John 6:1-21

Dear RTB’ers,

I have already mentioned that John’s gospel leaves me confused with respect to Jesus’ words, especially His replies to questions. But yet another way in which John has me confused is in following Jesus’ physical travels, His chronology. I already mentioned that John has a Passover on four occasions in his gospel. The Synoptics only mention one, Jesus’ last week on earth. But for today, we suddenly find Jesus back in Galilee with no transition, after having Him in Jerusalem the previous two days, all of chapter 6. The Synoptics are clearer on Jesus’ feeding of the five thousand; He is already in or near Capernaum, which is His “homebase”, and Bethsaida is not far away. [See Matthew 14:13-21; Mark 6:30-44; Luke 9:10-17.] Small point…

When the people saw the sign that He had done, they said, “This is indeed the Prophet who is to come into the world!” (v. 14) I posted yesterday on Moses’ quote from Deuteronomy: The LORD your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your brothers—it is to Him you shall listen. (Dt. 18:15) Here we see the crowd recognizing Jesus as that Prophet. Even as Moses (through the Lord) fed the people with manna and quail in the wilderness, so Jesus is also feeding the people in a remote location.

…they saw Jesus walking on the sea … and they were frightened. But He said to them, “It is I; do not be afraid.” (vv. 19b-20) It’s a simple statement, but full of truth: It is [Jesus]; do not be afraid. Maybe we are not privy to Jesus physically in our midst, walking on water or whatever other miracle He chooses to do, but He is here with us. He speaks words that we need to embrace, It is I; do not be afraid.

Blessings.

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See also:

• October 25 (2023) / Matthew 14:13-33; Mark 6:30-52; Luke 9:10-17; John 6:1-21
• March 11 (2021) / Luke 9:10-17; John 6:1-15
• May 18 (2019) / John 6:1-15
• March 12 (2021) / Matt. 14:22-33; Mark 6:45-52; John 6:16-21
• May 21 (2019) / John 6:16-21

John 5:30-47

Dear RTB’ers,

Some wonderful words today, five witnesses for Jesus:

1. Himself, If I alone bear witness about myself, my testimony is not true. (v. 31) “…not true…” means not acceptable, as in a courtroom, for example.
2. John the Baptist, There is another who bears witness about Me, and [his] testimony … is true. You sent to John, and he has borne witness to the truth.. (vv. 32-33) John’s testimony is true/acceptable.
3. His works, … the very works that I am doing, bear witness about Me that the Father has sent Me. (v. 36b) The Jews have seen these “works” (miraculous healings). How could they not believe? Could they imagine that these healings were staged? Not possible, not when they have seen a man right there in Jerusalem who had been lame for 38 years! (v. 5:5)
4. The Father, And the Father who sent Me has Himself borne witness about Me. (v. 37a) Unfortunately, the Jews have three strikes against them: His voice you have never heard, His form you have never seen, and you do not have His word abiding in you… (vv. 37b-38a)
5. The Scriptures, especially Moses, You search the Scriptures … and it is they that bear witness about Me. For if you believed Moses, you would believe Me; for he wrote of Me. (vv. 39, 46) My Study Bible listed five verses from Moses, one from each of the five books of the Pentateuch. Here’s one from Deuteronomy: The LORD your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your brothers—it is to Him you shall listen. (Dt. 18:15)

Finally, Jesus chastises the Jews for their glory-seeking, which He, Himself was unwilling to pursue: I do not receive glory from people. How can you believe, when you receive glory from one another and do not seek the glory that comes from the only God? (vv. 41, 44) Jesus, a good example to follow…

Blessings.

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See also:

• October 23 (2023) / Matthew 13:53-58; Mark 6:1-6; John 5
• March 5 (2021) / John 5:24-47
• May 6 (2019) / John 5:31-47

John 5:1-29

Dear RTB’ers,

Jesus is back in Jerusalem at one of the three annual feasts, where again He is healing on the Sabbath. This was why the Jews were seeking all the more to kill Him… (v. 18a) Today we have the first account in John’s gospel of the Jews seeking to kill Jesus. We’ll see it again in a few days (John 7:1), then much later toward the end of Jesus’ life (John 11:47-53).

