Tag: word of god

Jesus’ Message

Barbara Weber

John 10:25-28 WEB

Jesus answered them, “I told you, and you don’t believe. The works that I do in my Father’s name, these testify about me. [26] But you don’t believe, because you are not of my sheep, as I told you. [27] My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. [28] I give eternal life to them. They will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand.

Do you ever have trouble believing Jesus? Do you ever have questions about God’s word? The Bible says Jesus is the word. No, he is not the ink or the pages of the Bible, but he is found in the message of the Bible. To trust the Bible is to trust Jesus. Likewise, to not believe the Bible is to not believe Jesus. Those who believe Jesus are his sheep.

You can tell if you are a sheep. Do you love the Bible? Again, not the pages or the ink, but the message it contains. In the Bible is Jesus’ message and thereby Jesus. When we follow the Bible, we are behaving like the Lord’s sheep. However, if we do not read the Bible, we are rejecting Jesus. How can you ever obey someone you won’t listen to? When you read the Bible, you are listening to Jesus.

It’s not enough to read the Bible. Even demons do that. It is obedience to the Bible’s entire message that reveals a true sheep. We are not saved by reading the Bible, we are saved by grace through Jesus. However, a symptom of salvation is a hunger for God’s whole message. If you are a sheep and you are not hungry for God’s word, then your conscience may be seared. To remedy a seared conscience, you must repent and ask God, persistently, to give you a hunger and thirst for His Word.

Lord, please forgive my disbelief and help me trust you more. Give me a thirst and hunger for your Word and give me an understanding of what I read. Help me activate the Word of God in my life and become obedient to its full message. In Jesus’ Name, amen.

Willing to be Deceived

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John 2:16 WEB

To those who sold the doves, he said, “Take these things out of here! Don’t make my Father’s house a marketplace!”

There is grievous error in churches that allow speakers to sell material in the house of the Lord. It is easy to be deceived into thinking it is acceptable to turn the Lord’s house into a marketplace. The moment leaders ask God to allow them to market in the church, the deception starts. This is because there is no reason to go to God and ask for permission to market items in the church. We have in the word of God clear direction on this matter. Therefore, attempting to dialogue with God about deviating from what scripture teaches is sin and opens leaders to deception. It is evil. And evil almost always masquerades as light. The scriptures say that Satan comes as an angel of light. The scriptures also say if believers call light darkness that the darkness is exceedingly great. One of the greatest tools believers need to extinguish the fiery darts of the enemy is to know and practice the word of God. Before we talk to God about a matter, we should equip ourselves with the word. Then, once we know what the Bible says, we are ready to go to God and ask for our desire or to ask for willingness to obey. But we should never go to God and ask Him to make exceptions for us so that we can disobey the His word.

Lord Jesus, please forgive me for desiring that which is in opposition to the Holy Bible. Please release to me greater grace to be obedient to You. In Jesus’ name, I pray, amen.

What do you Want?

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John 1:37-38 WEB

The two disciples heard him speak, and they followed Jesus. [38] Jesus turned, and saw them following, and said to them, “What are you looking for?” They said to him, “Rabbi” (which is to say, being interpreted, Teacher), “where are you staying?”

When Jesus looks around is he going to find you following him? I hope so! Those who follow Jesus get asked an amazing question, “what do you want?” If we are ever going to receive from Jesus, it starts by asking him to come into our hearts. And then it’s time to follow! We follow Jesus in Spirit and Truth. That means we seek a relationship with the Holy Spirit and know the Bible.

The Word of God tells us that anyone who blasphemes the Holy Spirit is denied by Jesus when he comes in front of his Father. I have come to believe that denying the Voice of God in our present reality is what the Bible refers to as blaspheming the Holy Spirit. This is why we have to be cautious not to worship the Bible. We don’t have a relationship with the Bible, we have a relationship with the Holy Spirit.

In the Old Testament, during The Exodus, the people of God were brought to the Mountain of God so that they could hear from God themselves. However, they did not want to hear from God and they asked Moses to talk to God for them. (Ex 20:19) They asked to be separated from God’s Voice. So, they got what they wanted. But, they were also denied entrance into the promised land. That entire generation died in the wilderness.

Following Jesus also means we read the Bible and know it because that’s our Truth. The Bible is our relational book; it defines our relationship with God. We can safely listen to the Spirit of God if we are secure in the knowledge of the Word of God. This is because the Word of God will bring correction to what we believe we are hearing. We know that the Lord God cannot lie, so the Spirit of God is not going to speak to us in ways that contradict the Word of God.

You don’t have to be afraid to listen to God’s Voice. Remember, God always gives us a way to escape the snare of the enemy. (1 Cor 10:13) When we listen for God’s voice, we are safeguarded from deception by knowing the Word of God. The Bible informs what we are hearing and lets us know if it really is from God. God cannot lie, but he also cannot deny himself. So, These two things go together for the follower, Spirit, and Truth.

Lord Jesus, I pray for a hunger for your word, and the courage to listen for your voice. In Jesus’ name, I pray, amen.

The Word Became Flesh

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John 1:14 WEB

The Word became flesh, and lived among us. We saw his glory, such glory as of the one and only Son of the Father, full of grace and truth.

The Word became flesh. Jesus is called the word in the Book of John. In fact, the first verse in the Book of John says, “in the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God.” When I see Jesus became the word, I wonder if it’s the voice of God that became flesh through Jesus Christ. Thus, in the beginning was The Voice, and it was God’s Voice. And through God’s Voice, all things were created and nothing was created without God’s Voice.

Then, is Jesus God? Is Jesus divine? The spirit inside of Jesus was from the Father directly (Luke 1:35). So yes, Jesus is divine (Phil 2:5-7). Yet, Jesus testified that the Father was one (Mark 12:29). Conversely, Jesus also testified he and the Father were one (John 10:30). However, that most likely meant the same thing it means for you and me. We are all one with God but that does not make us God (John 14:20). We have God’s voice inside of us but that also does not make us God (Mark 13:11).

I believe Jesus and God are one and the same. But we have a human element we’re dealing with that may not be God. My concern is when Jesus returns to Earth we are going to be dealing with a human element and it’s probably going to be a different human element. Unless Christs’ body is able to exist where he is, with the Father, when he returns the Father will have to give him another one.

If Jesus returns as a baby, will he have the same memories? Will he know who he is? Will he have to grow in stature and grace (Luke 2:52)? Jesus testifies he is the same yesterday today and tomorrow (Heb 13:8). That is why I think we should expect something similar with Christ’s second return to what we had for his first coming (Luke 2:7). That is a human being that has to be born, come to an awareness of who they are, then grow in grace and stature. I believe this is one possible way Jesus will return.

Lord Jesus, I ask that you give each one of us a revelation regarding your return. We know that you come back victorious, but we do not know the journey you have to take to that victory. Give us eyes to see, ears to hear, and a willing and tender heart. In Jesus’ name, I pray, amen.