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Therefore the Jews sought all the more to kill Him, because He not only broke the Sabbath, but also said that God was His Father, making Himself equal with God.
Then Jesus answered and said to them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, but what He sees the Father do; for whatever He does, the Son also does in like manner.
- For the Father loves the Son, and shows Him all things that He Himself does; and He will show Him greater works than these, that you may marvel.
- For as the Father raises the dead and gives life to them, even so the Son gives life to whom He will.
- For the Father judges no one, but has committed all judgment to the Son, that all should honour the Son just as they honour the Father.
He who does not honour the Son does not honour the Father who sent Him.
[John 5:18-23 NKJV]
Then Jesus answered and said to them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, but what He sees the Father do; for whatever He does, the Son also does in like manner.
- For the Father loves the Son, and shows Him all things that He Himself does; and He will show Him greater works than these, that you may marvel.
- For as the Father raises the dead and gives life to them, even so the Son gives life to whom He will.
- For the Father judges no one, but has committed all judgment to the Son, that all should honour the Son just as they honour the Father.
He who does not honour the Son does not honour the Father who sent Him.
[John 5:18-23 NKJV]
As the gospel story progresses, we can identify the growing tension caused by the lack of any understanding Jesus’ accusers had or were willing to have about the Word that He spoke. Why? They knew God only as an idea that gave them religion, whereas Jesus had a relationship with Father God.
Jesus explains the three things that Father God and The Son of God are, that proclaims both as worthy of honour.
The Son, as inheritor of The Father’s Divine wisdom and power, is the embodiment of The Holy Spirit, for God is Spirit. The earth was without form, and void; and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.
[Genesis 1:2 NKJV]
We — followers of Jesus Christ — are called to be ‘sons of God’ — For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. [Galatians 3:26 NKJV] — and so we must be ‘in Christ’ and Him alone to have the same relationship with Father God that Jesus had while on Earth.
Jesus’ point was that He and The Father were inseparable (one and the same) and that He was the only route to everlasting life ... and that He had to die and endure separation from Father God through the Cross of Calvary, to remove sin, so that everlasting life for us was sealed in Him.
Fortunately, Jesus put that more simply than I have done here. As mortals, we lack understanding of the immortal dormant within us. We need to lift our hearts Heavenwards to find the eternal reward. For that we need to honour The Father and The Son.
Jesus explains the three things that Father God and The Son of God are, that proclaims both as worthy of honour.
- Love (verse 20)
- Life (verse 21)
- Judgement (verse 22)
The Son, as inheritor of The Father’s Divine wisdom and power, is the embodiment of The Holy Spirit, for God is Spirit. The earth was without form, and void; and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.
[Genesis 1:2 NKJV]
We — followers of Jesus Christ — are called to be ‘sons of God’ — For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. [Galatians 3:26 NKJV] — and so we must be ‘in Christ’ and Him alone to have the same relationship with Father God that Jesus had while on Earth.
Jesus’ point was that He and The Father were inseparable (one and the same) and that He was the only route to everlasting life ... and that He had to die and endure separation from Father God through the Cross of Calvary, to remove sin, so that everlasting life for us was sealed in Him.
Fortunately, Jesus put that more simply than I have done here. As mortals, we lack understanding of the immortal dormant within us. We need to lift our hearts Heavenwards to find the eternal reward. For that we need to honour The Father and The Son.
Don’t waste time asking God to keep you from doing things—don’t do them!
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The Jews therefore said to him who was cured, "It is the Sabbath; it is not lawful for you to carry your bed."
He answered them, "He who made me well said to me, 'Take up your bed and walk.'"
Then they asked him, "Who is the Man who said to you, 'Take up your bed and walk'?" But the one who was healed did not know who it was, for Jesus had withdrawn, a multitude being in that place. Afterward Jesus found him in the temple, and said to him, "See, you have been made well. Sin no more, lest a worse thing come upon you."
The man departed and told the Jews that it was Jesus who had made him well.
For this reason the Jews persecuted Jesus, and sought to kill Him, because He had done these things on the Sabbath. But Jesus answered them, "My Father has been working until now, and I have been working."
Therefore the Jews sought all the more to kill Him, because He not only broke the Sabbath, but also said that God was His Father, making Himself equal with God.
[John 5:10-18 NKJV]
He answered them, "He who made me well said to me, 'Take up your bed and walk.'"
Then they asked him, "Who is the Man who said to you, 'Take up your bed and walk'?" But the one who was healed did not know who it was, for Jesus had withdrawn, a multitude being in that place. Afterward Jesus found him in the temple, and said to him, "See, you have been made well. Sin no more, lest a worse thing come upon you."
The man departed and told the Jews that it was Jesus who had made him well.
