Responding to Jesus

 

 

READ John 1-4

When I became a Christian, my sister told me to read John’s gospel five times, then the book of Romans twice. Prior to that, I’d read the Bible for years, but without understanding it. This was the first thing that God helped me understand:

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.” (John 1:1–6)

Even though many deny it or debate it, and one of the cults puts “a god” in the first sentence without knowing there is not an ‘a’ in the Greek language, I know this is true; Jesus is God.

What follows deeply convinces me that John had it right. Those who believe it experience a great change — God gives them the right (meaning authority) to become His children (John 1:12–13) through what Jesus later calls a new birth. But before that, John explains much more about the identity of Jesus. He says, “The Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth”  and “No one has ever seen God; the only God, who is at the Father’s side, he has made him known.” (John 1:14,18)

This Jesus is God in human flesh. The Father is God, the Son is God, and later he will write about the Holy Spirit who is God. No wonder John said, “I baptize with water, but among you stands one you do not know, even he who comes after me, the strap of whose sandal I am not worthy to untie . . .  And I have seen and have borne witness that this is the Son of God.” (John 1:26–27, 34)

Soon Jesus gets to work. He calls the first disciples, then does a sign that reveals His power and affirms His identity — He turns water into wine. From there He went into the temple and drove out the money-changers who had invaded this place of worship instead of staying outside where they were allowed.

The Jews questioned everything Jesus did. He told them, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up” speaking about the temple of his body. They didn’t get it nor did the disciples until after He rose from the dead. Little wonder that Jesus did not entrust Himself to others at this time. He knew their hearts.

He also knew their need to be reborn, an act of God that would open their eyes and make it possible for them to enter the kingdom He would establish. He told a religious leader:

“Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God . . . unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.” (John 3:3, 5)

His explain further, words that are plain to those who have experienced that rebirth:

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God. And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil.” (John 3:16–19)

Soon Jesus repeats His invitation: “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him.” (John 3:36)

Jesus takes this message of eternal life to a Samaritan woman at a well (Jewish men did not speak to women or Samaritans) and said to her, “Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty again. The water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” (John 4:13–14) She responded and ran to tell others she had found the Messiah.

John then reports a second sign: Jesus heals a sick boy and his father “believed, and all his household.” (John 4:52–53)

My summary is patchy but even this quick review points to a mystery: how could anyone want to cling to sin and dismiss this incredible Man who is God who saves us from sin? He came to earth because God loves us and wants us to know Him. How can so many reject Him, even curse Him, as if He is their biggest problem? What a strange and sad reaction to a sinless and powerful Savior.

 

Finally, God speaks

 

READ Job 38-42

After disaster upon disaster and total silence from God and after severe accusations from his ‘friends’ Job finally hears from God. His words are a challenge, a description of His power and knowledge. Job realizes that his knowledge of God falls short. He never denied Him, but he realizes that some of what he declared was incomplete and fell short. Unlike his friends, Job realizes his mistake and takes responsibly for it.

Then Job answered the Lord and said: “I know that you can do all things, and that no purpose of yours can be thwarted. ‘Who is this that hides counsel without knowledge?’ Therefore I have uttered what I did not understand, things too wonderful for me, which I did not know. ‘Hear, and I will speak; I will question you, and you make it known to me.’ I had heard of you by the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees you; therefore I despise myself, and repent in dust and ashes.” (Job 42:1–6)

Repentance is key, not only to forgiveness and restoration, but to further understanding of our sin and its power, and of God’s person and work. Job knew God knew the answers, but he needed to ‘see’ the answers by hearing them from the mouth of God.

I must say that hearing truth from preachers, theologians, books and all other sources can fill my head with the knowledge of God, but it is only when God Himself speaks directly to me that I really get it, really understand who He is. Of course obedience must follow. This is the value of personal Bible study; it takes what I have in my head about God and puts it into my heart. Like Job, and with or without disasters, this requires persistence, yet it also means that God must speak. I need to open His book as well as my heart so I can hear Him.

Repentance is key also to hearing. Job’s heart was already moving that way because he was quick to respond to God in sorrow for some of what he had said, unlike his ‘friends’ who were far from admitting their errors. However, after God declared that Job had said and done rightly (perhaps referring to his repentance rather than all his speeches), God spoke to them too:

After the Lord had spoken these words to Job, the Lord said to Eliphaz the Temanite: “My anger burns against you and against your two friends, for you have not spoken of me what is right, as my servant Job has. Now therefore take seven bulls and seven rams and go to my servant Job and offer up a burnt offering for yourselves. And my servant Job shall pray for you, for I will accept his prayer not to deal with you according to your folly. For you have not spoken of me what is right, as my servant Job has.” So Eliphaz the Temanite and Bildad the Shuhite and Zophar the Naamathite went and did what the Lord had told them, and the Lord accepted Job’s prayer. (Job 42:7–9)

Note that their forgiveness hinged on Job’s forgiveness. He must pray for them so God would show mercy to them and Job could not do that if he refused to forgive them. This is important for me as I pray for those who presently oppose God and/or wrongly accuse me. I’m to forgive, not hold any thoughts of retaliation or harm.

After God spoke and Job admits his shortfall and prayed for his adversaries, the Lord restored his fortunes and gave him twice what he’d had before. And the Lord blessed the latter days of Job more than his beginning. And he had 14,000 sheep, 6,000 camels, 1,000 yoke of oxen, and 1,000 female donkeys. He had also seven sons and three daughters . . .  And after this Job lived 140 years, and saw his sons, and his sons’ sons, four generations. (Job 42:12-16)

Did Satan turn tail and blush in embarrassment? Unlikely, yet this wonderful event points my heart forward to Calvary, the reason for our faith. God the Son died there that we could be redeemed, forgiven, promised all that God can give us . . . but not only that, this is where this accuser of God’s people, the liar and destroyer, was defeated. He moves about something like a chicken with its head cut off, but his end has been secured by Jesus Christ, the author and completer of our faith. All praise to God for a faith that stands every test!