For as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, so also the Son gives life to whom He will. (v. 21) I wonder how much Jesus knew of future events in His earthly life. We have record of Him raising three people from the dead – the son of the widow of Nain (Luke 7:11–17); Jairus’s daughter (Mark 5:21-43); and Lazarus (John 11:14, 39-44). Did He foresee these incidents months or years ahead of time? Not a major point, but intriguing nonetheless…

Just three days ago I posted on the truth of present day “eternal life”. We see it again today: Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears My word and believes Him who sent Me has eternal life. He … has passed from death to life. (v. 24) As people of God we need to know, believe, and claim our current heavenly status. I am confident that our active belief in our present-day eternal life will change our thoughts and our actions. We need to claim this and act on it.

Blessings.

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See also:

• October 23 (2023) / Matthew 13:53-58; Mark 6:1-6; John 5
• March 4 (2021) / John 5:1-23
• May 3 (2019) / John 5:1-15
• May 4 (2019) / John 5:16-23
• May 5 (2019) / John 5:24-30

John 4:27-54

Dear RTB’ers,

From yesterday, Jesus speaking, I who speak to you am He. (v. 26) This is the first account we have of Jesus claiming to be the Messiah. Strange that He revealed Himself to this Samaritan woman, but He had not made this claim to the Jews from where He had just come! Plus, in today’s reading, Many Samaritans from that town believed in Him because of the woman’s testimony… (v. 39a) and the Samaritans speaking, It is no longer because of what you said that we believe, for we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this is indeed the Savior of the world. (v. 42b) One wonders why we do not read of continuing faith in Samaria.

An interesting item, So when He came to Galilee, the Galileans welcomed Him, having seen all that He had done in Jerusalem at the feast. For they too had gone to the feast. (v. 45) Here we have an additional statement (as I have commented in previous years) about Jesus and His Galilean friends and neighbors going annually to the three feasts in Jerusalem. Recall Him with the scholars in the Temple when He was only twelve years old. We will see in John’s gospel that Jesus makes other trips to Jerusalem (John 5:1, 10:22) in addition to His final week there (John 12:12, ff.). Also, at Pentecost we have people coming to Jerusalem from all over, in addition to the crowd knowing that the disciples were Galileans (Acts 2:7-11).

The healing of the official’s son… Matthew and Luke also recount Jesus healing a Roman official’s son; in their gospels it’s a centurion whose son was ill. (See Matthew 8:5-13 and Luke 7:1-10) From their gospels we get those famous words, Lord, I am not worthy to have You come under my roof, but only say the word, and my servant will be healed. (Mt. 8:8; slightly different in Lk. 7:6-7) We allude to this incident every Sunday following the Lord’s Prayer and just before Communion in the Prayer of Humble Access: “We do not presume to come to this your table, O merciful Lord, trusting in our own righteousness, but in your abundant and great mercies. We are not worthy so much as to gather up the crumbs under your table; but you are the same Lord whose character is always to have mercy. Grant us, therefore, gracious Lord, so to eat the flesh of your dear Son Jesus Christ, and to drink his blood, that our sinful bodies may be made clean by his body, and our souls washed through his most precious blood, and that we may evermore dwell in him, and he in us. Amen.”

An appropriate close…

Blessings.

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See also:

• October 14 (2023) / John 4:1-45; Matthew 4:12-22; Mark 1:14-20; Luke 4:14-30
• January 22 (2021) / John 4:27-45
• February 3 (2019) / John 4:27-38
• February 4 (2019) / John 4:39-45

John 4:1-26

Dear RTB’ers,

“The Woman from Samaria”… For me, better known as “The Woman at the Well”, very likely one of the two best-known of Jesus’ one-on-one interactions, the other being Nicodemus’ nighttime visit from our pervious chapter. We only get half of this story today; the preaching point for many sermons comes tomorrow – the woman’s evangelistic fervor. But today, the prelude.

