JESUS

The subject for this article is simply Jesus.  The point of it is to say that Jesus is what, or rather who, that matters.  The teaching about Jesus in the New Testament, and really throughout the whole Bible, is to tell us that it is Jesus that matters.  In this short treatise we will consider a few verses that stress His importance to our belief in God....and to our eternal life.  After all, we do want to live forever, and Jesus is the answer.
 
Jesus was talking to His closest friends, the apostles, as recorded in John 14:   " 'Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me.  In My Father's house are many mansions.  If it were not so I would have told you.  I go to prepare a place for you.  And if I go to prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself, that where I am, you may be also.  And where I go, you know, and the way you know.'  Thomas said to Him, 'Lord, we do not know where you are going; how can we know the way?'  Jesus said to him, 'I am the way, the truth and the life.  No one comes to the Father except through Me.' "

This is a bold statement by our Lord.  It requires an emphasis on Jesus.  Let's look at what He said about Himself in Matthew 28:  "All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth."  We might ask who gave Him "all authority?"  The answer is the Father; no question.  And there is no question that Jesus has all authority everywhere, in heaven and on the earth. 

Then there is the famous, often quoted, verse in John 3:  "....whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.  For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.  For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved."

Jesus is the only answer for salvation; there is no other way.  And He is the "Way" for all who are true followers.  Most of the world goes along living their lives with the assumption that there is a "better place" waiting for all of us.  The Bible simply does not teach that.  There is only a better place for those who have given their lives over to Jesus; not to "spirituality," not to "religion," not to the church.  The better place as told in the Bible, and by Jesus Himself, is waiting for those who are followers of Him.  This then, is our challenge.  We must commit our lives to Jesus. 

Thanks for reading.  Have a great, God-filled week!

Jesus' Final Words in the Bible

I have always liked the beginnings and endings of a book.  The Bible begins and ends in a very powerful and dramatic way.  Today we look at the ending of the Bible, the end of Revelation. 

It is interesting that the Bible ends with the very words of Jesus.  And it must be noteworthy to consider the final words of any man; but that would be especially so of Jesus, the greatest man to ever live, the very Son of God. 

In Revelation 22, we hear these words of our Lord:  "And behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to give to every one according to his work.  I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End, the First and the Last."

Then John writes:  "Blessed are those who do His commandments, that they may have the right to the tree of life, and may enter through the gates into the city."

Shortly after, Jesus gives these final words:  "I, Jesus, have sent My angel to testify to you these things in the churches.  I am the Root and the Offspring of David, the Bright and Morning Star."

The final message here is twofold:  1) He is coming quickly.  This seems odd since it has been 2000 years since He was on earth.  But His point seems to be that we should feel a sense of urgency in the way we live our lives.  2) When He comes back to get His own, He will bring His reward with Him.

The Lord certainly understands us humans; after all, He created us.  He knows that we perform best when there is a carrot at the end of the stick......thus, His promise of a reward.  This reminds me of the verse in Hebrews 11:6, "For without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him."  Here we see that we must have belief in His existence, but must also recognize that He will reward us.

Jesus has made this promise to us, His followers, that He will come again to get us......and He will reward us for our diligence in seeking and following Him.  What a blessing!  Let's be sure that we are in that number, that we will have a right to the tree of life, and that we may enter through the gates into the wonderful city that Jesus has prepared for us.

Thanks for reading and have a great week!

Jesus Was/Is God

For sure, when Jesus was on earth, He was a man.  He lived as men live; was tempted as we are.  But He was God, too.  Before coming to the earth He was God, was with the Father, and had all of the attributes of God.  After He left the earth He returned to the same position with the Father in Heaven.

While Jesus was on the earth, He tried to teach His 12 apostles about His role, His place as man and God.  By His miracles and His teaching He demonstrated that He was in fact divine, the Son of God.  But His followers, while they heard this teaching, could not fully understand.  So when it came time for Him to leave and return to heaven, they showed their confusion. 

Note the teaching in John 14: " 'Let not your heart be troubled.  You believe in God, believe also in Me.  In My Father's house are many mansions.  If it were not so, I would have told you.  I go to prepare a place for you.  And if I go to prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself that where I am, you may be also.  And where I go you know, and the way you know.' Thomas said to Him, 'Lord, we do not know where You are going; and how can we know the way?'  Jesus said to him, 'I am the way, the truth and the life.  No one comes unto the Father except through Me.  If you had known Me, you would have known the Father also; and from now on you know Him and have seen Him.' "

It was so difficult for even these best of friends and followers to understand that Jesus was God, a reflection of the Father.  Jesus said that if they had seen Him, they had seen the Father.  But being there with Him as a man, they had trouble seeing Him as God. 

And perhaps it is difficult for us as well.  We haven't seen Him in the flesh.  But we have a lot of evidence.  Certainly there is much evidence for there being a God.  There just is no other way to logically explain creation of the world and the entire universe in its complexity and perfection without there being a creator.  And if there is a God...and there is....it is wonderful to realize that He has seen to it to give us the Bible, the Word of God, that we can learn about Him.  And with the Bible, we have the record of Jesus and all that He means to us....the significance of Him.

Truly, Jesus is God.  He lives.....in heaven....and in our hearts.  And He give us life, here and forever. 

Thanks for reading.  Feel the love.