Category Archives: Wednesday Bible Study

We are in John 6 and it’s a big, or better said, momentus chapter. In it, Jesus fed a great many with just a few loaves and fishes, (vv. 10-11) He then walked on water (v. 19) and when the people finally caught up with Him, He told them they were following Him for the wrong reasons. (v. 26) Because the ancient Jews are like us, quite clueless and are never satisfied, they impertinently ask Him for a sign to show them who He really was. (v. 30) I don’t know that any of them were thinking beyond the end of their noses, because they had just seen Him do signs and wonders and the only other guy in the neighborhood that had been directly asked if he was the Christ, this being John the Baptist, did no signs and wonders, (John 10:41) only demand they repent get ready for the Christ. Before that, there were no miracles or prophets for a very long time.

In this dialog between Creator and created, He who created all (John 1:3) informs the created that He is the Bread of Life. This did not sit well with the created, they grumbled amongst themselves, because he said, “I am the bread that came down from heaven.” They said, “Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How does he now say, ‘I have come down from heaven’?” (John 6: 41-42)

In Jeremiah 18 we find something that explains what’s happening here. The Potter forms the clay and decides what and where it will be used. At no point does the clay have any input, it will be what the Potter makes it to be. It is a very interesting story and one that is very pertinent to our present time, but where Jesus says He is the Bread of Life, the clay disputes this, claiming the voice of their father, satan, that this cannot be. Jesus, the Light (John 1:4-5, 9) knew their hearts and answered them, “Do not grumble among yourselves. No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him. And I will raise him up on the last day. (vv. 44-45) I want you to ponder this, verse 44. The Father draws you. In the Old Testament, people knew God and through Moses, were told to obey God. When you were in obedience to Him, He fought your battles, (Deuteronomy 20:1-9) righted your wrongs.

Think of Egypt (Exodus 14) and how God by His hand defeated all who opposed His people. (2 Kings 6:15-17) Those who followed His law given to them by Moses (Exodus 20) knew God to be their creator and protector. That knowledge is written into all our hearts, (Romans 2:15) the right and wrong of things, and God Himself. Notice there was a qualifier in there, that being “those”. While everybody’s heart had knowledge written into it, not everyone chose to acknowledge that. Of those that were drawn out of Egypt, a generation was lost and by saying lost (Deuteronomy 1:35) I mean that when they died, they went to eternal darkness and torment. The reason that happened is they constantly grumbled and chose not to trust or follow God. (Numbers 14:27)

The very same thing can and will happen to us if we choose not to repent, obey, trust and follow Christ. You will be lost, rather than gather with the saints, into eternal life with our Savior, Christ. So I ask, have you been drawn by the Father? For those of you that don’t know, is it too hard for you to pray to God and repent your sins? It’s not like HE doesn’t already know what they are. If you are interested in God, He has already had an interest in you. (John 2:31-31) And He will accept all who come to him, regardless of what kind of life you have lived. You are not too bad that God will not accept you, (Luke 23:39-43) He loved you before you loved him. (1 John 4:19) Repent and turn to your Lord! However, once you have submitted to your Lord, do not expect to remain in your sins. This is where Mercy comes into play. From MacArthur’s Devotionals: “The truth is God does not show mercy without punishing sin. For Him to offer mercy without punishment would negate His justice. Mercy that ignores sin is false mercy and is all too common today. Some think it is unloving and unkind to hold people responsible for their sins. That is what is known as cheap grace—which is neither merciful nor just, nor does it offer punishment or pardon for sin. Because it overlooks sin, it leaves sin untouched and unforgiven. The one who relies on this sort of mercy is left in his sin.”

This is where those creatures were, who followed Jesus around, oohing and aahing at what He did and then when He tells them that they must believe in Him, they ask for a sign so they would know. I say creatures because they speak with the voice of their lord, which again is satan, and are not children of the Light. They did not submit to their Lord.

Continuing with the words of Jesus…
It is written in the Prophets, ‘And they will all be taught by God.’ (v. 45) Here is where it is written: Isaiah 54:13, and a raft of other scripture references; OpenBible.info

Everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to me— 46 not that anyone has seen the Father except he who is from God; he has seen the Father. 47 Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes has eternal life. 48 I am the bread of life. 49 Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died. 50 This is the bread that comes down from heaven, so that one may eat of it and not die. 51 I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. And the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.”
(vv. 45-51)

This is a complete salvation package. Jesus was offering them the Grace of saving Faith and we would do well to pay attention to it in this modern day. They heard it from the Son of Man Himself and they weren’t having it. Darkness cannot perceive the Light. (John 1:5)

So they again started grumbling. Do we see a pattern here? A pattern that has lasted for millenia? We are no different than these ancient Jews. We mock what we don’t understand and hate what convicts us. Look at what’s happening in our government. A lust for power and pride and a depraved mind. Punishing good and rewarding evil. Here is a snippet from Wretched Radio where you will hear what’s going on in Congress and the culture at large:

I am not sure, but I think the Florida Congressman was Greg Steube. Congressman Jerry Nadler was the one speaking in his father’s voice, satan. Jesus, in talking to the Pharisees, when they had said His authority and power come from satan: “I tell you, on the day of judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak, for by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.” Matthew 12:36-37

Here is the whole audio of Wretched Radio for 3-1-21, it is very instructive:

Todd Friel is voice of Wretched Radio and one I listen to frequently.

It’s like we are living in the days of Ahab, which is found in 1 Kings 16:29. Take a read through that and compare it to our days. Then jump on over to Romans 1 and you can read the whole thing, but the pertinent part starts at verse 18. It seems as if many of our legislators would like to write into law the sins of Romans 1:18-32 and punish those of us who follow Christ.

You may wonder how the righteous lived in those days. In obedience and faith, following the laws of God and staying away from evil. It is what we can do today. Keep God at the forefront of your mind and give Him honor and praise in all things. God expects you to rely on Him, so do so. Read the Bible and worship with the saints, which is a biblical way of saying “Go to Church.” Corporate worship is asked for in the Bible. (Hebrews 10:25) Place not your hope in man but Christ. You’ve been offered a free gift of salvation. Are you going to grumble about it or accept it?

We last left Jesus as He entered a boat from the water side, where He had trod across the Sea of Galilee as if walking on land. (John 6:19) The disciples, who had been rowing but not really getting anywhere, had calmed down enough to be happy to see Him and let Him join them in the boat. (v.21) Next thing you know, they had arrived at their destination which was Capernaum, top left of the map. They had spent the day in the Tiberius area, which you will find on the map in the middle left of the map. I looked up how big the Sea of Galilee is and from North to South it’s 13 miles long. You can figure that the boys were planning to row about 5 or 6 miles in what the scripture tells us “The sea became rough because a strong wind was blowing.” (v.18) It also tells us they had rowed about 3 or 4 miles (v.19) and I know from other reading and hearing from those that have been to the Holy Land, this body of water can get treacherous at times. 

The disciples had left a large crowd of people who had been fed with a few loaves and fishes. (John 6:2-14) and this being the next day, they found themselves without food or entertainment. The scripture reads thusly: “On the next day the crowd that remained on the other side of the sea saw that there had been only one boat there, and that Jesus had not entered the boat with his disciples, but that his disciples had gone away alone. Other boats from Tiberias came near the place where they had eaten the bread after the Lord had given thanks. So when the crowd saw that Jesus was not there, nor his disciples, they themselves got into the boats and went to Capernaum, seeking Jesus.” (John 6:22-24) These other boats may have been fishermen or maybe news had spread that something big had happened and they had come to see what the deal was. We are only told that these people felt compelled to chase after Jesus. When they had found Him, they questioned Him as to how He had gotten there. (John 6: 25) Jesus had withdrawn to the mountain because He had perceived them about to make a foolish decision. (v.15) Now, He advises them as to their unrepentant hearts: “Truly, truly, I say to you, you are seeking me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves.  Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you. For on him God the Father has set his seal.” (John 6:26-27) Jesus spoke to them this way because He saw what was in their hearts. Christ is God and is sovereign over all. 

