Jesus Cares

John 14:16-18 KJV

And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever; [17] Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you. [18] I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you.

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Jesus cares for the disciples. It is almost time for Jesus to depart and his care is for those who will be left behind. Jesus promises to pray for another comforter. He is addressing their abandonment issues when he says this comforter will stay forever. In everything Jesus says, he is tending to the hearts of his men.

Jesus was not only Lord to these men, but he was also a friend and a brother. He loved them as we love our family. The world would soon seem to be on their shoulders and Jesus promises to help. He promises this comforter will be the Spirit of Truth. He assures them this is not available to people outside of Christ. This is a special endowment for the church.

And like the early church fathers, there is an endowment for us today as well. The Spirit of Truth lives inside us. Jesus wanted to reassure his disciples he would be with them again. He identifies himself as the Spirit of Truth that brings comfort in the last line of the text, “I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you.”

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Lord, please bring your truth and your comfort to my life. Thank you for dwelling in me and giving me an inheritance with the saints. I receive your comfort and rejoice that you are so near. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Jesus is the Way

John 14:1-4 WEB

“Don’t let your heart be troubled. Believe in God. Believe also in me. [2] In my Father’s house are many homes. If it weren’t so, I would have told you. I am going to prepare a place for you. [3] If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and will receive you to myself; that where I am, you may be there also. [4] Where I go, you know, and you know the way.”

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Jesus was about to return to the Father. Jesus understood and believed that if anyone trusted him, that person would also trust God. In this passage, Jesus makes himself equal to God. He challenges his disciples to believe in God and believe in him. In this way, he makes himself equal to the Father. His disciples have been with him for 3 years learning all he taught. Now the disciples’ job is to believe Jesus.

Jesus was going to the Father, and he was going to prepare a place for the disciples and all believers. He said that the disciples knew the way to where he was going. At this point in the journey, the disciples do not know where Jesus is going. Still, he tells them they know the way. He is referring to himself. Jesus is the way. All he taught, all the love he showed, and all the wisdom he demonstrated were to be duplicated in the life of the disciples. By keeping Jesus’ teachings, the disciples would be on the way to Jesus.

But knowing the way to Jesus is not our guarantee of a home in heaven. Believing Jesus is the way to heaven. And still, Jesus is leaving nothing to chance. He says he will come back and get us. All we must do to be ready is to believe in Jesus. Believing in Jesus guarantees he will come and take us to where he is. Once in heaven, we will be judged. Some will come through the judgment and have entry into heaven as their reward. Others, who obeyed with love will receive greater rewards. They will enter heaven and have an eternity to enjoy the rewards of their loving obedience.

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Lord Jesus, please help me learn all that you taught. Help me remember your teachings and to walk in them. Help me to trust you more so that I will not fall to sin. Regardless of what is going on in my life, I want to be faithful to you, Jesus. In Jesus’ name, amen.

A Servant’s Heart

John 13:12-14 WEB

So when he had washed their feet, put his outer garment back on, and sat down again, he said to them, “Do you know what I have done to you? [13] You call me, ‘Teacher’ and ‘Lord.’ You say so correctly, for so I am. [14] If I then, the Lord and the Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet.

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Washing feet was a servant’s task. Religious and civic leaders did not wash their own feet. A servant washed their feet when they gathered. So, it was almost an offense to the 12 for Jesus to wash their feet. When he is done washing their feet, he puts his outer wrap back on and tells them to go and do likewise. This was probably an offense as well. The 12 thought they were going to rule the 12 tribes of Israel in eternity (Mt 19:28). It would not have been natural for them to take up feet washing. But that is what Jesus asked them to do. During Jesus’ ministry, he showed the example of servanthood. He was on a mission for His Father, and it required humility and service. Jesus did not mind.

