Apicontent

“The one who rejects me and does not accept my words has a judge; the word I have spoken will judge him at the last day. For I have not spoken from my own authority, but the Father himself who sent me has commanded me what I should say and what I should speak. And I know that his commandment is eternal life. Thus the things I say, I say just as the Father has told me.” —John 12:48–50

God spoke decisively and finally through His Son. To reject the Word of Jesus is be to reject the Word of God the Father. Jesus said the following regarding this truth:

“Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father is in me? The words that I say to you, I do not speak on my own initiative, but the Father residing in me performs his miraculous deeds.” —John 14:10

The writer of Hebrews tells us:

“After God spoke long ago in various portions and in various ways to our ancestors through the prophets, in these last days he has spoken to us in a son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he created the world.” —Hebrews 1:1–2

Jesus gave proof of His union with the Father in three ways—through His character, through His words, and through the miracles He performed. Our obedience to Jesus will grow out of our love for Him. He tells us that if we love Him, we will obey Him. When we obey Him, the Father and the Holy Spirit abide with us—equipping us to both hear and heed the His will.

Jesus came first to offer salvation to the whole world. We are at fault if we reject this truth. Nothing is more dreadful than abused patience and grace that is constantly trampled on. There will be a certain and unavoidable future judgment on those refusing to believe the teaching of Jesus—the day of the righteous judgment of God. The very words Christ spoke will themselves judge those who willingly choose not to believe them. The idea behind the word “reject” in our verses for today is one of despising—deliberating refusing to acknowledge Him as the Messiah in spite of all he taught and all the miracles He performed. The rejection and unbelief of those who despise our Lord will not go unpunished no matter what people choose to believe.

It will be impossible to deny the truth and wisdom and mercy of Jesus’ words on the last day and they will be used against those who despise Him. This will be speechless, unanswerable to the words of Christ. Be assured, the words of Christ never fall to the ground—they are always operative. Scripture tells us:

“In the same way, the promise that I make does not return to me, having accomplished nothing. No, it is realized as I desire and is fulfilled as I intend.” —Isaiah 55:11

The writer of Hebrews states this truth as well:

“For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any double-edged sword, piercing even to the point of dividing soul from spirit, and joints from marrow; it is able to judge the desires and thoughts of the heart. And no creature is hidden from God, but everything is naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must render an account.” —Hebrews 4:12–13

Become More

Our Lord warns us that it is a serious sin to refuse His words. We are to take heed. These were not our Lord’s words alone, but the very words of God the Father. Jesus was sent to this earth with a commission of what to say and speak to men. He spoke the true counsel of the most holy God.

“For this gospel I was appointed a preacher and apostle and teacher. Because of this, in fact, I suffer as I do. But I am not ashamed, because I know the one in whom my faith is set and I am convinced that he is able to protect what has been entrusted to me until that day.” —2 Timothy 1:11–12

Peter was thoroughly convinced that Jesus’ words lead to life and rightly confessed:

“Lord, to whom would we go? You have the words of eternal life. We have come to believe and to know that you are the Holy One of God!” — John 6:68–69

We must live as those who believe in the truth of the judgment, and of heaven, and of hell. Jesus deserves our all! We can never serve God too much! Christ died for us—nothing is too great for us to do for Him.

Further Reflections

“Pray that your eyes may be opened, that you may receive sight, that you may know yourself and be brought to God’s feet, and that you may see the glory of God and Christ, may be raised from the dead, and have the love of Christ shed abroad in your heart. Those that have most of these things still need to pray for them; for there so much blindness and hardness and pride and death remaining that they still need to have that work of God upon them, further to enlighten and enliven them. This will be a further bringing out of darkness into God’s marvelous light, and a kind of new conversion.” —Jonathan Edwards, Advice to Young Converts

“The person who does not love me does not obey my words. And the word you hear is not mine, but the Father’s who sent me.” —John 14:24