These people had a choice to make, continue in their unrepentant ways or believe what He is telling them. For most if not all of them, they were following Him to be fed with perishable food and to be entertained. Even though He spoke to them with authority (Mark 1:22) to their eyes He was just a man, not the Son of Man. (Luke 19:10) “Then they said to him, “What must we do, to be doing the works of God?” (John 6:28) His answer was thus: “This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent.” (John 6:28) Simple, isn’t it? Just believe, a child could do it. And yet they speak the words of their father satan and ask “What sign do you do, that we may see and believe you? What work do you perform?” (John 6:30) They had just been fed, maybe up to 20,000 of them, with a few loaves and fishes (v. 11) and had knowledge of healing and demons cast out and now they are asking for a sign. As it is written, they claimed “He gave them bread from heaven to eat” (John 6:31) Jesus corrects them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, it was not Moses who gave you the bread from heaven, but my Father gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” (John 6:32-33) 

They said to him, “Sir, give us this bread always.” (John 6:34) It is basically the same thing the woman at the well had said in John 4:15. We always want convenience, don’t we? Provide for us so we may not have to toil for anything, really. There was no repentance in their hearts, just a want. 

Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst. But I said to you that you have seen me and yet do not believe. All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out. For I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will but the will of him who sent me. And this is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me, but raise it up on the last day. For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him should have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.” (John 6:35-40)  

This is a good place to end this study. I want you to read those last verses a couple of times. Christ is the bread of life. Anyone who believes in Him will be raised up on the last day. Simple to understand but why is it so hard for people to accept? He is the bread of life, (John 6:51) whoever comes to Him will not hunger. Trust in God to provide, (Proverbs 3:5 ) not man or the government. When you believe in Christ, it’s not a head thing, it involves the heart. You are transformed, (2 Peter 1:2-4) you are convicted and repentant. You don’t get that by just sitting in the pew most Sundays and going home and living as you see fit. You don’t get that by doing things because you think that’s what good people do. That’s what the Pharisees thought too and they hated Jesus for He showed them the unrighteousness of their hearts. You don’t want to get caught in a works based theology: https://www.gotquestions.org/salvation-by-works.html, where you do things to earn God’s love. He loved you before you (1 John 4:19) became what you are now. Nothing you do will work or take the place of just believing and trusting in God for all things. Live not in fear, for what is there to fear with a Father is sovereign over all? Death has been conquered by Christ (Hebrews 2:14) and Christ is your only hope. Bring all your fears and worries to the cross and leave them there.

 Little children, let us not love with word or with tongue, but in deed and truth” (1 John 3:17-18). Those deeds come from He who indwells us and are called fruits of the Spirit. Look into your life and find those Spirit based fruits and while you’re there, search for the joy that comes with salvation. It’s there, I guarantee it. 

2 Peter 3 18

But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity. Amen.

Last week in John 6, we learned that Jesus withdrew into the mountain when He perceived that the people who had witnessed His signs and wonders were wanting to make Him King. (John 6:15) This was due to the shallow faith that most people have when they see a thing that amazes them and they want to see more of it, just for the entertainment value more than anything else. Think of things that you yourself have seen that have attracted you. What comes to mind is musicians or movie stars, maybe even sport personalities. People of all ages are drawn to what excites their interest. Tens of thousands have gone to listen to music or fill a stadium to watch a sporting event. It was the same with these people, they had never seen such a thing as Jesus had done. His reputation as a rabbi and healer was renowned throughout the land and I’ll bet we would have been following Him too, had we lived back in those days.

However, Christ was not doing what He did to entertain them. These Jews were not prone to thinking with their hearts and were known as being stiff necked all throughout their history. Our sermon at First Baptist Church of Grove City MN focused on Numbers 13:21-33. It is where Moses sent out 12 spies into the promised land, to see what it was like. They came back after 40 days and gave their report. They all said that the land was truly one of milk and honey, but this is where their stories diverge. Ten of them then went on to say that the people were large and frightening and lived in fortified cities. They said that we should not enter into the promised land as the people living there would devour them. (Numbers 13:32)

Two of the spies, Joshua and Caleb, told a different story. They said we should go into the land and take possession of it, for God had said He would fight their battles for them. (Deuteronomy 1:30) They truly had faith and believed what God had told them. All 12 of them had seen the same thing, yet the majority of them did not trust God enough to believe what He had said. Keep in mind these people had seen the power of their Creator as they walked across the Red Sea and never got their feet wet. (Exodus 14:15-16) So, a parallel to the people who witnessed Jesus feeding a great many and doing other signs and wonders that all the books in the world could not contain them. (John 21:25)

Jesus was doing these things, not out of obligation for His people, but out of Love. But this Love was not taken in by the people as Love but as attraction to a spectacle that excited them. Who would not want their day brightened by a healing or some miracle that wowed everyone? You’d have something interesting to tell those who were not there. It might even produce pride and condescension in you the storyteller to those poor rubes who had not seen this thing. Curiously, it never produced love for those of their neighbors who had been fed or healed or maybe a demon cast out of. We are told to be more like Christ, (1 Corinthians 11:1) and that does not mean to follow Him around in great crowds to ooh and aww at what He does. So, Jesus withdrew to the mountain, so that the people would not do another foolish thing and try to make Him King. It was getting dark and His disciples went down to the sea and got in a boat and started rowing toward Capernaum. They must have been a little confused as to where their rabbi was. We are not told why they left without Him, only that they did. Something could have been said earlier by Jesus and they were just doing what they were told. Notice also that these men are the parallel to our early story of the spies, these guys are the two that wanted to go to the Promised Land and the crowd following Jesus around are the ten that wanted to go back to Egypt. Why do I say that? These men in the boat followed Christ around and were almost all martyred (John 21:20-23) because of their faith in Him, and entered into the Promised land. The Jews, Jesus’s people, never accepted Him and went back to their stiff necked ways after He left them (Luke 24:51) and basically reaped what they sowed. Culminating in the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD (Luke 21:5-38)

As His disciples were rowing it became stormy and the sea was tossing them about. (John 6:18) It is my opinion that at times, these boys in the boat and us in the present time, are doing what we are drawn to, by God’s hand and our vaunted free will gets tossed overboard. To put it bluntly, following a divine script, written by our Creator, before the ages began. Nothing happens by happenstance when Yahweh is involved. He is never surprised because He is the author of all, including the year of 2020 and all that happened. Ponder that a bit, and if you start wondering about the evil in the world… Man and satan are responsible for misery and evil. God knows about and allows it, because He uses what is evil for His glory and our own good. The story of Jacob is a great example. Read it: Genesis 50:20.

From the internet: There is an important distinction to be made between God controlling evil and God creating evil. God is not the author of sin, but He can use sinful men to attain an objective. Romans 8:28 says, “For those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.” “All things” includes both good and bad things. God can use struggles, heartbreaks and tragedies in ways to bring about His glory and our good. Such events, even though we don’t understand the reason for them, are part of His perfect, divine plan. If God could not control evil, He would not be God. His sovereignty demands that He be in control of everything, even “dreaded” nations such as Babylon. (Habakkuk 1:5-11)

God has these boys rowing in a stormy sea so that His glory in the form of his Son can be seen doing another incredible thing. Not to awe them, but to cause them to believe. When they had rowed about three or four miles, they saw Jesus walking on the sea and coming near the boat, and they were frightened. 20 But he said to them, “It is I; do not be afraid.” 21 Then they were glad to take him into the boat, and immediately the boat was at the land to which they were going.

