Treasures From John's Gospel - 10

Our Compassionate Savior

 

Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest.     Matt. 11:28

 

The Lord Jesus is grieved by the misery that sin brings to men and women who are caught in its grip. He met the woman of Samaria at a place where she felt most vulnerable – alone by the well where she should have been enjoying the friendship of other women. He approached her in grace with a message of freedom from sin's degradation. At the pool of Bethesda Jesus gave new life to a helpless man who knew he needed the strength of another, but could find no one to assist him. And to the blind beggar Jesus gave the gift of sight so he could see, and enjoy, the Light of the world.

 

Jesus found them; He granted them life and strength and light – this is His heart toward mankind.

 

We find another sinful woman, another helpless man and another blind man in the Gospel of Luke. However, this time Jesus did not go to them – they came to Him. Luke 7:36-50 records the story of a sinful woman who was so desperate to see Jesus that she went, uninvited, to a dinner at a Pharisee's house. Ordinarily she would avoid contact with the high and mighty Pharisees, but her sense of the Lord's grace made her bold. She poured her heart out to Jesus while pouring perfume onto His feet. Luke also tells of a paralyzed man who was lowered from the roof into a crowded house right in front of Jesus. Jesus recognized his faith and his need; He forgave the man's sins and strengthened his body (Luke 5:18-26). Finally, a blind beggar sitting by the roadside heard Jesus passing by and called out for mercy. Jesus heard the heart-cry of faith and gave the man sight (Luke 5:18-16).  

 

In Luke's gospel we see that sinners are welcome to come to the Savior – those who come, believing, find Him to be a willing Savior. John shows that Jesus does not always wait for us to recognize our need of Him. He is ready to come to us with a heart full of compassion – eager to free us from the misery of sin and to bring us into His rest.

 

. . .  the one who comes to Me I will certainly not cast out.     John  6:37b

 

You did not choose Me but I chose you . . .     John 15:16

‘Disciples of Moses’ vs The Blind Man

  'Disciples of Moses' vs The Blind Man

John 8:59 - 9:41

 

As Jesus walked away from the agitated religious leaders, He came upon a man who was blind from birth. We are all born with spiritual blindness – but the religious leaders of Jesus' day did not recognize their blindness. Entrenched in their religious traditions, they thought they were "Moses' disciples." 

 

Since a disciple is someone who learns from the life of another, we could ask, "What does Moses teach by his life?" In a nutshell: Moses attempted to avenge his people in Egypt using his own wisdom and strength (Ex 2:11-14).  God sent him to the desert for 40 years to empty him of his perceived abilities. At the end of those years Moses expressed his new, humble self when he balked at the mission the Lord presented to him (Exodus 4). Hebrews 11:24-28 tells us that Moses acted "by faith" in bringing the Hebrews out of Egypt; however, it is not a life of faith the Pharisees refer to when they say "we are disciples of Moses.' Instead, their lives demonstrate the same pride as the Israelites who presumed they could keep the law when they said, "All that the Lord has spoken, we will do" (Ex 19:8; 24:3). They were blind to the fact that no matter how good their intentions, or how hard they tried, they would not be able to please God by their own efforts.

 

Jesus was sent by the Father to give sight to those who are blinded by the world – and to those who are blinded by the religion of self-effort.  He continually dealt with the Jewish leaders because their religion kept them, and those they influenced, from responding to God in faith. They thought they could 'see,' but were spiritually blind. So blind were they, that they cast the man right into the presence of Lord because

Jesus heard they had cast him out . . . and He found him . . .     Jn 9:35

Manna in the Shape of Loaves and Fish

Manna in the Shape of Loaves and Fish

John 6:1-9

 

This crowd of hungry people – 5,000 men, plus women and children (Matthew 14:21) – brings to mind the Old Testament multitude settling down to life in the wilderness after they escaped the slavery of Egypt. In both situations, no food was naturally available to feed the hungry throng. John tells us that Jesus was testing the disciples (vs 6). Just as the Israelites of old were being schooled in the wilderness, the disciples are getting an education on the mountain.   

