# 39 Razed To Be Raised

Joh 2:18 So the Jews answered and said to Him, "What sign do You show to us, since You do these things?" 19 Jesus answered and said to them, "Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up." 20 Then the Jews said, "It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and will You raise it up in three days?"

 21 But He was speaking of the temple of His body. 22 Therefore, when He had risen from the dead, His disciples remembered that He had said this to them; and they believed the Scripture and the word which Jesus had said.

Jesus has just gone into the temple and cleaned house. The Jews were upset. (as you and I would be if Jesus would come into our churches and cold turkey overturn all the abuses we have allowed into the church through the years.)  We talked about some of those abuses yesterday. (racism, sexual sin, divorce, abortion, etc)

Anyway, they demand a sign! “Do something Jesus that proves You have the authority to overturn the way we do church!” “Show us a miracle that proves You are the Son of God!”

Jesus refuses to give them a sign on the spot, rather He answers them with a prophetic riddle. “Destroy this temple and in three days I will raise it up.”

What do you do with that kind of a reply?

You and I have the advantage of hindsight. We know that He was talking about His death and resurrection, but put yourself in the sandals of those present on that day. How would you react to such a statement?  We, like the disciples might not say anything, but we certainly would be thinking what the Jews stated outright.

“What are You talking about? It took 46 years to erect this building and now you are challenging us to raze it, so you can build us another one in just three days?”

Notice, they never called in the bulldozers to take Jesus up on His challenge!

Notice how we too, when challenged by the Holy Spirit and the Word of God, often refuse to bulldoze all the abuses we have allowed into the church through the years. We refuse to believe that the resurrection power of Jesus can straighten us out. We refuse to believe that He has something so much better for us.

On this Day of Pentecost on the church calendar, we celebrate the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the Church. Empowered from on high by the Holy Spirit, let us cast aside any and all practices that have infiltrated the church and our lives, and seek to live in accordance with the Word of God!

Let us take Jesus up on His challenge and destroy the old man in us and lead us into the new resurrected life!

Ro 8:11 says: “But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you.”

Col 3:9,10 we are reminded that we have, “put off the old man with his deeds,

 10 and have put on the new man who is renewed in knowledge according to the image of Him who created him,

You have put the old man to rest in baptism, now by faith in the resurrected power of Jesus, live the new life that God intended for you!

# 38 From the Beginning It Was Not So

Joh 2:18 So the Jews answered and said to Him, "What sign do You show to us, since You do these things?"

I want to spend a little more time on “convenient Christianity” today. This cleansing of the temple by Jesus would not have been necessary had the church followed God’s original guidelines for sacrifices. When did this buying and selling and profiteering get a hold on the religious practices of the day? It was a slow process that happened over time. How does the proverb put it? “A little sleep, a little slumber, A little folding of the hands to sleep- 11 So shall your poverty come on you like a prowler, And your need like an armed man. (Prov 6:10.11)

Compromise is the way of convenience, and the only way back requires an overturning of the tables. It can no longer be “business as usual” but rather an honest look at the way it was in the beginning. To quote Jesus, “from the beginning it was not so,” In other words we need to take an honest look at God’s original intent.

How did racism get such a strong foothold in our society? From the beginning it was not so. If you recall, at one time, we were all in the same boat!

How did sexual confusion get such a strong foothold in our society? From the beginning it was not so. God made them male and female!

How did divorce get such a stronghold in our society? From the beginning it was not so. Jesus said in  Mt 19:4 -6, “Have you not read that He who made them at the beginning 'made them male and female,' 5 "and said, 'For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh'? 6 "So then, they are no longer two but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate."

