DIG for Wednesday the 4th of October…..truth is liberating and empowering…..Ephesians 6 v 14

Paul likens our spiritual armour to that of a soldier.

Like a well-equipped soldier, we too have all that we need at our disposal to face our enemy.

He begins by telling us to have our loins ‘girt up’ (Ephesians 6 v 14).

The expression to ‘gird one’s loins’ was used in the Roman era meaning to pull up and tie ones lower garments between the legs to increase mobility in battle.

Garments hanging loose would be a cumbrance and a constraint.

To be ‘girded up’ is to be liberated, unrestricted and set free for maximum effectiveness in battle.

Truth makes us free and truth is liberating and unrestricting.

But only the truth that we know will set us free (John 8 v 32).

Truth is always truth whether we know it or not, but we will only benefit from it when we know it.

What is truth?

Well, Jesus said ‘’I am the truth” (John 14 v 6).

He is truth and the knowledge of Him and of everything He has done (His finished work) will set us free.

Where we are bound up, constrained and restricted, the truth of Jesus and all that we are in Him will set us free!

Speak this out today…..”Thank you Lord that I am set free from all constraints by the knowledge of Your truth, by the knowledge of You”.

Ephesians 6 v 14….Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness

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DIG for Friday the 23rd of September…..this verse is one of the crystal clear ones…..John 14 v 6

I have to agree that there are some verses and passages in the Bible that are rather difficult to understand.

Sometimes we need to look into the Greek or Hebrew, pouring over the Scriptures, seeking guidance from the Holy Sprit.

However there are verses and passages that are crystal clear in their meaning, where everyone should be able to understand what it is saying.

Take for example John 14 v 6.

Here Jesus is talking to His disciples and is telling them how a man can come to God the Father.

He is perfectly clear in how this happens; it can only be done through Him.

He says that He is the way, the truth and the life and that the only way to God is by Him.

You do not need to look at the Greek, you do not need to consult a commentary, and you do not need the services of a theologian.

Jesus is the only ‘vehicle’ available that makes a relationship with God the Father a possibility.

Through His finished work He brought reconciliation and forgiveness to all men, so that all men could make the choice to come into a relationship with God he Father.

Faith and trust in Jesus , and what He has already done, is indeed the only way to come to the Father.

Speak this out today…..”Thank you Lord for the finished work of Jesus Christ and thank you that He is the way, the truth and the life”.

John 14 v 6…..Jesus saith unto him, I am the way. The truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me

DIG for Saturday the 13th of August…..there is no other way to the Father….John 14 v 6

There seems to be an increasing instance on social media of what we know as universalism.

This is the doctrine that says everyone, no matter what they believe and say, are already saved.

This sounds good however it is a dangerous doctrine.

The Bible and Jesus are very clear about this matter; you simply need to read what Jesus says in John 14 v 6 to see this.

Jesus did not say he was a way to the Father, He said he was the way, the only way.

Christianity in its true form (faith and trust in Jesus) is not another religion; indeed it is not even a religion.

Jesus, the express image of the Father, is the only way to the Father.

Faith in Jesus means an eternity with God the Father.

A lack of trust and faith in Jesus, no matter what the Universalists may tell you will result in a lost eternity.

Don’t be take in by a “dodgy” doctrine, make sure you trust in and have faith in Jesus.

He is the only way to come to the Father and ensure your eternal destiny.

He is the only way to truth and life in abundance, the only way.

Speak this out today…..”Thank you Lord for the finished work of Jesus Christ”.

John 14 v 6…..Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me

 

DIG for Friday the 22nd of January…..this is not arrogance, this is the truth…..John 14 v 6

Many people tell us that there are many roads to God, many ways to come to the Father for salvation.

For example I’ve heard people say that Christians, Jews and Muslims all worship the same God, so all are saved.

This is not the case if you believe the Bible.

If the Bible is the inspired Word of God then you have to believe something else; you have to believe that faith and belief in Jesus is the only way to salvation, or to the Father.

This is what Jesus Himself said.

He said He was the way, the truth and the life.

He said He was the only way to the Father.

What He was telling the people was that if they wanted to come to the Father they had to trust and believe in Him.

This was not arrogance, this was the truth as Jesus knew whom He was and what He had come to do.

