John 3:17-36: “God’s Motive
For Sending Jesus / John The Baptist’s Disciples Get Jealous Of Jesus’ Ministry”
By
1.
INTRO:
1.1.
In our last study we looked at verses 1-16 of chapter 3.
1.1.1. Jesus had a conversation with a leader of the
Jews, a member of the Sanhedrin, named Nicodemus, who came to him by night
wanting to know if He was the Messiah, the hope of Israel. The man came to Jesus by night for fear of
what the Jewish leaders might think of him if he inquired of Jesus openly. Jesus spoke to the man about being
born-again, and He told him that if he wanted to see
the kingdom of heaven (which we saw meant learn spiritual truth) that he needed
to be born again.
1.1.2. Jesus then merged the
conversation into talking about how that the Father loved mankind so much that
He gave His only-begotten Son so that we might not perish but have everlasting
life.
1.1.3. When Nicodemus marveled at
what Jesus told him and asked how these things could be we saw that Jesus
rebuked the man for his lack of understanding of God’s purposes and word.
1.1.4. We saw that Jesus told
Nicodemus of the Father’s heart in being willing to give that which had the
greatest value in all of the universe, His Son, so that mankind might not
perish for eternity, but have eternal life through Jesus.
1.2.
In our study today we are going to look at verses 17-36 of chapter 3.
1.2.1. Jesus finishes His
conversation with Nicodemus by telling him that God’s motive in sending His Son
into this world was not that the world might be judged by Him but rather that
He might save the world.
1.2.2. Previously, we were introduced
to this man John the Baptist who was baptizing people with a baptism of
repentance, telling them to repent of their sins for the kingdom of heaven was
at hand. To the Pharisees who inquired
of him he denied being the Messiah, Elijah, or the prophet. Then, he told everyone that he was merely a
voice of one calling in the wilderness to make straight the ways of the
Lord.
1.2.3. Though at that time some of
John the Baptist’s disciples left him to go and follow Jesus, we see that John
continued his ministry and still has some disciples who follow him. Now in John’s gospel we read of an event that
occurred where some jealousy erupted in John the Baptist’s disciples because of
the success of Jesus’ ministry.
1.2.4. We will observe some things
about jealousy amongst God’s servants, as well as the things that brought about
this kind of jealousy.
1.2.5. We will see how that John
the Baptist spoke with his disciples about this jealousy they were
experiencing, saying:
1.2.5.1.You cannot become jealous of
another’s ministry if you are truly serving the Lord and realize that all
ministry comes from the Lord.
1.2.5.2.Jesus is not like any other
prophet or man of God, for He is the only-unique Son of God and has come to us
from above.
1.2.5.3.John breaks the news to his
disciples that Jesus and His ministry is just going to continue to grow and to
increase, however John’s ministry must continue to decrease
1.2.6. Later when Jesus’ ministry
eventually begins to grow in size the Pharisees will become jealous of Him
which will eventually lead to their murder of Him upon
2.
VS 3:17 - “For God did not send the Son into the
world to judge the world, but that the world should be saved through Him.” - Jesus
tells Nicodemus that it was not the Father’s motive for sending His Son that
the world be judged but that the world would be saved through Him
2.1.
All people feel guilt.
Some guilt is irrational undeserved guilt, however all of us feel guilt
in our lives because in fact we are guilty, guilty of breaking God’s laws. The guilt that men and women feel causes many
to push God out of their life. Guilt
though should instead cause us as people to desire to come to the Lord so that
through Jesus Christ and His death upon Calvary for us we can have our sins
forgiven and our guilt removed, after all God gave His Son for us so that we
can be forgiven and saved and come back into fellowship with the Lord.
2.2.
Many people who push God out of their life begin to
have irrational thoughts about God and His intentions for mankind. Manmade religion invents a God in the image
it chooses. Many believe for instance
that all God wants to do is to judge and condemn them. When they hear Christians share the gospel
message to them, these people hear only that judgment is coming, they do not
hear the good news that God sent His only begotten Son so that we can have our
sins forgiven and atoned for, thus enabling us to have fellowship with the
Lord. It is sad that some people believe
only evil of God’s intentions in this world and in their lives.