How did abortion get to be such a stronghold in our society? From the beginning it was not so. God blessed Adam and Eve, and then Noah telling them to “be fruitful and multiply”, not fruitful and subtracting. Later in Malachi, He spelled out one of the major purposes of holy matrimony, “But did He not make them one, Having a remnant of the Spirit? And why one? He seeks godly offspring. Therefore take heed to your spirit, And let none deal treacherously with the wife of his youth.(Mal 2:15)

How did birth control get to have such a stronghold in our society? Up until the 1930’s it was strictly forbidden by Protestants and Catholics alike. From the beginning it was not so. Ps 127:3 says, “Behold, children are a heritage from the LORD, The fruit of the womb is a reward.

But we have said, “No thanks” to God’s reward. “Children are only a reward when we want them.”

There are many more convenient compromises that we have come up with through the years, and we are reaping what we have sown. Tables need to be overturned….it’s called repentance. A turning away from our convenient compromises, to seeking and doing the Lord’s will. It’s a hard an honest look at God’s original intent as spelled out in His Word, and a desire to follow it.

Let us confess our sins, receive God’s cleansing of our temples, and move on in glad service to Him.

# 37 Convenient Christianity Opens the Door To Abuse

Joh 2:18 So the Jews answered and said to Him, "What sign do You show to us, since You do these things?"

Jesus had just driven out the animals, poured out the money changers money, and overturned tables. He told the dove sellers to take them away and demanded that they no longer make His Father’s house a house of merchandise. Salvation had become more of a commodity to be bought and sold rather than something freely given and freely received.  

The Jews were more than a little upset by this! This Jesus was putting an end to the way they did church. Where did He get the authority to do such a thing? “Who does He think He is anyway?”

This was the temple! This was the place where animals were to be sacrificed! Why place the burden on people of having to bring animals with them on this required pilgrimage? Through the years, it probably became easier to just buy an animal on site rather than bring one with you.

It was only natural then that the merchants would seize the opportunity and provide this service for the weary pilgrims and make a quick buck. It wasn’t long before this became an accepted practice, even the thievery and price gouging became accepted. But from the beginning it was not so. These were not God’s original instructions regarding animal sacrifice!

Convenient Christianity opens the door to abuse. A classic example in Scripture is found in  1Ki 12:28-33. Solomon had died and Israel became divided. Jeroboam became king of the Northern Kingdom and Rehoboam the king of the Southern Kingdom. Jeroboam was concerned that he would lose the loyalty of the people if they had to travel to Jerusalem in the Southern Kingdom for the required feasts, so he came up with a more convenient plan.

“Therefore the king asked advice, made two calves of gold, and said to the people, "It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem. Here are your gods, O Israel, which brought you up from the land of Egypt!" 29 And he set up one in Bethel, and the other he put in Dan. 30 Now this thing became a sin, for the people went to worship before the one as far as Dan. 31 He made shrines on the high places, and made priests from every class of people, who were not of the sons of Levi. 32 Jeroboam ordained a feast on the fifteenth day of the eighth month, like the feast that was in Judah, and offered sacrifices on the altar. So he did at Bethel, acrificing to the calves that he had made. And at Bethel he installed the priests of the high places which he had made. 33 So he made offerings on the altar which he had made at Bethel on the fifteenth day of the eighth month, in the month which he had devised in his own heart. And he ordained a feast for the children of Israel, and offered sacrifices on the altar and burned incense.

Convenience opens the door to abuse. Be wary of it! For the sake of convenience, Jeroboam sanctioned idolatry, bastardized the priesthood, and even created a religious holiday of his own imagination!

With the corona-virus restrictions in place, corporate worship has become a little inconvenient. Let’s fight through this and seek God-honoring ways to keep in touch. And when this is over, let us purpose in our heart to accept a little inconvenience in our worship practices as we seek to restore our God-given desire for fellowship with Him and other believers.

Who knows? Maybe when this is over, people won’t be taking off from the pew before the benediction!

# 36 Zeal and Consumption

Joh 2:17 Then His disciples remembered that it was written, "Zeal for Your house has eaten Me up."