 

Isn't it true that when we face a problem, we immediately go into 'problem solving mode?'  That is exactly what Philip and Andrew did here. Philip does a quick calculation and concludes that they could never buy enough food for this crowd. Andrew locates some food – but states that, after all, it is minuscule, and of what use could it be? Would they realize that the Lord was their only resource?

 

How quickly do we recognize that there is nothing we can do and then turn to the One with all the resources of heaven?  We don't even see that we are making a choice to tackle the situation without Him. We see a problem and try to find a way to solve it while the Lord is standing by, waiting to reveal Himself to us in our troubles. We claim to belong to Him – saying that without Him we can do nothing – and yet treat Him as if He is both powerless and uncaring towards us.

 

The Jews in the wilderness, and the disciples on the mountain, picture the feeble heart of mankind. Those wilderness Jews, having just experienced God's power to free them from Egyptian bondage, even making a way for them  to cross the Red Sea on dry ground, could not find it in themselves to trust Him to feed them. Instead they complained. The disciples – having witnessed one miracle after another – had no thought that Jesus could, or would, provide for the hungry crowd without their help.

 

 Picture this: faith-filled wilderness Jews saying, "Wow, what will happen next? A God who can part the sea will surely provide food for us!" And the disciples, full of expectation,  saying, "Hey everyone take a seat, you're about to see something really spectacular – this is the Son of God!"

 

As with the disciples, difficulties expose the poverty of our faith, while at the same time they reveal the greatness of the resources in the Lord.    ~Hamilton Smith

Do You Want to Be Made Whole?

Do You Want to Be Made Whole?

John 5:1-16

 

The Law was given through Moses; grace and truth were realized through Jesus Christ.   John 1:17

 

An ailing man, confined to his pallet for 38 years, was enslaved by a disease that rendered him too weak to get up. His only hope was to be the first one into the pool when the angel stirred up the water – but he was absolutely incapable of accomplishing this feat. His 'hope' was no hope at all!

 

Jesus saw the man lying by the pool when He was in Jerusalem for a Jewish feast. He felt sympathy for the helpless man and asked him, "Do you want to become well?"  It seems odd that Jesus would ask a question with such an obvious answer; however, it allowed Jesus to make a most important point when the man revealed that he had the desire, but not the strength, to get into the pool.  

 

. . . the willing is present in me, but the doing of the good is not.   Rom. 7:18b

 

Jesus did not speak to this man about his corrupt nature, as He did with Nicodemus; nor did He expect him to realize that he was under the power of sin, as with the Samaritan woman. Jesus did not stress the importance of believing His word, as He had done with the nobleman. In this encounter the spotlight is on the man's absolute inability to act for himself. Generally, the infirmed man illustrates that mankind is powerless to overcome sin without help; and specifically, he represents the Jew who has repeatedly proven an inability to keep God's law.

 

What the Law could not do, weak as it was through the flesh, God did by sending His own Son. . . Rom. 8:3a

Sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under law but under grace.  Rom. 6:14

 

Do we truly understand the substance of God's grace? It is this: God sees our need and has sent His Son to meet it. He knows that our 'disease'(sin) will keep us from Him eternally and He is not willing for that to happen. The Lord's question to us is, "Do you want to be free from sin and its effects?" If we say yes, we must set aside all personal effort and receive everything Christ wants to give us for life and godliness.

 

His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness . . .  2Pet. 1:3a

A Dying Boy and a Living Faith

A Dying Boy and a Living Faith

John 4:45-54

We walk by faith, not by sight. 2Cor. 5:7

 

Jesus left the Samaritan community and returned to Cana of Galilee. The Galileans did not suspiciously question Jesus, like the Judeans; nor did they embrace Him as Savior like the Samaritans. They welcomed Him because they wanted to see more signs and wonders (vs 45). When the nobleman found Jesus, he begged Him to come to his house to heal his dying son. It seems as though this man was acting in faith, believing that Jesus could save the boy, but the Lord knows the man's heart and defines his motive for us when He says, "Unless you see signs and wonders you will not believe."

