| |
Words of Jesus Part 51
- John 5:1 After this there was a feast of
the Jews; and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.
- 2 Now there is at Jerusalem by
the sheep market a pool, which is called in the Hebrew tongue
Bethesda, having five porches.
- 3 In these lay a great multitude
of impotent folk, of blind, halt, withered, waiting for the
moving of the water.
- 4 For an angel went down at a
certain season into the pool, and troubled the water: whosoever
then first after the troubling of the water stepped in was made
whole of whatsoever disease he had.
In reading the Old Testament as well as the
new, we see many times when miracles occur and angels appear to men.
God blessed this tiny nation many times with signs of His presence
among them. He chose to bring the plan of salvation through these
people. That is why the devil hates Israel and has always tried to
destroy this nation. He has almost succeeded many times but God has
saved them.
Their sufferings have increased because of
their rejection of the Messiah who came to walk and live among them
for a short season. Yet we knew from the scriptures that the latter
day prophecies do concern Israel and the church never has taken
their place but only has become adopted into Israel. Israel
will one day recognize their true Messiah. When that happens believing Jews and
believing Gentiles will become one in Jesus Christ. This is a
miracle done only by the Holy Spirit. We cannot make a man-made
unity without Jesus Christ. Unity that is made by man will not last.
A unity of spirit and of truth has to come by the Holy Spirit.
- John 5:5 And a certain man was
there, which had an infirmity thirty and eight years.
- 6 When Jesus saw him lie,
and knew that he had been now a long time in that case, he saith
unto him, Wilt thou be made whole?
Jesus does not force us to be healed or
saved. He asked first.
-
John 5:7 The impotent man answered him,
Sir, I have no man, when the water is troubled, to put me into
the pool: but while I am coming, another steppeth down before
me.
We see here a sad part of our selfish human
nature that desires to help ourselves instead of one suffering and
cannot help himself.
Jesus had compassion on this man. Jesus was
not limited to a certain season or to a short period of time.
- John 5:9 And immediately the man
was made whole, and took up his bed, and walked: and on the same
day was the sabbath.
Actually the man was better off than
those that went before him because he was privileged to have been
made whole by the Son of God Himself. God in the flesh; Jesus Christ
who came to save from sin.
- John 5:10 The Jews therefore said
unto him that was cured, It is the Sabbath day: it is not lawful
for thee to carry thy bed.
They missed the whole point entirely of
why the Sabbath was made. The Sabbath was made to give mankind a day
of rest that he could refresh him spiritually. What better
refreshing would it be than to be healed of a disease and find
salvation through faith in Jesus Christ.
- John 5:11 He answered them, He
that made me whole, the same said unto me, Take up thy bed, and
walk.
- 12 Then asked they him,
What man is that which said unto thee, Take up thy bed, and
walk?
- 13 And he that was healed wist not who it was: for Jesus had conveyed himself away, a
multitude being in that place.
- 14 Afterward Jesus findeth
him in the temple, and said unto him, Behold, thou art
made whole: sin no more, lest a worse thing come unto thee.
If Jesus takes the time to make sure
that man knows that he was not only healed but saved from sin, we
should not be skipping the message of repenting from sin when we
tell of the gospel. A worse thing could come upon us if we return to
sin after Jesus saves us.
- John 5:15 The man departed, and
told the Jews that it was Jesus, which had made him whole.
We are not told here why the man went
and told the Jews that it was Jesus who had healed him. Perhaps his
motive was pure and that he wanted them to believe in Jesus too.
This would be my first guess. It could be though that he did not
like the message of, "Go and sin no more" and told the Jews it was
Jesus in anger. I sort of doubt that to be the case though. If one
has been healed of a crippling disease, it seems unlikely that he
wouldn't be grateful.
- John 5:16 And therefore did the
Jews persecute Jesus, and sought to slay him, because he had
done these things on the Sabbath day.
We see here a case of a religion of
strict rules being thought of a more importance than a sick person
being well and delivered from a crippling state. Some religious
beliefs are good but should always without exception be accompanied
with compassion, mercy and love.
- John 5:17 But Jesus answered them,
My Father worketh hitherto, and I work.
He was doing what the Father called Him
to do. God is the one who made the Sabbath, so God could do what He
wanted on the Sabbath.
- John 5:18 Therefore the Jews
sought the more to kill him, because he not only had broken the
sabbath, but said also that God was his Father, making himself
equal with God.
- 19 Then answered Jesus and
said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, The Son
can do nothing of himself, but what he seeth the Father do: for
what things soever he doeth, these also doeth the Son likewise.
- 20 For the Father
loveth the Son, and sheweth him all things that himself doeth:
and he will shew him greater works than these, that ye may
marvel.
- 21 For as the
Father raiseth up the dead, and quickeneth them; even so the Son
quickeneth whom he will.
This should cause our hearts to rejoice
because here is the promise of the resurrection from the dead for
those who die knowing Jesus Christ as Lord.
- John 5:22 For the Father
judgeth no man, but hath committed all judgment unto the Son:
- 23 That all men
should honour the Son, even as they honour the Father. He that
honoureth not the Son honoureth not the Father which hath sent
him.