To me, a number of items make this story memorable in that they are the opposite of what we might expect. First, Jesus is traveling through Samaria on his way from Judea to Galilee. Many (most?) faithful Jews would cross over the Jordan instead of going through Samaria; such was their disgust for the Samaritans. Second, Jesus was alone at the well; the disciples had all gone into town to buy food. All of them had gone? No one stayed behind to be with Jesus? Strange! Third, the woman is coming at noon to draw water – in the heat of the day. When this incident is the sermon topic, we hear that it would be cooler in the evening, but that the woman knew that she was an outcast and chose to come alone. Fourth, Jesus initiated the conversation with a Samaritan woman – neither “Samaritan” nor “woman” would have been a conversation companion for a faithful Jew. Finally, Jesus knew her past, her five husbands plus “the one you now have”. To me, this is the most remarkable item in this incident, that Jesus already knew this. How? How else but Holy Spirit revelation…??

So, what do we take from this first half of this story? Are we to follow Jesus and “go against the grain”? Not necessarily, but when we do find ourselves in an awkward or unusual situation, God is there with us. And every meeting may well be an evangelistic opportunity. In fact, the more unusual the circumstances, the better for us to initiate an unusual conversation. When we get together a week from tomorrow, I’ll tell you my story of meeting a man at the junkyard.

Blessings.

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See also:

• January 21 (2021) / John 4:1-26
• February 1 (2019) / John 4:1-14
• February 2 (2019) / John 4:15-26

John 3:22-36

Dear RTB’ers,

Three verses to comment on today… First, John the Baptist speaking: He must increase, but I must decrease. (v. 30) For all the attention that John was getting from the Jewish leaders and from the common people, in his heart he remained humble. We should speak these same words as John – Jesus must increase, we must decrease.

[A brief aside… There is discussion among scholars as to whether John the Baptist is still speaking after the quote above in verse 30. That is, in verses 31 to 36, is it John the Baptist speaking or John, the Apostle writing commentary? It doesn’t sound much like the “repent and believe” message that John the Baptist typically speaks, so I tend toward it being John, the Apostle’s commentary.]

The second verse that struck me was verse 34: For He Whom God has sent utters the words of God, for He gives the Spirit without measure. The first “He” in this verse clearly refers to Jesus – just look back at the context, the previous few verses. And no doubt, Jesus received the Holy Spirit without measure. However, what if we bring it to ourselves, that each one of us is one of those people “…he whom God has sent…”, that God has brought us to Himself and He is sending us out to bring His message to those around us. Change that “He” pronoun to “he” and the Holy Spirit is ours without measure. That’s a thought worth believing!!

Finally, Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life… (v. 36a) I’ve been hearing this message again and again that this verse is a present tense verse. Although it also suggests our future heavenly life, what is true for us today is that we are currently living that eternal life. Our earthly time is much more than just our working and paying the bills. In a sense, as Jesus has ascended to the Father, He has brought us with Him. That’s another thought worth believing and acting upon!!

Blessings.

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See also:

• January 20 (2021) / John 3:22-36
• January 31 (2019) / John 3:22-36

John 2:23-3:21

Dear RTB’ers,

Clarification… Yesterday I discussed the Jews seeking signs and wondered at how they knew about Jesus’ signs. Today we see that Jesus was, indeed, performing signs (healings?) in Jerusalem, leading to the Jewish leaders requesting additional signs: Now when He was in Jerusalem … they saw the signs that He was doing. (v. 2:23) We also see Nicodemus acknowledging these signs in John 3:2.

The Catholic Church recognizes seven sacraments (Baptism, the Eucharist, Reconciliation [Confession], Confirmation, Holy Orders, Matrimony, and Extreme Unction [anointing of the ill]), while mainline Protestant denominations recognize only two – Baptism and the Eucharist. One of the Catholic Church’s sources for Confirmation comes from Jesus’ reply to Nicodemus: Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. (v. 3:5) So, is Jesus instituting Confirmation as a sacrament? The early church acknowledged the laying on of hands as a particular spiritual ritual for the receiving of the Holy Spirit. (See Acts 8:14-17, 19:6.) Sacrament or not, we celebrate Confirmation in our Anglican tradition as a special service where we ask to be “born of the Spirit” (v. 3:8b). We all need to be Spirit-filled!

