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Jesus Said, John 6:29 – 40 “I am the bread of life.”

Jesus is the “True Bread from Heaven”

John 6: 29 – 40 In the dialog between Jesus and the people who had come looking for more miracles, Jesus admonished them to  “Labor for the food which endures to everlasting life, which the Son of Man will give you, because God the Father has set His seal on Him.” Then they said to Him, “What should we do that we might work the works of God?” Jesus answered and said to them, “This is the work of God; that you believe in Him whom He sent.”  Therefore they said to Him, “What sign will You perform then, that we may see it and believe You? What work will You do? Our fathers ate the manna in the desert; as it is written, ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’ ” 

Then Jesus said to them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, Moses did not give you the bread from heaven, but My Father gives you the true bread from heaven, for the bread of God is He who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” 

Then they said to Him, “Lord, give us this bread always.” And Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst.  But I said to you that you have seen Me and yet do not believe.  All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will by no means cast out.  For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me. This is the will of the Father who sent Me, that of all He has given Me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up at the last day. And this is the will of Him who sent Me that everyone who sees the Son and believes in Him may have everlasting life; and I will raise him up at the last day.”

In this wonderful and mysterious metaphor, Jesus affirms that God the Father has made the gracious provision of everlasting life for everyone who sees the Son and believes in Him. We see here that our loving God and Creator has given us Jesus, and He has given us to Jesus, with the assurance that Jesus will raise us up at the last day.

Over and over the Bible teaches us that this is the work of God and not something we have to accomplished or earn; it is totally the doing of our Lord and Savior, for His glory alone.  May we all be filled with the Jesus, “the true bread that gives eternal life”, and may we be willing to share that life freely with all who will listen.

Praise His Holy Name…   Check out Ephesians  2:8 – 10

Jesus Said; John 6:25 – 29

What should motivate us to seek Jesus Christ?

As Jesus continued to move through out the land of Galilee He did many miracles.  Thousands came to Him and in one situation, (recorded in all of the gospels), He took 5 barley loaves and 2 fish and fed 5000 men plus women and children, and there were 12 baskets of food left over more than they had started with. From this spectacular miracle many began to believe that Jesus was indeed the prophet (Savior) that the people of Israel were expecting would come some day.

After this time Jesus sent His disciples across the Sea of Galilee on their own. Later He joined them by miraculously walking out on the stormy waters and entering the boat with them, calming the sea and bringing them to the other side. The people knowing that they were gone followed after Him and found Him as recorded here in John’s gospel.

John6:35 – 29 And when they found Him on the other side of the sea. they said to Him, “Rabbi, when did You come Here?” Jesus answered them and said, “Most assuredly, I say to you, you seek Me, not because you saw the signs, but because you ate of the loaves and were filled. Do not labor for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to everlasting life, which the Son of Man will give you, because God the Father has set His seal on Him.”    Then they said to Him, “What should we do that we might work the works of God?”Jesus answered and said to them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent.”

It is clear that Jesus is concerned with what is motivating the people to seek Him. Today He might voice the same concerns towards us. He wants people to seek Him because of the signs (proofs) that He has given of His Deity and authority. He wants us to understand He is the “food” (the source) of everlasting life for our souls, and  He did not merely come to satisfy our basic needs for now. He desires that we “do the work of God” by believing in Him (Jesus) whom He (God) sent (to be our Savior).

May the Lord help us to make it our life long ambition (pursuit) to feed on the Spirit, and Word of Jesus Christ above all else in this world. He is the very source of life for us all.        

    Blessings to All    Vince

Understanding What Jesus Said, John 5:24 -30

Dear Friends and Family,

Prior to understanding and believing in Jesus, I, like so many, did not really understand what Jesus truly taught about the critical issues of life and death and judgment. I was raised by a godly Christian mother and a non-believing father. For much of my early years I even thought I was a Christian because I had gone to church up to the time I went off to college. It was not until the circumstances of life became difficult in my mid 30’s, and I began to look at passages in the Bible like this powerful claim of the Lord Jesus, that I finally understood, believed, and followed Him as my Lord and Savior.