And just like that, they were at their destination. For men who were following Jesus around, this was another example of many they would witness, that this truly was the Son of Man in their presence. What is it going to take to get you off the dime and truly believe in our Savior? For nothing else will get you into the Promised Land. There is nothing so important going on in your lives that would prevent your repenting and following the one True Hope, is there? Only believe and have faith in Him. Trust in Christ for all things and you will reap the blessing of our Father. That or wander our cultural metaphoric desert for another 40 years, and or until you die in your sin. Those ten spies convinced their people not to enter the Promised Land. Doomed their whole generation. We are seeing this same thing today with churches that have opened their doors to the world. Prosperity preaching or Love and inclusiveness for all. Yes, churches should welcome all, but don’t expect to remain in your sin and think that you’ll be heaven bound just because you’ve gone to church. As I’ve mentioned before, the word church, in Greek means “the called.” Not a building but we who obey Christ and council those that insist that God will accept them just as they are. Nowhere in the scripture does it say that. Repent your sins and follow Christ as He is the our only hope. https://www.gracechurch.org/sermons/16914

In short don’t trust any but Christ to keep you in good stead. Recently some churches in our area have closed because they are told it is not safe to worship together. What do you suppose God thinks about that? Psalm 34:3 “O magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt His name together” yet the government says it’s not safe. The government has intruded into areas where they have no legitimate authority, and yet we continue to let them. I have seen things in the Twin Cities of late that say mask wearing will be with us indefinitely, for our safety don’t you know. The government is going keep us safe from the wrath of God who has given this country over to its sins. The only sure fire and Biblical way to turn around what’s going on in this country is repent, like Nineveh did (Jonah 3). Jonah knew that God was Gracious and forgiving and would probably turn from destroying them when they truly repented, and He did. No reason it would not work here. God loves a repentant heart. He loves you too, pray to Him and ask Him to open your heart and see what happens. Call it a good start.

So, who are those churches trusting when they decided to close the doors for what, safety? If they, who should know better, had read and heeded the Bible, God is in control of all. Still is and that’s why what is happening in our country is not going to stop unless we repent. Do you know how many abortions are going on in this country, every day?  Those unborn children, whom God knew every one, are casualties of what is called women’s health care. And yet we wonder why 2020 and now 2021 are turning out the way they have. You do recall the city of Sodom who had a bit of a problem with homosexual activity. Genesis 19:1-38, Ezekiel 16:49-50 So things could be worse for us, you could say.

And if you belong to one of those churches that have closed due to wanting to be safe and to listen to their immoral masters, who have told us they know better. Who are you trusting? Pick up your bible and start reading it, and place your trust in the One who authored it. The One who created you. The One is not at all happy with how we are acting. Repent, now, for the one who will judge the quick and the dead is coming. (1 Peter 4:5)

Romans 15:13 – May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.

We continue with John 6, where the people had observed the signs of His feeding of a great many, possibly up to 20,000 souls. They were impressed, how could they not be? Where in their lives had they encountered anything close to this? As such they declared “This is truly the Prophet who is to come into the world.” (John 6:14)

You might think this was good news, the people recognizing something extraordinary in their midst. Most if not all knew about John the Baptist and his saying he is not the Christ but repent now for the Christ coming. (John 1:19-23)

If they had paid attention to the Rabbis in the synagogues, they would have known and expected the Lamb of God to soon be among them. (John 1:29) From this last event, where so many had been fed with just a few loaves and fishes, this looked like their long predicted King had finally come. (Isaiah 9:6–7)

However, this was not what Jesus wanted. For people to see a great event and then proclaim Him to be King. Jesus knew what was in their hearts, just as He knows what’s in our hearts. You can fool those around you with what you say, but God knows what’s in your heart. Remember the story of Ananias and Sapphira in Acts 5. They sold some property because there had been a great upwelling of the Holy Spirit in the lives of many:
32 And the congregation of those who believed were of one heart and soul; and not one of them claimed that anything belonging to him was his own, but all things were common property to them. 33 And with great power the apostles were giving testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and abundant grace was upon them all. 34 For there was not a needy person among them, for all who were owners of land or houses would sell them and bring the proceeds of the sales 35 and lay them at the apostles’ feet, and they would be distributed to each as any had need. (Acts 5:32-35)

Ananias and Sapphira felt moved and did what others had done, (Acts 4:36-37) but since their hearts were not involved, only their heads, which is the very reason for virtue signalling, they did something truly foolish. Shallow believers think that they can just dip their toes into the righteous waters and that will be good enough. How is it with you? Do you feel drawn to obey God or is it a “do it because that’s what good people do” kind of thing? There is a lot of that going around. God truly knows what’s on your heart so it matters not what you say to anyone, only what you say to the Father. The two who sold property did so because others had done it and they were thought well of. Wanting what Barnabas had received, and to be honored like he had been, but also not wanting to give everything, but keep some back. Keep in mind, there were no rules to giving, just like now. Give what you can, that’s what God asks. But be honest about it. They were not and Peter caught them out. (Acts 5:5-6, 10-11) The young men that did odd tasks for the Disciple were very busy that day.

What have we learned? Hopefully not that you will drop dead if you are dishonest with your Creator, however fear of He who created you is a good thing as stated here: So the Lord commanded us to observe all these statutes, to fear the Lord our God for our good always and for our survival, as it is today. Deuteronomy 6:24

The problem that Jesus had with these people who saw what He did and then were working themselves up to make Him King is it was head knowledge. They had not repented, they were not contrite with the knowledge of their sins. The same thing with Ananias and Sapphira, they were trying to ride in on the honor given to Barnabas. The problem we have is a lack of commitment and honesty with our heart. We know the right and wrong of things as it is written into our hearts. (Hebrews 10:16–17) God wants our whole self to belong to Him, not a shallow, you pray to Him when you’re in trouble, kind of commitment. Jesus wanted these people following Him around to repent and be committed to Him. But it seems they were content to just be followers and you’ll find in scriptures what Jesus thought of that. (Luke 9:23, John 15:5-8, Matthew 10:38, Luke 14:25-35)

When these people were talking about what He had done and were thinking about making Him king, Jesus withdrew to the mountain, alone. He didn’t even bring the disciples with him. (John 6:15) What we are seeing right now in our country, God withdrawing from us. John MacArthur said in a sermon a week or so ago that sin makes us stupid. This is a proverb for our time. Look at what is going on in your life and remove the sin from it. That’s not just a good idea, it’s the Law. Exodus 20, read it if you haven’t and again if you have. Then start in the New Testament, anywhere really and see where sin made people stupid, think Ananias and Sapphira, and where God made simple fisherman into Disciples of the Lamb of God. Consider it homework for the soul. None of us knows the span of our days and when we are dead, we can no longer repent and come to Christ. Don’t be stupid. It is the kindest thing that can be said to you.

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.
Rom. 15:13

All Glory to God the Father and to our Savior Jesus Christ

We are now into John chapter 6 and it starts out “After these things.” Jesus had been in Jerusalem, doing signs and wonders and had run into the Pharisees who had taken issue with Him healing a man on the sabbath. We know from Mark 2:27, Jesus had said “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath.” 

From Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary: The sabbath is a sacred and Divine institution; a privilege and benefit, not a task and drudgery. God never designed it to be a burden to us, therefore we must not make it so to ourselves. The sabbath was instituted for the good of mankind, as living in society, having many wants and troubles, preparing for a state of happiness or misery. Man was not made for the sabbath, as if his keeping it could be of service to God, nor was he commanded to keep its outward observances to his real hurt. Every observance respecting it, is to be interpreted by the rule of mercy.

Why then were the Pharisees making a big deal of this? God’s original commands were the 613 laws of Moses (called “Torah”) that guided the ancient nation of Israel.

The Mishnah was an oral tradition of commentary on the Mosaic Law that introduced additional, man-made rules that “built a fence” around the Mosaic Law so people wouldn’t even come close to breaking God’s commandments.

The Pharisees were concerned with keeping these additional commandments and especially with having the outward appearance of keeping them.

These Pharisees took it upon themselves to add to God’s law, to “build a fence around” what Moses had written. Jesus had warned them of their hypocrisy: Matthew 23:27-28 What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs—beautiful on the outside but filled on the inside with dead people’s bones and all sorts of impurity. Outwardly you look like righteous people, but inwardly your hearts are filled with hypocrisy and lawlessness.

Like the virtue signallers of today, they would brook no disagreement with their rules, it just incited them all the more. Just like today. A sane person would wonder why we keep repeating the same mistakes. 

So, after these things, Jesus moved up into the area of Galilee, near Tiberias. (John 6:1) By now, large crowds of people had been attracted to Him. “They saw the signs which He was performing on those who were sick.” (John 6:2) He and His disciples went up on the mountain to sit. (John 6:3) It was the time of Passover which depends on the new moon and the date varies a bit. This year, 2021, it would be March 27th to April 4th. Early spring and we know it is the celebration of Moses leading his people out of Egypt. (Exodus 12) 

All of which means there are large crowds of people, many following Jesus, attracted to the spectacle of what He could do, and others coming for the Passover celebration. 

Jesus saw the large crowd coming to Him and asked Philip “Where are we to buy bread, so that these may eat?” Philip was from Bethsaida which is on the North end of the Sea of Galilee. Simon Peter and his brother Andrew were also from the same town. Now I don’t know if it was because Philip was sitting closest to Jesus or Jesus had a particular lesson in mind for Philip when He asked him where they were going to get food to feed this crowd. Can you imagine the look on Philip’s face when heard what he heard from this Son of God? The scripture says that it was to test him, (John 6:6) so that answers that question. Have you been tested by God? I know I certainly have. If you are aware enough to know you are being tested by God, you should be aware enough to know that these tests are to strengthen us, to refine us, to make us more holy because God is holy.

Philip, probably still marveling at the question, gives room for his doubts to be spoken out loud. “Two hundred denarii worth of bread is not sufficient for them, for everyone to receive a little.” (John 6:7) Andrew was probably standing nearby and had a more hopeful suggestion. “There is a lad here who has five barley loaves and two fish, but what are these for so many people?” (John 6:9) Okay, not real hopeful with that last part of his suggestion, but maybe he was wondering what this Son of God was up to. They had all seen things that were well beyond what their imaginations could dream up. This rabbi they were compelled to follow had done signs and wonders and had drawn this huge crowd… 

Jesus said, “Have the people sit down.” This was an area of much grass and so the men sat down and they numbered 5000. (John 6:10) Yes, I am aware of the argument of only counting men. It was just what they did and they were consistent with it. Nobody believes it was just men following Jesus, it was families with kids in tow. Many bible scholars believe the actual number fed that day could have been 15,000–20,000 people.

With a large number of hungry people sitting in the grass before Him, Jesus then took the loaves, and having given thanks, He distributed to those who were seated; likewise also of the fish as much as they wanted. (John 6:11)

They ate until they were filled, of the bread and fish. Jesus told His disciples, “Gather up the leftover fragments so that nothing will be lost.” (John 6:12)  So they gathered them up, and filled twelve baskets with fragments from the five barley loaves which were left over by those who had eaten. (John 6:13) Up to 20,000 people had just eaten their fill of a couple of barley loaves and a few fish and there were leftovers. Grace upon grace, John 1:16. What’s abundantly clear is that, when we come to Christ, He dishes out grace in heaping, huge servings, with leftovers. 

When the people saw the sign which He had performed, they said, “This is truly the Prophet who is to come into the world.” (John 6:14) The people said it, with their bellies full. One hopes that they truly believed that in their hearts. 

So, how is it with you in this day of virtue enforcers? Are you thankful and willing to share that with those around you? Even with those who scold you for not wearing a mask or not staying 6 feet apart? It is hard to be nice to someone who is not nice to you, but what did Christ do? What did He tell us? Love your neighbor as you love yourself. (Matthew 22:39) Neighbors are sometimes not very nice people. Neither were the Pharisees. Think of them as prisoners of war, captured by satan and made to follow him. Would that change your opinion of those unpleasant to you? The fields are white and ready to harvest. (John 4:35) Surely, those are not all pleasant people. There is a very good reason that Christ focused on Love. I want you to think about that. Love conquers all, satisfies all of the law. Ask God for more love in your heart, to love those that don’t love you. Ask Him for greater understanding of what that Love is. And then act upon it. What Jesus did for those many people was done out of love. Love does not separate, but draws together. Work with what God has blessed you with and remember He dishes out grace in heaping, huge servings. Share that with others and reap the blessing of your obedience to God.

All Glory to God the Father and to our Savior Jesus Christ

From Westminster Shorter Catechism (written in 1647), questions 99 to 102:

Q99: What rule hath God given for our direction in prayer?
A99: The whole Word of God is of use to direct us in prayer; but the special rule of direction is that form of prayer which Christ taught his disciples, commonly called The Lord’s Prayer.

Q100: What doth the preface of the Lord’s prayer teach us?
A100: The preface of the Lord’s prayer, which is, “Our Father which art in heaven,” teacheth us to draw near to God with all holy reverence and confidence, as children to a father, able and ready to help us; and that we should pray with and for others.

Q101: What do we pray for in the first petition?
A101: In the first petition, which is, “Hallowed be thy name,” we pray, That God would enable us and others to glorify him in all that whereby he maketh himself known; and that he would dispose all things to his own glory.

Q102: What do we pray for in the second petition?
A102: In the second petition, which is, “Thy kingdom come,” we pray, That Satan’s kingdom may be destroyed; and that the kingdom of grace may be advanced, ourselves and others brought into it, and kept in it; and the kingdom of glory may be hastened.

Hopefully you were able to get through the “homework” I left you with last week. You may have thought of it as a lot of thumbing through the Bible, but since it concerns your understanding of Christ’s coming and your salvation, it can’t really be considered too much work, can it? From what I hear and see, persecution of believers is coming, but none us has been crucified for what we believe just yet. So, with the right perspective, what you were given to read and pursue was no work at all, right?