We are not told if Mary and Jesus’ brothers accompanied Him to Jerusalem, but we know His disciples did. They witnessed this cleansing firsthand. Something in this incident causes the disciples to reflect on words from the 69^th Psalm. Specifically they make note of zeal for the temple, and how that zeal leads to a “consumption” an “eating up.”  We all know of people who are zealous for things and that zealousness eats up or consumes them. It’s like that’s all they can think about!

I don’t think we have to question God or His Son concerning zealousness for His church. Jesus gave His very lifeblood for it! But I think there is more going on here, especially in the context of the 69^th Psalm.

David wrote that Psalm because his enemies were riled up and they were after him!

Ps 69:1 “ Save me, O God! For the waters have come up to my neck. 2 I sink in deep mire, Where there is no standing; I have come into deep waters, Where the floods overflow me. 3 I am weary with my crying; My throat is dry; My eyes fail while I wait for my God. 4 Those who hate me without a cause Are more than the hairs of my head; They are mighty who would destroy me, Being my enemies wrongfully; Though I have stolen nothing, I still must restore it.”

I think the disciples are thinking, “Oh Oh! This cleansing isn’t going to sit well with the spiritual leaders of the day!”  This is going to rile them up like David’s enemies were riled up! This temple and their way of doing things around this temple means an awful lot to them. They are proud of this temple and consumed by it. This is trouble for Jesus!”

And David prayed in  Ps 69:6 Let not those who wait for You, O Lord GOD of hosts, be ashamed because of me; Let not those who seek You be confounded because of me, O God of Israel.

 7 Because for Your sake I have borne reproach; Shame has covered my face.

 8 I have become a stranger to my brothers, And an alien to my mother's children;

 9 Because zeal for Your house has eaten me up, And the reproaches of those who reproach You have fallen on me.

The Holy Spirit brought this psalm to the mind of the disciples because the spiritual leaders and the people  of the day had a misplaced zeal on the physical building of the temple. They were consumed by its exterior beauty and that misplace zeal will be laid bare in the days ahead by Jesus. It would also lead to the fixation that the spiritual leaders of the day had with 

# 35 Not In Anger, But In Purpose

Joh 2:12 After this He went down to Capernaum, He, His mother, His brothers, and His disciples; and they did not stay there many days. 13 Now the Passover of the Jews was at hand, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. 14 And He found in the temple those who sold oxen and sheep and doves, and the moneychangers doing business. 15 When He had made a whip of cords, He drove them all out of the temple, with the sheep and the oxen, and poured out the changers' money and overturned the tables. 16 And He said to those who sold doves, "Take these things away! Do not make My Father's house a house of merchandise!"

This is the first cleansing of the temple by Jesus. The second would occur three years later during the last week of His ministry. That second cleansing is reported briefly in all the other gospels, and this cleansing here at the onset of Jesus’ ministry, is only recorded in John’s Gospel.

In this first cleansing Jesus actually makes a whip of cords, which would indicate that He used it to drive the larger animals out of the temple. Unfortunately, most artist’s conceptions of this event picture an angry Jesus lashing out at people and animals alike.

I grew up on a farm and have “driven”’ cattle and it’s not something you do in anger, you usher or guide the cattle in the direction you want them to go, typically using some kind of a rod.

Obviously, you don’t use a whip to move doves, so Jesus simply asks those who sold them to take them away with the rest of the animals.

So, this first cleansing was Jesus making a statement about His Messiaship tying it in to His ultimate sacrifice. He was in effect saying, “I am here! I am the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world, you won’t be needing these any more. These animals, and subsequent money changing will no longer be necessary.”

Animals ushered out, money tables overturned, not in anger, but in painting a picture for us to see. In the first coming of Christ, animal sacrifices will no longer be needed. It is the blood of Jesus that will cleanse us from all our sins!

In the second cleansing, it is the people, (buyers and sellers) who are ushered out with this stern warning! “It is written, 'My house is a house of prayer,' but you have made it a 'den of thieves.'"(Luke 19:46)

In the first cleansing we have a picture of the first coming of Jesus. The blood of animals will no longer cleanse from sin. In the second cleansing, we have a picture of the second coming of Jesus. Whereby those who “buy and sell” are a picture of those who think they can “steal” their salvation with the merchandise of good works, apart from Jesus. They will be driven out on that final Day.