For this reason the Jews persecuted Jesus, and sought to kill Him, because He had done these things on the Sabbath. But Jesus answered them, "My Father has been working until now, and I have been working."
Therefore the Jews sought all the more to kill Him, because He not only broke the Sabbath, but also said that God was His Father, making Himself equal with God.
[John 5:10-18 NKJV]
We find from the outset of Jesus’ ministry that the Jewish authorities must have considered Him a threat to the established order. These verses do not make clear who exactly these Jews were, should we conclude therefore that those who spoke against Jesus were ordinary citizens like you or me?
We have already seen that Jesus Jesus found it necessary to leave Judea because He (or rather His disciples) were baptising many and had incurred the wrath of the Pharisees; and now He was healing people on the Sabbath — the day of rest. For such crime they sought to kill Him.
Jesus answer — that He was working; a similar response to that given in Luke 2:49 (And He said to them, “Why did you seek Me? Did you not know that I must be about My Father's business?”) — only exacerbates the problem and they ‘sought all the more to kill Him.’
Would it be any different today? We may like to believe that we would see the truth and recognise Him when He returns, but the likelihood is — if we held strongly to our personal beliefs about Him — that we might not. We must see Him as He is, not as we believe Him to be.
Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is.
[1 John 3:2 NKJV]
PRAYER: Lord, help us to see You as You really are — to recognise Your voice, Your presence and Your life in us. Let not doubt or fear come between us, Lord, and bring us to the certainty of knowing You as You really are. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
We have already seen that Jesus Jesus found it necessary to leave Judea because He (or rather His disciples) were baptising many and had incurred the wrath of the Pharisees; and now He was healing people on the Sabbath — the day of rest. For such crime they sought to kill Him.
Jesus answer — that He was working; a similar response to that given in Luke 2:49 (And He said to them, “Why did you seek Me? Did you not know that I must be about My Father's business?”) — only exacerbates the problem and they ‘sought all the more to kill Him.’
Would it be any different today? We may like to believe that we would see the truth and recognise Him when He returns, but the likelihood is — if we held strongly to our personal beliefs about Him — that we might not. We must see Him as He is, not as we believe Him to be.
Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is.
[1 John 3:2 NKJV]
PRAYER: Lord, help us to see You as You really are — to recognise Your voice, Your presence and Your life in us. Let not doubt or fear come between us, Lord, and bring us to the certainty of knowing You as You really are. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
You can never make yourself holy by external acts, but, if you are holy, your external acts will be the natural expression of holiness.
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Now there is in Jerusalem by the Sheep Gate a pool, which is called in Hebrew, Bethesda, having five porches.
In these lay a great multitude of sick people, blind, lame, paralyzed, waiting for the moving of the water.
For an angel went down at a certain time into the pool and stirred up the water; then whoever stepped in first, after the stirring of the water, was made well of whatever disease he had.
Now a certain man was there who had an infirmity thirty-eight years.
When Jesus saw him lying there, and knew that he already had been in that condition a long time, He said to him, “Do you want to be made well?”
The sick man answered 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.”
Jesus said to him, “Rise, take up your bed and walk.”
[John 5:2-8 NKJV]
In these lay a great multitude of sick people, blind, lame, paralyzed, waiting for the moving of the water.
For an angel went down at a certain time into the pool and stirred up the water; then whoever stepped in first, after the stirring of the water, was made well of whatever disease he had.
Now a certain man was there who had an infirmity thirty-eight years.
When Jesus saw him lying there, and knew that he already had been in that condition a long time, He said to him, “Do you want to be made well?”
The sick man answered 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.”
Jesus said to him, “Rise, take up your bed and walk.”
[John 5:2-8 NKJV]
‘Bethesda’ means ‘house of kindness’, ‘house of mercy’, or ‘flowing water’, and knowing this immediately takes us back to the encounter with the Samaritan woman in chapter 4. At Bethesda, we see that the waters have great healing properties, and yet here is a man, who it appears had suffered his infirmity for 38 years and was still unwell.
The King James Version describes the man as ‘impotent’ and that Jesus asks him “Wilt thou be made whole?” This wording encompasses a greater state than being made well. The word is the same*, but has been changed from whole to well, perhaps to reflect a more modern perspective.
‘Whole’ has more of a sense of completeness, of a perfect healing and of a return to be as God created. The angel that ‘stirred up the water’ suggests that the still waters in the Pool became the ‘flowing water’ of the name, and that this purification came from that stirring up and promoted healing — interestingly, only to the first to step into the water. This speaks of those who are seeking to be whole with everything in them ...