“Nevertheless, even among the rulers many believed in him, but because of the Pharisees they would not confess Jesus to be the Christ, so that they would not be put out of the synagogue. For they loved praise from men more than praise from God. But Jesus shouted out, ‘The one who believes in me does not believe in me, but in the one who sent me.’” —John 12:42–45

In our verses for today, we see even among the leaders there were those who were persuaded that Jesus was the Messiah. Sadly, they were not bold enough to acknowledge their faith for fear of the consequences that might develop. It would appear that all of humankind seeks approval and acceptance. We worry about the praise of the creature rather than striving for the praise of the Creator. Earlier in John, Jesus said:

“I do not accept praise from people, but I know you, that you do not have the love of God within you. I have come in my Father’s name, and you do not accept me. If someone else comes in his own name, you will accept him. How can you believe, if you accept praise from one another and don’t seek the praise that comes from the only God?” —John 5:41–44

Does the praise of men tickle our ears and motivate our actions, prompting us to have very little or no regard for the praise of God? This is a cause for many a downfall. King Saul is a perfect example from scripture. The first King of Israel suffered with the problem of people pleasing. Neglecting the Lord’s command to totally destroy the Amalekites and everything belonging to them, Saul spared the king and some of the best of the sheep and cattle and lambs. His actions did not please God:

“Then the LORD’s message came to Samuel: ‘I regret that I have made Saul king, for he has turned away from me and has not done what I told him to do.’” —1 Samuel 15:10

When Samuel questioned Saul, we discover the reason for his disobedience:

“Then Saul said to Samuel, ‘I have sinned, for I have disobeyed what the LORD commanded and your words as well. For I was afraid of the army, and I obeyed their voice.’” —1 Samuel 15:24

Saul proved to be a coward. He was unwilling to stand for the difficult right against the easy wrong in an effort to be embraced and praised by flesh and blood. Paul had it right when he wrote to the Thessalonians:

“For you yourselves know, brothers and sisters, about our coming to you—it has not proven to be purposeless. But although we suffered earlier and were mistreated in Philippi, as you know, we had the courage in our God to declare to you the gospel of God in spite of much opposition. For the appeal we make does not come from error or impurity or with deceit, but just as we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel, so we declare it, not to please people but God, who examines our hearts. For we never appeared with flattering speech, as you know, nor with a pretext for greed—God is our witness—nor to seek glory from people, either from you or from others.” —1 Thessalonians 2:1–6

Make no mistake about it, when we reject Jesus, we reject God. There is an entire unity between Jesus and the Father, a complete and mysterious oneness. To trust in the Son—the sent Savior of sinners—is to also trust in the Father—the One who sent Jesus to save. Though distinct persons of the Trinity, they cannot be divided. The unity of Jesus and the Father are so complete that to honor God is to honor the Son as well, and conversely, to dishonor one is to dishonor the other.

Become More

God makes himself known through Jesus Christ. To believe in Jesus is to believe in God. God’s essential nature is disclosed in our Lord Jesus. Knowing God comes through knowing his Son and paying attention to his deeds. Jesus came to make God known to us. The apostle John said: ‘No one has ever seen God. The only one, himself God, who is in closest fellowship with the Father, has made God known.’” —John 1:18

Further Reflection

“Men who fear God face life fearlessly.” —Richard Halverson

“Now is the judgment of this world; now the ruler of this world will be driven out. And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.” Now he said this to indicate clearly what kind of death he was going to die.” —John 12:31–33

Evil atoned for, Satan a defeated foe, salvation offered—this is the message of the cross! Jesus speaks here with a divine exultation and triumph. The dark order of things which had prevailed in the world since the fall of man would now be spoiled. The world would no longer be subjected to Satan and the powers of darkness.

More than likely we have an inadequate perspective of the perverseness which prevailed at the time of Jesus’ advent—the extreme extent to which Satan was wreaking havoc on the world. Demonic possession, idolatry, child sacrifice, and a myriad of other perversions dominated the landscape. The godless order of things would be tolerated no longer. Christ died for a world that was without God and without hope—a world that had chosen open rebellion. Christ ended Satan’s dominion by His death on the cross. The head of the serpent was now bruised.