2.3.
Jesus answers the question of the nature of God’s
intentions for mankind by explaining the fact here that the intention of God in
sending His Son into the world was to save the world from their eternal
judgment and doom, not to judge it.
2.4.
There will be an eternal judgment however for those
who reject His Son, but this was never God’s desire or intention for
people. The Lord created man as a free
moral agent giving him the choice to serve Him or not, however as a consequence
many choose not to serve the Lord. After
men fell into sin, God could have justly condemned mankind for eternity. However, rather than judge mankind for
eternity, the Lord did everything He could do to procure the redemption and
salvation of all people by giving His Son for us, and this with the intention
of saving any who are willing to be saved.
2.5.
This verse just reveals the immense love of God that
we can know in our life, and it emphasizes again what we saw in verse 16 that
God so greatly loved the entire world that He gave His only begotten so that we
would not have to perish along with the sinful people of this world, but that
we might be able to have eternal life.
2.6.
God “loved” us (past tense) when we were
wretched sinners and this led Him to give His Son for us to be horribly
sacrificed upon
2.7.
Before we go on I want to ask you O’ Christian a few
questions:
2.7.1.Are you like
the Lord and love even the ‘unlovely” and those who cannot repay you or
love you in return?
2.7.2.Like our
loving heavenly Father, do you respond in ‘mercy’ when the world
despises and rejects you?
2.7.3.God was
willing to give His only-begotten Son for men to be saved, what are you willing
to give that others might know God and be saved?
3.
VS 3:18 - “He who believes in Him is not
judged; he who does not believe has been
judged already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten
Son of God.” - Jesus tells Nicodemus that a person who
believes in Christ is not judged, but the one who does not believe in Christ is
judged already
3.1.
There is only one’s self who shall be responsible for
anyone being sent to hell. Each person
decides whether he will be saved and thus go to heaven, or go to hell and pay
the full price for his disobedience and sins.
The Lord says in His word, “Whosoever shall call uon the Lord shall
be saved.”
3.2.
The only sin that will send a person to hell is not
believing in Jesus for salvation, and Jesus tells us here that the person who
does not believe in Him for salvation is already under the curse of judgment.
4.
VS 3:19-21 - “And this is the judgment, that the light
is come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the light; for their deeds were evil. For everyone who does evil hates the light,
and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed. But he who practices the truth comes to the
light, that his deeds may be manifested as having been wrought in God’.” - Jesus
tells Nicodemus that the world will be judged because the great light of Christ
that came into the world yet the world loved their own darkness rather than the
light
4.1.
In our world, there are a lot of people who do not
believe in Christ and refuse to come to the Lord and His word to learn of Him
and seek Him. There are many reasons
that people give for not believing in Christ as well. However, Jesus tells us in this verse what is
the real deep down motive for people not believing in Him for salvation : people love the darkness.
4.2.
The word ‘light’ used here refers to real
knowledge and truth from God.
4.3.
The reason that men rejected the light that Christ
brought is because ‘their deeds were evil.’ Light exposes what is sinful and wrong, and
men love their evil deeds and don’t want to have to forsake them. Thus, many rejected Christ when He walked
upon the earth just as they do today.
4.4.
Jesus tells Nicodemus that ‘everyone’ who does
evil avoids the light, and this is a natural response. It is a difficult thing for a person to admit
that they are wrong. Our pride is not
easily set aside so that we are willing to humble ourselves and take the place
of the sinner in God’s sight. Yet, a
person must admit to being a sinner before he can see his need for a savior.
4.5.
However, the one who practices ‘truth’ in
his/her life comes to the light because it is no threat to him/her, for he/she
has nothing to hide.
4.6.
The light of God’s truth when received by us will also
reveal to us that it was God who gets the glory for men’s good deeds since it
was His grace that was at work performing any good deed.
4.7.
