dear to us, that we cannot give it up for the truth? Let us pray when we are faced with our decision time, we remember the goodness of the love, grace and mercy of God our Father and Our Lord Jesus Christ, and the precious Holy Spirit.

And so we find Jesus amidst the Jews in the synagogue of capernaum, close enough to his home town of Nazareth that he is a known commodity. Or at least the poeple thought He was. What we will see below is a perfect baraometer of how soft out heart is towards God, and how willing we are to change our perceptions, whem He speaks.  Many of us are so front loaded with expectations, or disapointments when God speaks, we dismiss Him because he doesn’t meet our expectations or disapointments. Let’s see what happened.
14 Now about the middle of the feast Jesus went up into the temple and taught. 15 And the Jews marveled, saying, “How does this Man know letters, having never studied?”

Here is a perfect case of expectation exceptions. They heard Jesus speak, with authority and with knowledge, and yet instead of accepting what He was saying they excepted it, because the man who was speaking in front of them was not a scholar trained under the tutalege of the schools of theology, Their expectations got in the way of hearing what God was saying.
16 Jesus answered them and said, “My doctrine is not Mine, but His who sent Me.

Jesus’ source was much higher than any Pharisee or scribe. He , as always, was speaking the will of His Father.

17 If anyone wills to do His will, he shall know concerning the doctrine, whether it is from God or whether I speak on My own authority.

“If anyone wills to do His will” If the first desire of our heart is the will of God, then we will immediately recognize when His word is being spoken. If we are puffed up in the pride of titles, or schooling or position and obtaining and retaining those is more important, we like the Jews before Jesus, will object.

18 He who speaks from himself seeks his own glory; but He who seeks the glory of the One who sent Him is true, and no unrighteousness is in Him.

Ah the seduction of power, the attraction of position.  How tempting is it to grasp the attention of people by calling yourself pastor, or prophet. How lovely is it to stand on the pillar or the pulpit and say “Look at me, I am a man of God, I will dispense God’s truth to you”. This is the devil’s kind of seduction.  He is a wily demon who knows our weakness, be they pride, envy, anger, or sloth and he will try to pull us away from the light of God’s truth, until when we hear it, we no longer even recognize it for what it is.

Let us keep a soft heart for the Lord dear children of God, my brother’s and sisters. Let us not be pulled away by the good or the bad from our center post of God’s will. God has given us all the power, the grace and the mercy to overcome the temptations that befall us. Let us not be duped by the enemy by anger or arrogance, pride of pity, but instead let us keep God in the first place of our hearts and march forward to the beat of his drum.

Let us accept the Invitation of Jesus Christ when He say in Matthew 11

²⁸ Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. ²⁹ Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. ³⁰ For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”

I was going to go a bit further, but I am led to stop here, so that we may ponder, what exactly is first in our heart.

God bless you all this week, if any of you find you need prayer, email me and I will set your need before the family of God.