Jesus – Page 12 – Praying Pint

18.w. “Father, glorify me in your own presence with the glory that I had with you before the world existed.”

John 17:1 When Jesus had spoken these words, he lifted up his eyes to heaven, and said, “Father, the hour has come; glorify your Son that the Son may glorify you, since you have given him authority over all flesh, to give eternal life to all whom you have given him. And this is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent. I glorified you on earth, having accomplished the work that you gave me to do. And now, Father, glorify me in your own presence with the glory that I had with you before the world existed.

John 1:1-3 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made.

1 Peter 1:20 He was foreknown before the foundation of the world but was made manifest in the last times for the sake of you

The life of Jesus was a manifestation of God’s glory, and the disciples beheld this glory (John 1:14).

Jesus only ever sought the glory of His Father (John 7:18, 8:50).

God the Son seeks to glorify God the Father (John 12:28).

God the Father glorifies God the Son (John 13:31-32).

Jesus could not truthfully or sanely pray this if He were not Yahweh Himself, equal with God the Father. In Isaiah 42:8 and 48:11, Yahweh proclaimed that He shares His glory with no one. If God the Father and God the Son share their glory, they must both be Yahweh.

“He had one main petition: that the Father would receive him back to the glory he had relinquished to accomplish his task. This petition for a return to his pristine glory implies unmistakably his preexistence and equality with the Father. It confirms his claim that he and the Father are one (John 10:30).” (Tenney)

18.v. “For he will speak peace to his people”

John 16:31 Jesus answered them, “Do you now believe? Behold, the hour is coming, indeed it has come, when you will be scattered, each to his own home, and will leave me alone. Yet I am not alone, for the Father is with me. I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.”

Psalms 85:8-11    Let me hear what God the LORD will speak, for he will speak peace to his people, to his saints; but let them not turn back to folly.

Micah 5:5   And he shall be their peace.

Ephesians 2:14-17    For he himself is our peace

Philippians 4:7    And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

2 Thessalonians 3:16     Now may the Lord of peace himself give you peace at all times in every way. The Lord be with you all.

Jesus relied upon His close relationship with God all the way to the cross, and even upon it. In the loneliest moments imaginable, He understood that the Father was with Him. (Guzik)

“I remember that passage about Abraham going with Isaac to mount Moriah, where Isaac was to be offered up. It is written, ‘So they went both of them together.’ So did the Eternal Father and his Well- beloved Son when God was about to give up his own Son to death. There was no divided purpose; they went both of them together.” (Spurgeon)

Jesus offered His disciples peace. He made the offer in the most unlikely circumstances. At that very minute, Judas met with Jesus’ enemies to plot His arrest. Jesus knew that He would be arrested, forsaken, rejected, mocked, humiliated, tortured and executed before the next day was over. We think that the disciples should have comforted Him – yet Jesus had peace, and enough to give to others. Jesus did not promise peace; He offered it. He said, “you may have peace.” People may follow Jesus yet deny themselves this peace. We gain the peace Jesus offered by finding it in Him. Jesus said, “that in Me you may have peace.” We won’t find real peace anywhere else other than in Jesus. This word of peace is especially meaningful set in the context of conflict – tribulation and overcome both speak of battles to fight. “He promises a peace which co-exists with tribulation and disturbances, a peace which is realized in and through conflict and struggle.” (Maclaren)

Jesus also made the promise of tribulation. Peace is offered to us, but tribulation is promised. Understanding this removes a false hope. Struggling Christians often hope for the day when they will laugh at temptation and there will be one effortless victory after another. We are promised struggle as long as we are in this world; yet there is peace in Jesus.

18.u. “Whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him.”

John 16:7 Nevertheless, I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you. But if I go, I will send him to you. And when he comes, he will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment: concerning sin, because they do not believe in me; concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father, and you will see me no longer; concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged.

John 7:39    Now this he said about the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were to receive, for as yet the Spirit had not been given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.

John 14:16-17   And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever,  even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you.

John 14:26    But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.

John 15:26    “But when the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth, who proceeds from the Father, he will bear witness about me.