But those who are trusting in the finished work of Jesus on the cross will be saved!

Eph 2:8 For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God,

 9 not of works, lest anyone should boast.

# 34 The Better Wine

John 2:9-11 When the master of the feast had tasted the water that was made wine, and did not know where it came from (but the servants who had drawn the water knew), the master of the feast called the bridegroom. And he said to him, "Every man at the beginning sets out the good wine, and when the guests have well drunk, then the inferior. You have kept the good wine until now!" This beginning of signs Jesus did in Cana of Galilee, and manifested His glory; and His disciples believed in Him

“You have kept the good wine until now.” With that statement by the master of the feast, this “beginning of signs,” points us to the new superior covenant ushered in by the Messiah.

Eugene Peterson describes it this way from Hebrews 10: “The old plan was only a hint of the good things in the new plan. Since that old “law plan” wasn’t complete in itself, it couldn’t complete those who followed it. No matter how many sacrifices were offered year after year, they never added up to a complete solution. If they had, the worshipers would have gone merrily on their way, no longer dragged down by their sins. But instead of removing awareness of sin, when those animal sacrifices were repeated over and over they actually heightened awareness and guilt. The plain fact is that bull and goat blood (symbolized by the first wine served at the wedding) can’t get rid of sin. That is what is meant by this prophecy, put in the mouth of Christ:

You don’t want sacrifices and offerings year after year;
    you’ve prepared a body for me for a sacrifice.
It’s not fragrance and smoke from the altar
    that whet your appetite.
So I said, “I’m here to do it your way, O God,
    the way it’s described in your Book.”

When he said, “You don’t want sacrifices and offerings,” he was referring to practices according to the old plan. When he added, “I’m here to do it your way,” he set aside the first in order to enact the new plan—God’s way—by which we are made fit for God by the once-for-all sacrifice of Jesus.

^11-18 Every priest goes to work at the altar each day, offers the same old sacrifices year in, year out, and never makes a dent in the sin problem. As a priest, Christ made a single sacrifice for sins, and that was it! Then he sat down right beside God and waited for his enemies to cave in. It was a perfect sacrifice by a perfect person to perfect some very imperfect people. By that single offering, he did everything that needed to be done for everyone who takes part in the purifying process. The Holy Spirit confirms this:

This new plan I’m making with Israel
    isn’t going to be written on paper,
    isn’t going to be chiseled in stone;
This time “I’m writing out the plan in them,
    carving it on the lining of their hearts.”

He concludes,

I’ll forever wipe the slate clean of their sins.

Once sins are taken care of for good, there’s no longer any need to offer sacrifices for them.

This is the wine that Jesus brought to the table. It was the beginning of signs, and Jesus manifested His glory, and His disciples had their faith strengthened.

This “better way” or better wine is for you and I. Perhaps you’ve been thinking that your “good works” and church attendance, or anything else that you do will earn you a spot in heaven, well then you are still living under the Law. Turn to Jesus, the better sacrifice, the only One who can set you free once and for all! Drink from His cup of grace and be saved!

# 33 His Command Over Earthly Elements

John 2:9-11 When the master of the feast had tasted the water that was made wine, and did not know where it came from (but the servants who had drawn the water knew), the master of the feast called the bridegroom. And he said to him, "Every man at the beginning sets out the good wine, and when the guests have well drunk, then the inferior. You have kept the good wine until now!" This beginning of signs Jesus did in Cana of Galilee, and manifested His glory; and His disciples believed in Him

“This beginning of signs.”

Jesus turns water used for purification into wine at a wedding in Cana. This “sign” was attested to by the master’s servants. They knew what had supernaturally taken place with this earthly element called water. They had poured the water into the jars at His command, and it was in their obedience to His command that the water became wine. The transformation of the water into wine went through Jesus as the servants obediently followed Jesus’ instructions.

