Low Hanging Fruit?

Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me. John 14:6

After the events of the early part of this week, I had to think of what day it was for a moment. This week seems full already, but it is only Wednesday. So, I'll just grab a low-hanging fruit from the tree of the Word this morning...or did I? This famous verse requires a response since it begins with who said it. However, it is the quoted words our Lord Jesus spoke that make all the difference. If one believes in Jesus, then that one must believe His word. And this word in this verse allows no options. "I am," claims three singular things that are joined together; there is no 'or' allowing for any to pick and choose from among them. Also, those three things are all the thing, not a thing, allowing for no mistake between things that might appear to be the same type of the things. Whew, don't try to quote that one too fast! Then, that last sentence tells all seekers that there is a guard at the gate leading to God the Father. And this guard tells of inclusion only for those going through Him, 'no one' means no exceptions and no other ways.

Clear and simple, just as we like it!

Bucky

Greater Than I

You have heard Me say to you, ‘I am going away and coming back to you.’ If you loved Me, you would rejoice because I said, ‘I am going to the Father,’ for My Father is greater than I. John 14:28

While it might be fashionable in politics to call oneself humble, I don't think anyone has been taken in by that sort of claim. In contrast, Jesus, who had said earlier in this chapter of John that His Father does the works, tells His disciples that the Father is greater than Him. So, besides the works, how was Jesus less than God the Father? Was Jesus a man who had to walk from place to place, while God was everywhere at all times? The works show that Jesus was not the Almighty, as God is. Whereas God remains undying, does lesser mean that Jesus will suffer death? Perhaps even on a cross at the hands of the Romans? Well, yes, but no one forced it on Him. It was done in the greatest of love!

So, He has gone to the Father, and that's where we want to go, and He is the way. That's great!

Bucky

Asking The Question

Thomas said to Him, “Lord, we do not know where You are going, and how can we know the way?”  John 14:5

Thomas earned a familiar name having to do with his stance on needing physical contact before believing a thing had happened, but here he stands in for us and asks the question. It is a question that might be stated another way to all those who say they will go to Heaven when they die. Where is this Heaven? One might ask them. Do you fly there? You have never flown (without the use of mechanical devices) in your life, how are you going to suddenly begin flying after death? Thomas did not understand that Jesus meant His death, resurrection, and ascension, nor did the other disciples at that time. So, Thomas asked for all of us that question: Where is my Savior going, and how do I get there? Of course we know that great answer our Lord gave in the next verse:

Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.

Bucky

Keeping House With Them

Jesus answered and said to him, “If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him. John 14:23

Yikes! Jesus and His Father are coming to live with me today. How clean is my house? What food should I fetch from the grocery store? As with many verses of promise, we may find it easy to skip over a couple of conditions that must happen first. Love appears to be the first conditional thing in this verse today. Have we like Peter loved Him more than these? While it is tempting to answer that one quickly, perhaps a bit of reflection on every person and thing in our lives might be better for us. Next comes keeping of His word. Jesus helps us with that by stating that if we have the first one down, the second will follow, and then all of the remaining action in this verse comes from our Lord and His Father.

Therefore, the first question we must ask of our Lord: What is this 'love' you speak of?

Bucky

There Is One

I will no longer talk much with you, for the ruler of this world is coming, and he has nothing in Me. John 14:30

The King James version uses 'prince', but the scary thing isn't the exact title, but that there is one. And either word, prince or ruler, speaks to a position of power. From all the way back in Genesis 3, any reader of the Bible has known that there is an enemy, a tempter, or the Hebrew term satan, meaning adversary. There is even a proper name, Satan, for the Adversary, which first appears in 1 Chronicles 21:1 and is blamed for tempting King David into an unauthorized census which would cost 70,000 men their lives. So... how do we little humans resist such a one as that? Well, don't dwell on the enemy. Go to the Almighty in prayer. Seek the Savior. Run to the Good Shepherd, little sheep!

There is one, but we have our Good Shepherd,

Bucky

Can A Man Do Those Works?

Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father in Me? The words that I speak to you I do not speak on My own authority; but the Father who dwells in Me does the works. John 14:10

John 14 tells the story of one of those moments in time where Jesus granted us a revelation. How did our Lord heal with His word, a touch, a bit of mud, or on His authority while at a distance as with the Roman officer? Here in our verse for today we have the answer from the Lord, His Father who dwells in Him does the works. Which also answers our questions concerning the works we can't seem to do. We do not have that ability, the Creator does. There is no shame now since Jesus told us that He didn't do them either, it was His Father. So, now how important are those prayers of supplication to the Father?

Prayer to the Lord, answering our needs from the dawn of time!

Bucky

Getting Anywhere With This?

Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father.  John 14:12

Reading the works of Jesus in the gospels, and then looking at this verse today, I don't see this happening right now. But, in which direction am I looking when I say that? Do I see my abilities reduced by age and injury as the driving force? If so, then I will never be the fulfillment of these greater works. However, the verse begins with our Lord's assurance and ends with His action. My ability has nothing to do with it. Even the next verses only bring action to my part in the asking, which is something any of us can do and do quite often. So, if I am trying to do greater works in my strength, then the explanation for the apparent lack of progress would seem rather obvious. And it does not matter whether that strength is physical, mental, or spiritual. The greater works are not coming by my strength. That's a relief! The fuel tank of my strength seems to have a slow leak in it. 

Praise the Lord for His strength!