Consider carefully what Jesus said in this passage and often repeated about these issues;

Life and Judgment Are Through the Son

John 5: 24 - 30 “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who hears My word and believes in Him who sent Me has everlasting life, and shall not come into judgment, but has passed from death into life. Most assuredly, I say to you, the hour is coming, and now is, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God; and those who hear will live. For as the Father has life in Himself, so He has granted the Son to have life in Himself, and has given Him authority to execute judgment also, because He is the Son of Man. Do not marvel at this; for the hour is coming in which all who are in the graves will hear His voice and come forth—those who have done good, to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil, to the resurrection of condemnation. I can of Myself do nothing. As I hear, I judge; and My judgment is righteous, because I do not seek My own will but the will of the Father who sent Me.

Just think about it…Jesus as God’s only begotten son has clearly proclaimed that He has God’s authority over life and death and judgment. As He is also “the Son of Man”, He has the authority to judge all mankind who are dead in their trespasses and sins and under the condemnation of the law (of God) and judgment.  Jesus also has the power to grant everlasting life to those who “hear His word and believe in Him.”   If the claims of Christ are true, then all other notions about life, death, God, and man are ultimately worthless ideas contrived through the ignorance of men. Jesus has not given us alternatives for life, but rather, our Heavenly Father’s truth to live by.

Blessings and grace to All in Christ Jesus,    Vince

Jesus said: John 5:16 – 23

After Jesus heals the crippled man at the pool of Bethesda on a Sabbath day, the Jewish leaders hear of it and are angry with Him for “working” on the Sabbath.  The apostle John records their response and what Jesus said to them:

John 5: 16 – 23 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. 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 honor the Son just as they honor the Father. He who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent Him.”

Again in this situation, Jesus boldly and with authority asserts to the Jewish leaders that He indeed is equal to God and is God’s Son, and is demonstrating this truth by the miraculous works that He is doing.  He further makes the bold proclamation that He has been given the power of life over death by His Father (God) to raise the dead.  As though this was not enough, Jesus proclaims that God has committed all judgment to the Son (Jesus), and that He should have the same honor from man as His Father.

If anyone thinks carefully about Jesus’ claims, the only honest conclusion we can have is that He is our God and our Creator and we should honor and reverence Him, as the one who will judge all mankind, or… that He is delusional and is making false assertions that should not be believed.

If we have believed that Jesus truly is who He proclaimed Himself to be, then there is nothing in our lives more important than this truth.  So… do we faithfully honor Him by sharing this life changing truth with those who need to hear His message?             

Jesus Said; John 4: 31 – 38

What Jesus said, can make a difference in the focus and purpose of our lives for 2012.

When we read the interaction of words between Jesus and His disciples, we have clear insights to the contrast between the focus of their minds, and the focus of our Lord’s heart and mind.  As they approach Jesus while He is talking to the Samaritan woman they have brought food and they want Him to eat, not recognizing that He is busy giving His testimony and proclaiming His deity to the Samaritan woman.

John 4:31 - 38 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 labored; others have labored, and you have entered into their labors.”

Jesus has already taught His disciples that His purpose for coming into this world was to save the lost, and to bring eternal life to those who would believe.  It is clear here that He is teaching them now that bringing the message of eternal life to the unsaved is even more important than feeding our own fleshly bodies. He is sending His followers to reap a harvest of souls, as they share in the labor of those that went ahead of them, such as the old testament prophets and teachers including John the Baptist.

The Lord’s words to His disciples then are also true today, for there is still great harvest ready, and spiritual reward and rejoicing for those who labor to save men’s souls by bringing them the reality and truth of Christ’s gospel. May we all have the mind of Christ in serving His purposes through our lives, and not merely our own, for the year ahead.

Blessings for 2012 in the grace, faith, and love of our Savior Jesus Christ…                     Vince

Jesus said; “I who speak to you am He.”