So he answered and said, “‘You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind,’ and ‘your neighbour as yourself.’ ”
[Luke 10:27 NKJV]
The man claimed that he was too infirm to get to the waters ahead of the others and no one to help him; but Jesus merely told the man to get up and walk. There was no fuss, no special touch, just a command. “Rise.” Jesus always goes right to the heart of the problem; and perhaps this man believed himself unwell; had convinced himself of his infirmities, and was filled with a spirit of self-pity. It seems so.
Jesus is with us today and if we trust in Him, every time we fall back on our own strength, or lack of it, and let the enemy begin to rule in us, all we need is a word from Jesus. And the word is ‘Rise!’
The King James Version describes the man as ‘impotent’ and that Jesus asks him “Wilt thou be made whole?” This wording encompasses a greater state than being made well. The word is the same*, but has been changed from whole to well, perhaps to reflect a more modern perspective.
‘Whole’ has more of a sense of completeness, of a perfect healing and of a return to be as God created. The angel that ‘stirred up the water’ suggests that the still waters in the Pool became the ‘flowing water’ of the name, and that this purification came from that stirring up and promoted healing — interestingly, only to the first to step into the water. This speaks of those who are seeking to be whole with everything in them ...
So he answered and said, “‘You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind,’ and ‘your neighbour as yourself.’ ”
[Luke 10:27 NKJV]
The man claimed that he was too infirm to get to the waters ahead of the others and no one to help him; but Jesus merely told the man to get up and walk. There was no fuss, no special touch, just a command. “Rise.” Jesus always goes right to the heart of the problem; and perhaps this man believed himself unwell; had convinced himself of his infirmities, and was filled with a spirit of self-pity. It seems so.
Jesus is with us today and if we trust in Him, every time we fall back on our own strength, or lack of it, and let the enemy begin to rule in us, all we need is a word from Jesus. And the word is ‘Rise!’
* g5199 ὑγιής hygiēs; meaning healthy, i.e. well (in body); figuratively, true (in doctrine): — sound, whole.
A God who did not know the last depth of sorrow and suffering would be a God “whom to be God is not fit.”
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Then they went into Capernaum, and immediately on the Sabbath He entered the synagogue and taught.
And they were astonished at His teaching, for He taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes.
[Mark 1:21-22 NKJV]
And they were astonished at His teaching, for He taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes.
[Mark 1:21-22 NKJV]
Jesus having ‘taught’ is mentioned in the gospels on 12 occasions — in the King James Version. It is “a perfect number, signifying perfection of government, or of governmental perfection”*, therefore, should we conclude from this that when Jesus teaches, He speaks ‘as one having authority’? Should we care?
Numerology in Scripture can be controversial — indeed it is easy for us to misinterpret its usage in the Bible, particularly so when looking at modern translations, which appear to pay little or no heed to the methods of understanding in those times. The argument goes that such things add nothing to Jesus’ teaching and that His words alone speak The Truth and need no interpretation.
We are to see that all of The Bible is ‘God-breathed’; meaning that the Spirit of God guided each writer or prophet to set down a clear line of authorship from above, ‘as one having authority.’ For us, it is The Holy Spirit leading ‘to all riches of the full assurance of understanding, to the knowledge of the mystery of God, both of the Father and of Christ’** that gives the authority of His authorship.
So, does the use of ‘taught’ indicate Jesus’ authority? Possibly not, but the mention of twelve disciples and that whenever that number changed — as after Judas Iscariot betrayed Jesus — the twelve were quickly re-established.
And they cast their lots, and the lot fell on Matthias. And he was numbered with the eleven apostles.
[Acts 1:26 NKJV]
Authority was restored ‘in Jesus’ name.’
Numerology in Scripture can be controversial — indeed it is easy for us to misinterpret its usage in the Bible, particularly so when looking at modern translations, which appear to pay little or no heed to the methods of understanding in those times. The argument goes that such things add nothing to Jesus’ teaching and that His words alone speak The Truth and need no interpretation.
We are to see that all of The Bible is ‘God-breathed’; meaning that the Spirit of God guided each writer or prophet to set down a clear line of authorship from above, ‘as one having authority.’ For us, it is The Holy Spirit leading ‘to all riches of the full assurance of understanding, to the knowledge of the mystery of God, both of the Father and of Christ’** that gives the authority of His authorship.
So, does the use of ‘taught’ indicate Jesus’ authority? Possibly not, but the mention of twelve disciples and that whenever that number changed — as after Judas Iscariot betrayed Jesus — the twelve were quickly re-established.
And they cast their lots, and the lot fell on Matthias. And he was numbered with the eleven apostles.
[Acts 1:26 NKJV]
Authority was restored ‘in Jesus’ name.’
* 12 is a perfect number, signifying perfection of government, or of governmental perfection. It is found as a multiple in all that has to do with rule. The sun which "rules" the day, and the moon and stars which "govern" the night, do so by their passage through the twelve signs of the Zodiac which completes the great circle of the heavens of 360 (12 x 30) degrees or divisions, and thus govern the year.