 

We need to compare the story of the Samaritans with this story in order to understand this reproof. What sign did the Samaritans see before they would believe that Jesus was their Savior? There was no sign – only His word about who He was. The woman was amazed that He knew everything about her, but this is not a sign. Some believed because of her story, but many more believed because of His own word (John 41). In contrast, the nobleman wants to see Jesus heal his son –  but Jesus will not accommodate him.

 

Even as the man repeats his request for Jesus to "come down" at once, the Lord tells him to go home –  "your son lives." Finally, the man believes because of the Lord's words, and goes his way. The word believe means that he put his confidence in the character, motives and ability of Jesus (W.E. Vine). However weak his faith might have been, the man put one foot in front of the other and started home. Before he arrived home his faith was further strengthened by the news that his son was healed. His whole household believed as well.

 

Wherever there is faith Jesus is ready to save the life of those who are ready to perish.  J.N. Darby

 

The boy was physically perishing because of sickness – and the household was spiritually perishing because of sin . . . until they put their confidence in Christ.

The River of Life Comes to Samaria

The River of Life Comes to Samaria

John 4:3-30

 

He who believes in the Son has eternal life [has it here and now and for eternity].      John 3:36 ATR

 

Late in the day, a woman goes to draw water in her town and she sees a man resting by the well. It is unusual to see anyone by the well at this time of day, for all the other women had come earlier to fill their water pots and socialize.  She avoided those women, knowing that they would not tarnish their reputations by even speaking to her – for she had been married five times and now lived with a man who was not her husband. Yet this Jewish man, began speaking to her.

 

He asked her for a drink – How odd! He didn't look down on her like the others, instead, He asked for her help. Then He spoke of living water – water bubbling up to permanently quench her thirst.  She wanted to avoid the well and the daily reminder of her humiliation, so she asked for this water. He began talking to her about her sinful life – but not in a way that made her feel low and rejected  – instead, she was drawn to Him, even as He exposed her sin.  She felt at ease in His presence, so she questioned Him about the proper place to worship.

 

This man told her that true worshipers will no longer worship the Father in a place, they will worship a Person. He said, I who speak to you am He. Living Water is a Person! A Person who would flood the dark wilderness of her heart with life – life here and now and for all eternity! She abandoned the task of drawing water for herself as she ran off to tell the townspeople that she had met the Savior.

 

Jesus had gone to the well to wait for the woman. He won her confidence at the same moment He exposed her sin – not to others – but to her own heart. He came into the world to meet with sinners; not to bludgeon them with their weakness and failure, but to win them with the promise of eternal life.

 

For of His fullness we have all received, and grace upon grace. John 1:16

Nicodemus – A Question Answered

Spiritual Treasure from John's Gospel

Nicodemus – A Question Answered

John 3:14-21

 

Nicodemus was told that he needed a new nature in order to be a part of God's kingdom. That naturally leads him to ask this question; "How does this come about?" (vs9)  Jesus didn't lecture Nicodemus about changing his distorted religious practices, nor did He speak of specific sins. He addressed the larger matter of the sin nature – the fallen nature that compels a man to cover himself with a fig leaf and run for the bushes when God comes calling. It is this nature that causes a man to love darkness because the light exposes the wilderness that exists in his heart. Still, Jesus doesn't force Nicodemus into the light, He invites him in. Nicodemus will be inclined to walk into the light if he understands that Jesus came to express the Father's love and to bring eternal life.

 

Jesus does mention condemnation and its result (man will perish) – but He focuses on what the Son has done so that man will not experience judgment (3:16-18). At the cross we see the awful wrath of God toward our sin at the very same moment we see His mercy and love, for "God so loved, that He gave. . ."   The Father sent His beloved Son to be lifted up on the cross so that the sinner will be lifted out of the corruption of his fleshly nature.  Jesus invites us into the light, for that is where we see our need for a savior and the gift of life He offers. Whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.

 

We live in a world that is estranged from God, but we can participate in the things of God as we habitually live in the light and practice the truth. As we do, the world will see that our deeds are rooted in dependence upon God (3:21) . . .

And His glory will be seen on earth!