This would be the first of many times that Jesus proved His Messiahship through His mastery and command of earthly elements. While He walked this earth, He healed diseases. He walked on water. He knew where the fish were. He turned fish and bread into a feast for 5000, and on and on we could go.

This mastery over the elements was even on display on the night in which He was betrayed! The Apostle Paul tells us in  1Co 11:23-27, “For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you: that the Lord Jesus on the same night in which He was betrayed took bread;  24 and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, "Take, eat; this is My body which is broken for you; do this in remembrance of Me." 25 In the same manner He also took the cup after supper, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in My blood. This do, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me." 26 For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death till He comes. 27 Therefore whoever eats this bread or drinks this cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord.”

This bread is my body, this cup is my blood. Can’t be much plainer than that! The abuse of this holy meal does not make you guilty of the bread and wine, but the body and blood of Jesus!

We have no problem believing this miracle at Cana, but why do we struggle with believing this miracle performed on His last night on earth.

Something that has helped me in this regard is the miracle of the feeding of the 5000. In that miracle he blessed the bread and the fish, and with the blessing, the miracle was on! The loaves and the fishes became enough real fish and enough real bread to feed 5000.

How many people do you think Jesus could’ve fed that day? I hope your answer would be, “As many as came to the table?”

And so it is with this miracle on the night in which He was betrayed. By His blessing and command the bread became His real Body. By His blessing and command the wine became His real blood and He will provide that real body and real blood for the remission of sins to as many people who keep coming to His table, until He returns!

# 32 Knee Knockin' Obedience

Joh 2:5 His mother said to the servants, "Whatever He says to you, do it." 6 Now there were set there six waterpots of stone, according to the manner of purification of the Jews, containing twenty or thirty gallons apiece. 7 Jesus said to them, "Fill the waterpots with water." And they filled them up to the brim. 8 And He said to them, "Draw some out now, and take it to the master of the feast." And they took it.

John sets the scene for the miracle. There are 6 stone water pots with the capacity of 20-30 gallons apiece. That’s anywhere from 120 to 180 gallons of water. That’s a lot of liquid! The water pots were there for the sole function of the purification rite of the Jews. Jewish law was very strict about washing one’s hands before eating bread. “For the Pharisees and all the Jews do not eat unless they wash their hands in a special way, holding the tradition of the elders. (Mark 7:3

Jesus then tells the servants to fill the water pots to the brim with water, and then ladle some out and bring it to the master of the feast. Okay, at this point, let’s put ourselves in the sandals of these servants. The master of the feast was like the modern-day head waiter, and the idea here of course was to sample the wine before releasing it to the invited guests.

Did you ever consider the courage these servants must’ve had? They knew what they had poured into those jugs and it wasn’t wine! They may have had  knee knockin’ visions of the head waiter spitting out a mouthful of water and then punishing them for their bad joke! With the abundance of empty wine glasses, he likely was in a foul mood anyway! But the servants obeyed anyway!

In my opinion, there are two miracles here, and the obedience of the servants is the first one! They likely knew nothing about this wedding guest, but He commands them to do something and they do it! There’s something supernatural about their obedience. With their knees knocking they feel compelled to obey this son of a carpenter from Nazareth!

“Whatever He says to you, do it!” Good advice concerning Jesus Mary! Even when it doesn’t make sense…..do it! Now, be careful here. I’m not talking about wacky, out of context, obedience, that conflicts with the Word of God. I’m talking about the kind of obedience that flies in the face of the way the world tells us to live

The world will tell us so many things that seem right to a man, but its end is the way of death. (Prov 14:12)  So purpose in your heart to do it God’s way, because His way leads to life. Oh yes, your knees may be a knockin’ but in doing it God’s way, you invite Him into the mix, and when God is in the mix, miracles follow!