Jesus came to set the captives free. Therefore, we must not choose to remain in slavery! Rather, through His power, we are to break free from the chains which blind and bind us—yoking ourselves to Christ:

“For freedom Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not be subject again to the yoke of slavery.” —Galatians 5:1

Paul wrote to the Colossians:

“And you were at one time strangers and enemies in your minds as expressed through your evil deeds, but now he has reconciled you by his physical body through death to present you holy, without blemish, and blameless before him—if indeed you remain in the faith, established and firm, without shifting from the hope of the gospel that you heard. This gospel has also been preached in all creation under heaven, and I, Paul, have become its servant.” —Colossians 1:21–23

And then in the next chapter:

“And even though you were dead in your transgressions and in the uncircumcision of your flesh, he nevertheless made you alive with him, having forgiven all your transgressions. He has destroyed what was against us, a certificate of indebtedness expressed in decrees opposed to us. He has taken it away by nailing it to the cross. Disarming the rulers and authorities, he has made a public disgrace of them, triumphing over them by the cross.” —Colossians 2:13–15

The death of Christ on the cross had and continues to have a drawing effect on all humankind. His death as our substitute and His sacrifice for our sins draws people from every tribe and nation to believe on Him and receive Him as Savior. Whenever the powerful story of the cross is told, souls are converted and drawn to Jesus in all parts of the world. Jesus’ atoning work on the cross perfectly fills the need of all peoples.

I am reminded of the words found in Joel which are repeated by Paul in Romans:

“And everyone who calls on the name of the LORD will be delivered.” —Joel 2:32, Romans 10:13

Become More

“For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel—and not with clever speech, so that the cross of Christ would not become useless.” —1 Corinthians 1:17

Further Reflections

“Brilliantly persuasive eloquence may win a person’s mind but not his heart, whereas the unadorned words of the gospel, though seemingly foolish by human standards, are made effective by the Spirit of God.” —Bible Knowledge Commentary

“If anyone wants to serve me, he must follow me, and where I am, my servant will be too. If anyone serves me, the Father will honor him.” —John 12:26

One command, two promises—how like Jesus! 

The command: “Follow me.”

The promises: “Where I am, my servant will be too,” and “The Father will honor him.”

Just as the scholar follows the teacher, just as the sheep follows the shepherd, just as the soldier follows the commanding officer, so too, the professing believer in Christ follows the Lord Jesus. There is a consistent command in Scripture—given by Jesus to His disciples—both then and now—for believers to follow Him. Matthew tells us:

“He said to them, ‘Follow me, and I will turn you into fishers of people!’” —Matthew 4:19

“Then Jesus said to his disciples, ‘If anyone wants to become my follower, he must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me.’” —Matthew 16:24

The word “follow” carries with it a rich meaning. It is from the Greek word akoloutheo meaning: “To be an attendant, accompany, go with or follow; distinguished from the occasional and temporary following of Jesus by the crowds or individuals in general; the individual calling to follow Jesus involved abiding fellowship with Him, not only for the sake of learning as a student from his teacher but also for the sake of the salvation known or looked for, which presented itself in this fellowship; the first thing involved in following Jesus is a cleaving to Him in believing trust and obedience, those cleaving to Him also following His leading and acting according to His example.”

As we believe what Christ says and strive to do what He commands—even with the smallest amount of knowledge and perhaps great difficulty, with little grace and dim hope, weak as we may be—Jesus declares that His followers belong to Him!

However, to serve Christ in name alone is rather easy work—the world is full of those proclaiming faith while all the while living their lives for themselves. Costing little and satisfying most people, this claim to faith lacks power because it is not grounded in truth. Our world deems those who follow Jesus with wholehearted devotion and a willing mind foolish and often rewards them with ridicule, laughter, or opposition. Yet as believers, we are not to seek the praise of man, but of God. Jesus tells us earlier in John:

“How can you believe, if you accept praise from one another and don’t seek the praise that comes from the only God?” — John 5:44

As believers, we are called to do the things that Christ has taught us: walk as He walked, go where He leads. God honors the servant who serves His Son. God will make amends for our worldly pain and loss.