Christians who practice the truth will always be
persecuted by the people of this world, this is what Paul said in 2 Tim. 3:12, “And indeed, all who desire
to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.”
4.8.
Are you coming to the light in your life? Or, is their something that you have been
trying to hide from the Lord?
4.8.1. If it is ‘fear’
that sometimes keeps you from coming to the Lord with those hidden areas in
your life, remember that the Lord told us that He is gentle and His burden is
light and He promises to give rest to the one who comes to Him...
5.
VS 3:22-24 - “After these things Jesus and His
disciples came into the
5.1.
Here, we see that Jesus was attempting to do the work
of discipling His disciples, for John says that Jesus was ‘spending time
with them.’ This is the primary
means for us to be able to learn from the Lord and have Him mold us into His
image, we have to make time in our lives to spend with Him. We need to have our quiet times, prayer
times, meditation times, etc., in order to learn the Lord’s ways.
5.1.1. Paul wrote
in 2 Corinthians 3:18 about how that it is simply by beholding the Lord that we
are transformed into His image, “18 But we all, with unveiled
face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed
into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit.”
5.2.
Jesus had been in Jerusalem, which is in Judea, but now
He has moved out into the country where people will be more open to Him and His
teaching, the Jews will be less threatening, and He can leisurely spend time
with His disciples imparting His character and teaching to them.
5.3.
Christ, as one of the gospels tells us, was not fully
embarking on His public ministry until John was thrown into prison. John the Baptist, who was called to be the
Messiah’s ‘forerunner,’ had to run his course before the stage was set
for the Son of God.
5.4.
John the Baptist was continuing His ministry as He had
before He baptized Christ, and indeed he continued that ministry until he was
thrown into prison.
5.5.
John the Baptist always went where there was lots of water
so that he could fulfill the ministry of baptizing that God had given to him.
5.6.
Jesus is now baptizing in the same area that John
previously had been baptizing, and John and Jesus are now in fairly close
proximity.
6.
VS 3:25 - “There arose therefore a discussion on
the part of John’s disciples with a Jew about purification.” - John tells
us that John the Baptist’s disciples debated with a Jew about the rites of
purification
6.1.
It appears that John’s disciples got into a discussion
or argument with a Jew about “the authority and efficacy of John’s baptism.” The word ‘purification’ here refers to
the effect produced by baptism in one’s life.
6.2.
Actually, lets be clear first though that baptism does
not procure salvation, cleanse one of his sins, or exist as a necessary rite in
order for one to be saved. Baptism is
merely to be something that is symbolic of what has already happened in one’s
heart and life, an outward symbol and testimony to an inward act.
6.3.
The argument with John’s disciples and this Jew may
have begun as this Jew inquired as to what authority John’s baptism was
performed under, and thus how it could procure ceremonial cleanliness? Then, the Jew may have made the argument that
Jesus was baptizing more disciples than John, for indeed all were coming to
Him, and therefore whose baptism was supposedly ordained by God and truly
efficacious for removing sin, John’s or Jesus’ baptism?
6.4.
The realization that John’s ministry was declining and
Jesus’ ministry was growing seems to have brought about resentment upon the
part of John’s disciples. Perhaps John’s
disciples saw John baptize Jesus, and thus in their eyes saw what they believed
to be the supremacy of John’s ministry over that of Jesus, for after all had
not John ministered prior to Jesus and superseded Him? If John’s disciples were jealous of Jesus’
ministry, as appears to be the case that the tension John’s disciples were
feeling was compounded by the fact that Jesus was now baptizing disciples just
as John had, and in the same area as John baptized.
6.5.
The big question now was whether John the Baptist
himself would give in to the temptation to become jealous of Jesus and His
disciples? And would he graciously step
down from the prominent place that his ministry held, if it was for the sake of
seeing Jesus’ ministry be exalted, as was God’s plan?
7.
VS 3:26 - “And they came to John and said to him,
‘Rabbi, He who was with you beyond the Jordan, to whom you have borne witness,
behold, He is baptizing, and all are coming to Him’.”
- John’s disciples came and told him
that Jesus was baptizing and everyone was coming out to him
7.1.