# 31 Prayer Lessons From Cana

Joh 2:3 And when they ran out of wine, the mother of Jesus said to Him, "They have no wine." 4 Jesus said to her, "Woman, what does your concern have to do with Me? My hour has not yet come." 5 His mother said to the servants, "Whatever He says to you, do it."

Much to learn here about prayer. It’s not a big long speech to Jesus about the host or the bride and groom. It’s not about what Mary would do to fix the situation. It’s just a short statement restating the concern. “They have no wine.” More often than not when we pray, we go beyond that and ask God to bless our own solutions. “Here’s the problem Lord and this is how I would like you to fix it.”

What if we could learn to simply come to the Lord and restate the concern. He already knows what is needed in the situation to ultimately bring Him glory. Mt 6:8 says, "For your Father knows the things you have need of before you ask Him.”

How about a simple, “Lord out marriage is in trouble.” Lord, I have cancer,” Lord I am fearful,” Lord I have no child.” Well, you get the idea. 1Pe 5:7 reminds us: casting all your care (not your solutions) upon Him, for He cares for you.

In His response, Jesus reminded Mary that answered prayer is connected to God’s glory, and should be behind all our prayers. “What does your concern have to do with Me.”

When Jesus responded to Mary in that fashion she knew Jesus had heard her plea. Note her response. She turns to the servants and says, “Whatever He says to you, do it.”

Mary understood the role of obedience in bringing glory to God! The Bible says, “To obey is better than sacrifice! Sacrifice was a way to honor and glorify God, and obedience is even better!

Do you need a miracle in your life? Then start thinking in terms of glorifying God! Whatever He says to you, do it! Mary simply exercised faith  by stating her concern and believing that Jesus would be glorified in obedience. She knew that when those servants obeyed Jesus, the situation would be resolved fully within the will of God, and that’s where we all need to be! Cast your concerns on Him and God-glory will follow!

#30 This Will Revolutionize Your Prayer Life

Joh 2:1 On the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. 2 Now both Jesus and His disciples were invited to the wedding. 3 And when they ran out of wine, the mother of Jesus said to Him, "They have no wine." 4 Jesus said to her, "Woman, what does your concern have to do with Me? My hour has not yet come

Some wedding! Things were just getting into full swing and they run out of wine! Most of us have been to wedding receptions where the beer flows freely. Just imagine the embarrassment of the father of the bride should the wedding hall run out of beer! There likely would be some major grumbling and a lot of people leaving early.

Well, in biblical times, it was more than that. It was a serious offense to fail in basic hospitality. Failure to provide enough wine at a wedding was more than a minor social embarrassment.

Bless Mary’s heart. The mother of Jesus finds Him and says, “They have no wine.” We know from other biblical passages that Joseph and Mary were poor and perhaps this moved her with compassion for the hosts.  So, she turns to Jesus for help in the situation.

Some of those things that Mary had “pondered in her heart” about her Son being the Son of God suddenly surface at this wedding in Cana.

Her statement about the wine was more than a statement, it was a prayer, and Jesus recognizes it as such. His answer is a great lesson for us as we come to Him with our own prayers!

He replies to the request with a question! And notice this! He does not reply to her as His mother, but as a “woman!” That links Mary to the rest of mankind. It puts her in the same boat as you and I. When we bring our petitions before the Lord as Mary did here, Jesus asks us the same question. “What does your prayer request have to do with me?” We need to answer that question when we pray! And when He tells Mary that “His hour has not yet come; He is talking about the hour in which He will be glorified on the cross and through the empty tomb.

So His real question to Mary and all others who would pray to Him  is, “What does your prayer request have to do with bringing glory to God?”

Answer this question, the next time you petition Jesus, It will revolutionize your prayer life.

