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For over half of my lifetime, I was like so many other people. The term could be called “CINO” – Christian In Name Only. Believing Jesus, God, and the Holy Spirit existed was no problem. However, I didn’t figure out at that time that I needed to develop a true relationship with My Savior. (ESV – all emphasis is mine)

James 2:19 stands out in reference to this attitude; “You believe that God is One; you do well. Even the demons believe – and shudder.” What is so sad is the “demons” were angels that followed Lucifer in rebellion against the Father. In Revelation 12:4a, “His tail swept down a third of the stars of Heaven, and cast them to the earth.” For them, there is no pathway to forgiveness. They are doomed to the Lake of Fire forever (Matthew 25:41).

Paul gives the Father’s promises to us in Romans 8. Starting with 8:1, “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” Knowing first of all, every last human on this earth that ever has lived has had the sin nature within us, compliments of Genesis 3, where the original sin took place. The only exception has been, and ever will be, our Lord and Savior, Jesus, the Christ.

From the very beginning, our Heavenly Father knew that if any of us were to be saved, He would have to provide the means for us. No sacrifice we could ever make would meet His standard for perfection. He allowed blood sacrifices at regular intervals prior to Calvary so those who were in His will could receive divine forgiveness.

In John 19:30, Our Savior stated, “Tetelesti” or “It is Finished!” This declaration told us that from that very moment on, there would not be any other sacrifice accepted for forgiveness, as the sinless “human,” Jesus, shed His precious blood once for all. When He rose from the grave on that third day, sin and death were conquered for all who would receive and accept Him as their Savior.

Continuing in Romans 8, verses 2-4, “For the law of the Spirit of Life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death. For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do. By sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, He condemned sin in the flesh, in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit.”

In Romans 3:10, 3:23 and 6:23, we’re told we all are sinners without exception, and the final verse gives the perfect summary of God’s love for us; “For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus.”

Romans 8:31; “What shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?”

Romans 8:35-39; “Who shall separate us from the Love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? As it is written, ‘For your sake we are being killed all the day long; we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.’ No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loves us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

In this present world, it’s getting harder to receive and accept our precious Savior as more and more Christians are being called “haters.” The fact of the matter is that we love everyone for their immortal soul but do not have to like or accept what our Heavenly Father calls abominations. We pray that those who are on the broad path leading to destruction will realize they need Jesus, and as Joel 2:32, Acts 2:21 and Romans 10:13 advise, “All who call on the name of the Lord will be saved.”

Satan has worked very hard from the beginning of the creation of this earth to turn as many souls as he possibly can away from our Heavenly Father, Jesus our Messiah, and the Holy Spirit. He was allowed to tempt our Savior when Jesus was in human form; however, Jesus did not fall for any of his ploys.

Not understanding the true nature of our Savior is nothing new. Even His own disciples had issues with their beliefs. Probably the most significant event was the reaction of the apostle Thomas. He was not present when Jesus first appeared to the others after His resurrection. When they told him Jesus had appeared to them, he stated, “Unless I see in His hands the mark of the nails and place my finger into the mark of the nails, and place my hand into His side, I shall never believe” (John 20:25). This is exactly how we have the term “doubting Thomas” today.

Eight days after his remarks, Jesus appeared to the apostles, and Thomas was there. Jesus proved to be alive, and Thomas made his famous profession, “My Lord and My God!” Jesus told him he believed because he actually saw Him, but “Blessed are those who have not seen, and yet have believed” (John 20:28-29).

On one other occasion earlier, Jesus had made the statement, “And you know the way to where I am going” (John 14:4). Thomas spoke up and said they didn’t know where He was going and asked to be shown the way.

This led to our Savior telling us in no uncertain terms exactly who He really was and the authority by which He acted. John 14:6, “Jesus said to him, I am the Way, and the Truth, and the Life; no one comes to the Father except through Me.” For anyone who believes there are “many ways to Heaven,” this verse needs to be read again and again.

This includes Acts 4:12, “And there is Salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under Heaven given among men by which we must be saved.”

Once a person opens their heart to the Savior, the change is absolutely wonderful. There is a song written by Thomas Mosie Lister called “Then I Met the Master.” Several Gospel groups have recorded it; however, my favorite version is by the Booth Brothers. They came to our area in concert a number of years ago, and this song has stood out as a true inspiration. It’s very simple and straightforward, yet absolutely gripping.

1.) Like a baby when it cries for its mother, like a child, I was helpless, alone. Then I met the Master; now I am one of His own.

Ref) For all things were changed when He found me; a new day broke through all around me. For I met the Master; now I belong to Him.

2.) Like a blind man who walks in the darkness, I had longed, I had searched for the Light. Then I met the Master; now I walk no more in the night. I met the Master; Now I belong to him. (refrain twice)

Please understand that all who truly receive and accept Jesus as Savior have no fear about where we will spend eternity. Once we leave this earth, either through rapture or by death, we will be with Him forever.

