I MARVEL - - AND GLAD SO TO DO!

“There are also many others things that Jesus did, which if they were written one by one, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that would be written. Amen.” John 21: 25

That is the very last verse in the Gospel of John.

There are few ways to look at that this verse. One of them is that it’s almost like John is saying: “Look I’ve written a whole lot of the things that Jesus did during His ministry, and I hope & pray that I’ve written enough, cuz I’ve gotta stop somewhere; for were I to write it ALL down, I’d never finish the task.”

Here’s another way to look at it: That John’s testimony about what Jesus did is valid and sure, because he knew first hand the great and mighty things Jesus did – so many that John couldn’t possibly write them all down.

Here’s another way; it’s the way I most often think of when I read this verse: I marvel at what Jesus did while ministering among ... more

ANOTHER WIN/WIN!
“Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” 1 Thes. 5: 16-18
Well, once again, I confess to you that I don’t always live up to what this verse calls of me. You no doubt noted that Paul concludes the verse with “…this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” Man, did he have to write that?!
Actually, it’s a good thing that he included that phrase. Why so? It was helpful of him to include that truth because knowing what God expects, helps us to remember something else: God never, ever asks of us anything that He, Himself, is not willing to provide for us. So if I’m asked to be always joyful, to pray continually, and to be ready to give thanks no matter what my life situation may be - - I know God is right there ready to enable me to do those things! What a relief! What a comfort!
My part in this is mainly to pray for the Spirit of God within me to help me discipline mysel... more

HE WILL DO IT - - PHEW!!

“May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. The one who calls you is faithful and he will do it.” 1 Thes. 5: 23, 24

I find the thoughts in these two verse highly uplifting! Notice how begins and ends - - with God as the one carrying out the desired action. I fully agree with Peter. I agree with Him for two reasons: 1). That we should be set apart for God’s purposes, and be blameless and ready for Christ’s return is clearly something that God WANTS to do. He wants to do this because He loves us and really does want us in heaven. 2) The second reason I agree with Peter is because only God CAN do this. Left to our own devices, we would but fail.

So here we are, people unable to do anything of eternal significance by ourselves, but not without hope! Not at all! For God – yes, the God of “hope” – desires to ... more

A GREAT EXAMPLE…

“John testifies concerning Him. He cries out, saying, ‘This is He of whom I said, “He who comes after me has surpassed me because He was before me.” John 1: 15

John the Baptist caused quite a stir in Israel. He was apparently a powerfully anointed preacher. Here he was, out in the wilderness, and when people came to hear him, he would call them out for sins and call them to repentance. And yet, the people came! Later, at the time when John was arrested by King Herod, Jesus proclaimed the no one born into this world was greater than John. And yet, this same John, as mighty and anointed as He was, spoke of the Messiah as greater than he because – “because He was before me.”

Somehow, John had received special revelation from God that Jesus existed before He was born into this world. Think of it, God (the 2nd person of the Trinity) stooped to become like one of the creatures He created, all so that He could come their rescue. Yes, Jesus... more

IF ANYONE HAS REASON…

“The next day Jesus decided to leave for Galilee. Finding Philip, He said to Him, ‘Follow Me.’” John 1: 43

Little is known of Philip. It is quite possible that he was a fisherman, as were Peter, Andrew, James and John. It is also possible that he may have been a disciple of John the Baptist prior to becoming a follower of Jesus. It seems quite startling and stark, that the invitation from Jesus to Philip consisted only of the words “Follow Me.” It is often believed that Philip may likely have heard Jesus speak and teach before this, thus receiving the invitation to “follow” him favorably.

The point is, in the end, Philip DID follow Jesus. In fact, he immediately went out to find Nathaniel. When he found Nathaniel, Philip said: “We have found the one Moses wrote about in the Law, and about whom the prophets also wrote – Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.” It’s obvious that Philip was both convinced of the authenticity of Jesus... more