Yes, He was a man, yet He knew he was also God, and He knew that He had come to remove the obstacle of sin, so that man and God could be reconciled.

Reconciliation, the coming together again of man and God, was only possible through Jesus.

Jesus was, and is still, the only way to salvation, the only way to the Father.

You may argue that the three main monotheistic faiths all worship the same God, yet it is only through Jesus that salvation comes.

Speak this out today…..”Thank you Lord for Jesus, and thank you that He is the way, the truth and the life”.

John 14 v 6…..Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me

DIG for Saturday the 28th of November…..do you also believe in Jesus…..John 14 v 1

This afternoon I was led to John 14 looking for some Scriptures to use as I was preparing for a funeral.

The start of John 14 is a passage of great comfort to the believer; it is also a call to live a life of peace in the assurances we have from the Lord.

We can choose to let our heart not be troubled.

We can do this if we believe in God and also believe in Jesus.

This is an important point, as believing in God is not the same as believing in Jesus.

Many people say the most important question in life is, “Do you believe in God?”

To be honest that is not the most important, far more important is, “Do you believe in Jesus?”

The Word tells us that even the demons believe in God, that kind of “faith” will not save you.

Salvation and an eternity with God will come through faith in and trust in Jesus (Romans 19 v 9).

Jesus is the way, the truth and the life and He is the only way to the Father (John 14 v 6).

Whether you believe in the existence of God is not important in an eternal context.

The important point with regards to eternity is what you believe about Jesus.

So the next time you are talking about the existence or not of God with someone, make sure you get the conversation around to Jesus.

Speak this out today…..”Thank you Lord for the finished work of Jesus Christ and thank you that He is the way to a secure eternity”.

John 14 v 1…..Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me

DIG for Monday the 6th of July…..grace is not a message or doctrine or teaching, it is a person…..Titus 2 v 11

As I’ve said a number of times before in DIG I am often accused of teaching what is known as the “grace message”.

And I’ve often said this before (but it is good to be reminded about it) that grace is not a message, it is also not a doctrine or a teaching.

Grace is a person.

Jesus Christ is the personification of grace.

I was reminded about this again this morning as I was reading the book of Titus.

Paul says it is the grace of God that brought salvation and that grace has appeared to all men (Titus 2 v 11).

This can only be talking about Jesus.

He is the only way to the Father, the only way unto salvation (John 14 v 6).

Jesus became flesh and dwelt among us as a man (John 1 v 14).

Indeed in the gospel of John we are told that grace (and truth) came in the person of Jesus Christ (John 1 v 17).

Grace is Jesus and Jesus is grace, He is the personification of grace for us to see and marvel at.

He is truth and He is the only truth.

So if someone says to you, “do you preach the grace message”, thank them, and say, “yes I do, I preach Jesus”.

Speak this out today…..”Thank you Lord for the finished work of Jesus Christ, the perfect example of your grace”.

Titus 2 v 11…..For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men

DIG for Monday the 2nd of March…..you have to believe in Jesus as well as God…..John 14 v 1

John 14 v 1 is a very interesting verse if you think about it.

It tells us that there is a difference in believing in God and believing in Jesus.

I’ve encountered this a number of times when people tell me that they “believe in God” yet very clearly are not interested in and do not believe in Jesus.

Believing in God or not believing in God is irrelevant in the overall scheme of things; the important thing in our life is what we “do” with Jesus.

Jesus is the way, the truth and the life, so trust in and belief in Jesus is the only way to the Father and to an eternity of security and love (John 14 v 6).

This section of John (chapters 14 to 16) is the last chance that Jesus had to talk to His disciples before His death, so He would have taken the opportunity to tell them really important things.

That He was the way, the truth and the life and the only way to the Father is among the first things He tells them (John 14 v 6).

Salvation comes through trust and belief in Jesus and the fact that God raised Him from the dead, it has nothing to do with believing in God (Romans 10 v 9).

I was on a trip recently (with many unbelievers) and texted Nunsy to say that we had been speaking about church and God; she replied, “Have you spoken about Jesus yet?”

That was an incredibly important point, had I spoken about Jesus yet?

It is not that speaking about God or church is not also important, but the truth about Jesus and His finished work is the key to salvation.

Let’s speak about Jesus more!