“The reward is honour, true lasting honour, the highest honour; it is the honour that comes from God. Those who wait on Christ, God will honour. Those who serve Christ must humble themselves, and are commonly vilified by the world, in recompense of both which they shall be exalted in due time.” —Matthew Henry

Become More

Christ and His servants shall never be parted—we shall be with Christ wherever He is—in paradise and in His glorious kingdom. Whatever the Master has, the servant shall have also. This is why the apostle Paul could so boldly state:

“For I consider that our present sufferings cannot even be compared to the coming glory that will be revealed to us.” —Romans 8:18

Further Reflections

“After these things the Lord’s message came to Abram in a vision: ‘Fear not, Abram! I am your shield and the one who will reward you in great abundance.’” —Genesis 15:1

“We do not want you to be unaware, brothers and sisters, regarding the affliction that happened to us in the province of Asia, that we were burdened excessively, beyond our strength, so that we despaired even of living. Indeed we felt as if the sentence of death had been passed against us, so that we would not trust in ourselves but in God who raises the dead. He delivered us from so great a risk of death, and he will deliver us. We have set our hope on him that he will deliver us yet again.” —2 Corinthians 1:8–10

“Jesus replied, ‘The time has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. I tell you the solemn truth, unless a kernel of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains by itself alone. But if it dies, it produces much grain. The one who loves his life destroys it, and the one who hates his life in this world guards it for eternal life.’” —John 12:23–25

Jesus presents to us a precious truth: In the spiritual realm, glorification follows death; the crown follows the cross. In Christ, death is the means of entry into glory. Jesus fleshed this truth out and as His followers, we are directed to do the same.

What is actually meant by these confusing statements? Seriously, are we to die to be glorified? Are we to be looking for a tree for our crucifixion? Figuratively, the answer is yes. Remember, Christ went to the cross before going to the throne.

Paul clearly spells out the order and humility of Christ’s life and beckons us to the same high calling:

“You should have the same attitude toward one another that Christ Jesus had, who though he existed in the form of God did not regard equality with God as something to be grasped, but emptied himself by taking on the form of a slave, by looking like other men, and by sharing in human nature. He humbled himself, by becoming obedient to the point of death—even death on a cross! As a result God highly exalted him and gave him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow—in heaven and on earth and under the earth—and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father.” —Philippians 2:5–11

In the incarnation, Christ willingly surrendered His right to manifest himself visibly as the God of all splendor and glory. This set an example of humility before honor. However, we tend to fight humility with everything that we have! There is something about humility and meekness that we perceive as weakness. Nothing could be further from the truth. Christ-like humility and meekness exemplify great strength and power under control—a willing relinquishing of rights for a higher purpose.

Jesus repeatedly told His disciples:

“If anyone wants to become my follower, he must deny himself, take up his cross daily, and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life because of me will save it. For what does it benefit a person if he gains the whole world but loses or forfeits himself?” —Luke 9:23–25

“For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life because of me and because of the gospel will save it.” —Mark 8:35

When we selflessly and lovingly obey our Lord Jesus, the overflow of the Holy Spirit will flow through our lives into the lives of others around us—oftentimes without our awareness—because behind our obedience is the reality of Almighty God. This is the whole point in denying self—our actions point to the power of Jesus. The daily crosses we are called to bear should be considered for the harvest they will bring. Our Lord considered the joy His actions would produce—bringing many to glory:

“But we see Jesus, who was made lower than the angels for a little while, now crowned with glory and honor because he suffered death, so that by God’s grace he would experience death on behalf of everyone. For it was fitting for him, for whom and through whom all things exist, in bringing many sons to glory, to make the pioneer of their salvation perfect through sufferings. For indeed he who makes holy and those being made holy all have the same origin, and so he is not ashamed to call them brothers and sisters.” —Hebrews 2:9–11

This whole order of things was just as shocking to His disciples as it is to His followers today. They were expecting an earthly kingdom established and governed by Jesus. Excited by His triumphal entry into Jerusalem their desire for an earthly kingdom was fanned into a full blaze. Jesus was well aware that they were expecting a glorious kingdom to be immediately established where they would have high places of authority and power.