We see in the question posed by John the Baptist’s
disciples how their resentment has clouded their understanding.
7.1.1. Despite all
that John the Baptist had previously spoken concerning Jesus his disciples
refer to Jesus not as ‘the Messiah,’ rather they say, ‘He who was
with you beyond the Jordan.’
7.1.2. Not only do
they say this, they say to John, ‘to whom you have borne witness.’ Had these disciples thought about what John
had actually borne witness concerning Christ, they would not be bringing up
this petty issue and would have referred to Jesus with His proper title.
7.1.3. They said
that Jesus was baptizing, however John, the author of this gospel, straightens
out this misunderstanding by saying that Jesus Himself baptized no man, but His
disciples were actually doing the baptizing.
7.1.4. The basis of
the resentment of John’s disciples was really just the popularity of another
man’s ministry over that of their group.
7.2.
I have mentioned many times the fact that in the body
of Christ that the Devil continually tries to stir up strife and division, and
we have to expect these kinds of things to happen. One of the things that often happens in
churches is that people can become jealous of another brother or sister because
of the success they are having in their ministry.
7.3.
Likewise, a pastor or leader, or even an entire church
can become jealous of another
leader or church. Then, suddenly there
is an attitude of competition and factiousness that breaks out between
churches.
7.4.
When you are truly serving the Lord there should never
be any competition with another’s ministry.
We Christians must not follow the trends of so many today who see other
men’s ministries as being in competition with their own. Jealousy is such a subtle sin which men
sometimes allow into their lives, and when it is allowed in it bears a very
deadly fruit.
7.4.1. When people
are blessed with success in their ministries, we all ought to rejoice in God’s
workings.
7.5.
In the scriptures, we read at least a few incidents
where the Devil tried to entice God’s servants to be jealous of others, yet it
is very encouraging to see how that they handled this. For instance :
7.5.1. In Numbers
11:26-29 we read about how that some of the leaders in Israel were concerned
that the Spirit had rested on others outside of the elders whom Moses had
chosen and how that even Joshua got caught up in the Devil’s attempt to make
Moses jealous of these men, “26 But two men had remained in the
camp; the name of one was Eldad and the name of the other Medad. And the Spirit
rested upon them (now they were among those who had been registered, but had
not gone out to the tent), and they prophesied in the camp. 27 So a
young man ran and told Moses and said, “Eldad and Medad are prophesying in the
camp.” 28 Then Joshua the son of Nun, the attendant of Moses from
his youth, said, “Moses, my lord, restrain them.” 29 But Moses said
to him, “Are you jealous for my sake? Would that all the Lord’s people were prophets, that the Lord would put His Spirit upon them!”
7.5.2. There was
also the apostle Paul who when he was imprisoned for the preaching of the
gospel writes to the Philippians that there were some preaching the gospel out
of envy and strife, however he simply rejoiced that the gospel was being
preached: Philippians 1:14-18, “14 and
that most of the brethren, trusting in the Lord because of my imprisonment,
have far more courage to speak the word of God without fear. 15 Some,
to be sure, are preaching Christ even from envy and strife, but some also from
good will; 16 the latter do it out of love, knowing that I am
appointed for the defense of the gospel; 17 the former proclaim
Christ out of selfish ambition rather than from pure motives, thinking to cause
me distress in my imprisonment. 18 What then? Only that in every
way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is proclaimed; and in this I
rejoice. Yes, and I will rejoice.”
7.6.
In contrast to those servants of God who didn’t bow to
jealousy there were all those in the scriptures who were not serving the Lord
who were continually jealous of God’s servants.
Saul comes first to my mind.
After David had conquered the giant and had great success in fighting
the women cheered and sang for him in 1 Samuel 18:7, “7…Saul has
slain his thousands, And David his ten thousands,”” then forever after Saul
was jealous of David and sought again and again to kill him. Most of the kings of
8.