Jesus wants us, his disciples, to feel the same way. We are to be mission-minded as we become servants to one another. Things are not so different today. When people imagine themselves having a large ministry, it is not natural to think about feet washing. But that is what Christians are called to do. We must bow our hearts before the Father in humility and willingness to serve as He served. That may mean washing feet, or it may mean taking that poor family to the food bank. There are many ways to serve.

Jesus served. He was the disciples’ Lord and Teacher. He is also our Lord and Teacher. We must not look at Jesus and say, “He was God, of course he could.” We must not use his Godhood as an excuse not to imitate Him. Rather we must say to ourselves, “the Lord and Teacher served both the lost and the saved. I must also serve.” When we serve, we are opening avenues to plead with others to be reconciled to God through Jesus. To the lost, that is salvation from eternity without God. To believers, it is encouragement in the Lord as we refresh one another.

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Lord, please give me a heart for service. Help me recognize opportunities throughout my day to serve. Help me lay down my own interests and care for another’s interests. Help me trust you with myself and with others. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Daily Forgiveness

John 13:6-10 WEB

Then he came to Simon Peter. He said to him, “Lord, do you wash my feet?” [7] Jesus answered him, “You don’t know what I am doing now, but you will understand later.” [8] Peter said to him, “You will never wash my feet!” Jesus answered him, “If I don’t wash you, you have no part with me.” [9] Simon Peter said to him, “Lord, not my feet only, but also my hands and my head!” [10] Jesus said to him, “Someone who has bathed only needs to have his feet washed, but is completely clean. You are clean, but not all of you.”

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In the Bible, we read that all people have sinned (1 John 1:8). Moreover, it says anyone who denies they have sinned is a liar. So, to those of us who have made Jesus our Lord and Savior, we need to repent daily. We are saved out of the world but we live in the world and we trudge through the muck and mire of the world. Therefore Jesus needs to wash our spiritual feet daily with his forgiveness. The above passage says we are already clean but we still need daily forgiveness.

We still need the dust and briars cleaned off our feet. As we walk with the Lord, we do so on the stage of the world. Thus, during our walk, our spiritual feet get dirty. This can be hard for Christians to face. We recognize with our heads the Bible says all have sinned, even those in Christ. However, seeing our own sin can be difficult. We need moments where we have insight into our own selves. We must look in the mirror of self and see the area shrouded in darkness.

When we can see our sin, we are being honest with ourselves. It may make us feel inferior to others to admit we have sinned. In the world, we are taught not to let others see our weaknesses. But in Christianity, we are praised for our weakness because it gives place to God’s strength. In the above passage, Peter wanted no part of Jesus washing his feet. Yet the Lord told him it was necessary for him to be completely clean, so he complied.

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Lord, please help me evaluate my spiritual health accurately. Reveal sin to me and wash me clean with your forgiveness. Help me grow in Christian maturity and repent of the sins you show me. Give me the courage to accept your correction. Help me face the truth. In Jesus’ name, amen.

God Rewards the Faithful

John 7:16-18 WEB

Jesus therefore answered them, “My teaching is not mine, but his who sent me. [17] If anyone desires to do his will, he will know about the teaching, whether it is from God, or if I am speaking from myself. [18] He who speaks from himself seeks his own glory, but he who seeks the glory of him who sent him is true, and no unrighteousness is in him.

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These verses help us accurately discern the motives of Christian teachers. In the above verse, Jesus said to see who is being glorified. He taught if the glory falls on the teacher, what they are saying is not from God. However, if the glory goes to God, the teacher is trustworthy.  

It is dangerous to take God’s glory. Those who take God’s glory are in imminent danger of the Lord breaking out against them (Isa 10:15, Acts 12:21-23). God jealously guards his glory. Furthermore, God clothes who he wants with his glory, for his own purposes (Isa 48:11). Not that it is some sort of lottery (Heb 11:6). If we want to be chosen for God’s glory, we must bear God’s shame (Mat 16:24-25). Any one of us can pick up our cross and carry it with joy (1 Pet 2:20-21). To rejoice in shame and suffering is a holy thing (Rom 5:2-3). It’s the type of faith that God wants to plant in the hearts of others (Isa 61).

