Posts with the category “john”

There is an essential theme that flows throughout the entirety of this section. In fact, it is the same theme that has been there throughout the whole last 10 chapters. Did you catch it?Believe.This s...  Read More

There is a certain ironic connection going on in the history of this event. If we remember, this is going on during the Feast of Dedication. Part of what this commemorates is a deliverance from Antioc...  Read More

To begin this section, Scripture tells us that it is now the Feast of Dedication (Hanukkah) in Jerusalem and it was winter. This is drawing a distinction between the previous section that was taking p...  Read More

22 Now it was the Feast of Dedication in Jerusalem, and it was winter. 23 And Jesus walked in the temple, in Solomon’s porch. 24 Then the Jews surrounded Him and said to Him, “How long do You keep us ...  Read More

Pray that you would learn to discern the voice of the Lord. Pray the same for your brothers and sisters in Christ. We, as the people of God, are to follow His instruction. Pray for the lost, that they...  Read More

Many of the weeks that we have gone through John, I have shared about how I am taking a step back from distractions. I believe this has been instrumental in developing my relationship with the Lord. M...  Read More

There are a lot of voices out there in our world. There are so many things to follow. We have a multitude of ideologies pushed to us constantly through our phones, media, and entertainment. Everything...  Read More

Jesus, in describing Himself in contrast to the Pharisees, highlights a third role which the reader naturally places themselves in. That would be the role of the sheep.14 I am the good shepherd; and I...  Read More

The language used in this passage is very reminiscent of some Old Testament passages that would have drawn the readers attention. Passages like Jeremiah 23 condemns the shepherds that have scattered t...  Read More

Jesus continues in His discourse concerning the shepherd analogy. Drawing this critical distinction, Jesus is highlighting how the Pharisees fail to care for people. They are a counterfeit while He is...  Read More

11 “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep. 12 But a hireling, he who is not the shepherd, one who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and...  Read More

If you who claim Christ have enemies around you seeking to steal, kill, and destroy, then your fellow brothers and sisters in Christ do as well. Pray for one another. Pray for the church. Pray for you...  Read More

5 But also for this very reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, 6 to knowledge self-control, to self-control perseverance, to perseverance godliness, 7 to godline...  Read More

10 The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.-John 10:10This is a verse that has been taken o...  Read More

The message that Jesus is giving is one that has been consistent throughout the whole book of John, and it will continue to be. He is the only way in which mankind can be saved. The Pharisees were put...  Read More

There are a lot of connections to historical references in this passage. However, the immediate context provides an interesting angle for how this conversation is taking place. Just prior to this disc...  Read More

In this section, Jesus is continuing his discourse with the Pharisees from the man who was blind being healed. He makes some clear statements that place the opponents of Jesus face-to-face with the co...  Read More

“Most assuredly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door, but climbs up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber. 2 But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the s...  Read More

I want to encourage us to pray that our eyes and ears would be opened and we would see and hear what the Lord is doing. We as believers have the responsibility to be attentive to the Lord and believe ...  Read More

There is a very tough challenge in the application of this practice. The Christian skeptic has been so highly elevated in our churches today that we are almost more commended for finding a natural ans...  Read More

It is unfortunate how quickly pride can come in and interrupt belief. As it did for the Pharisees is how it happens for us today.  The ironic part of it all is that I have so many "opening my eyes" ki...  Read More

The contrast between belief and unbelief, and the contrast between sight and blindness would be prominent to the reader of the time. It is a very clear message all throughout the Old Testament. Consid...  Read More

To the larger context, John is speaking into the narrative of Jesus fulfilling the role of the Messiah and the war between belief and unbelief. It is important to remember what John's goal in writing ...  Read More

After Jesus heals the blind man, this passage follows the reaction of the people as a result of this healing. People recognized the man and knew him as one who used to beg. He was poor and dependent a...  Read More

8 Therefore the neighbors and those who previously had seen that he was blind said, “Is not this he who sat and begged?”9 Some said, “This is he.” Others said, “He is like him.”He said, “I am he.”10 T...  Read More

Let pray for one another in our sufferings. Intercede on behalf of your brothers and sisters in Christ. Pray for strength. Pray for endurance. Pray for healing. If you are in need of prayer, I encoura...  Read More

It is a fact that comfort is comfortable. It is easy to get caught up in comforts and become distressed when things get uncomfortable. I have been challenged many times over to pray differently when s...  Read More

Scholars and apologists have long studied the Scriptures in the pursuit of answering the question, "Why do bad things happen to good people?" There are a myriad of answers to this question and many ha...  Read More

Aside from the clear point John is making of Jesus being the Messiah, there is also the challenge of the previously held tradition that blindness was the direct result of sin. It was a widely held bel...  Read More

5Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened,And the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped.6Then the lame shall leap like a deer,And the tongue of the dumb sing.For waters shall burst forth in the wilder...  Read More

The events that transpire in this section is laden with traditionally held beliefs being challenged by Jesus. While Jesus and His disciples are walking, they pass a man who was blind from birth. As wa...  Read More

Now as Jesus passed by, He saw a man who was blind from birth. 2 And His disciples asked Him, saying, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?”3 Jesus answered, “Neither th...  Read More

Prayerfully consider how you can make the Lord a greater priority for you today. Consider your week, your day to day, and submit it to the Lord. Ask Him to reveal anything that may be hindering your w...  Read More

Admittedly, it gets way too easy to get distracted. I can't begin to describe the amount of times I go to search up a Scripture on my phone, see a notification, and get pulled away into something else...  Read More

Therefore be imitators of God as dear children.-Ephesians 5:1I believe in Jesus. I submit to Him as Lord. This means, based on what we have been studying John, that I come from my Father, God. Now the...  Read More

The audience would have seen these two sides being juxtaposed against one another and would find themselves at the helm of choice. Where one side is presented as the truth, the other side is presented...  Read More

Taking from just a few selections of the meat found in this section of Scripture, I want to hone in on a couple major points.Let's look at Jesus being the light of the world. The language is very remi...  Read More

Well there is a lot to cover in this passage. Jesus is in the temple, speaking with the Pharisees and you have two sides juxtaposed to one another. On one side, you have Jesus. He is making some extre...  Read More

12 Then Jesus spoke to them again, saying, “I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life.”13 The Pharisees therefore said to Him, “You bear wit...  Read More

I do sincerely hope that this time of prayer has been taken seriously and that you have developed a stronger prayer life through my encouragement last week. I want to continue on that trend.Today, tak...  Read More