NUMBER IN SCRIPTURE by E W Bullinger
** Colossians 2:2 NKJV
We have judged our fellow men as sinners. If God should judge us like that we would be in hell. God judges us through the marvellous Atonement of Jesus Christ.
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Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God! Therefore the world does not know us, because it did not know Him.
Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is.
And everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself, just as He is pure.
[1 John 3:1-3 NKJV]
Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is.
And everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself, just as He is pure.
[1 John 3:1-3 NKJV]
Way back in August 2010 we were at a prayer meeting in Kilmartin and our pastor at that time, John Whitefield was moved by the Spirit to bring the most powerful prayer – concentrating on his heart for many out there in Argyll and in the nation – that they might come to know The Lord in His fullness. John ended in tears, such was the power of The Holy Spirit presence.
Gill said that she felt The LORD himself was present – and that He too was weeping. And I believe that is why John wept that day – he had such a closeness with the Spirit in that moment that The LORD's grieving moved him, and soon moved others too. John was 'being as He is'.
This, I believe is what The LORD wants of us – a heart after His; to be so in tune with His desire and purpose, that He and we become indistinguishable in the Spirit. It is of lesser importance whether the LORD moves sovereignly to change the hearts and minds of all across Scotland. In a sense, that is not our problem; He wants us to completely identify with Him so that His purpose becomes ours also, in that “Here am I! Send me” moment.*
He wants us to come before Him, with hearts attuned to His purpose – with hearts aching for Kingdom life – with everything in us travailling, afflicted with grief for the very things HE desires. He wants us on our knees, tears pouring down our cheeks at a failing and fallen creation, warring in the heavenlies against the oppressive powers of darkness, [for in these last days 'men shall become lovers of themselves'**] – just as He is doing.
But He wants us to come to that place of broken- ness willingly – just as 'the lost' have to willingly turn their backs on all they are wedded to. He wants us close, but it is on His terms. His way, His truth, His life – and we must BE AS HE IS. We must have those 'Be' attitudes.
We know that we cannot do it ourselves, but we must give ourselves to Him to let Him work it all in us — the aim is that we will all be as He is.
Gill said that she felt The LORD himself was present – and that He too was weeping. And I believe that is why John wept that day – he had such a closeness with the Spirit in that moment that The LORD's grieving moved him, and soon moved others too. John was 'being as He is'.
This, I believe is what The LORD wants of us – a heart after His; to be so in tune with His desire and purpose, that He and we become indistinguishable in the Spirit. It is of lesser importance whether the LORD moves sovereignly to change the hearts and minds of all across Scotland. In a sense, that is not our problem; He wants us to completely identify with Him so that His purpose becomes ours also, in that “Here am I! Send me” moment.*
He wants us to come before Him, with hearts attuned to His purpose – with hearts aching for Kingdom life – with everything in us travailling, afflicted with grief for the very things HE desires. He wants us on our knees, tears pouring down our cheeks at a failing and fallen creation, warring in the heavenlies against the oppressive powers of darkness, [for in these last days 'men shall become lovers of themselves'**] – just as He is doing.
But He wants us to come to that place of broken- ness willingly – just as 'the lost' have to willingly turn their backs on all they are wedded to. He wants us close, but it is on His terms. His way, His truth, His life – and we must BE AS HE IS. We must have those 'Be' attitudes.
- BE = rest in Him
- AS = the same; perfect, holy and complete
- HE = our LORD Jesus, The Christ
- IS = as He manifests to us, His presence, now, this instant, before our very eyes and spirits. = Rest in Him now.
We know that we cannot do it ourselves, but we must give ourselves to Him to let Him work it all in us — the aim is that we will all be as He is.
* Isaiah 6:8
** 2 Timothy 3:1-2
** 2 Timothy 3:1-2
If you cannot express yourself on any subject, struggle till you can. You must struggle to get expression experimentally, then there will come a time when that expression will become the very wine of strengthening to someone else. Try to re-state to yourself what you implicitly feel to be God’s truth, and you give God a chance to pass it on to someone else through you.
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Have I not commanded you? Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.”
[Joshua 1:9 NKJV]
[Joshua 1:9 NKJV]
There is an amazing reassurance in these words from the book of Joshua. And yet we can so often doubt the veracity of what is said here. He is with each one of us ‘wherever’.
Do I believe this? Even more, do I recognise the truth of this in my life? I should do. Many is the time that I have said (or sang) to myself “How Great Thou Art”, only for that spirit of anxiety to come charging back in as soon as I take my eyes off Him.