God wants to glorify people who willingly serve without glory (1 Cor 15:43). There are stories in the Old Testament that show people chosen for service in a seemingly random manner (Jud 4:4, 6:14, 13:25,). Take Moses for example, his family showed faith when they saved Moses (Exo 2:1-3). Then, Moses showed great faith when God spoke to him (Exo 3:4). Through faith, Moses’ family won the Levites an inheritance guarding the Lord’s glory (Exo 28:1-3). We can clearly see by the example of Moses and his family, God rewards the faithful (Psa 27:13).

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Lord Jesus, please forgive me for talking so much about what I have done and so little about what you have done. Teach me to honor you and give you all the glory. Humble my heart, Lord, that I will joyfully carry my cross. In Jesus’ name, amen.

I See You, Jesus

John 6:67-70 WEB

Jesus said therefore to the twelve, “You don’t also want to go away, do you?” [68] Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom would we go? You have the words of eternal life. [69] We have come to believe and know that you are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” [70] Jesus answered them, “Didn’t I choose you, the twelve, and one of you is a devil?”

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I love this passage because twice it shows the Lord’s human vulnerability. Jesus and the disciples just experienced a ministry disaster. The Lord, teaching under the inspiration of the Spirit of God, told everyone to eat his flesh and drink his blood. Nearly all of Jesus’ followers left.

Can you imagine someone telling people to eat and drink them? The disciples who did not truly believe did not trust, so they left. And Jesus was left with the twelve. Notice in the verse he is specific when he says, “Didn’t I choose you, the twelve, and one of you is a devil?” Jesus was just a little proud. Just a little human. Just a little vulnerable. And so easy to overlook.

Part of the joy for me in reading the Bible is finding these little nuggets. Every verse that tells me about Jesus’ humanity is golden. More, verses in which I can see Jesus’ personality are special treasures. Jesus is our special treasure, and I love meeting him in the Bible.

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Lord Jesus, please help me notice scriptures that give insight into your walk as a human. Help me know you better. In Jesus’ name, I pray, amen.

Working for God

John 6:27-29 WEB

Don’t work for the food which perishes, but for the food which remains to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you. For God the Father has sealed him.” [28] They said therefore to him, “What must we do, that we may work the works of God?” [29] Jesus answered them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent.”

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Believing is our only job. So, what does believing look like? Is it something we say or something we do that demonstrates belief? In 1 John 3:23 WEB, the Bible says, “This is his commandment, that we should believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ, and love one another, even as he commanded.” That’s interesting. It looks like God commands us to believe in Jesus. However, Jesus commands us to love one another. So, believing must look like the love of Christ coming out of us.

Well, that leads to the next question, what does the love of Christ coming out of us look like? It looks like carrying your cross. It looks like obedience. Jesus loved us so much he died a horrible death to see us safe in the love of God. Jesus loved us by laying his life down. We should do the same. Believing Jesus looks like humbling ourselves to the same behavior he demonstrated. If anyone wants to do the works of God, he must believe in Jesus. Believing in Jesus means imitating him. Believing Jesus looks like giving ourselves away.

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Lord Jesus, please forgive me for all the times I have demonstrated unbelief. Help me trust your ways so that I begin to imitate you and thereby come into obedience. In Jesus’ name, I pray, amen.

Eating what Jesus Eats

John 4:34-35 WEB

Jesus said to them, “My food is to do the will of him who sent me, and to accomplish his work. [35] Don’t you say, ‘There are yet four months until the harvest?’ Behold, I tell you, lift up your eyes, and look at the fields, that they are white for harvest already.

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Jesus’ food is to obey His master, the Father. Likewise, our food should be to obey our Master, Jesus Christ. In Mark 16:15-16 WEB the Bible says, “He said to them, “Go into all the world, and preach the Good News to the whole creation. [16] He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who disbelieves will be condemned.” Telling everyone the good news, that Jesus paid all the price there will ever be and that all people can be saved by simply trusting Christ, is our command from the Lord.