He will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: Sin is the truth about man, righteousness is the truth about God, judgment is the inevitable combination of these two truths. (Guzik)

“Each man’s conscience has some glimmering of light on each of these; some consciousness of guilt, some sense of right, some power of judgment of what is transitory and worthless; but all these are unreal and unpractical, till the convicting work of the Spirit has wrought in him.” (Alford)

The ancient Greek work translated convict has a broader range of meaning than simply our word convict, especially as it is understood in a legal sense. It also carries the ideas to expose, to refute, and to convince (Bruce). This is the work of the Holy Spirit in the world and in individual hearts; to convince and convict of these truths. It is a serious thing to resist and reject this work of the Holy Spirit, which is especially prominent and powerful in seasons of great spiritual advance. “The Spirit does not merely accuse men of sin, he brings to them an inescapable sense of guilt so that they realize their shame and helplessness before God.” (Tenney)

“The Spirit is the ‘advocate’ or helper of those who believe in Jesus, their counsel for the defence. But in relation to unbelievers, to the godless world, he acts as counsel for the prosecution.” (Bruce) It’s important to have the Spirit of God to defend rather than to convict.

In the great awakening of 1860-61 in Great Britain, a high-ranking army officer described the conviction of sin in his Scottish town: “Those of you who are ease have little conception of how terrifying a sight it is when the Holy Spirit is pleased to open a man’s eyes to see the real state of heart. Men who were thought to be, and who thought themselves to be good, religious people… have been led to search into the foundation upon which they were resting, and have found all rotten, that they were self-satisfied, resting on their own goodness, and not upon Christ. Many turned from open sin to lives of holiness, some weeping for joy for sins forgiven.” (J. Edwin Orr, The Second Evangelical Awakening in Britain)

It is unbelief, the rejection of Jesus, which ultimately proves one to be guilty. The Holy Spirit will tell the world of the importance of trusting in, relying on, and clinging to Jesus to avoid this sin. “The essence of sin is unbelief, which is not simply a casual skepticism nor a difference of opinion; rather, it is a total rejection of God’s messenger and message.” (Tenney) It is a vague kind of skepticism which is one of the most common spiritual diseases in man.

18.j. “Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes in me will also do the works that I do”

John 14:4 And you know the way to where I am going.” Thomas said to him, “Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?” Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. If you had known me, you would have known my Father also. From now on you do know him and have seen him.” Philip said to him, “Lord, show us the Father, and it is enough for us.” Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you so long, and you still do not know me, Philip? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own authority, but the Father who dwells in me does his works. Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me, or else believe on account of the works themselves.“Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes in me will also do the works that I do; and greater works than these will he do, because I am going to the Father.

“Thus we notice how they speak to him with a natural, easy familiarity; and he talks to them in full sympathy with their weakness, teaching them little by little as they are able to learn. They ask just such questions as a boy might ask of his father. Often they show their ignorance but never do they seem timid in his presence, or ashamed to let him see how shallow and hard of understanding they are.” (Spurgeon)

Jesus didn’t say that He would show us a way; He said that He is the way. He didn’t promise to teach us the truth; He said that He is the truth. Jesus didn’t offer us the secrets to life; He said that He is the life. (Guzik)

“Without the way there is no going; without the truth there is no knowing; without the life there is no living. I am the way which thou must follow; the truth in which thou must believe; the life for which thou must hope.” (a’ Kempis, cited by Bruce)

Jesus explained why He was the only way to God; because He was and is the perfect representation of God. To know Jesus is to know God. (Guzik)

Thomas asked a simple but deep theological question and Philip made a deep theological request. How can we know the way? And Show us the Father. They had both been with Jesus for over 3 years. They had witnessed miracles, wonders, and signs. They heard the words of truth He spoke, and yet, it is as though the dots were not connecting. Do you ever wonder if we are any different? How many prayers have been answered and yet we still harbor room for doubt? How many blessings have been graciously given and we leave room for unthankfulness? How many times have we been protected from Satan’s attacks and yet we leave room for the question, is Jesus near?

I usually say to make sure you stay in His Word every day, but I am consciously thinking that it is understood you must believe (rely on, cling too, and trust in) Jesus and you must exercise heart, mind, and soul-deep faith in line with what you are reading. We can believe in what we read but if it has no root in our heart then it is meaningless to our soul. Just imagine what impact God’s Word would have on and in our lives if we truly desired it to change our lives every single day.