Become More

We often have trouble realizing that it is not all about us—our ease, our comfort, our wants, our pleasures. The focus of the believer in Jesus Christ is to be on Him—willingly emptying ourselves of selfish ambitions and empty conceits, crucifying the flesh with its passions and desires—in order that the fullness of the Holy Spirit may be made manifest in us.

“Before we can pray ‘Thy kingdom come,’ we must be willing to pray, ‘My kingdom go.’” —Alan Redpath

Further Reflections

“Remember whose you are and Whom you serve.” —Oswald Chambers

“Calvary is God’s great proof that suffering in the will of God always leads to glory.” —Warren Wiersbe

“Jesus said to her, ‘I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live even if he dies, and the one who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?’” —John 11:25–26

God has firmly established a plan of salvation for all mankind which both begins and ends with Jesus. Jesus’ first two words in our verses for today—“I am”—are indicative of his deity, meaning: “I myself am He who is.” Our all-powerful Savior is mighty to save. Here He lovingly corrects Martha’s weak faith by setting before her this high and exalted description of himself.

He needs no help. He possesses all capabilities. He is the all-sufficient One. He was and is not merely a human teacher, He was and is the divine author and perfecter of our faith. He was and is is the answer to man’s terrible dilemma of sin and death.

“But now Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead also came through a man. For just as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all will be made alive.” —1 Corinthians 15:20–22

I wonder, like Martha, do we place Jesus just a little above our own levels? Do we think of Him as merely a man without the all-achieving power to aid and comfort and encourage and heal and save us?

For believers in Jesus, the Lord has broken the bondage of sin, enabling us to no longer be held captive to its control! He lovingly cares for us, satisfying us in a sun-drenched land. Yet, like the Israelites, when we become satisfied, we often become proud, forgetting the one who delivered us. We fall into the pattern of seeking to be our own savior—taking things in our own hands—living life apart from His power when it is so readily ours for the asking.

Hosea put it this way:

“But I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt. Therefore, you must not acknowledge any God but me; except me there is no Savior. I cared for you in the wilderness, in the dry desert where no water was. When they were fed, they became satisfied; when they were satisfied, they became proud; as a result, they forgot me!” —Hosea 13:4–6

“Jesus said to her, ‘I am the resurrection and the life.’”

No prophet or apostle spoke such as this. Only the One who knew He was God could proclaim these words and subsequently provide proof for His claim. In a wondrous, loving act of God toward all humankind—when humankind had a right to expect nothing but was given everything—Jesus bled and died for our sins and was raised again.

Become More

“On Calvary, the One from whom you and I have a right to expect nothing because of our disobedience and sin, nevertheless, has given us everything! This is the deep, indefinable grace of the God who loves us so much that He sent Jesus to die for us, so that if we confess our sins, turn from them and put our faith in Christ we can live with Him forever. This is the mystery of a love that cannot be contained, that we cannot even hope to speak. We are to love our enemies because God loved His enemies—us.” —Michael Card

Further Reflections

“’I am the Alpha and the Omega,’ says the Lord God— the one who is, and who was, and who is still to come—the All-Powerful!” —Revelation 1:8

“When I saw him I fell down at his feet as though I were dead, but he placed his right hand on me and said: ‘Do not be afraid! I am the first and the last, and the one who lives! I was dead, but look, now I am alive—forever and ever!’” —Revelation 1:17–18

“The Jewish leaders replied, “We are not going to stone you for a good deed but for blasphemy, because you, a man, are claiming to be God.” —John 10:33

In our verse for today, we see Jesus’ enemies attempting to justify their actions because of their zeal for the law. In an effort to gloss over their murderous ways, they set forth a false claim of blasphemy.