Blessings.

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See also:

• October 13 (2023) / John 1:35-3:36
• January 19 (2021) / John 3:1-21
• January 29 (2019) / John 3:1-9
• January 30 (2019) / John 3:10-21

John 2:1-22

Dear RTB’ers,

It’s a strange question the Jews asked Jesus after His cleansing of the Temple, What sign do you show us for doing these things? (v. 18b) The NASB helps our understanding of their question, in that their interpretation includes the Jews asking about Jesus’ authority for doing these things. So, as to the Jews asking for a sign… Perhaps they had already heard of the miracle at Cana and wanted to see more? Maybe Jesus has performed some healings while He was at Capernaum? (John 2:12) It won’t be the last time that the Jews are seeking a sign. Here’s another request and Jesus’ reply to them about their sign-seeking: Then some of the scribes and Pharisees answered Him, saying, “Teacher, we wish to see a sign from You.” But He answered them, “An evil and adulterous generation seeks for a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. (Matthew 12:38-39) Paul, the Apostle also commented on the Jews seeking signs: For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified… (I Corinthians 1:22-23a)

And us… Do we seek signs before we move on with some big or small decisions in our lives? How do we know when or how to move on? Carol and I have had to do some serious thinking (and praying) as we’ve sought to sell the farm and move to Lexington. I don’t think that we’ve asked at all for specific signs, but we have looked at past and current events in our lives that have pointed us in one direction or another, to the end that we are at peace with our move. I guess what I’m suggesting is that looking backward for “signs” is generally better than asking for signs before we would move forward. That is, asking why God has brought us to a decision point might be the better prayer than asking God to point out His new direction for us.

I hope to hear from some of you on this topic! Maybe even some of your personal stories…?

Blessings.

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See also:

• January 18 (2021) / John 2:1-25
• January 27 (2019) / John 2:1-12
• January 28 (2019) / John 2:13-25

John 1:35-51

Dear RTB’ers,

When a book is made into a movie, the book reader’s perspective on their original reading can become influenced by the way the movie portrays the book. That is clearly the case with me and the gospels. The series, The Chosen, has influenced my own imagination (or my own understanding) as to what the gospels are saying – not negatively, just different. The movie writers and directors add much to the script that is not in the gospels, although they do have their own disclaimer that “all Biblical and historical context and any artistic imagination are designed to support the truth and intention of the Scriptures.” (https://www.reddit.com/r/TrueChristian/comments/1jlgl1p/is_the_chosen_a_bad_show/)

Still, it’s hard to read the gospel words and not let my imagination run to the way incidents are portrayed in The Chosen. Just that.

Jesus speaking: Come and you will see. … Follow Me. (vv. 39, 43) Philip speaking: Come and see. (v. 46) Invitations – that’s all, nothing more, no evangelical preaching, no proselytizing! Just an invitation, possibly even part of a normal conversation, an add-on, as in “Do you attend a local church?” Invitations – that’s all. We can do this!

Blessings.

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See also:

• January 17 (2021) / John 1:35-51
• January 26 (2019) / John 1:35-51

John 1:19-34

Dear RTB’ers,

John the Baptist answering the Jews’ questions, I am not the Christ. … I am not. … No. … (vv. 20-22) No matter how John the Baptist answers their questions, they keep asking. But all their questions are about him, and he finally gets their thinking back to the Messiah: … I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness… 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. (vv. 23a, 26b-27). I could surely follow John the Baptist’s example – it’s not about me, it’s about Jesus.

Blessings.

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See also:

• January 19 (2019) / John 1:19-28
• January 21 (2019) / Luke 3:21-22; John 1:29-34