There are other commands from Jesus as well. In fact, The Beatitudes are full of his direct teachings. In Chapter 5 of Matthew, we are taught to be meek, gentle, patient, and willing to suffer persecution for the sake of righteousness. Chapter 5 also calls believers to account for their thought life. In chapter 6 we are taught that purposely doing good deeds so that others see is evil. Moreover, we are taught in chapter 6 to forgive others, or we will not receive forgiveness, and not to worry about money or anything else. This is because we cannot have anxiety and trust in Jesus at the same time. Moving on to chapter 7 Christ declares the point that if you do not obey him, he does not know you and if you do not confess Him before people, He will not confess you before the Father.

What feeds your spirit? If your spiritual food is to have your own way and achieve your own goals, then you are not feeding on the same food as Jesus. Our food, according to Mark and Matthew should be to obey Jesus. Furthermore, our food should be too focus on the righteousness of the heart and to fulfill the great command. We are to bring the lost into the Kingdom. Some will try to say that the great commission in Mark was added after the original writing. That should not deter us. God allowed it to come into the final collection of works in the HOLY BIBLE and we will honor it if we honor God. People who rail against these verses claiming either they are culturally irrelevant or wrongfully included in the Bible, should not hinder us from eating wholesome spiritual food. Namely, obedience to Christ as the Bible teaches.

Obedience to Christ is a critical matter for believers to accomplish. Learning how to trust Christ for victories is part of the journey. However, the willingness of heart to obey Christ and to be spiritually fed on his every command is the principal matter for each believer.

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Lord Jesus, please forgive me for not being attentive to your commands. I repent Lord and I ask you to help me learn your commands so that I can obey you more fully. It is my heart’s desire to be obedient Lord. Please lead me into victory. In Jesus’ name, I pray, amen.

Wellspring of Life

 John 4:11-14 WEB

The woman said to him, “Sir, you have nothing to draw with, and the well is deep. So where do you get that living water? [12] Are you greater than our father, Jacob, who gave us the well, and drank of it himself, as did his children, and his livestock?” [13] Jesus answered her, “Everyone who drinks of this water will thirst again, [14] but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never thirst again; but the water that I will give him will become in him a well of water springing up to eternal life.”

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Does the well you drink from give you rest or do you have to go to the well to draw over and over? The well of our best thinking will never give us rest. Nor will the well of tradition. The well which gives rest and springs eternal is Jesus. Not the Jesus of our best thinking, nor the Jesus of our forebears. It is the Living Word that comes from a vibrant relationship with Jesus Christ which becomes a spring of eternal life.

Are you tired? Do you feel worn out? Does taking a vacation make you feel better or do you come back and find you are still exhausted? If so, something is not right. This is one of those places in our lives where we have a view into the truth of our faith. Isaiah says that our hearts are wicked (Isaiah 64:6). The Apostle Paul also speaks of the wickedness and deceit within our hearts (Romans 1:18). Therefore, most of us cannot see ourselves. Rather, we see what we want to see. What we need is a way of seeing the truth that goes beyond our own idealism about ourselves. The issue of being exhausted versus refreshed is one of those places in our spiritual journey where we can evaluate ourselves.

If you are tired something is not right. You should have a well springing up within you that always refreshes. A living wellspring of spiritual wellness. If not, it’s time to put idealism down and look deeper. What beliefs are your works based upon? Do you take the knowledge you have and demand an explanation? God does not seem to be inclined to explain himself. He has told us a great deal about himself in the Word. However, when we take information about God from the Word and fill in all the missing pieces with our own ideas, we are going to become bankrupt. We simply cannot make up a God in our thinking that refreshes.