VS 3:27-28 - “John answered and said, ‘A man can
receive nothing, unless it has been given him from heaven. You yourselves bear me witness, that I said,
‘’I am not the Christ, but I have been sent before Him’’’.” - John
writes that John the Baptist tells his disciples that they were not to worry
because no one can receive anything unless it is given him by the Lord
8.1.
There should never be any competition amongst men in
ministry, for all ministry comes from God, and God is the one who calls and
ordains men in their ministries. This is
what John seeks to communicate in verse 27.
8.2.
Paul the apostle wrote in Rom. 13, that there was no
authority upon earth but that which the Lord had established, and John the
Baptist is mindful to have the proper respect for any earthly authority, but
especially the authority of a man whom the Lord has called into authority in
His work.
8.3.
John the Baptist knew that Christ Himself must be granted
the greatest of respect since His authority is the highest since He is the
eternal Son of God who came in the flesh (John chapter 1:1,14).
8.4.
John causes his disciples to recall that he had all
along stated that he was not the Christ but merely His forerunner.
8.5.
We Christians of all ages need to realize that God
calls and ordains all authority upon earth and especially within the
church.
8.5.1. We ought to
have the proper respect for our elders and pastors in the church.
8.5.2. Those in
ministry ought to have the utmost respect for their fellow ministers in the
faith from other denominations, respecting God who has called and ordained
their ministries.
8.5.3. We shall be
fighting and rebelling against God if we do not show the proper respect to
those ministers whom God has called upon earth!
God have mercy upon us if we strive and compete with other’s
ministries...
8.6.
Do you avoid any impulses you may have to be in
competition with other Christians and their ministries?
8.7.
Are you genuinely happy for someone when you see them
being more gifted or having more success being used by God than yourself?
8.8.
Do you always have genuine respect those who are in
authority over your life, whether or not it is in your family, your work, your
school, your church, etc.?
9.
VS 3:29 - “‘He who has the bride is the
bridegroom; but the friend of the
bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly because of the
bridegroom’s voice. And so this joy of
mine has been made full’.” - John the Baptist tells his disciples that he
sees himself as being just a friend of Jesus, the bridegroom, and being the
bridegroom’s friend he rejoices just to hear the sound of the bridegroom’s
voice
9.1.
We don’t
want to read too much into what John the Baptist says here. He was not referring to the church as being
the bride of Christ for he had no understanding of such a thing. In fact, it was not until the apostle Paul
had this truth revealed to him several years later that the church began to be
referred to using this metaphor of the bride of Christ. In fact, the church itself had not yet been
revealed to any mortal. John merely uses
a metaphor of the bride and bridegroom for illustration that was Jewish in
origin, one which many could relate to.
9.2.
We see in the scriptures some spiritual metaphors
relating to a man and a woman in marriage being as our relationship to
Christ:
9.2.1. The ‘bride’
refers to
9.2.2. The ‘bridegroom’
refers to Jehovah in the Old Testament and Christ in the New Testament.
9.3.
John the Baptist realized what a blessing it is just
to be considered the ‘friend of the bridegroom,’ when the bridegroom is
none other that the Messiah.
9.3.1. By the way,
all of us who are God’s people are considered by the Lord as being friends of
God.
9.3.1.1.In James 2:23 we read that Abraham was
considered the friend of God, “23 and
the Scripture was fulfilled which says, “And Abraham believed God, and it was
reckoned to him as righteousness,” and
he was called the friend of God.”
9.3.2. Just to be a
door-keeper in God’s house would be a great blessing, yet the Lord considers us
Christians to be more than mere servants but also His friends.
9.4.
In the marriage ceremonies of the Jews of John’s day,
the ‘friend of the bridegroom’ introduced the bride to the bridegroom
during the ceremony, and also made sure that everything went smoothly with some
of the aspects of the ceremony. John’s
calling was simply to call people to repentance and then to introduce them to
Christ, who is to be their bridegroom.
After the friend of the bridegroom has done this he serves no other real
purpose. Neither did John.
9.5.
John was a man confident and content in his calling on
earth. He did not need to be anything
other than what God had called for His life!