On the other side, all who refuse to ask the Savior to forgive them and be their Shepherd forever will spend eternity in total darkness in the lake of fire with Satan and all his demons. No one who attends the White Throne Judgment of Revelation 20:11-15 will be pardoned or able to be forgiven there. False prophets and antichrists would like for you to believe otherwise, but they’re doing Satan’s will, not the Father’s.

It is a free-will choice that each and every individual has to make for themselves. Our Heavenly Father will force no one to receive and accept the free gift He has made available to us.

Our Jesus died for all who would ever live on this earth, as he spoke of in John 10:16. He told us there would be one flock, one Shepherd. This applies to all who truly believe in Him and receive and accept Him as their Savior.

Reach out today; call on Jesus before it is too late.

huebshman46@gmail.com

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A Bible Study by Jack Kelley

In the past, I’ve explained the need for four gospels and the tremendous increase in understanding we can gain by comparing events from the different perspectives of each (read The Four Faces of Jesus). In this study, we’ll focus on the unique character of John’s Gospel.

Due to his extensive use of symbolism, John’s Gospel, written to the church, can be the most intriguing. Everything he recorded in his gospel actually happened, but he arranged and described them to convey additional truths. Sometimes, he even rearranged the order of events to underscore (emphasize) this additional truth. John 2 is an excellent example of this. He placed the cleansing of the Temple right after the wedding at Cana to show that the Lord came to create an intimate personal relationship with His church (as in a marriage), not to fix a broken religion.

The focus of John’s gospel is the Lord’s Judean ministry, and really only the last part of that. He devoted most of nine chapters (John 12-20) to the Lord’s last week and used one-third of the 879 verses to describe His last 24 hours. The first 11 chapters define the Lord’s ministry through John’s selective use of 7 miracles, and we’ll use them to show how John’s Gospel contains more than meets the eye.

Miracle 1: Water Into Wine (John 2:1-11)

This one is misunderstood by most and yet results in the disciples putting their faith in the Lord. “This, the first of his miraculous signs, Jesus performed in Cana of Galilee. He thus revealed His Glory, and the disciples put their faith in Him” (John 2:11). It seems so insignificant when compared to the opening miracles in the other gospels, which involved either casting out demons or curing leprosy.

This miracle took place because an embarrassing discovery had been made. A wedding banquet Jesus was attending was in full swing when the servants suddenly realized they were out of wine. His mother, who was also there, asked Him to help. The Lord had six empty jars of stone filled with water, which He then turned into wine. The master of the banquet proclaimed the wine Jesus had made to be superior to the wine they had served earlier, saying they had saved the best for last.

Look at the symbolism: These six stone jars normally held water used for ceremonial cleansing, an important part of Old Covenant life. Now, they contained wine, which is often associated with the New Covenant due to the Lord’s Supper.

What’s more, the wine these jars now contained was superior to the wine the wedding guests had been drinking before, just as the New Covenant is superior to the Old Covenant (Hebrews 8:6). This miracle symbolized nothing less than the Mission of the Messiah; changing the empty way of man’s religion into a living, joyful, relationship with the Lord, as demonstrated by the wedding celebration. (You can read more about this here.)

Miracle 2: Healing the Official’s Son (John 4:43-54)

Here’s an act of God’s Grace, pure and simple. There’s no indication of the official’s nationality or background, his religious conviction, or his worthiness—only his faith. He had heard of Jesus, and His miraculous power, and begged Him to come and heal his dying son. Jesus didn’t go with him but simply told the man his son would live. The man took Jesus at His word and departed for home. The next day, while he was still on the way, his servants met him with the news that his son had recovered. From their discussion, he learned that his son had been made well from the very time he had spoken with Jesus. Because of this, He and all his household became believers, saved by grace through faith.

Miracle 3: The Healing at the Pool of Bethesda (John 5:1-9)

Tradition holds that an angel periodically stirred the waters at the Pool of Bethesda. The first one into the water when that happened was healed. Many people who were sick or disabled waited there by the pool day after day for a chance to be healed. But a cripple can’t get himself to the pool in time. This man had been crippled for 38 years and had repeatedly tried and failed. Then Jesus came along and healed him.

I believe this man’s predicament demonstrates the poverty of the Law, which was never intended to heal us of our infirmities (physical and spiritual) but to show us our need for a Savior. It demonstrates that we’re hopeless and helpless without Him.

He was at the very edge of healing, but all of his unsuccessful efforts to get into the pool had only made it obvious that his infirmity was preventing him from being healed. In the same way, the Law leaves us at the very edge of salvation, but our unsuccessful efforts to keep it only make it obvious that our sinfulness will prevent us from being saved. Just like the cripple needed someone to heal him, we need someone to save us.

