DIG for Wednesday the 18th of January….. so what do you have against Jesus…..John 3 v 16

In a Bible teaching today I heard the preacher talking about people having an issue with religion but not an issue with Jesus, and this made me ponder on that statement.

Many people have a problem with the church and Christians; they speak of hypocrisy, they speak of evil deeds done in the name of the church.

And I have a degree of sympathy with this view, having seen much hypocrisy in my time in the church.

However when you look at the life and teachings of Jesus there is not a lot to get annoyed about.

He was a man of compassion, mercy and love; He was a man who was for the “little” person saving His biting comments for the religious establishment.

Jesus did not have an ounce of hypocrisy or evil in His body.

There is nothing in His teachings to merit the evil deeds that we see throughout the history of the church.

Men, down through the ages and even today, have taken the words and deeds of Jesus and used them for their own ends; this is unfortunately the effect of religion.

I am not surprised many men have serious issues with “false” Christianity and the church.

But there is nothing to hold against Jesus.

Jesus is what we need to tell proclaim, what He did and who He was.

Speak this out today…..”Thank you Lord for the finished work of Jesus Christ and thank you for all that I receive as a gift of grace through faith in Him”.

John 3 v 16…..For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life

Advertisement

DIG for Tuesday the 17th of January…..I am so glad to be a whosoever…..John 3 v 16

Yesterday we looked at John 3 v 16 together and there is one word that has always jumped out at me from this verse.

I love the word “whosoever”.

This is a word that speaks to me of the inclusivity of the Kingdom.

Jesus is for everyone and anyone; Jesus is for whosoever will choose to accept Him and His finished work.

Men have been created with free will, with the will to choose what they believe and trust upon.

God the Father sent His Son to be the propitiation for the sin of all men.

Through His finished work all men have been reconciled and forgiven.

However men need to choose to trust in Jesus and His finished work.

When they choose they become a “whosoever”.

Once we trust in Jesus we are saved for an eternity with God the Father; we become a “whosoever” with regards to John 3 v 16.

Every man can be saved as the provision has been made through Jesus but every man needs to decide for himself to become a “whosoever”.

I hope you are glad to be a whosoever.

Speak this out today…..”Thank you Lord for the finished work of Jesus Christ and thank you that have been saved as a gift of grace through faith in this work”

John 3 v 16…..For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life

 

 

DIG for Saturday the 24th of September…..and this is another passage that is crystal clear in its meaning…..John 3 v 16

I wrote yesterday about a verse in Scripture that was very clear in its meaning.

Today I want to do the same and look at the passage around John 3 v 16.

Once again we read that Jesus is the only way through which a man might be saved.

As with the verse yesterday (John 14 v 6) the requirement for salvation is faith, belief and trust in Jesus and His finished work.

There is only one important thing with regards to a man’s eternal destiny, and that is what they decided “to do” with Jesus.

If you have faith in Jesus you are saved.

If you do not believe in Jesus you are not saved; it is that simple.

Jesus came (He was given by God) in order to bring reconciliation and forgiveness to men from God.

He achieved this through shedding His blood on the cross (Ephesians 1 v 7 and Colossians 1 v14).

Belief in this, belief in Jesus and His finished work is what brings a man into eternal life with God the Father.

Friends, it is not enough to talk to people about God and ask if they believe in God; the devil and his minions believe in God.

We need to tell people about Jesus and His finished work; this is what will bring a man to salvation.

Speak this out today…..”Thank you Lord for the finished work of Jesus and thank you for the reconciliation and forgiveness that this work brought”.

John 3 v 16…..For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life

DIG for Wednesday the 18th of May…..forgiveness and reconciliation for all, but you still have to make a choice…..John 3 v 16

We seem to be getting bombarded these days with the doctrine of universalism, i.e. the belief that everyone is already saved through the finished work of Jesus.

I think this is a cunning plan of the enemy; if he cannot get men to stop believing in God then maybe he can get them to believe we have all been saved already.

The Word however is very clear on the matter in that there has to be a choice made by every individual with regards to Jesus.

Yes, because of the finished work of Jesus, everyone has been forgiven (Ephesians 1 v 7 and Colossians 1 v 14).

Yes, because of the finished work of Jesus Christ, everyone has been reconciled to God (2 Corinthians 5 v 18 and 19).

However in order to be saved and made righteous (and receive the benefits of forgiveness and reconciliation) a man must believe these truths and must believe in Jesus and what He has done.

In order to be saved from perishing a man must believe in Jesus (John 3 v 16).

In order to be saved a man must believe in his heart and confess with his mouth that Jesus is the Son of God and was raised from the dead (Romans 10 v 9).

The fact that a choice has to be made is there in black and white in the Word of God.

Universalism does not stand up to scrutiny if you rightly divide the Word.