Bucky

The 'Or Else' Belief

Believe Me that I am in the Father and the Father in Me, or else believe Me for the sake of the works themselves. John 14:11

Jesus here in this verse today commands belief from His disciple. First comes what appears to be a more desired 'believe Me', and then He offers an 'or else' belief. His miracles, as we call them, amaze and delight us, but the impression here is that Jesus desires our belief in Him without those works first, and only if necessary should Philip and us readers use those works to believe in Him. All of the disciples were witness to many miracles of healing and authority by Jesus, and it probably never got old for them. However, believing in Him is all the miracle we and those disciples need to be saved.

And quite the miracle it is too!

Bucky

Bursting The Old Wineskin

Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you so long, and yet you have not known Me, Philip? He who has seen Me has seen the Father; so how can you say, ‘Show us the Father’?" John 14:9

The disciples stand in for us in various ways throughout the scriptures, and this time it is Philip. And he seems to be struggling with something that Jesus thinks he should know by that time. Jesus told them the parable of the new wine and old wineskins, and yet the disciples struggled with bursting the bonds of the old. And one old lesson they had been raised on was this:

But He said, “You cannot see My face; for no man shall see Me, and live.” Exodus 33:20

Philip was still alive, Jesus said he had now seen the Father, and now the new wine struggled to burst through the old stiffened wineskin of what Philip knew from his early training.

Praise God for the wine of the new covenant in our Lord Jesus!

Bucky

Faithful Confidence

But Jesus answered and said, “You do not know what you ask. Are you able to drink the cup that I am about to drink, and be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with?” They said to Him, “We are able.” Matthew 20:22

Simple words, easily spoken, "We are able." In many cases, we have no idea whether we are able or not, but James and John in that moment were confident. They didn't know what they were asking, so it may be that their confidence also came from ignorance. Seldom are we more confident in our own abilities than when we know nothing about the challenges ahead of us. Yet, if we did know all that may come tomorrow, we might never go out either. So maybe we need a better confidence than that which comes from ourselves. As James, John, and many of the saints to come learned before us, we can come to Jesus in faith and say, "You, Lord, are able!"

In the confidence of faith in Christ Jesus,

Bucky

They Were There!

"While you have the light, believe in the light, that you may become sons of light.” These things Jesus spoke, and departed, and was hidden from them. John 12:36

They were there, gathered with Jesus in Jerusalem. The Lord had already made His entry into the city with the people shouting 'Hosanna'. The people of Judea wanted a sign from Jesus. And, they got one, but when the voice came from Heaven, most could not hear the words and called it thunder. Others said that an angel had spoken to Jesus, but they couldn't hear the words either. The Pharisees were there too and had wanted a sign, but by this time they just wanted to kill Him. They couldn't see or hear the sign in that state of mind. Jesus gives one final message to those Jews gathered there and then departs, hidden from them. Prophecy fulfilled in that they could not hear nor see even as the Christ told them to believe.

So, I like to wonder at this point how many of those listening to the Lord and not hearing Him, having just rejoiced in His arrival on the donkey's colt, were later at the place of judgment yelling, "Crucify Him!"? They were there, yet they could not see.

Have a great Friday in Christ our Lord!

Bucky

A Criticizing Pot

But indeed, O man, who are you to reply against God? Will the thing formed say to him who formed it, “Why have you made me like this?” Romans 9:20

So, after four consecutive months with internet service outages, this last one going six days and counting as of yesterday, I have returned with a new ISP. You will have noticed by now that I tend to resist change, especially if it involves making a phone call, but even I can be changed by an unpleasant circumstance repeated too often. It would be easy for me to criticize me, or the One who formed me. Everyone who has ever believed in God has probably pointed to some shortcoming or disability they consider 'wrong' with themselves and asked for an explanation from Him. Has God ever answered these complaints? Well, yes, but not always. The writer of our verse for today did receive an answer, and it has become famous among believers in God's Son.

And He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. 2 Corinthians 12:9

So, I have some shortcomings, Praise God!

Bucky

...and I'm glad to be back writing to you!

Suffering Physicians

Now a certain woman had a flow of blood for twelve years, and had suffered many things from many physicians. She had spent all that she had and was no better, but rather grew worse. Mark 5:25-26

The fireworks came out last night, and I suffered through them a bit more easily this year. On the other hand, the annual physician thing has not gone quite so well, and I can empathize with this poor woman in our scripture for today. Does it seem to you that we are all caught up in a life-long medical experiment? Perhaps not, I think that most people go to the clinic expecting a doctor to make a swift diagnosis and cure our ills with pills. And it does happen quite often. At the beginning of her ordeal, this poor woman likely had those same thoughts. And then year after year, appointments followed by treatment brought only more of the same and more of the pain. Twelve years passed by in suffering and then came news of One who actually healed what was not possible for the physicians. And before that woman ever met Him, she had placed her faith in His authority to heal her.

Placed her faith in Jesus. And He saved her in more than this.

Bucky

Overwhelming Anxious Imagining

If you then are not able to do the least, why are you anxious for the rest?  Luke 12:26

It is interesting to note that the least thing Jesus spoke of here in our verse for today involved adding a cubit to their height. A cubit runs about 18 inches. And yet we all did it too! Even the most vertically challenged among us added more than a cubit to our infant height. But He spoke to adult humans, and indeed those 18 inches in height do not seem least at all to us. And yet again, if anxious worry produced vertical growth in humans, some of us, including me, would probably be 20 or 30 feet tall by now. But that doesn't happen. Instead, we may be taller or shorter according to the measure of normal, but invisible with us strides that giant of our anxious imagination, overwhelming in its depressive effects on us. Well, Jesus had a simple solution to that giant, take up faith in Him and do not fear.

Fear not, little ones, your Savior has all under His control.

Bucky