Along this line of thinking, this week my morning devotionals from Grace to You and John MacArthur, talked about the call. Two Bible Studies back, we learned about the church as we know it, is really the people who were called by God. This is a little confusing with most people understanding what Church is. It is Us, drawn by our Father (John 6:44), to worship and sing praises unto to Him that drew us. Our assumption is that the building is the focus, which is reinforced by our somewhat lazy or incurious if you will, understanding of the word Church. Getting back to my point, John MacArthur had this in the Drawing Near part of his Devotionals.
Understanding Your Calling
“I pray that . . . you may know what is the hope of [God’s] calling” (Eph. 1:18). The hope of your calling is grounded in God’s promises and in Christ’s accomplishments. In Ephesians 1:3-14 Paul proclaims the blessings of our salvation. In verse 18 he prays that we will comprehend those great truths, which he summarizes in the phrase “the hope of His calling.”
“Calling” here refers to God’s effectual calling—the calling that redeems the soul. Scripture speaks of two kinds of calling: the gospel or general call and the effectual or specific call. The gospel call is given by men and is a universal call to repent and trust Christ for salvation (e.g., Matt. 28:19; Acts 17:30-31). It goes out to all sinners but not all who hear it respond in faith.
The effectual call is given by God only to the elect. By it He speaks to the soul, grants saving faith, and ushers elect sinners into salvation (John 6:37-44, 65; Acts 2:39). All who receive it respond in faith.
Now we have a better understanding of these two calls to faith. It is important to know that being a believer should show. Those who hear the gospel call can respond to that with a realization of what a wretched sinner they are, repent and then pursue Christ. Not all do however. This is where the parable of the Sower (Matthew 13) comes in to help us understand why some fall away from faith when they are tested with adversity.

My testimony is one where I felt I had no choice but to accept and follow what I was drawn to. Why God waited almost 6 decades of my life to bring me to faith is a mystery to me, but not to Him. So how is it with you? Are you casual with your faith or or you drawn to it?

Most churches today are preaching not from the scripture but a message of only Love and Inclusiveness. They tell a story of Jesus accepting you just as you are. What they don’t say is, do not expect to remain “just as you are.” With coming to Christ, repentance is a key to understanding what the message of Christ is. When you repent, you see what sin is in your life and how it can no longer remain. God told us to be Holy because He is Holy.

(1 Peter 1:16) How can you be Holy and not change? As mentioned before, being a believer should show. Those that claim to be Christians, but show no signs of living like a Christian, now we are in the parable of the tares and wheat. Matthew 13:24-30

Since last week’s message was a lot of information to absorb, you can add what I have here to that and we’ll call it good. If you haven’t finished the 47 prophecies from last week, go ahead and get through that. Once done, take a moment to analyze where you stand with your Savior. I ask you to take a hard look at 1 Peter 1. Be Holy for He who has drawn you is Holy.

All Glory to God the Father and to our Savior Jesus Christ

From Westminster Shorter Catechism (written in 1647), questions 95 to 98

Q95: To whom is baptism to be administered?
A95: Baptism is not to be administered to any that are out of the visible church, till they profess their faith in Christ, and obedience to him; but the infants of such as are members of the visible church are to be baptized. 

Q96: What is the Lord’s supper?
A96: The Lord’s Supper is a sacrament, wherein, by giving and receiving bread and wine, according to Christ’s appointment, his death is showed forth; and the worth receivers are, not after a corporal and carnal manner, but by faith, made partakers of his body and blood, with all his benefits, to their spiritual nourishment, and growth in grace. 

Q97: What is required to be the worthy receiving of the Lord’s supper?
A97: It is required of them that would worthily partake of the Lord’s supper, that they examine themselves of their knowledge to discern the Lord’s body, of their faith to feed upon him, of their repentance, love, and new obedience; lest, coming unworthily, they eat and drink judgement to themselves. 

Q98: What is prayer?
A98: Prayer is an offering up of our desires unto God for things agreeable to his will, in the name of Christ, with confession of our sins, and thankful acknowledgement of his mercies. 

We enter a new chapter this week. John 6, and it starts out “After these things…”. If your memory is short the last 2 verses of John 5 can pretty much sum up what “these things” were.

“For if you believed Moses, you would believe Me, for he wrote about Me. But if you do not believe his writings, how will you believe My words?” (John 5:46-47) Jesus was talking to the Pharisees and telling them straight out that their unbelief as to who He was would lead to their destruction. A thought that was unfathomable to most of them. I say most of them, because Nicodemus came to see what the Lord had told him and he believed. As for the rest of them, how could these guys who were so sure of their righteousness, so knowledgeable of the scriptures, absolutely miss the bus when the long sought Messiah, who was written about all over the Old Testament, was standing before them? Because of their unbelief, I think we will do something a bit different, to drive the lesson home. 

There are some 300 prophecies of the coming of the Messiah in the Bible. I have chosen 47 Old Testament prophecies of the coming of Christ, and their fulfillments in the New Testament. The term Bible Study should be just that, a study of the Bible. What better way for you to learn about the Truth of Christ coming than studying where it is found in the Bible.

It’s a lot of information and I don’t expect you to look these up all in one day. Go through a couple each day, run down the verses and then think about what you just read. Ask the Holy Spirit to guide you as you go about this task. Let this be an enjoyable trip through the scriptures as you see time and time again God’s hand in guiding history to enact His will. And while you are going through the Bible, make sure to give glory and honor to our Lord who keeps us in good stead.