Their allegation was that Jesus claimed to be God. The problem was that what Christ had stated of Himself was true! He had said He was One with the Father. He had said He would give eternal life. We find Jesus giving a clear statement of His deity in Matthew:

“But Jesus was silent. The high priest said to him, ‘I charge you under oath by the living God, tell us if you are the Christ, the Son of God.’ Jesus said to him, ‘You have said it yourself. But I tell you, from now on you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Power and coming on the clouds of heaven.’ Then the high priest tore his clothes and declared, ‘He has blasphemed! Why do we still need witnesses? Now you have heard the blasphemy! What is your verdict?’ They answered, ‘He is guilty and deserves death.’ —Matthew 26:63–66

The fact that eluded these Jews was that Jesus was no ordinary man. While He was fully man, He was also fully God. Paul gives us an unrivaled description of our Messiah in Colossians:

“He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation, for all things in heaven and on earth were created in him—all things, whether visible or invisible, whether thrones or dominions, whether principalities or powers—all things were created through him and for him. He himself is before all things and all things are held together in him. He is the head of the body, the church, as well as the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that he himself may become first in all things. For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in the Son and through him to reconcile all things to himself by making peace through the blood of his cross—through him, whether things on earth or things in heaven.” —Colossians 1:15–20

“For in him all the fullness of deity lives in bodily form.” —Colossians 2:9

Paul also writes in Philippians:

“You should have the same attitude toward one another that Christ Jesus had, who though he existed in the form of God did not regard equality with God as something to be grasped, but emptied himself by taking on the form of a slave, by looking like other men, and by sharing in human nature. He humbled himself, by becoming obedient to the point of death—even death on a cross! As a result God highly exalted him and gave him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow—in heaven and on earth and under the earth—and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father.” —Philippians 2:5–11

The writer of Hebrews says:

“The Son is the radiance of his glory and the representation of his essence, and he sustains all things by his powerful word, and so when he had accomplished cleansing for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high.” —Hebrews 1:3

The Jewish leaders could not prove any evil against Jesus’ miraculous works and therefore clung to the shreds of the pretense of honoring the law. They did themselves great harm.

Become More

The Jewish leaders did not want to believe because they did not want to change. When confronted with the truth we must always do something with it—embrace and apply it or refute and deny it. What are you doing with the knowledge you have of the truth of who Jesus is?

Further Reflections

“As nothing is more courageous than a well-informed conscience, so nothing is more outrageous than a mistaken one.” —Matthew Henry

“The only Christ for whom there is a shred of evidence is a miraculous figure making stupendous claims.” —C. S. Lewis

“I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.” —John 10:11

Jesus is the good Shepherd—the chief of all shepherds. None so faithful, so gentle, so loving, so skillful, so tender, so kind as He. I am reminded of the words in Isaiah picturing God as the compassionate shepherd gently caring for His flock:

“Like a shepherd he tends his flock; he gathers up the lambs with his arm; he carries them close to his heart; he leads the ewes along.” —Isaiah 40:11

Certainly, King David’s twenty-third Psalm comes to mind as he writes of the abundant provisions of the Lord—his great shepherd:

“The LORD is my shepherd, I lack nothing.” —Psalm 23:1

“You prepare a feast before me in plain sight of my enemies. You refresh my head with oil; my cup is completely full.” —Psalm 23:5

Jesus, our good Shepherd, is both our sufficiency and our strength—withholding no good thing from His sheep. The psalmist proclaims:

“For the LORD God is our sovereign protector. The LORD bestows favor and honor; he withholds no good thing from those who have integrity. O LORD of Heaven’s Armies, how blessed are those who trust in you!” —Psalm 84:11–12

Jesus is the good Shepherd for all believers. He leads and guides and comforts and protects all the sheep of His pasture. This title would have been particularly rich in meaning to those following our Lord in His day. His hearers would have understood completely both the comfort and instruction the term carried. Just like a good shepherd, Jesus knows all of His sheep—each one of us. He is intimately familiar with the details of each one of our lives—knowing our names, families, circumstances, and trials. He is acquainted with our history, where we live, our experiences. Nothing is a surprise—or a secret—to Him. We are ever before Him as He tenderly watches over and guides us.