If he could simply do this, his joy would be ‘made full.’ His joy was simply fulfilling his own
calling, nothing more and nothing less.
9.6.
I love the attitude that Gayle Erwin has had for his
ministry. Many times he has said that he
is content to play the one string banjo that the Lord has given him to play
since his ministry has really been just to proclaim “The Jesus Style” of
doing things.
9.7.
We Christians need to follow John the Baptist’s
example of being confident and content in our calling upon this earth.
9.7.1. Our tendency
is to wish that we were fulfilling someone else’s calling, as the saying goes,
‘the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence.’ We need to set our own agendas aside and be
willing to simply fulfill the calling that the Lord has for us, whatever that
may be. We need to be content just to
serve, no matter how low or how high the task we may be called to perform.
10.
VS 3:30 - “‘He must increase, but I must decrease’.” - John the
Baptist tells his disciples that Jesus and His ministry and purpose must
increase while his ministry will decrease
10.1. John the
Baptist truly was a man who had ‘self’ placed in its proper place in his
life. These words were called by one
author, “the most noble words a man
has spoken.”
10.2. We
Christians have the Holy Spirit, the third person of the Trinity living within
us, and thus in a sense do we not have all that we need to live a full and
effective live for the Lord? We would be
wise to take these words of John the Baptist to heart and realize that we need
to decrease, but we need Him to increase in our lives!
10.2.1.We must ‘decrease’
so that He may ‘increase’ in our life!
We need to die to self and allow the Lord to live through our life
through the power of the Holy Spirit. We
need to allow Jesus to be Lord of all in our life.
11.
VS 3:31-32 - “‘He who comes from above is above all,
he who is of the earth is from the earth and speaks of the earth. He who comes from heaven is above all. What He has seen and heard, of that He bears
witness; and no man receives His
witness’.” - John tells his disciples that Jesus, the one
who is from above (heaven), is above all, however the one who is from the earth
(people like you and me), are more lowly for we can only speak of the earth
11.1. John
declares the great difference that exists between a prophet and the Son of God
from all eternity.
11.1.1.He who comes
from above is above “all,” and, the things that He has seen and heard
first hand He bears witness.
11.1.2.All
prophets, they are from this earth and therefore are earthly in comparison to
the understanding to the One who Himself ‘is coming’ (Greek present
tense) from heaven.
11.1.2.1.The
knowledge of all of the prophets is second hand and dependent upon
revelation. However, God’s thoughts are
above the thoughts of men.
11.2. John the
Baptist tells us that people tended not understand or receive the words which
Jesus spoke.
11.2.1.John
shouldn’t be taken completely literally when he says, ‘no man receives His witness,’
because there is always a remnant who believe and obey God’s word.
12.
VS 3:33 - “‘He who has received His witness has set
his seal to this, that God is true’.” - John tells us that John the Baptist told his disciples
that the one who hears and understands the words that Jesus came to tell
mankind knows that God is true
12.1. When a man
or woman believes in Christ, they bear witness to what God’s word has promised
and recorded concerning the revelation of
Jesus Christ. Truly, all of the
Bible is the revelation of Jesus Christ, for He is the final and complete
revelation of God to man, as Hebrews chapter 1 states.
13.
VS 3:34 - “‘For He whom God has sent speaks the
words of God; for He gives the Spirit
without measure’.” - John the Baptist tells his disciples that the
One who God has sent speaks the words of God and has the ‘Spirit without
measure’
13.1. Jesus is the
‘One’ whom God has sent, and He speaks the words of God.
13.2. Jesus is different
than all of the prophets of the past who had the Spirit of God come upon them
for a time as they prophesied, or to a degree in order to empower them to
perform a certain task. Jesus has the
Holy Spirit without measure, but in all of the completeness and fullness of
deity.
13.2.1.Paul wrote
in Col. 2:9, “For in Him all the
fullness of Deity dwells in bodily form.”
13.2.2.Jesus had
every spiritual gift active in full proportions in His life, whereas each of us
as Christians have only one or a few gifts resident and working within our
lives at any given time.