1. Messiah would be born of a woman. Genesis 3:15
   Matthew 1:20, Galatians 4:4

2. Messiah would be born in Bethlehem. Micah 5:2
   Matthew 2:1, Luke 2:4-6

3. Messiah would be born of a virgin. Isaiah 7:14
   Matthew 1:22-23, Luke 1:26-31

4. Messiah would come from the line of Abraham. Genesis 12:3, Genesis 22:18
   Matthew 1:1, Romans 9:5

5. Messiah would be a descendant of Isaac. Genesis 17:19, Genesis 21:12
   Luke 3:34

6. Messiah would be a descendant of Jacob. Numbers 24:17
   Matthew 1:2

7. Messiah would come from the tribe of Judah. Genesis 49:10
   Luke 3:33, Hebrews 7:14

8. Messiah would be heir to King David’s throne. 2 Samuel 7:12-13, Isaiah 9:7
   Luke 1:32-33, Romans 1:3

9. Messiah’s throne will be anointed and eternal. Psalm 45:6-7, Daniel 2:44
   Luke 1:33, Hebrews 1:8-12

10. The Messiah would be called Immanuel. Isaiah 7:14
    Matthew 1:23

11. Messiah would spend a season in Egypt. Hosea 11:1
    Matthew 2:14-15

12. A massacre of children would happen at Messiah’s birthplace. Jeremiah 31:15
    Matthew 2:16-18

13. A messenger would prepare the way for Messiah. Isaiah 40:3-5
    Luke 3:3-6

14. Messiah would be preceded by a forerunner. Malachi 3:1
    Matthew 11:10

15. Messiah would be rejected by his own people. Psalm 69:8, Isaiah 53:3
    John 1:11, John 7:5

16. The Messiah would be a prophet. Deuteronomy 18:15
    Acts 3:20-22

17. Messiah would be preceded by Elijah. Malachi 4:5-6
    Matthew 11:13-14

18. The Messiah would be declared the Son of God. Psalm 2:7
    Matthew 3:16-17

19. The Messiah would be called a Nazarene. Isaiah 11:1
    Matthew 2:23

20. Messiah would bring light to Galilee. Isaiah 9:1-2
    Matthew 4:13-16

21. The Messiah would speak in parables. Psalm 78:2-4, Isaiah 6:9-10
    Matthew 13:10-15, 34-35

22. Messiah would be sent to heal the brokenhearted. Isaiah 61:1-2
    Luke 4:18-19

23. Messiah would be a priest after the order of Melchizedek. Psalm 110:4
    Hebrews 5:5-6

24. The Messiah would be called King. Psalm 2:6, Zechariah 9:9
    Matthew 27:37, Mark 11:7-11

25. The Messiah would enter Jerusalem on a donkey. Zechariah 11:12
    Matthew 21:4-5

26. Messiah would be praised by little children. Psalm 8:2
    Matthew 21:16

27. Messiah would be betrayed. Psalm 41:9, Zechariah 11:12-13
    Luke 22:47-48, Matthew 26:14-16

28. Messiah’s price money would be used to buy a potter’s field. Zechariah 11:12-13
    Matthew 27:9-10

29. Messiah would be falsely accused. Psalm 35:11
    Mark 14:57-58

30. Messiah would be silent before his accusers. Isaiah 53:7
    Mark 15:4-5

31. Messiah would be spat upon and struck. Isaiah 50:6
    Matthew 26:67

32. Messiah would be hated without cause. Psalm 35:19, Psalm 69:4
    John 15:24-25

33. Messiah would be crucified with criminals. Isaiah 53:12
    Matthew 27:38, Mark 15:27-28

34. Messiah would be given vinegar to drink. Psalm 69:21
    Matthew 27:34, John 19:28-30

35. Messiah’s hands and feet would be pierced. Psalm 22:16, Zechariah 12:10
    John 20:25-27

36. The Messiah would be mocked and ridiculed. Psalm 22:7-8
    Luke 23:35

37. Soldiers would gamble for Messiah’s garments. Psalm 22:18
    Luke 23:34, Matthew 27:35-36

38. Messiah’s bones would not be broken. Exodus 12:46, Psalm 34:20
    John 19:33-36

39. The Messiah would be forsaken by God. Psalm 22:1
    Matthew 27:46

40. Messiah would pray for his enemies. Psalm 109:4
    Luke 23:34

41. Soldiers would pierce Messiah’s side. Zechariah 12:10
    John 19:34

42. The Messiah would be buried with the rich. Isaiah 53:9
    Matthew 27:57-60

43. Messiah would resurrect from the dead. Psalm 16:10, Psalm 49:15
    Matthew 28:2-7, Acts 2:22-32

44. The Messiah would ascend to heaven. Psalm 24:7-10
    Mark 16:19, Luke 24:51

45. The Messiah would be seated at God’s right hand. Psalm 68:18, Psalm 110:1
    Mark 16:19, Matthew 22:44

46. Messiah would be a sacrifice for sin. Isaiah 53:5-12
    Romans 5:6-8

47. Messiah would return a second time. Daniel 7:13-14
    Revelation 19

Last week we left off with Jesus talking to the Pharisees in the very direct manner that he used when talking to these men. Never hostile, but confronting them with the unbelief of their hearts, which for men with ears to hear but never hearing had to be direct. Isaiah spoke of this in Isaiah 6:9, Mark also spoke of this, Mark 4:12. These Jews heard what Jesus said but did not hear.

We are the same it seems. We’ve gone to church, hopefully, and listened to the parables and lessons given out in the sermon. This is making the not always valid assumption that you’ve gone to a church that preaches the whole counsel of God. Not many do these days, and therein lies the problem. If you listen to someone that you’re not all that interested in, speaking something bland and non-committal, what they have said will go in one ear and out the other.

And because of that, our everyday conversations end up going something like this: you’re talking to somebody and they’ve mentioned they’re slightly irritated with themselves for not resisting whatever has been tempting them, but they can’t help themselves. Or, with all that’s going on in the world these days, your friend says that they worry about many things. They know they should not worry, but again, they can’t help it, they just do. And this one I’ve heard a lot of lately, “I have faith, but…” You may be confused by this, it may be something that you yourself have said. What’s the big deal?

The big deal is God knows what you need before you need it. (Matthew 6:8) Temptations are quite often a test of your willingness to trust in God. It is not a sin to be tempted, but to succumb to it is. Eve was tempted by satan, you’ll recall. (Genesis 3:1-7) Her trust in God was not what it should have been and we all are affected by her decision. Remember that Jesus was also tempted by satan, (Matthew 4:1-11) so He knows what we go through and can help you when you’re sorely tempted. Turn to Him who is our mediator, our High Priest, our King. (Hebrews 4:14-16) The rest of it comes down to trust in God to handle those things that you worry about. Why would you not? He created all, and what can you change by worry? Your Creator is handling the details and knows what is best for you. Trust, it all comes down to trust. If you truly trust in God, there would be no worry, no “but” after Faith.

So you see, this is a common problem with man’s interaction with his Creator. Back when God spoke to his people through His chosen prophet, the people spoke with their mouths that yes, they agreed with God’s commands and would follow them, but a very short time later, they requested a golden calf to worship because Moses had been gone too long, (Exodus 32:1-4) or there was no water, or they didn’t like the food, or the desert was too harsh. (Exodus 15:22, 17:16). Moses was a favorite of God (Deuteronomy 34:10–12) and yet the people rebelled. Jesus is much greater than Moses (Hebrews 3:1-6) and they were seeking to kill him, for what they perceived as blasphemy, claiming to be the Son of God, forgiving of sins, performing signs and wonders on the sabbath and the most grievous of all, telling them they were not righteous, but sinners, much like those they looked down upon.

(Mk 2:5-7; also Mt 9:2-3 and Lk 5:20-21) spoke of Moses being a great prophet, but Christ here speaks of John the Baptist, foretold so long ago by Isaiah 40:3–5, and Malachi 3:1, 4:5 and these prophecies were fulfilled in Matthew 3:1–3; Mark 1:1–3; Luke 1:76; 3:1–6; John 1:22–23. Jesus tells them that they asked John the Baptist if he was the Christ, and he testified to the truth and they accepted that. (John 5:33) But He, Jesus, says that His testimony does not come from man, here’s the whole verse: But the testimony which I receive is not from man, but I say these things so that you may be saved. (John 5:34). I find that verse 34 needs to be looked at carefully so let’s look at Ellicott’s Commentary for clarification.

(34) But I receive not testimony . . .—There is no reason for changing the word. The substantive, and verbs from John 5:31, have been rendered by “witness,” and it is better to keep it here. The English also fails to give the article, and is therefore misleading. He did receive witness from men—had received witness from John—but this was not the witness upon which all was based. Its purpose was to lead them to Christ Himself, and He now refers to it, to show them it’s true position, that that purpose might be fulfilled.
But these things I say, that ye might be saved.—The emphasis of the clause should be placed upon the pronoun “ye.” The thought is, that our Lord does not refer to John’s witness for His own sake, but in order that they might be saved. He had a greater witness than that of John, but this they were not yet prepared to receive. They had received John for a season, and had rejoiced in his light. He refers to him now that that light may lead them to the true Source of Light. Some of those who had sent to the Baptist may now understand his words in a deeper sense than any which had come to them before, and may find in them words leading to salvation.

Hopefully that helped. The English language is not always the best way to understand the Bible. The people had rejoiced for a season and were now in better shape to understand what Jesus was saying and receive salvation.

However, now we come to the hard part. Hard for the Pharisees, hard for the Jews, and sometimes hard for some of us. Jesus tells them that His testimony is greater than John’s… “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. And the Father who sent Me, He has testified of Me. You have neither heard His voice at any time nor seen His form. You do not have His word abiding in you, for you do not believe Him whom He sent.” (John 5:36-38).

As I said, the hard part. They did not believe Him whom He sent. Do you believe, truly believe? Trust enough to let go and let God provide your daily bread without worry? Trust Him enough to accept that every good thing you have comes from above? (James 1:17)

Here’s the rest of the hard part. Read it with your heart involved.