We also cannot take someone else’s faith and feel refreshed. Yes, we can be encouraged by others’ faith, but eventually, we need to stand upon our own faith. Do you honor your parents by keeping the traditions of faith they passed down? Honoring our parents is good but relying on tradition rather than the Living Voice of Jesus within ourselves is a work that does not bring rest. Are you reading the Bible to learn how to live? Or are you relying on what you have been taught to make your life decisions? The Bible has the power to go inside and spring up a well within. It must be the anchor of our faith.

How is your prayer life? The ultimate spring of life within is the Voice of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. We must cultivate our relationship with Jesus in the same way we must cultivate any healthy relationship. We read the Love Letter He left us, the Bible. We also talk to Jesus and listen for the small still voice of His response. We must have both pieces in place or we may fall into delusion. However, it is wrong to avoid hearing the Living Voice of Jesus within because of fear of being deceived. Rather we should be familiar with the Bible so Satan cannot influence our thinking about God, His nature, and our relationship with Him. When this is our truth, we will have rest even as we work for the Lord. He will be a spring of eternal life within, eternal life we can drink from and give others to drink.  

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Lord Jesus, please forgive me for looking in the wrong places for my rest. Please help me read Your Word and pray. Help me enter through the narrow gate to a life of spiritual rest and wellness. Please let my life be a place of refreshing both to me and those to whom I am sent. In Jesus’ name, I pray, amen.

Wise yet Harmless

John 4:1-3 WEB

Therefore when the Lord knew that the Pharisees had heard that Jesus was making and baptizing more disciples than John [2] (although Jesus himself didn’t baptize, but his disciples), [3] he left Judea, and departed into Galilee.

Jesus epitomized the scripture that says, “Behold, I send you out as sheep among wolves. Therefore be wise as serpents, and harmless as doves.” (Matthew 10:16 WEB) When he learned he had attracted the attention of the Pharisees he departed Judea and went to Galilee. In chapter 3 of John, John the Baptist pronounced Jesus as the way to heaven. John as much as declared Jesus the messiah. Jesus’ response to this was to pack up and leave the area.

Jesus understood the Pharisees hated him. While professing zeal for God, they demonstrated with their behaviors that they actually despised God. What they liked was the glory of standing before the people. Jesus was threatening their glory.

Have you ever heard a minister preaching compromise? Why would they do this? The exact demonstration of hatred for God may have changed, but the root cause of the sin is the same. Namely, a desire for people to glorify themselves rather than God. Preaching the untainted gospel has with it the risk of people rejecting the messenger.

Jesus was often scorned and rejected by those to whom he ministered, On the other hand, many were saved as well. This is important to notice. Jesus experienced both rejection and acceptance. He told his disciples to shake the dust from their feet when they were rejected. Literally, to pronounce condemnation on those who rejected their message.

Can you imagine a modern-day preacher declaring condemnation for rejection of the gospel? They would be heckled and counted as a hypocrite for such preaching. People still have little tolerance for the untainted message of the gospel. That message is that Christ alone saves those whom he will and rejects the disobedient. Telling people that Jesus will save them is not too hard. On the other hand, telling people they must be obedient to the whole Bible or face eternal torment is not accepted by most people.

People want salvation to be a democratic affair. As if we can choose which passages are relevant while declaring others irrelevant. Some of this has been caused by modern-day zealots. Ministers who teach a heartless gospel of condemnation drive the lost away from God. They preach to a mouth-foaming crowd that wants confirmation that they are better than everyone else. But the word of God does not counsel this. Rather, it says to be wise as a serpent but harmless as a dove.

As Christians, we have to learn to declare the truth from a place of love for the world. The Father desires the world to be saved (John 3:16). We can declare condemnation for the lost in love. We can plead with the lost to turn their hearts fully to the Father through the grace of Jesus Christ. We can demonstrate obedience thereby duplicating it in those who are new in the Lord.

Lord, please help me walk wisely while remaining harmless to those with whom I share the gospel. Please forgive me for being immature and heartless. I’m sorry for withholding love from the lost. Please forgive me. In Jesus’ name, I pray, amen.