Miracle 4: The Feeding of the 5000 (John 6:1-5)

This is perhaps the best known of all the Lord’s miracles and the only one before the resurrection that is recorded in all four gospels. A large crowd had followed Jesus into a remote location, and Jesus could see they would need to be fed. But the men alone numbered 5,000, and adding the women and children could have more than doubled that number. Andrew found a boy with five small barley loaves and two small fish, and Jesus multiplied it into a satisfying meal for everyone, with enough left over to fill 12 baskets.

This is the practical demonstration of the Lord’s promise that if we seek His kingdom and His righteousness, all our other needs will be met as well (Matt. 6:31-33). But there’s more in view here than just our physical needs. We who believe in Jesus will never again feel that emptiness; that tells us there’s more to life than just having our physical needs met. This is what Jesus meant when He said:

“I AM the bread of life. He who comes to me will never be hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty” (John 6:35). (You can read more about this here.)

Miracle 5: Walking on the Water (John 6:16-25)

The 5th miracle is also well-known to everyone familiar with the Lord’s ministry. The disciples had labored all night long to row only about halfway across the Sea of Galilee (about 3 miles) when the Lord passed by them—walking on the water! When they realized it was Jesus, they let him into the boat and immediately reached their destination. Without Him, they were struggling just to make headway, but with Him in their midst, the struggle was over. (You can read more about this here.)

Miracle 6: Healing The Man Born Blind (John 9:1-41)

A man had been blind from birth. Jesus made some mud, put it on the man’s eyes, and told him to go wash it off. When the man did as Jesus instructed, he could see.

While Jesus performed this miracle early in Chapter 9, the balance of the narrative clearly (and sometimes comically) shows how much more spiritual discernment this blind beggar had than the learned officials of the religion, who had studied all their lives. In their experience, no one had ever opened the eyes of a man born blind, and they were determined to discredit the lowly beggar, especially since this event took place on the Sabbath. A lengthy interrogation followed, where the beggar put the religious experts to shame, and they ended up throwing him out. Afterward, Jesus found him and introduced Himself. The man became a believer and worshiped him.

Jesus said He came so the blind would see and those who see would become blind. When the Pharisees asked if He thought they were blind, He said, “If you were blind you would not be guilty of sin, but now that you claim you can see, your guilt remains” (John 9:39-41).

As it concerns your eternity, it doesn’t matter what you claim to know about Jesus. What matters is whether you know Jesus.

Miracle 7: Raising Lazarus from The Dead (John 11:1-44)

The last miracle John recorded before the resurrection shows the fulfillment of our Lord’s promise to all who believe in His name, as He called Lazarus out of the grave and restored him from death to life. The text shows that even though Jesus knew Lazarus was sick, He actually waited until Lazarus was dead and buried before He responded to the sisters’ call for help. He did this so He could bring Lazarus back to life. It was an unmistakable model of the resurrection of the believing dead that contains the tiniest hint of the rapture. I don’t think people who don’t already know about the rapture see this, but those who do can take comfort in this faint hint contained in John 11:25-26.

“Jesus said to her, ‘I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?’” (John 11:25-26).

What’s The Point?

Near the end of his gospel account, John said, “Jesus performed many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book. But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name” (John 20:30-31).

This tells us he selected these seven miracles specifically for their ability to help us believe that Jesus is who He claimed to be and that by believing, we might have eternal life. So, what do these particular miracles show us that would help us believe?

Miracle 1 shows He came to take us from the stone-cold and empty way of man’s religion into a living and joyful relationship with Him.
Miracle 2 shows we are saved by grace through faith.
Miracle 3 shows our own futile works are insufficient to save ourselves. We need Him to save us.
Miracle 4 is a demonstration of His supernatural care and provision for those who seek Him.
Miracle 5 shows that because of His miraculous power, we can easily accomplish things through Him that would be all but impossible on our own.
Miracle 6 reveals that if we’ll allow it, He can cause even the lowliest person born spiritually blind to see and believe.
Miracle 7 is a promise that all who believe in Him will live even though they die, and those who live and believe will never die.

I purposely confined my commentary on these miracles to what I believe John was trying to convey to us in his gospel. Some of these miracles are contained in one or more of the other gospels, where you might see details John didn’t include or where the emphasis might be a little different. Matthew’s account of Jesus walking on the water is a good example (Matt. 14:22-33). I encourage you to read the different accounts of all these miracles to get the whole story. Selah.

http://gracethrufaith.com

(Jack Kelley went home to be with the Lord in 2015. His wife, Samantha, continues to maintain his website.)

Come And Meet The Master :: By Dennis Huebshman

The Seven Miracles In John :: By Jack Kelley