“You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; it is these that testify about Me; and you are unwilling to come to Me so that you may have life. I do not receive glory from men; but I know you, that you do not have the love of God in yourselves. I have come in My Father’s name, and you do not receive Me; if another comes in his own name, you will receive him. How can you believe, when you receive glory from one another and you do not seek the glory that is from the one and only God? Do not think that I will accuse you before the Father; the one who accuses you is Moses, in whom you have set your hope. For if you believed Moses, you would believe Me, for he wrote about Me. But if you do not believe his writings, how will you believe My words?” (John 5:39-47)

Believe and Trust with your whole heart. Repent, for we sin every day and you are held accountable once you know the Good News. Accept that your Creator knows what is best for you, even before you know it. And place no conditions to the Faith you have. Live the life that you have been called to. You may not think that you have been called, but you have. You’ve been called by God, that is what saving Grace is. A calling that has lifted you from death to life, brought you into the light. The Greek word from which the English word “church” is always translated is εκκλησια which renders as call/calling/called. Jesus in Matt 16:18, “…upon this, the rock, I will be building of me the εκκλησια, and gates of hades will not be prevailing…”

We are the Called who have been chosen by God for salvation, (Ephesians 1:4-5) plucked out of our headlong path to damnation, for the wages of sin is death. (Romans 6:23) What the church then becomes is not a building, but we the Called coming together to worship He who has called us, who then go out and do His will in obedience to our Calling.

Having now knowledge of this, go forth and serve your King and give glory to Him in all that you do, for you are among the Called. As you ponder this lesson, and I pray that you do, may the Lord bless you and keep you; The Lord make His face shine upon you, And be gracious to you; The Lord lift up His countenance upon you, And give you peace. (Numbers 6:24-26)

All Glory to God the Father and to our Savior Jesus Christ

Last week we left off with Jesus healing a man at the Pool of Bethesda. That man was experiencing the joy of being able to walk for the first time in a very long time. He didn’t even know the name of his benefactor who had freed him from his disability. The scripture states that Jesus had slipped away while there was a crowd in that place. (John 5:13) Jesus had told him to pick up his palette and walk and that was just what he was doing. If you are wondering what a palette is, Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary states that it’s a small and mean bed; a bed of straw. Probably straw in a linen covering. Could be rolled up and carried like a sleeping bag.

The joy of this man and the fact that he is carrying around a smelly bag of straw immediately catches the eyes of some Jews who stop him and tell him he can’t do that. Probably had to tell him more than once as the healed man was not paying attention to much more than walking around and feeling great, I imagine. However, it was the Sabbath and you can’t be walking around with your sleeping apparatus because it is not permitted.
It makes you wonder a bit on why they, the Jews, made a rule on not being able to carry your palette around on the Sabbath. Was there a lot of that going on and it looked unseemly to those in charge? And who were these Jews with rules anyway?

Pharisees is who they were. A small sect of rule-bound and ultra righteous, in their own mind, people that were constantly on the lookout for some infraction to correct. God gave Moses the law and you can find that in Exodus 20:1-17 and Deuteronomy 5:6-21. Basically the 10 commandments that we all know and much of civil government today was used for the basis of our laws. These Pharisees added 613 commandments that included “positive commandments”, to perform an act (mitzvot aseh), and “negative commandments”, to abstain from certain acts (mitzvot lo taaseh). I would guess that carrying around your bed would be in the negative area of these extra commandments.

There were around 6000 of these Jews at the time of Jesus and although they knew the scripture, they were so sure of their interpretation of what the scripture said that anybody telling them differently would be discounted. Certainly somebody healing someone else on the Sabbath was against their rules. We see a lot of that today, laws that run counter to common sense. Of course since we live in a “Post Truth” era and nobody can agree on what common sense is, we’ve got some problems to work through. God is the same now as He was back then. And we know Him to be a rational and Loving God. Do you think that He stops working on Sunday? Or would He prevent somebody from being healed on that day? Christ told them “My Father is working until now, and I Myself am working.” (John 5:17) Yet, these Jews did not believe it and would not permit it. The next verse in this book shows how corrupt in their hearts that they were: “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.” (John 5:18)

They wanted to kill him because He broke their Sabbath laws and also because He called God his Father. We all do the same when we pray the Lord’s Prayer, Our Father, who art in Heaven, hallowed be thy name. (Matthew 6:9-13)

Jesus seeks to realign their coal-like hearts: “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 like manner. 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 marvel. For just as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, even so the Son also gives life to whom He wishes. For not even the Father judges anyone, but He has given all judgment to the Son, so that all will honor the Son even as they honor the Father. He who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent Him.” (John 5:)

All authority has been given to the Son, and yet they wanted to kill Him. In their mind, they were the authority. Anyone claiming to have God as their Father or to be the Son of God was talking foolishness, dangerous foolishness. My question to you is, have you encountered anyone that has said God’s word is foolishness? And if you have, how did you respond to it?

We know from Ephesians 1:3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ. As a Christian, you possess every spiritual resource you need to fulfill God’s will for your life, so in answer to how does a person respond to a nonbeliever? You have everything you need, the Bible, the Holy Spirit, God’s love. The people of Jesus’s time had only what scripture they had been taught, keep in mind they did not have what we have today, a complete Bible. Until the Messiah walked among them, they only had what they had been taught and Faith. These Pharisees had been taught the same things but had no faith in anyone but themselves.

Also how they chose to interpret what they had learned brings the parable of the sower into play. (Matthew 13:3-9) The deceiver is ever ready to gobble up the seeds sown of wisdom and understanding and the opening of the heart. Their seeds had been sown on to the road, or the rocky place or even into the weeds. Even today we have a hard time understanding why family or friends that had at one time been excited over God’s word, have now pulled away and refuted it all. The scripture speaks to these things, yet that book of God’s instruction and wisdom is gathering dust on a shelf, never consulted. Remember you have been made complete and lack nothing spiritually.

Jesus stated: “Truly, truly, I say to you, he 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.” He was telling the Pharisees and He is telling you now, He who believes in Him has eternal life.(John 5:24) They, the Pharisees, rejected that concept. Some of your family or friends may have also rejected what Christ has said. Christ prayed for those that wished to kill him and I think a time is coming where all that we knew and was easy, will not be so easy. Take that dusty book from the shelf and open your heart to its message.

Truly, truly, I say to you, an hour is coming and now is, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live. For just as the Father has life in Himself, even so He gave to the Son also to have life in Himself; and He gave Him authority to execute judgment, because He is the Son of Man. Do not marvel at this; for an hour is coming, in which all who are in the tombs will hear His voice, and will come forth; those who did the good deeds to a resurrection of life, those who committed the evil deeds to a resurrection of judgment.

I can do nothing on My own initiative. As I hear, I judge; and My judgment is just, because I do not seek My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me.

If I alone testify about Myself, My testimony is not true. There is another who testifies of Me, and I know that the testimony which He gives about Me is true. (John 5:25-31)

What did we learn from this? The Truth is the same today as it was back then. It walks among us, yet many refute it. Judge not lest you be judged. The Pharisees were judging Jesus and found him unacceptable as a Messiah. Christ told them, those that reject me, also reject the Father. (John 5:23) and for that they were willing to kill him. Take not your own counsel, (Proverbs 12:15) but that of the Lord’s. And to do that, open the book, seeking the Lord’s will in all you do. The clock’s ticking and none of us knows the span of our days. Best get busy and may the Lord Bless you and Keep you.

All Glory to God the Father and to our Savior Jesus Christ

We are starting a new chapter, John 5, today. Jesus had healed the royal official’s son and thereby delivered a potent lesson of faith to all that witnessed it. The scripture states that he and his entire household believed. (John 4:53) Households in those days, for somebody of this man’s status, could be quite large. We know he had slaves, because that is referred to in John 4:51. It is quite possible that we are talking in the neighborhood of 30 to 40 people. And we know that God quite often comes to those who would be looked at as downtrodden, servants and slaves. We saw in John 2 verse 9, the servants who had drawn the water knew that Jesus made it into wine. Now these slaves in the royal official’s household knew that this Rabbi had healed the master’s son with a word from afar. We find in Luke 5:31 “It is not those who are well who need a physician, but those who are sick.” You would not necessarily think of a slave being sick, unhappy but not sick.