Speak this out today…..”Thank you Lord for the finished work of Jesus Christ, thank you that He is the way, the truth and the life”.

John 14 v 1…..Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me

DIG for Monday the 8th of December…..Zacchaeus was saved because he was lost and needed salvation…..Luke 19 v 9 and 10

Zacchaeus was saved because he was lost; this may seem a rather silly thing to say yet it is actually quite profound (even if I say so myself).

Zacchaeus recognised that he had done wrong things in his life especially with money.

He then gave away half of what he had to the poor and actually gave people that he had “ripped off” four times the amount he had stolen (Luke 19 v 8).

So was this why Jesus said he was saved? Was he saved because of these good works?

NO!

Jesus stated that He had come to seek and save the lost, and Zacchaeus was a man who was lost.

However he was a man who had a change of heart and a change of mind, you could say he was a man of repentance.

He knew he had done wrong, but he had put it right because of a change of heart.

But he was also a man who made a real effort to get to see and meet with Jesus (Luke 19 v 3 and 4).

I believe Jesus recognised this, He had after all come to seek and save the lost (Luke 19 v 10).

He sought out Zacchaeus and He said he was saved; what a wonderful picture of the love, compassion, forgiveness and mercy of Jesus.

Salvation only comes through Jesus and nothing else; He said no one comes to the Father except through Him (John 14 v 6).

Jesus is the only means or vehicle by which man can be saved.

Speak this out today…..”Thank you Lord for the saving grace freely available to the lost through the finished work of Jesus Christ”.

Luke 19 v 9 and 10…..And Jesus said unto him, This day is salvation come to this house, forsomuch as he also is a son of Abraham. For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost

DIG for Sunday the 2nd of November…..Truth; liberating and empowering!…….Ephesians 6:14

Paul likens our Spiritual armour to that of a soldier.

Like a well-equipped soldier, we too have all that we need at our disposal to face our enemy.

He begins by telling us to have our loins ‘girt up’.

The expression to ‘gird one’s loins’ was used in the Roman era meaning to pull up and tie ones lower garments between the legs to increase mobility in battle.

Garments hanging loose would be a cumbrance and a constraint. To be ‘girded up’ is to be liberated, unrestricted and set free for maximum effectiveness in battle.

Truth makes us free. Truth is liberating and unrestricting.

But only the truth that we know will set us free (John 8 v 32).

Truth is always truth whether we know it or not, but we will only benefit from it when we know it!

What is truth? Well, Jesus said ‘’I am the truth’ (John 14 v 6). He is truth and the knowledge of Him and of everything He has done (His finished work) will set us free.

Where we are bound up, constrained and restricted, the truth of Jesus and all that we are in Him will set us free!

Speak this out today….Thank you Lord that I am set free from all constraints by the knowledge of Your truth…the knowledge of You.

Ephesians 6 v 14….Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth…..

DIG for Tuesday the 30th of September…..salvation is only available through Jesus, He is the only way…..Luke 2 v 30

Simeon was a very blessed man when he met Jesus at the temple.

Jesus was there to be “presented to the Lord” in accordance with the law and Simeon happened to be there also (Luke 2 v 22).

He had been promised that he would see Christ the Lord before his death and, having the Holy Sprit upon him, he recognised Jesus as the Christ and Messiah.

The Lord had promised him this would happen and the Lord delivered on His promise.

Simeon recognised Jesus as his salvation.

Jesus was his rescuer, his deliverer, his means to his healing, and his way to salvation.

Jesus is the only way to salvation, the Word is very clear on this.

He is the way, the truth and the life and no one comes to the Father (or to salvation) except by Him (John 14 v 6).

This is an unpalatable truth for many people who say “all roads can lead to God” or that “there cannot be any certain truth”.

Truth can only be found in Jesus and in His Word, anything else is a falsehood.

Father God can only enter into a relationship with us because of Jesus and His finished work.

As “arrogant” or “fundamentalist” this may be for many people it is the truth.

Faith in Jesus is the only way to salvation and to the Father, but the Good News is that this is available to everyone.

As Simeon says the way to salvation has been prepared before the face of ALL people (Luke 2 v 31).

Speak this out today…..”Thank you Lord for Jesus and thank you that He is the way, the truth and the life”.

Luke 2 v 30…..For mine eyes have seen thy salvation