The Word says that God wants all to be saved (2 Peter 3 v 9), but Jesus Himself stated that many were walking on the path to destruction.

Universalism is as dangerous as atheism, and will keep people from an eternity with the Lord.

Choosing Jesus to be his Lord and Saviour is a choice every man needs to make for himself.

Speak this out today…..”Thank you Lord that salvation and righteousness are available as free gifts, and thank You that I have chosen to accept them”.

John 3 v 16…..For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life

DIG for Saturday the 26th of March…..His work not our work…..Romans 5 v 7 and 8

Thanks again to Sean for another DIG, helping me play “catch up”……

I’ve chucked in two verses for the price of one today finishing what I started when I talked about our inner need for a hero, a hero who saved us not based on who we were but on who He is.

I know that sometimes when I am caught off guard I can get under the mind set of the law and religion that states that I must behave a certain way and do certain works to be accepted by God.

But Romans 5 v 7 and 8 make it clear God loved us while we were yet sinners.

John 3: 16 makes it clear also, saying, ‘God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten son that whoever believe in him should not perish but have everlasting life.’

God loved this world and Jesus gave His life for it.

All I am called to do is believe this.

Yes my option is to believe on what Jesus has done for me and not what I do for Him, realising that any work you try to do to earn favour with God is as a filthy rag (that’s a menstrual rag) (Isaiah 54:6).

Grace and works do not mix, only acts of faith based on what Jesus has done bear any true worth now.

Jesus has done all the work required through His death on the Cross.

Jesus died for us while we were in our sinful state, a true hero giving His life for His friends (John 15:13).

Because of this we are now the righteousness of God in Christ.

That does not mean that I am not called to bear fruit as the more I manifest that love of God the more works of faith issue forth.

Speak this out today…..”Thank you Lord that it is not about me and my works, thank you it is all about what Jesus has done for me”.

Romans 5 v 7 to 8…..For scarcely for a righteous man will one die: yet peradventure for a good man some would even dare to die. But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us

DIG for Saturday the 18th of July…..before all things and holds all things together, that’s quit a role profile…..Colossians 1 v 17

I’m sure I’ve written this before, but I need to say it again; Colossians 1 v 14 to 20 is in my opinion the best description of Jesus in the whole of Scripture.

Sometimes it seems that people think Jesus “came on the scene” when He was born as a man just over two thousand years ago.

The truth could not be further from that.

Jesus always has been and He always will be.

He is the first and the last, the Alpha and Omega (Revelation 1 v 8).

Jesus was the agent of creation (Colossians 1 v 16 and Hebrews 1 v 2).

Yes He was a man and came to dwell among us but He was, and is and always will be, God (John 1 v 14).

Never think of Jesus as just a man; He was all man yet all God.

I marvel that the God of Creation could love me so much that He gave up heaven to come to earth to set in motion my salvation.

I really hope that you can appreciate that truth as well; that Jesus loved you so much that He came here as a man to die for your sins (John 3 v 16 and 1 John 2 v 2).

It is amazing to think (and quite hard to get your head around) that Jesus, while holding together creation and the universe, had the inclination to think about you and I and about the requirements for our salvation.

I think that is just awesome.

I don’t think I’ll ever really understand that or how He did it, but I don’t have to, I just have to believe His Word.

Speak this out today…..”Thank you Lord for Jesus and thank you for His amazing and wonderful finished work”.

Colossians 1 v 17…..And he is before all things, and by him all things consist

DIG for Tuesday the 13th of January…..aye, it is the simple things that are important…..1 John 4 v 19

I have just returned home from a trip to France and mentioned that it was great to be back in my own bed with my own pillows.

A friend replied, “aye, it is the simple things in life that are important”.

This is so true and it is also true in our faith and Christian walk.

It is important to know that God loves you (I John 4 v 9 and 10 and 19).

It is important to know that God sent Jesus for you (John 3 v 16).

It is important to know that you have been reconciled to God (2 Corinthians 5 v 18 and 19).

It is important to know that you have been forgiven (Ephesians 1 v 7 and Colossians 1 v 14).

It is important to know that as a gift of grace through your faith in Jesus that you have been made righteous (2 Corinthians 5 v 21).

These are all simple truths of the Christian faith but are some of the most important to know.

These are simple yet vital and fundamental truths of the Christian faith that we build everything else upon.

Unless we know the simple truth that God loves us, has been reconciled to us and forgiven us we will not be able to understand or believe other truths; truths such as healing and prosperity for example.

The truths about Jesus and his finished work are simple, and they are also very important.

Speak this out today….”Thank you Lord for the finished work or Jesus Christ and for all the good things that it has purchased for me”.

