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“Jesus answered, ‘I do not have a demon; but I honor My Father, and you dishonor Me. And I do not seek My own glory; there is One who seeks and judges’ ” (John 8:49-50).
Jesus is in deep discussion with the unbelieving Jews when they accuse Him of being a Samaritan and a devil. He directly denies their accusations. At other times they have accused Him of being a Galilean in an attempt to insult Him and justify their refusing to accept Him as the Messiah. They hate Jesus and don’t want to listen to Him. Jesus really discredits them as He defends Himself: He says He honors the Father, meaning by His actions. He then tells the Jews they claim to be of God, but they refuse to listen to Him, God’s Son. Contrary to their accusations, Jesus says He doesn’t try to bring glory to Himself. His final point about judging seems to refer to the impending judgment coming upon the Jews because they refuse to accept Jesus. At all times in our lives, we are in one of the two categories presented here: either we honor God by our submissive behavior or we dishonor Him by our refusal to adhere to His teachings. Love, Joe Thought for the Week.04-17-16. Jesus Came From God
“Jesus said to them, ‘If God were your Father, you would love Me, for I proceeded forth and came from God; nor have I come of Myself, but He sent Me” (John 8:42). As the unbelieving Jews lay claim to the fact that God is their Father, Jesus here quickly takes that claim away from them. They have forcefully and blatantly rejected Jesus and His teachings; so He says they cannot claim God as their Father. Having made attempts already to persuade them that He is the promised Messiah, He makes yet another attempt here. He says they are not of God because they don’t love Him in spite of the fact that He came from God. Jesus once more assures them that God has sent Him, and He didn’t come of His own will. None of the proofs Jesus has presented to the Jews have convinced them. Like many in our world today, the “many infallible proofs” of the existence of God and of the legitimacy of Jesus as God’s Son have not been enough. Some continue to refuse God’s offer of eternal salvation, based on the sacrifice of His Son. May we never find ourselves in that category. Thought for the Week.04-10-16. New Abiding Place
Studies in 2 Peter 3 “Nevertheless we, according to His promise, look for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells” (2 Peter 3:13). Picking up on the idea that God always keeps His promises and that He has promised to destroy heaven and earth as we know them, Peter takes his readers one step forward in this passage. Following the time period to which Peter refers—that is, the Christian Age—he says there will be new heavens and a new earth—that is, a new abiding place for those who live according to the righteous direction of God. That place, of course, is heaven itself, the place where God lives and the only place where true righteousness exists. Thought for the Week.04-03-16.Hastening the Day
Studies in 2 Peter 3 “Looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be dissolved being on fire, and the elements will melt with fervent heat?” (2 Peter 3:12). Completing the question he begins in the previous verse, Peter repeats the idea about judgment day that he expresses in verse 10. Hastening doesn’t mean making it happen sooner, but it means looking for with earnest desire. So judgment is not to be a day of dread but a day we look forward to with a great deal of excitement—that is true, of course, if we have lived our lives in accordance to the teaching of God’s word. On that day the earth and the universe as we know them shall be annihilated in preparation for the abiding place that has been prepared for eternity. The focus of the scriptures is that we are to make our lives ready for that time. |
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