# 29 The Wedding At Cana

# 29 The Wedding At Cana

Joh 2:1 On the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. 2 Now both Jesus and His disciples were invited to the wedding. 3 And when they ran out of wine, the mother of Jesus said to Him, "They have no wine." 4 Jesus said to her, "Woman, what does your concern have to do with Me? My hour has not yet come." 5 His mother said to the servants, "Whatever He says to you, do it." 6 Now there were set there six waterpots of stone, according to the manner of purification of the Jews, containing twenty or thirty gallons apiece. 7 Jesus said to them, "Fill the waterpots with water." And they filled them up to the brim. 8 And He said to them, "Draw some out now, and take it to the master of the feast." And they took it. 9 When the master of the feast had tasted the water that was made wine, and did not know where it came from (but the servants who had drawn the water knew), the master of the feast called the bridegroom.

 10 And he said to him, "Every man at the beginning sets out the good wine, and when the guests have well drunk, then the inferior. You have kept the good wine until now!" 11 This beginning of signs Jesus did in Cana of Galilee, and manifested His glory; and His disciples believed in Him.

This is the first of what appears to be carefully chosen miracles included in the Gospel of John. The seven miracles that John included all have a mission. They were designed to stir up saving faith in Jesus as the Son of the Living God….the Messiah!  Joh 20:30,31 reminds us: “And truly Jesus did many other signs in the presence of His disciples, which are not written in this book;

 31 but these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name.”

Most of us have been to a wedding reception! They’ve been around a long time. To be sure, there are cultural differences in how we celebrate the wedding, I mean they likely weren’t doing the chicken dance in Cana, but you can be sure there was dancing and celebrating! In fact, the celebrations could go on for a week!  Maybe that’s why they ran out of wine!

It is fitting that Jesus would perform His first miracle at a wedding feast, for the day is coming when believers will gather at the throne and celebrate the final wedding feast!

And I heard, as it were, the voice of a great multitude, as the sound of many waters and as the sound of mighty thunderings, saying, "Alleluia! For the Lord God Omnipotent reigns!

 7 "Let us be glad and rejoice and give Him glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and His wife has made herself ready."

 8 And to her it was granted to be arrayed in fine linen, clean and bright, for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints.

 9 Then he said to me, "Write: 'Blessed are those who are called to the marriage supper of the Lamb!'" And he said to me, "These are the true sayings of God." (Rev 19:6-9)

Blessed are those in attendance at this Great Feast! The Lord has been busy from day one writing out invitations! It is His heartfelt desire that all attend, desiring that all come to repentance and faith! “The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance”. (2 Pet 3:9)

Believe me, He is not concerned about the size of the hall, or the amount of refreshments and meals to have available. Did He not feed five thousand with just a little fish and bread? Did HE not turn water into wine? No need to hold back on the invitations to this feast, being thrown by the One who owns the cattle on a thousand hills!

So HE sends His servants out to invite all to the wedding. Have you responded to this invitation? Don’t delay! RSVP today! “And as it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment,” (Heb 9:27)

Don’t leave this earth with that invitation buried under all your other mail. (the cares and concerns of this world) Respond to it today! God is inviting you to His final wedding feast. Humbly acknowledge your sins and your need for forgiveness. Receive the Groom, Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior.

# 28 Jacob's Ladder Personified

Joh 1:50 Jesus answered and said to him, "Because I said to you, 'I saw you under the fig tree,' do you believe? You will see greater things than these." 51 And He said to him, "Most assuredly, I say to you, hereafter you shall see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man."

Jesus has laid Nathaniel bare. He has established that there is nothing He doesn’t know about Nathaniel. He knows his thoughts, his secrets, his whereabouts, and his physical condition at all times. That should be enough to boggle the mind of Nathaniel (and you and I) but wait! There’s more!

Jesus adds, “You think that’s a big deal? You’ll see even greater things as you follow me!” “Most assuredly (emphasized truth) you shall see heaven open and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man.”

Cool! But what does that mean? What does that look like? We see no literal occurrence of this anywhere in the New Testament.

To me, this is a picture of THE heavenly connection. It is the fullness of the shadow cast by the incident of Jacob’s ladder in Genesis 28:11-22. In his dream a ladder reached to heaven and angels were ascending and descending on it. Listen to what took place after he awoke from this dream: Ge 28:17 And he was afraid and said, "How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven!"