1 John 4 v 19…..We love him, because he first loved us

DIG for Saturday the 20th of December…..the gift that will never break or get lost and is FREE…..John 3 v 16

So Christmas is just about upon us again; the gifts have been wrapped, the movies have been decided upon, the crazy jumpers have been bought (and in or house put on) and the food has been prepared (I am so far behind with the DIGs this year that I am writing this on Christmas Eve).

For many people Christmas is all about the gifts, and the excitement is mounting wondering what is currently lying under the tree.

I have had a number of great gifts in the past, and a number of ones that I was not too excited about; I hope mine are great ones this year!

Isaiah 9 v 6 says that unto us a son was given, and John 3 v 16 tells us that God gave us Jesus.

Jesus was the ultimate gift from God; a gift who came to do what we could never do; deal with sin and reconcile us back into relationship with God.

The truly amazing thing about this gift is that it is free.

I don’t know how much money would have been spent on Christmas gifts this year; the amount of pounds, dollars and euros spent on gifts must have been huge!

Jesus was given as a free gift; the only payment required is belief in Him (Romans 10 v 9).

Jesus came to bring you back into relationship with God and bought you the “sozo” gift through His finished work on the cross.

You now have the free gift of safety, acceptance, forgiveness, healing, wholeness, joy, peace and prosperity; all you need to do is believe and accept it.

Now, isn’t that a great gift to receive?

Speak this out today…..”Thank you Lord for the free gift that is Jesus; and thank you for the gift of sozo”.

John 3 v 16…..For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life

DIG for Sunday the 24th of August…..salvation is available for all…..Romans 1 v 16

The gospel of Jesus Christ is an inclusive gospel, in other words it is for everyone.

This does not mean that everyone will be saved and spend their eternity with Father God but this is His intention.

God wants everyone to change his or her views on Him (come to repentance) and be saved (2 Peter 3 v 9).

God sent his Son because He loved the whole earth (or “kosmos”) and everyone in it (John 3 v 16).

Jesus paid for bot just our sin (or the sin of the believer) but He paid for the sin of the whole world (1 John 2 v 2), and God wants every person to benefit from this payment.

It is the gospel of Jesus Christ, the good news about Jesus Christ and His finished work, which makes salvation available (Romans 1 v 16).

At the time when Paul wrote this letter to the church at Rome, there were only two types of people in the known world; there were Jews and there were non-Jews.

At times the non-Jews were called Gentiles, but they were also called Greeks.

By saying that salvation was available to Jews and Greeks means that salvation was available for every single person alive.

All they had to do to receive salvation was to believe; to believe in Jesus Christ and His finished work.

This is the inclusivity of the gospel; everyone is included and can benefit from the work of Jesus.

All that is required is belief in Him.

The same is true today.

There are no works or religious deeds required to benefit from the work of Jesus, only faith in Him.

We are saved by grace through faith is what Paul wrote (Ephesians 2 v 8).

This is the good news of Jesus and this is what we need to tell the world.

Salvation is available to every single person alive today.

Speak this out today…..”Thank you Lord for the good news of Jesus Christ; that He is the way to salvation”

Romans 1 v 16…..For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek

 

DIG for Saturday the 27th of April…..God accepts you and loves you independent of you and your performance…..John 3 v 16

I was saddened today to read a Facebook status from a young girl who has been treated rather harshly by some of her church “family” after admitting to being gay.

To be told by a fellow follower of Jesus that you are “going to hell” because of your sexuality is not very nice; and you know what, that judgement is just not true.

People will go to hell because of their rejection of Jesus and nothing else!

Jesus came and dealt with the sin of the whole world (1 John 2 v 2) and sin is not an issue for God anymore; He has actually chosen to forget about it (Hebrews 10 v 17).

And before anyone asks, yes, that includes what we regard as the “bigger” sins such as adultery, fornication and homosexuality.

Sin is sin is sin, and God does not grade some sin worse than others. Remember he has forgotten it anyway!

Now, read carefully what I write next; I am not writing this to give anyone a licence to sin, however we need to be aware that sin has been dealt with and God does not deal with us with regards to our sin anymore.

He deals with us according to His love and mercy and grace because of the finished work of Jesus Christ.

He loves everyone in the whole world independent of their lifestyle or their performance, that is what John 3 v 16 means.

He loves the whole world; the Greek word here is kosmos and means the whole world and every single person in it.

God does not excluded anyone from His love, it is open to all; so what gives religious and legalistic people the right to exclude people they do not deem fit from it? Who made them God?

Do you know that God loves every single person in the world, be they straight or gay, alcoholic or teetotaller, loving husband or wife beater, saint or sinner.

You may not be comfortable with that truth, but it is the truth!

There is no “them and us” with God as He loves everyone; let’s see if this is a model that we can put in place in the church.

Speak this out today…..”Thank you Lord that you love me and will always love me”.

John 3 v 16…..For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life