A few verses later in John 10, Jesus tells us that no one can snatch us out of His hand:

“My sheep listen to my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish; no one will snatch them from my hand.” —John 10:27–28

Jesus willingly laid down His life for His sheep. Aware that nothing but His blood could save us, He offered His body on the cross for our sins. He offers all for all. We are saved forevermore because the good shepherd died for us.

Become More

May Jesus’ death for us not be in vain. It will not profit us anything on the last day if we never heard His voice during our lifetime or followed Him. Paul tells us:

“Therefore we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were making his plea through us. We plead with you on Christ’s behalf, ‘Be reconciled to God!’ God made the one who did not know sin to be sin for us, so that in him we would become the righteousness of God.” —2 Corinthians 5:20–21

“Now because we are fellow workers, we also urge you not to receive the grace of God in vain. For he says, “I heard you at the acceptable time, and in the day of salvation I helped you.” Look, now is the acceptable time; look, now is the day of salvation!” —2 Corinthians 6:1–2

Further Reflections

“Like a good shepherd, Christ cares tenderly for all His believing people. He provides for all their wants in the wilderness of this world, and leads them by the right way to a city of habitation. He bears patiently with their many weaknesses and infirmities, and does not cast them off because they are wayward, erring, sick, footsore, or lame. He guards and protects them against all their enemies, as Jacob did the flock of Laban; and of those that the father has given Him He will be found at last to have lost none.” —J.C. Ryle

“He who counts the stars and calls them by their names is in no danger of forgetting His own children.” —Charles H. Spurgeon

“The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come so that they may have life, and may have it abundantly.” —John 10:10

One thing we can be sure of … Satan is our vicious adversary whose goal is to seek and to destroy. If he cannot keep us from being saved, he will strive to keep us from being used. He is ever seeking opportunities for his attacks. However, we are not to fear, but rather be on our guard! Satan desires to destroy us … but Jesus desires to give each one of us life! Peter tells us quite plainly:

“Be sober and alert. Your enemy the devil, like a roaring lion, is on the prowl looking for someone to devour. Resist him, strong in your faith, because you know that your brothers and sisters throughout the world are enduring the same kinds of suffering.” —1 Peter 5:8–9

Just as God has a wonderful plan for our lives, the Bible tells us Satan also has a plan for us, although his plan is for our destruction and death. We can be sure that whatever God does for our good, Satan tries to counter for our harm. God comes to bless and give life to the full while Satan comes to ravage and steal.

Peter tells us to “resist” Satan which is a term of defense rather than attack. Christians are able to stand firm against Satan when they depend totally upon the power of the Holy Spirit. We are even told to put on the full armor of God so that we can stand against Satan’s assaults. Paul writes in Ephesians:

“Finally, be strengthened in the Lord and in the strength of his power. Clothe yourselves with the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world rulers of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavens. For this reason, take up the full armor of God so that you may be able to stand your ground on the evil day, and having done everything, to stand.” —Ephesians 6:10–13

The word translated “scheme” in verse ten is from the Greek word methodeia meaning “method, the following or pursuing of an orderly and technical procedure in the handling of a subject” (Hebrew-Greek Key Word Study Bible New Testament Lexical Aids).

In other words, Satan is not random in his attempts to deceive man, he has a plan. And while he certainly is not omniscient, he does have the ability to do a careful study of our weaknesses. He seems to target his arrows at our most vulnerable areas or tries to breach our walls of self-defense.

Thankfully, we are sealed with the precious power of the Holy Spirit. It is important for us to strengthen our weakest areas. And there are times we must run away rather than remain lingering with our temptations. We are foolish indeed to give Satan any kind of foothold.