14.
VS 3:35 - “‘The Father loves the Son, and has given
all things into His hand’.” - John the Baptist tells his disciples that the
Lord loves His only-unique Son and has given all things to Him
14.1. John the Baptist
knew that because Jesus was the only unique Son of God, and all of the fullness
of deity dwelt in Him, He also has been given the privileges that none of
creation has been given, all things have been given into Jesus’ hand.
14.2. John the
Baptist had already said in John 1:27 that he was not worthy to even untie the
thongs of Jesus.
14.3. In Isaiah 52:13 we read that it was
prophesied that the suffering servant (or Messiah) who was to come would be
highly exalted, “13 Behold, My
servant will prosper, He will be high and lifted up, and greatly exalted.”
14.4. Jesus is
over all things, and as Paul wrote in the second chapter of Philippians, “every knee shall bow and every tongue
confess that Jesus Christ is lord.”
14.5. In Col. 1:18-19 we read that Jesus Christ
shall be preeminent in all things for all eternity, “18 He is also head of the body, the church; and He is the beginning,
the first-born from the dead; so that He Himself might come to have first place
in everything.19 For it was the Father’s good pleasure for all the fulness to
dwell in Him.”
14.6. When giving
His disciples the Great Commission for the church in Matt. 28:18-20, Jesus told them that He had been given “all
authority” in heaven and upon earth, “18
And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given
to Me in heaven and on earth.19 “Go therefore and make disciples of all the
nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy
Spirit,20 teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with
you always, even to the end of the age.””
14.7. In 1 Cor. 15:25-28, we read that Jesus
must reign until He has finally put all things under His feet, and then He will
put Himself under the authority of the godhead, “25 For He must reign until He has put all His enemies under His
feet.26 The last enemy that will be abolished is death.27 For He has put all
things in subjection under His feet. But when He says, “All things are put in
subjection,” it is evident that He is excepted who put all things in subjection
to Him.28 And when all things are subjected to Him, then the Son Himself also
will be subjected to the One who subjected all things to Him, that God may be
all in all.”
15.
VS 3:36 - “‘He who believes in the Son has eternal
life; but he who does not obey the Son
shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him’.” - John the
Baptist tells his disciples that everyone who believes in Jesus, the
only-unique Son of God has eternal life, but those who disobey Jesus shall not
come to eternal life since they will be under the wrath of God
15.1. Notice here
the incredible insight that John the Baptist has into who Jesus is as well as
the gospel message of the new covenant that Jesus later institutes. John the Baptist has such insight into the
gospel that some Bible commentators have actually believed that in this verse
that the apostle John is actually inserting his own preaching into John’s
speech. However, I can’t accept that as
being true because this would mean that John is lying to us when he attributes
these words to John the Baptist.
15.2. In this
verse, John not only writes about the eternal life that is conferred not on the
basis of works but through believing upon Jesus for salvation, but he also
writes that the ‘wrath of God’ abides upon those who continue in unbelief
in Jesus as their Savior.
15.3. Many have
thought that God could not be a God of love and also a God of wrath, but this
is not what the word of God says.
15.3.1.Those who
put their faith in Jesus as their personal ‘Lord and Savior’ are saved
from the wrath of God through Him.
15.4. To obey the
Son of God and to believe in Him for salvation are one in the same thing. There is no ‘obedience’ that is
acceptable to God apart from faith in Christ for salvation, and their is no faith
in Christ for salvation that does not produce ‘obedience.’
15.4.1.‘Obedience’
is the cause and result of faith in Christ which a believer experiences.
16.
CONCLUSIONS :
16.1. As we consider how to apply this message to our own
lives, I would like to ask you a few questions:
16.1.1.Are you careful not to allow yourself to become
jealous over someone else’s successes?
16.1.2.Do you have
a genuine servant’s heart, or are you going to be content to serve only if you
get recognition by man?
16.1.3.Are you
willing to serve the Lord even if no one but your heavenly Father sees your
good works?
16.1.4.Are you
willing to decrease that Christ might increase in your life?