In the Apostle John’s documenting of Jesus’ conversation with the Samaritan woman, Jesus demonstrates His spiritual word of knowledge about her marital history. Further He confirms to her that He, in fact, is the Messiah, the Christ, whom God, through the Old Testament prophets, said would come.

John 4:16 - 26  Jesus said to her, “Go, call your husband, and come here,”  The woman answered and said, “I have no husband.” Jesus said to her, “You have well said, ‘I have no husband,’ for you have had five husbands, and the one whom you now have is not your husband; in that you spoke truly.”

The woman said to Him, “Sir, I perceive that You are a prophet Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, and you Jews say that in Jerusalem is the place where one ought to worship.”

Jesus said to her, “Woman, believe Me, the hour is coming when you will neither on this mountain, nor in Jerusalem, worship the Father. You worship what you do not know; we know what we worship, for salvation is of the Jews. But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him. God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.”  

The woman said to Him, “I know that Messiah is coming” (who is called Christ). “When He comes, He will tell us all things.”

Jesus said to her, “I who speak to you am He.” 

There are many millions of people who have ignored or set aside the miraculous birth, the powerful life and ministry of Jesus, His teaching and bold pronouncements that He is our God and Creator come to save us from our sins, His submission to a tortuous death, and His resurrection.  But… any honest person who reads carefully the Old Testament prophecies and the New Testament chronicles of His life, cannot deny the reality of His claims or His existence, so… we are left with a choice.

  1. We who choose to believe today must ask ourselves: Are we true worshipers who are worshipping the Father in spirit and truth? What is the reality of our lives, day to day?  Are we following Him as His “born again” disciples, learning and growing in our spiritual walk? Are we living in submission to and agreement with God’s Spirit?
  2. If you are a non believer reading this, and you have been skeptical about who Jesus  is, please continue to read this blog or better yet get a Bible and read John’s gospel and study carefully the claims and teachings of Christ, asking God to show you the truth.

 

There are only 2 choices:  Not to believe or to believe.  But… it is clear, if His claims are true, then the choice we make is either to remain in spiritual death, or in believing, to receive a Spiritual rebirth for eternal life in Christ Jesus.  There is no more important choice we can make during our time in this world!

Blessings in our Lord Jesus to All for the New Year 2012,   Vince

What Jesus Said John 4:10 – 14

Are you Spiritually Thirsty? Come and ask Jesus for “living water.”

In the recording of Jesus’ conversation with the Samaritan woman at Jacob’s well, she questioned Him about why He, a Jew, would ask her for a drink of water.

John 4:10 – 14  Jesus answered and said to her, ”If you knew who it is who says to you, ‘Give Me a drink,’ you would have asked Him, and He would have given you living water.” 

The woman said to Him, “Sir, You have nothing to draw with, and the well is deep. Where then do You get that living water? Are You greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well, and drank from it himself, as well as his sons and his livestock?”

Jesus answered and said to her, “Whoever drinks of this water will thirst again, but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst. But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life.”

In another situation, John describes what Jesus’ metaphor means:

 John 7:37 – 39  “On the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink. He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.” But this He spoke concerning the Spirit, whom those believing in Him would receive; for the Holy Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.”

The one thing that makes Christmas significant is that Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord, is the magnificent gift from God whose birth we celebrate each year at Christmas.  He is the one who came to redeem us and give us the “living water” (the Holy Spirit) to overflow our hearts into everlasting life.  Jesus continues to cry out to the lost and dying today, inviting all, to come to Him that they might have life. May we all drink freely and deeply of His precious gift throughout the coming year that His Holy Spirit might overflow into many other lives.

                         Grace and Love in Jesus Christ…. Blessings,  Vince

Remember What Jesus Said ..

Jesus Offers Pardon from Judgment

From the amazing things that Jesus said, which we have looked at so far, we learned that He is the Only Begotten Son of God, who came to mankind (through a  miraculous birth).  His purpose was to demonstrate the love of God the Father for the world by offering himself as a sacrifice for the sins of the world.  His desire was to save all who would believe that they might have eternal life.

John 3:18 – 21 “He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed. But he who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been done in God.”