Proverbs 25:18 tells us: “Like a city that is broken down and without a wall, so is a person who cannot control his temper.”

In ancient times the power of the city rested in the strength of its walls. In like manner, the wall surrounding us is our self-control, and when it is breached, we will collapse. We are to be on our constant guard against our weaknesses and avoid putting ourselves in tempting situations.

Become More

Jesus tells us that He has not only come in order for us to have life but that we might have it abundantly. No half measures will do—He has come to overflow our lives!

“Now to him who by the power that is working within us is able to do far beyond all that we ask or think, to him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.” —Ephesians 3:20–21

Further Reflections

“Christ came to give life and something more, something better, life with advantage. Life in abundance is eternal life, life and much more.” —Matthew Henry

“You prepare a feast before me in plain sight of my enemies. You refresh my head with oil; my cup is completely full. Surely your goodness and faithfulness will pursue me all my days, and I will live in the Lord’s house for the rest of my life.”—Psalm 23:5–6

“Be thoroughly acquainted with your temptations and the things that may corrupt you.” —Richard Baxter

“Then Jesus said to those Judeans who had believed him, ‘If you continue to follow my teaching, you are really my disciples and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.’” —John 8:31–32

Jesus, the one who frees the captive. Jesus, the great liberator, sets us free from bondage—bondage to sin, bondage to self, bondage to death and destruction. Jesus breaks the strong chains of sin that blind and bind us. When we are not yoked to Jesus, we will find ourselves yoked to the things of this world. We are either bound to Him or we are bound to sin. That is why Jesus issues the following call to all to “come” and “learn.”

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke on you and learn from me, because I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy to bear, and my load is not hard to carry.” —Matthew 11:28–30

Isaiah had prophesied regarding this particular aspect of our Savior’s job description. Indeed, Jesus himself read from Isaiah’s scroll at the advent of His ministry (Matthew 5:11) claiming to be the freer of the prisoner and the preacher of the very good news:

“The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is upon me, because the LORD has chosen me. He has commissioned me to encourage the poor, to help the brokenhearted, to decree the release of captives, and the freeing of prisoners, to announce the year when the LORD will show his favor, the day when our God will seek vengeance, to console all who mourn.” —Isaiah 61:1–2

Jesus’ half-brother James gives us an even broader dimension to our verses for today. He echoes and emphasizes Jesus’ words regarding our knowing and demonstrating and continuing on in the truth.

“But be sure you live out the message and do not merely listen to it and so deceive yourselves. For if someone merely listens to the message and does not live it out, he is like someone who gazes at his own face in a mirror. For he gazes at himself and then goes out and immediately forgets what sort of person he was. But the one who peers into the perfect law of liberty—and fixes his attention there, and does not become a forgetful listener but one who lives it out he will be blessed in what he does.” —James 1:22–25

It is one thing to begin to follow our Savior and quite another to persevere—holding firmly to the end. Not considering the cost beforehand, sadly, many of Jesus’ disciples fell away when His teaching got tough … and still do today. We must remember heaven is our home, not earth, and our path to heaven is not always easy.

Become More

Christ came to give us freedom, liberty, privilege—the state in which one can act and move without restriction or hindrance. Believers in Christ are free when we hold to and follow His leading and teaching.

We are foolish indeed if we seek to divide Jesus from the word of truth, the Bible, God’s revealed will. We cannot compartmentalize Jesus from the Bible—seeking to elevate either one or the other. Jesus is the Word in the flesh. He came demonstrating to us the glorious revelation of God–full of grace and truth. He held God’s Word, the Law, in highest esteem. Jesus was the incarnation of God and His Word. He is the eternal expression of the divine intelligence and the disclosure of the divine essence.

Further Reflections

“Now the Word became flesh and took up residence among us. We saw his glory—the glory of the one and only, full of grace and truth, who came from the Father.” —John 1:14

“For freedom Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not be subject again to the yoke of slavery.” —Galatians 5:1