18.d. “The word that I have spoken will judge Him”

John 12:42 Yet at the same time many even among the leaders believed in him. But because of the Pharisees they would not openly acknowledge their faith for fear they would be put out of the synagogue; for they loved human praise more than praise from God. Then Jesus cried out, “Whoever believes in me does not believe in me only, but in the one who sent me. The one who looks at me is seeing the one who sent me. I have come into the world as a light, so that no one who believes in me should stay in darkness. “If anyone hears my words but does not keep them, I do not judge that person. For I did not come to judge the world, but to save the world. There is a judge for the one who rejects me and does not accept my words; the very words I have spoken will condemn them at the last day. For I did not speak on my own, but the Father who sent me commanded me to say all that I have spoken. I know that his command leads to eternal life. So whatever I say is just what the Father has told me to say.”

“The word that I have spoken will judge Him” – there are inescapable consequences for rejecting Jesus. Think about the consequences for either relying on Him or rejecting Him.

Eternal life or Eternal damnation and torment

Living in light or living in darkness

Forgiven or condemned

Power in Him or weakness in self

Love or hate and anger

Joy or misery

Peace or conflict and anxiousness

Kind or mean

Gentle or brutal

Patience or impatience

Refuge or fear

Humility or pride

Giving or greedy

Victory or defeated

Hope or despair

God honoring or self-honoring

Holy Spirit living within or Satan always tempting

Heavenly desires or worldly lusts

Living for God or living for self

Surrender to the Holy Spirit leading or Satan, world/culture, and self-leading

Belief, trust, and reliance in Jesus Christ or rejection and denial

Jesus came to rescue and save us by paying the price of our sin. He came because God so loved the world that He gave His only Son so that whosoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. Jesus gave His life so we might live. This life we live is to be lived in the LIGHT of this so that all that we do, all that we think, and all that we say is honoring and glorifying Jesus Christ. He did not come to this world to condemn man but to save man from their sins. Yet, in rejecting His redemption, sacrifice, and salvation all mankind is condemned. There is no other means of salvation, but by and through Jesus Christ. Belief in Him is more than words on our lips. It is heart, mind, and soul-deep. It is knowing and owning up to our sin and sinful nature and separation from God because of it, and reliance on, clinging to and trusting in Jesus for our redemption from this condemnation. When we surrender our self-reliance to Jesus only reliance there ought to be some change (new birth). Old things pass away and all things are new. We are promised the indwelling Holy Spirit when we believe and surrender and trust and rely (faith) upon/in Jesus Christ alone. The indwelling Holy Spirit will lead us on paths in our lives that honor and glorify Jesus Christ. Listen for the quiet whispers of the Holy Spirit speaking into your life through God’s Word. It is there if we but spend the time in His Word and turn our ear towards Him. This new life in Him is not our own to live as we please. Our lives have been redeemed and ought to reflect the light of the price He paid to save us from hell and the promise of eternal life.

17.w. “For this reason they could not believe”

John 12:37 Even after Jesus had performed so many signs in their presence, they still would not believe in him. This was to fulfill the word of Isaiah the prophet: “Lord, who has believed our message and to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?” For this reason they could not believe, because, as Isaiah says elsewhere: “He has blinded their eyes and hardened their hearts, so they can neither see with their eyes, nor understand with their hearts, nor turn—and I would heal them.”

Christ enlightens them by signs, wonders, miracles, and words. These testimonies should shine bright in the darkness so that they/we may believe and follow the way of salvation. For this reason, they who do not choose to look at the light of Jesus Christ and the grace of God extinguish, as far as lies in their power, the light of Jesus Christ which is not only with them but offered to them. One commentator said, “It is perplexing how they came to be so stupid, that the power of God, though visible, produced no effect upon them. Their choice blinded them and in this blindness, their hearts are hardened like stone. We never know what exactly led them o deny Christ. It could have been pride, selfish-ambition, greed, anger, hate, love of this world, lovers of the desires of the flesh, or a host of other reasons. The very same things that have kept millions upon millions from believing in Jesus Christ, the Gospel of Salvation.