But The Lord is faithful — more so to me than I am to Him — and He steps into the midst of me, gently guiding ‘me’ out of ‘His’ way, so to speak.
In short, as I ‘go on with Him’, I am getting better at recognising my problem areas; quicker to turn to Him. And you can readily identify my problem if you study what I have written thus far. The single-letter word ‘I’ has occurred 9 times (10 if you include it in this sentence), and reveals the focus of attention; on myself. He is training me — and we — to swing that equation the other way round.
One way that He does that — and He has many ways, for He is ‘The Way’ — is to direct us to His word. The Psalms particularly offer ‘the road to freedom’ and Psalm 27 is one of my favourites. Here are the first five verses:
Do I believe this? Even more, do I recognise the truth of this in my life? I should do. Many is the time that I have said (or sang) to myself “How Great Thou Art”, only for that spirit of anxiety to come charging back in as soon as I take my eyes off Him.
But The Lord is faithful — more so to me than I am to Him — and He steps into the midst of me, gently guiding ‘me’ out of ‘His’ way, so to speak.
In short, as I ‘go on with Him’, I am getting better at recognising my problem areas; quicker to turn to Him. And you can readily identify my problem if you study what I have written thus far. The single-letter word ‘I’ has occurred 9 times (10 if you include it in this sentence), and reveals the focus of attention; on myself. He is training me — and we — to swing that equation the other way round.
One way that He does that — and He has many ways, for He is ‘The Way’ — is to direct us to His word. The Psalms particularly offer ‘the road to freedom’ and Psalm 27 is one of my favourites. Here are the first five verses:
The LORD is my light and my salvation;
Whom shall I fear?
The LORD is the strength of my life;
Of whom shall I be afraid?
When the wicked came against me
To eat up my flesh,
My enemies and foes,
They stumbled and fell.
Though an army may encamp against me,
My heart shall not fear;
Though war may rise against me,
In this I will be confident.
One thing I have desired of the LORD,
That will I seek:
That I may dwell in the house of the LORD
All the days of my life,
To behold the beauty of the LORD,
And to inquire in His temple.
For in the time of trouble
He shall hide me in His pavilion;
In the secret place of His tabernacle
He shall hide me;
He shall set me high upon a rock.
[Psalm 27:1-5 NKJV]
Whom shall I fear?
The LORD is the strength of my life;
Of whom shall I be afraid?
When the wicked came against me
To eat up my flesh,
My enemies and foes,
They stumbled and fell.
Though an army may encamp against me,
My heart shall not fear;
Though war may rise against me,
In this I will be confident.
One thing I have desired of the LORD,
That will I seek:
That I may dwell in the house of the LORD
All the days of my life,
To behold the beauty of the LORD,
And to inquire in His temple.
For in the time of trouble
He shall hide me in His pavilion;
In the secret place of His tabernacle
He shall hide me;
He shall set me high upon a rock.
[Psalm 27:1-5 NKJV]
Saturday 6th March 2021
The only simplicity there is, is a simplicity of life which is true to Jesus, not to a theory about Him (2 Corinthians 11:3). You cannot tie yourself up in anything logically consistent.
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But He knows the way that I take; when He has tested me, I shall come forth as gold.
My foot has held fast to His steps; I have kept His way and not turned aside.
[Job 23:10-11 NKJV]
My foot has held fast to His steps; I have kept His way and not turned aside.
[Job 23:10-11 NKJV]
The Book of Job is said to be one of the oldest, if not the oldest book in the Bible. It tells of the relationship between God and man in a unique way, and rewards our study by aiding our understanding exactly because of that different perspective.
The story is told in the main, as a form of philosophical debate between Job and three others, often referred to as Job’s ‘comforters’, although surely that description is ironic as these three debaters are anything but comforting at times.
Our verses here come a little over half way through the book as Job answers the accusation of wickedness by Eliphaz the Temanite. Job asserts that God is all righteousness and that though he cannot see God; he looks for Him and it seems that He is not there, yet ‘He knows the way that I take.’
There is an integrity about Job. His belief in God and his trusting of Him — despite the trials and great testing that threaten to overwhelm him — reveal a man of faith.
Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
For by it the elders obtained a good testimony.
By faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that the things which are seen were not made of things which are visible.
[Hebrews 11:1-3 NKJV]
Because of his faith, Job has followed the way of The Lord. In many ways, Job has had huge misfortune piled upon him, yet he wavers not. He has been on the road to Antioch, Iconium and Lystra; ‘’persecutions, afflictions, which happened to me at Antioch, at Iconium, at Lystra—what persecutions I endured. And out of them all the Lord delivered me.”
[2 Timothy 3:11]
These places speak of being thrown about by the winds of misfortune, captured by the appeal of idolatry and having to pay the price. All works that God allows Satan to do.