The gate of heaven! Jesus is the Gate as He said in Jn 10/:9,  “I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved.” He is the Gate, the Ladder that breaches the gap between sinful man and a holy God!

Nathaniel will see this very real connection in miracle after miracle during the “Son of Man’s” (Jesus’)  ministry on earth. In Jesus, Nathaniel would see God touching people and His creation in many miraculous ways. There would be no doubt in Nathaniel’s mind of the direct pipeline between Jesus and the Father!

He would know and be assures that Jesus and the father are one!

Angels are both messengers and ministering spirits, and here they are a reminder that Nathan would hear messages from heaven itself spoken through Jesus. Jesus said in Joh 12:49 "For I have not spoken on My own authority; but the Father who sent Me gave Me a command, what I should say and what I should speak.”

Further, Jesus ministered to others as the Father led, as HE stated in  Joh 5:36 "But I have a greater witness than John's; for the works which the Father has given Me to finish--the very works that I do--bear witness of Me, that the Father has sent Me.”

 His ultimate goal in His words and deeds would be to connect sinful man to holy God! And Nathaniel would be an eyewitness to all of it!

To think that the Creator of the universe, the all-knowing, all powerful God desires to connect to us poor sinful beings through Jesus should cause us all to fall on our faces before the Lord and say with the Psalmist in Ps 8:4,5, “What is man that You are mindful of him, And the son of man that You visit him? 5 For You have made him a little lower than the angels, And You have crowned him with glory and honor.”

God, who knows every sordid detail of your life and mine, desires to forgive and forget those sordid details and be connected to you and I!

Amazing grace!

# 27 Better Than I Know Myself

Joh 1:47 Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward Him, and said of him, "Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom is no deceit!" 48 Nathanael said to Him, "How do You know me?" Jesus answered and said to him, "Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you." 49 Nathanael answered and said to Him, "Rabbi, You are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!

Nathaniel, following up on Phillip’s invitation, comes to Jesus. He is going to check Him out. Jesus sees him coming and says to no one in particular, “Behold” (in other words, “check this guy out!”) “An Israelite indeed, in whom is no guile or deceit,”

Yup, what you see with Nathaniel is what you get! He is the Howard Cosell of the disciples! Nathaniel hides nothing, he tells it like he thinks it is. This greeting from Jesus blows him away! “How do you know me?” He asks, “How do you know such an intricate detail of my personality?” And that’s the thing folks. God knows every intricate detail about you and I, and Jesus, the Son of God, knows those details too.

The Psalmist writes in  Ps 44:21, “For He knows the secrets of the heart.” And in  Ps 94:11, “The LORD knows the thoughts of man,“ The Lord is omniscient! (all knowing) Nathaniel understood that part of the character of God and his natural response was to acknowledge Jesus as God and declare, “Rabbi, You are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!”

But, it’s not just our personality that is known by Jesus. He also knows our thoughts, our secrets, and all our actions! (That should add some extra time to our confession of sins!)

Jesus numbers the very hairs on our head. He knows where we are. He knows what we are doing. He knows what we are thinking every minute of every day! Ps 139:8, “If I ascend into heaven, You are there; If I make my bed in hell, behold, You are there.”

From heaven to hell and every place in between,,,, He knows! (including the number of buds on that fig tree that Nathaniel was standing under before Phillip invited him to come and see Jesus.

God’s intimate knowledge of you ought to blow your socks off, like it blew off Nathaniel’s!  As the Psalmist states in  Ps 139:6, “Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; It is high, I cannot attain it.”

God knows more about you than you can possibly know about yourself. Therefore, if you desire to know yourself more, where should you turn? Turn to Jesus!

Warning! The first thing He will show you is what a sinner you are and how much you need Him as your Savior!

Receive Him then as your Savior and follow Him as Lord!  Be like Nathaniel. Come to Him and see who you really are. Discover those plans God has for you!

Jer 29:11 For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the LORD, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.