Again we see that God chose Jesus to
bear our sins and gave Jesus the power to forgive sin and grant
eternal life. To reject Jesus is the reject God and reject eternal
life. There is no other religion, there is no other sacrifice and
there is no other way to be saved.
- John 5:24 Verily, verily,
I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him
that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into
condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.
- 25 Verily, verily,
I say unto you, The hour is coming, and now is, when the dead
shall hear the voice of the Son of God: and they that hear shall
live.
This can happen both ways. The dead in
sin can hear the voice of Jesus or hear the gospel, believe and pass
from death unto life. The dead in the graves will hear the voice of
Jesus and rise when Jesus returns to take His people with Him.
- John 5:26 For as the
Father hath life in himself; so hath he given to the Son to have
life in himself;
- 27 And hath given
him authority to execute judgment also, because he is the Son of
man.
- 28 Marvel not at
this: for the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the
graves shall hear his voice,
- 29 And shall come
forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life;
and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of
damnation.
Although these two resurrections are
1000 years apart, there are two of them. This is spoken of in more
detail in Revelation chapter 20.
If we believe in Jesus Christ, we too
can be part of the first resurrection. When we believe, He washes
away our sin and makes us children of God. Our names are then
written in the book of life.
- John 5:30 I can of mine
own self do nothing: as I hear, I judge: and my judgment is
just; because I seek not mine own will, but the will of the
Father which hath sent me.
- 31 If I bear
witness of myself, my witness is not true.
- 32 There is another
that beareth witness of me; and I know that the witness which he
witnesseth of me is true.
- 33 Ye sent unto
John, and he bare witness unto the truth.
- 34 But I receive
not testimony from man: but these things I say, that ye might be
saved.
- 35 He was a burning
and a shining light: and ye were willing for a season to rejoice
in his light.
- 36 But I have
greater witness than that of John: for the works which the
Father hath given me to finish, the same works that I do, bear
witness of me, that the Father hath sent me.
- 37 And the Father
himself, which hath sent me, hath borne witness of me. Ye have
neither heard his voice at any time, nor seen his shape.
- 38 And ye have not
his word abiding in you: for whom he hath sent, him ye believe
not.
- 39 Search the
scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they
are they which testify of me.
Since the only scripture of that time
was the Old Testament then we can assume that Jesus is there. He is
in the Old testament concealed and the New Testament revealed. We
can only find Him if we search with all our hearts. A half-hearted
seeker will not find the truth. We can't see Jesus in the Old
testament unless our eyes are opened by the spirit of God. We will
find Him when we seek Him with our whole heart.
It is never His will that any of us
perish.
- John 5:40 And ye will not
come to me, that ye might have life.
- 41 I receive not
honour from men.
- 42 But I know you,
that ye have not the love of God in you.
- 43 I am come in my
Father's name, and ye receive me not: if another shall come in
his own name, him ye will receive.
This will be the future antichrist and
many other false religions and false prophets. They will believe
someone who brings prosperity and promises riches. They will accept
someone who comes in his own name.
Jesus came to bring us a message from
God.
- John 5:44 How can ye
believe, which receive honour one of another, and seek not the
honour that cometh from God only?
We need to be careful not to give too
much honor and praise to an individual.
They had their eyes on people and those
that became great and powerful. They were looking for a Messiah that
would become great and make the nation of Israel great again. They
were not looking for an humble savior who was to die for their sins.
- John 5:45 Do not think
that I will accuse you to the Father: there is one that accuseth
you, even Moses, in whom ye trust.
- 46 For had ye
believed Moses, ye would have believed me: for he wrote of me.
47 But if ye believe
not his writings, how shall ye believe my words?
Moses spoke of Jesus as a prophet the the
Lord shall raise up.
This prophet is Jesus. As they did not
believe now, their fathers did not always believe Moses. They
spent 40 years in the wilderness because of unbelief.
Isaiah spoke of Jesus:
- Isaiah 53:1 Who hath believed
our report? and to whom is the arm of the LORD revealed?
- 2 For he shall grow up
before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground:
he hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see him, there
is no beauty that we should desire him.
- 3 He is despised and
rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief:
and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and
we esteemed him not.
- 4 Surely he hath borne
our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him
stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.
- 5 But he was wounded
for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the
chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we
are healed.
- 6 All we like sheep
have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and
the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.
- 7 He was oppressed, and
he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as
a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is
dumb, so he openeth not his mouth.
- 8 He was taken from
prison and from judgment: and who shall declare his generation?
for he was cut off out of the land of the living: for the
transgression of my people was he stricken.
- 9 And he made his grave
with the wicked, and with the rich in his death; because he had
done no violence, neither was any deceit in his mouth.
- 10 Yet it pleased the
LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt
make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he
shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the LORD shall
prosper in his hand.
- 11 He shall see of the
travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge
shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their
iniquities.
- 12 Therefore will I
divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the
spoil with the strong; because he hath poured out his soul unto
death: and he was numbered with the transgressors; and he bare
the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.
Words of
Jesus Part 52
Words of Jesus
Index
|
|