And the LORD said to Satan, “Behold, all that he has is in your power; only do not lay a hand on his person.”
[Job 1:11 NKJV].
This is crucial. Satan cannot ‘lay a hand’ upon your person. We should rejoice in this curb on the devil’s power — he is really in chains. The quote below says as much. And remember that our Lord takes us ‘a way we would not go’ by our own choosing.
The story is told in the main, as a form of philosophical debate between Job and three others, often referred to as Job’s ‘comforters’, although surely that description is ironic as these three debaters are anything but comforting at times.
Our verses here come a little over half way through the book as Job answers the accusation of wickedness by Eliphaz the Temanite. Job asserts that God is all righteousness and that though he cannot see God; he looks for Him and it seems that He is not there, yet ‘He knows the way that I take.’
There is an integrity about Job. His belief in God and his trusting of Him — despite the trials and great testing that threaten to overwhelm him — reveal a man of faith.
Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
For by it the elders obtained a good testimony.
By faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that the things which are seen were not made of things which are visible.
[Hebrews 11:1-3 NKJV]
Because of his faith, Job has followed the way of The Lord. In many ways, Job has had huge misfortune piled upon him, yet he wavers not. He has been on the road to Antioch, Iconium and Lystra; ‘’persecutions, afflictions, which happened to me at Antioch, at Iconium, at Lystra—what persecutions I endured. And out of them all the Lord delivered me.”
[2 Timothy 3:11]
These places speak of being thrown about by the winds of misfortune, captured by the appeal of idolatry and having to pay the price. All works that God allows Satan to do.
And the LORD said to Satan, “Behold, all that he has is in your power; only do not lay a hand on his person.”
[Job 1:11 NKJV].
This is crucial. Satan cannot ‘lay a hand’ upon your person. We should rejoice in this curb on the devil’s power — he is really in chains. The quote below says as much. And remember that our Lord takes us ‘a way we would not go’ by our own choosing.
“I have chosen you.” Keep that note of greatness in your creed. It is not that you have got God, but that He has got you. Why is God at work in me, bending, breaking, moulding, doing just as He chooses?—for one purpose only—that He may be able to say, “This is My man, My woman.”
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Therefore the LORD has recompensed me according to my righteousness,
According to the cleanness of my hands in His sight.
With the merciful You will show Yourself merciful;
With a blameless man You will show Yourself blameless;
With the pure You will show Yourself pure;
And with the devious You will show Yourself shrewd.
For You will save the humble people, But will bring down haughty looks.
For You will light my lamp; The LORD my God will enlighten my darkness.
[Psalm 18:24-28 NKJV]
According to the cleanness of my hands in His sight.
With the merciful You will show Yourself merciful;
With a blameless man You will show Yourself blameless;
With the pure You will show Yourself pure;
And with the devious You will show Yourself shrewd.
For You will save the humble people, But will bring down haughty looks.
For You will light my lamp; The LORD my God will enlighten my darkness.
[Psalm 18:24-28 NKJV]
As a pause in our study of John’s gospel, we feel The Lord’s guidance to explore some thoughts in another direction. Below, you will find a word from Oswald Chambers’ “Devotions For A Deeper Life” for today.
My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me (John 10:27).
It is not what a Christian utters in public prayer, preaches from the pulpit, or writes on paper that determines God’s attitude and relation to him; it is what he says in his heart, which God alone can hear. This determines the believer’s relationship with God.
Many people talk glibly about stupendous truths that they believe. But the Lord has never talked to them in the stillness of the dark and lonely moments of solitude, when only His voice gives light to see and understand. Remember this: The Lord never gives private illumination to favoured Christians. God’s way of communication descends from divine illumination through His Word, for the development of spiritual character in His saints. Yet the Lord speaks, definitely and persuasively, to those who care to listen. At first we may not hear the Lord’s voice because our spiritual ears are untrained to detect it above the tumult and noise of the dark circumstances of our lives. But once we learn His voice, the finest of earth’s voices are never again mistaken for the voice of the Lord.
PRAYER THOUGHT: Lord God, I have heard Your voice many times. It is always a source of strength to me.
Oswald Chambers: DEVOTIONS FOR A DEEPER LIFE.
Grousing destroys generosity like a moth does a garment, slowly but completely.
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So Jesus came again to Cana of Galilee where He had made the water wine. And there was a certain nobleman whose son was sick at Capernaum. When he heard that Jesus had come out of Judea into Galilee, he went to Him and implored Him to come down and heal his son, for he was at the point of death. Then Jesus said to him, “Unless you people see signs and wonders, you will by no means believe.”
The nobleman said to Him, “Sir, come down before my child dies!”