This is where metaphors and a casual perusal of the scripture can cause us to miss the point. The sick Jesus was talking about were those whose hearts were sick with sin. In this, all of us would qualify and yet none of us are slaves. Or are we? We seem to have many masters these days, just listen to what you hear from various governors on the news to verify what I am saying. Slaves in those days lived in their master’s house and did what they were told. From what I hear from our political class, they wish to have that same power. My point is, this servant class knew what hopelessness was and there were many more of them than the owner class. These people saw what Christ had done, and that lesson went right to their heart and they shared it. Who wants to keep good news bottled up inside themselves? Slaves talked to slaves and the good news got spread around. It was slaves that handled the kids and next thing you know, the whole household has the good news. This is how God works. If you truly believe that Christ is Lord and our Saviour, and because of His sacrifice, we who believe will live forever in His Glory, why are you keeping that to yourselves?

Jesus went up to Jerusalem, for the feast of the Jews. (John 5:1) The North entrance of old Jerusalem was known as the Sheep Gate. The map gives you a good look at all the gates in the Old town of Jerusalem which is kind of a small area. There was a pool near that gate named “Bethesda,” in Aramaic. It means “House of Mercy.” This pool had five porticoes or entrances. In these porticoes lay a multitude of those who were sick, blind, limping, or paralyzed. (John 5:3 )The covered colonnades would have provided shade for the disabled who gathered there, but there was another reason for the popularity of the Pool of Bethesda. Legend had it that an angel would come down into the pool and “stir up the water.” The first person into the pool after the stirring of the water “was made well from whatever disease with which he was afflicted” (John 5:4) You can see the pool of Bethesda is close to the Temple, so if you come to Jerusalem from the North, which Jesus had done, coming in from Cana of Galilee, He would have probably walked right by the pool. And we know that He did because the scripture tells us He saw a man that had been ill for 38 years, laying there. (John 5:5) Our God is a loving God. He has compassion and mercy on a people that don’t deserve it. In fact He sent His only begotten Son to die on a cross so that we who believe will live. Jesus, fully Man and fully God, (Titus 2:13-14) sees this guy and knows he has been in this condition a very long time. Our Savior has compassion on this man and asks him if he wants to get well?

Imagine you are this individual laying at the water’s edge. You’ve been sick for a very long time, and you know if you can get to the pool first after the stirring, your life will be so much better. Some man walks up to you and asks you if you want to get well. You’ve been concentrating on the pool, watching it intently and now some random stranger strides up and asks the obvious. Because He who is questioning you is healthy and standing upright on his own 2 very mobile legs, you are polite in your response to him. “Sir, I have no man to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up, but while I am coming, another steps down before me.” (John 5:7)

This would be a good time to remember what Grace and Mercy are. Grace is receiving what you don’t deserve and Mercy is not receiving what you do deserve. Jesus gives Grace to this man and tells him to “Get up, pick up your pallet and walk.” (John 5:8) The scripture does not say if this man was a believer before his healing, hence the Grace of our Lord having compassion on this poor man who was ill for so long. The man immediately became well, picked up his palette and began to walk. Are you still imagining that you were this man? How would you feel now?

You know what’s coming next, don’t you? What day do you suppose it is? Jesus made a habit of healing people on the sabbath. For the very reason of showing the Pharisees that the sabbath was made for Man, not Man made for the sabbath. (Mark 2:27) The Pharisees had gotten that turned around badly. In their mind, it was against the law to do many things on the sabbath. (John 5:10) The scripture says that the Jews stopped this guy and indignantly asked him what he was doing. “It is a Sabbath, and it is not permissible for you to carry your pallet.” The healed man had a ready answer for them. “He who made me well was the one who said to me, ‘Pick up your pallet and walk.’” (John 5:11) I guess he figured that anybody that could heal with a word was worth listening to more than these busybody Jews with all their rules. These Jews became more indignant and demanded to know who this law breaker was. The healed man didn’t know, for Jesus has slipped into the crowd while the man was enjoying being able to walk again. (John 5:13)

Afterward, Jesus found him in the temple and said to him, “Behold, you have become well; do not sin anymore, so that nothing worse happens to you.”(John 5:14) Interesting that this man was in the temple after his healing. I would expect it of most Jews of that time period, but what of us? Where would you be found if your cancer was suddenly cured? In church praising God or at home thinking how lucky you are? Something to think about. I consider ALS a blessing given to me, for it saved my life. My eternal life. And being given this blessing, I took the warning of not slipping back into my old ways, so that nothing worse happens to me. Things could truly be worse.

The healed man now goes off and tells the Jews that it was Jesus who healed him. And it was for this reason that the Jews were persecuting Jesus, because he broke their sabbath rules. (John 5:17) But He answered them, “My Father is working until now, and I Myself am working.” (John 5:18)
God the Father is working, Jesus our Lord and Savior is working, what are we doing? Are you working for the Lord? That good news that you have, are you sharing it or keeping to yourself? The last bit of Matthew 28, verses 18 to 20, Jesus, just before He ascended into heaven, He gave us our marching orders. “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me. Go, therefore, and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to follow all that I commanded you; and behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

This is our Lord, who died on a cross and was resurrected again, at the request of the Father. All this for you who believe. In the above scripture verses, did you see an exemption for old age, infirmity or whatever? I didn’t, because there is none. You are not exempt, none of us are, so let’s get busy. This may come as a shock to you, that you’ve suddenly been told that you have a job to do, as defined by Christ, instead of sitting on our tails thinking it was somebody else’s job. Where ever did you get that notion, that all this God business was somebody else’s job or there is a job at all? We all want to go to heaven, but now you are telling me we have to do something to get there? Yes, believe. Once you believe, truly believe, your life is changed and the Spirit will start working through you. This is why it is called the fruits of the Spirit. (Galatians 5:22-23) You on your own would not do a thing. Our natural inclination would be to run from this idea. (1 Corinthians 2:14) Do you still feel like running?

Before this virus panic, you may have gone to a church that preached light stuff, Love and inclusiveness, that sort of thing. God loves you just the way you are. Yes He does, but here’s the thing. We are sinners and all prone to sin. He wants us to be Holy, like He is Holy. (1 Peter 1:16) How we do that is to obey Him and turn from sin. (Deuteronomy 6:24)The Spirit helps with this, (John 14:26) if you let Him. However, if you choose to be lazy about your salvation, maybe you’re old and lame or just too busy for God, God is going to let you just skate by in life and many people are. (2 Pet. 3:9) It is up to you to believe and be discerning (Proverbs 3:5–6) about what you do and where you go. This includes church. If all you are getting from your church is milk, you will never mature in your Faith or hear the idea that Christ wants us to share the Good News.

Find a church that preaches from the Bible, the whole Bible. Not many do anymore. If you can’ get to Church, turn on the radio. There are good preachers out there on the air waves. Stay away from TV preachers, as most of them are preaching a false gospel of prosperity. Be discerning! Read the Bible, all of it. If you’ve done those 2 things and are still mystified at all this, examine your salvation with fear and trembling. (Philippians 2:12) Mostly have Faith and Trust in the Lord for all things, for no good thing comes to you that does not come from above. (James 1:17)
Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you will abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. (Romans 15:13)