From Jesus’ teaching in this passage we learn that all of mankind is under condemnation (of judgment and death) for sin. But “He who believes in Him is not condemned” … He answers the unspoken question: Why do some remain condemned?  Because “light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.” The light that came into the world was Jesus Himself. He came to expose our sinful lives and to offer to take away our sins if we will confess our need for a Savior. We must come to Him and believe that He is the one God sent so that we can walk in the light of His truth, that our deeds may be clearly seen that we are living in God.

Note: This is how we become “born again of the Spirit” and have spiritual life in us.

Blessings to All in Jesus,    Vince

Jesus said John 3:10 – 18

At this time of year it is good to know who Jesus is and what He did and said. The apostle John wrote his gospel for this very reason. John  20: 30 – 31  For those who know Him we can be reminded of what He has done in our hearts and lives. For those who do not know of Him or have a relationship with Him that they might understand what He offers us as a free gift of God’s grace and mercy.

John 3:10 – 21     What Jesus said …

In His dialog with Nicodemus (a Jewish   ruler) Jesus rebukes him for doubting His teaching about being “born again” (born by the Spirit of God) before you can see or enter the Kingdom of God. He reveals who He is and what His authority and purpose were and are still.

Jesus answered and said to him, “Are you the teacher of Israel, and do not know these things? Most assuredly, I say to you, We speak what We know and testify what We have seen, and you do not receive Our witness. If I have told you earthly things and you do not believe, how will you believe if I tell you heavenly things? No one has ascended to heaven but He who came down from heaven, that is, the Son of Man who is in heaven. And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up; that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.

When Jesus here uses the plural “We”, He is in the context of his dialog speaking with the authority of God, (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit). Jesus came down from heaven to become the “Son of Man” and He is prophetically saying that, “As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness (so they who looked on it by faith could be saved from death from their snake bites), so all who look to Him (Jesus, who would hang on a cross) would not die 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. He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.”

No one can doubt in this chaotic and insane world, with the corrption and pain and suffering that sinful man has caused, that there is a need for all to be reminded of the precious gift of forgiveness and salvation through the grace and love that God has revealed in His only begotten Son, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

 If you don’t know Jesus and you have not been “born again” by the Spirit, then seek Him, read His word and consider His promises. Talk to those who know and, if you like, ask questions on this blog.  The Lord will not fail reveal Himself to you.

If you know Jesus, remember to exalt and honor Him, and share Him with those who do not know Him. You are invited share your thoughts on this blog.

Blessings in our precious Lord Jesus,     Vince

Jesus said John 3: 1 – 6

 You must be born again    John 3:1 – 6

Early in His public ministry Jesus was approached by Nicodemus who was one of the ruling Pharisees (religious leaders of the Jews). He believed in God and knew that anyone who had the miraculous power that Jesus was demonstrating had to come from God.

John 3:3-8 Jesus answered and said to him, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.”

Nicodemus said to Him, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?”

Jesus answered, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’ The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but cannot tell where it comes from and where it goes. So is everyone who is born of the Spirit.”

Today like Nicodemus many people misunderstand, and question what it means to be “born again”, and even in the “Christian” body there is lack of clarity on what it means. But … it is clear from Jesus teaching here that unless you understand and are in fact “born again”you cannot “see” or “enter” the kingdom of God!  Jesus makes it clear that He is not speaking of a fleshly rebirth, but a new Spiritual birth, those (everyone) who are “born of the Spirit”

Through out the New Testament we see this teaching clarified and re-enforced by Jesus and the disciples.

1 John5:1 Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ (Savior) is born of God, and everyone who loves the father loves his child as well.   See also:  2 Cor. 5:17; Tit 3:5; 1 Pet. 1:23; Jhn. 14:17; Rom. 8:9; 1 Cor. 3:16

It is my prayer for everyone who reads this short meditation that you all with full assurance be able to say with me; I believe in Jesus as my Savior and Lord, and I am born again by His Spirit who dwells in me.

Blessings to all in Jesus… Vince

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