Jesus said to him, “Go your way; your son lives.” So the man believed the word that Jesus spoke to him, and he went his way. And as he was now going down, his servants met him and told him, saying, “Your son lives!”
Then he inquired of them the hour when he got better. And they said to him, “Yesterday at the seventh hour the fever left him.” So the father knew that it was at the same hour in which Jesus said to him, “Your son lives.” And he himself believed, and his whole household.
This again is the second sign Jesus did when He had come out of Judea into Galilee.
[John 4:46-54 NKJV]
The nobleman said to Him, “Sir, come down before my child dies!”
Jesus said to him, “Go your way; your son lives.” So the man believed the word that Jesus spoke to him, and he went his way. And as he was now going down, his servants met him and told him, saying, “Your son lives!”
Then he inquired of them the hour when he got better. And they said to him, “Yesterday at the seventh hour the fever left him.” So the father knew that it was at the same hour in which Jesus said to him, “Your son lives.” And he himself believed, and his whole household.
This again is the second sign Jesus did when He had come out of Judea into Galilee.
[John 4:46-54 NKJV]
This is Jesus’ second miracle at Cana* in Galilee**. Jesus has passed through Samaria (watch mountain) travelling from Judea (He shall be praised), on His way to Galilee. We can see from the definitions below that Cana and Galilee have significant names to point us in the right way of understanding.
You will see a great variety of infections in most Hebrew words, and we can see how certain meanings are derived. Cana implies upright and righteous, and Galilee strongly suggests trust.
It would take too long to go into a precise explanation word by word, but I hope that we can see that by following Jesus on His journey, that He is taking us from praising the Lord when we are born again in Judea, through the watchfulness and discernment of the Holy Spirit and learning of ‘the rivers of living water’ in Samaria to our landing at the place of light and righteousness and trust at Cana in Galilee.
The more we look at scripture, the greater the depths we are shown. Three times the nobleman encounters the words “your son lives.” — and we witness a wonderful healing miracle. We see that when the nobleman believed — and trusted — Jesus, his son was freed from the bondage of sickness.
How often when we pray for healing do we trust and believe — or do we expect great signs and wonders? Most of The Lord’s miracles — now as it was then — are performed quietly and unseen by the eyes of men. Jesus is not a showman. He doesn’t need to be. He just needs us to be upright and trusting; He will do the rest.
You will see a great variety of infections in most Hebrew words, and we can see how certain meanings are derived. Cana implies upright and righteous, and Galilee strongly suggests trust.
It would take too long to go into a precise explanation word by word, but I hope that we can see that by following Jesus on His journey, that He is taking us from praising the Lord when we are born again in Judea, through the watchfulness and discernment of the Holy Spirit and learning of ‘the rivers of living water’ in Samaria to our landing at the place of light and righteousness and trust at Cana in Galilee.
The more we look at scripture, the greater the depths we are shown. Three times the nobleman encounters the words “your son lives.” — and we witness a wonderful healing miracle. We see that when the nobleman believed — and trusted — Jesus, his son was freed from the bondage of sickness.
How often when we pray for healing do we trust and believe — or do we expect great signs and wonders? Most of The Lord’s miracles — now as it was then — are performed quietly and unseen by the eyes of men. Jesus is not a showman. He doesn’t need to be. He just needs us to be upright and trusting; He will do the rest.
* h7070. קָנֶה qâneh; from 7069; a reed (as erect); by resemblance a rod (especially for measuring), shaft, tube, stem, the radius (of the arm), beam (of a steelyard): — balance, bone, branch, calamus, cane, reed, x spearman, stalk. reed, stalk, bone, balances, stalk, water-plant, reed, calamus (aromatic reed) derived meanings measuring-rod, reed (as unit of measure - 6 cubits), beam (of scales - for scales themselves), shaft (of lampstand), branches (of lampstand), shoulder-joint
** h1556. גָּלַל g̱âlal; a primitive root; to roll (literally or figuratively): — commit, remove, roll (away, down, together), run down, seek occasion, trust, wallow.
A man is never the same after he has seen Jesus Christ. We are to be judged by our immortal moments.
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In the meantime His disciples urged Him, saying, “Rabbi, eat.”
But He said to them, “I have food to eat of which you do not know.”
Therefore the disciples said to one another, “Has anyone brought Him anything to eat?”
Jesus said to them, “My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me, and to finish His work.
Do you not say, ‘There are still four months and then comes the harvest’? Behold, I say to you, lift up your eyes and look at the fields, for they are already white for harvest!
And he who reaps receives wages, and gathers fruit for eternal life, that both he who sows and he who reaps may rejoice together.
For in this the saying is true: ‘One sows and another reaps.’
I sent you to reap that for which you have not laboured; others have laboured, and you have entered into their labours.”
[John 4:31-38 NKJV]
But He said to them, “I have food to eat of which you do not know.”
Therefore the disciples said to one another, “Has anyone brought Him anything to eat?”
Jesus said to them, “My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me, and to finish His work.
Do you not say, ‘There are still four months and then comes the harvest’? Behold, I say to you, lift up your eyes and look at the fields, for they are already white for harvest!
And he who reaps receives wages, and gathers fruit for eternal life, that both he who sows and he who reaps may rejoice together.
For in this the saying is true: ‘One sows and another reaps.’
I sent you to reap that for which you have not laboured; others have laboured, and you have entered into their labours.”
[John 4:31-38 NKJV]
Fields are a type of the world. We have heard of those called to ‘the mission fields’, and what is a field but land which is ready to receive seed to bring about new growth and be a provision for the season ahead.
This allusion allows Jesus to talk of The Law of Sowing and Reaping — one of the big four ‘immutable laws’*. He tells us clearly here what the world (the field) is like. ‘One sows and another reaps.’, He says. We can see that He sowed seed with the Samaritan woman at the well, and reaped a harvest when other Samaritans heard of Him from her.
And many more believed because of His own word.
Then they said to the woman, “Now we believe, not because of what you said, for we ourselves have heard Him and we know that this is indeed the Christ, the Saviour of the world.”
[John 4:41-42 NKJV]
He sows the seed in us that we might bear fruit — and that fruit is passing on as seed to others, that they also may bear fruit. This is not our work; this is entirely and completely Jesus at work; we are mere vessels witnessing to His message. There will be a harvest, and we benefit from this amazing gift.
Jesus asks us to ‘look at the fields’; see the prophetic truth of His mission. Those fields are ‘already white for harvest!’; brilliant with the light of those coming to see the purity and holiness of The Lord.
This allusion allows Jesus to talk of The Law of Sowing and Reaping — one of the big four ‘immutable laws’*. He tells us clearly here what the world (the field) is like. ‘One sows and another reaps.’, He says. We can see that He sowed seed with the Samaritan woman at the well, and reaped a harvest when other Samaritans heard of Him from her.
And many more believed because of His own word.
Then they said to the woman, “Now we believe, not because of what you said, for we ourselves have heard Him and we know that this is indeed the Christ, the Saviour of the world.”
[John 4:41-42 NKJV]
He sows the seed in us that we might bear fruit — and that fruit is passing on as seed to others, that they also may bear fruit. This is not our work; this is entirely and completely Jesus at work; we are mere vessels witnessing to His message. There will be a harvest, and we benefit from this amazing gift.
Jesus asks us to ‘look at the fields’; see the prophetic truth of His mission. Those fields are ‘already white for harvest!’; brilliant with the light of those coming to see the purity and holiness of The Lord.
* The main 4 Immutable Spiritual Laws (unchanging principles) in scripture are:
- The Law of Forgiveness
- The Law of Judgement
- The Law of Sowing and Reaping
- The Law of Idolatry
1 - Sowing the seed by the dawn-light fair,
Sowing the seed by the noonday glare,
Sowing the seed by the fading light,
Sowing the seed in the solemn night:
O what shall the harvest be?
Refrain:
Sown in the darkness or sown in the light,
Sown in our weakness or sown in our might,
Gathered in time or eternity,
Sure, ah! sure, will the harvest be.
2 - Sowing the seed by the wayside high,
Sowing the seed on the rocks to die,
Sowing the seed where the thorns will spoil,
Sowing the seed in the fertile soil:
O what shall the harvest be?
3 - Sowing the seed with an aching heart,
Sowing the seed while the tear-drops start,
Sowing in hope, till the reapers come,
Gladly to gather the harvest home:
O what shall the harvest be?
Sowing the seed by the noonday glare,
Sowing the seed by the fading light,
Sowing the seed in the solemn night:
O what shall the harvest be?
Refrain:
Sown in the darkness or sown in the light,
Sown in our weakness or sown in our might,
Gathered in time or eternity,
Sure, ah! sure, will the harvest be.
2 - Sowing the seed by the wayside high,
Sowing the seed on the rocks to die,
Sowing the seed where the thorns will spoil,
Sowing the seed in the fertile soil:
O what shall the harvest be?
3 - Sowing the seed with an aching heart,
Sowing the seed while the tear-drops start,
Sowing in hope, till the reapers come,
Gladly to gather the harvest home:
O what shall the harvest be?
The secret of our inefficiency for God is that we do not believe what He tells us about prayer. Prayer is not rational but Redemptive. Little books of prayer are full of “buts.” The New Testament says that God will answer prayer every time. The point is not—“will you believe?” but “will I, who know Jesus Christ, believe on your behalf?” (see 1 John 5:14–16).