Examine your heart. Is it open to the leading of the Holy Spirit or does it take its lead from your fleshly desires? Does it seek and desire to know and be known by Jesus Christ? Does it seek to honor and glorify Him? Does it hunger and thirst for more understanding of His grace, mercy, and love? Do not be blinded by things of this world and what it has to offer. You never know when your heart will become hardened like stone and the light of Jesus Christ will no more be able to enter in.

17.s. “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.”

John 12:20 Now there were some Greeks among those who went up to worship at the festival. They came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, with a request. “Sir,” they said, “we would like to see Jesus.” Philip went to tell Andrew; Andrew and Philip in turn told Jesus.

Jesus replied, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. Very truly I tell you, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds. Anyone who loves their life will lose it, while anyone who hates their life in this world will keep it for eternal life. Whoever serves me must follow me; and where I am, my servant also will be. My Father will honor the one who serves me. “Now my soul is troubled, and what shall I say? ‘Father, save me from this hour’? No, it was for this very reason I came to this hour. Father, glorify your name!”

Isaiah 49:5-6   And now the LORD says, he who formed me from the womb to be his servant, to bring Jacob back to him; and that Israel might be gathered to him— for I am honored in the eyes of the LORD, and my God has become my strength—  he says: “It is too light a thing that you should be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob and to bring back the preserved of Israel; I will make you as a light for the nations, that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth.”

Isaiah 53:10-12    Yet it was the will of the LORD to crush him; he has put him to grief; when his soul makes an offering for guilt, he shall see his offspring; he shall prolong his days; the will of the LORD shall prosper in his hand.  Out of the anguish of his soul he shall see and be satisfied; by his knowledge shall the righteous one, my servant, make many to be accounted righteous, and he shall bear their iniquities.  Therefore I will divide him a portion with the many, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong, because he poured out his soul to death and was numbered with the transgressors; yet he bore the sin of many, and makes intercession for the transgressors.

Luke 9:23-24     And he said to all, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.

Jesus’s thought of the cross just a few days away, His main concern was that God was glorified. His purpose on earth was to redeem, save, and demonstrate God’s love for mankind. It is hard for me to come close to understanding the commitment and longing and desire of Jesus to honor and glorify God, knowing what just a few days away would yield great physical and emotional pain. He knew what He was facing. He knew His purpose and was willing to die on the cross for it to honor and glorify God and redeem mankind.

I can wrap my mind around taking a bullet, fast death, for someone you love, but willing to be tortured, beaten, whipped, and nailed to a cross for the sins of every human being is an act of love so humble, pure, and holy it seems beyond understanding. What a Savior we have in Jesus Christ. In light of this, how should we live our lives? The writer of Hebrews said: Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.

17.q. “If they keep quiet, the stones will cry out.”

John 12:12 The next day the great crowd that had come for the festival heard that Jesus was on his way to Jerusalem. They took palm branches and went out to meet him, shouting, “Hosanna!”, “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!”, “Blessed is the king of Israel!” Jesus found a young donkey and sat on it, as it is written: “Do not be afraid, Daughter Zion; see, your king is coming, seated on a donkey’s colt.” At first his disciples did not understand all this. Only after Jesus was glorified did they realize that these things had been written about him and that these things had been done to him. Now the crowd that was with him when he called Lazarus from the tomb and raised him from the dead continued to spread the word. Many people, because they had heard that he had performed this sign, went out to meet him. So the Pharisees said to one another, “See, this is getting us nowhere. Look how the whole world has gone after him!”

Luke 19:35 When he came near the place where the road goes down the Mount of Olives, the whole crowd of disciples began joyfully to praise God in loud voices for all the miracles they had seen: “Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord!” “Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!” Some of the Pharisees in the crowd said to Jesus, “Teacher, rebuke your disciples!” “I tell you,” he replied, “if they keep quiet, the stones will cry out.”

“The donkey was not normally used by a warlike person. It was the animal of a man of peace, a priest, a merchant, or the like. It might also be used by a person of importance but in connection with peaceable purposes. The donkey speaks of peace.” (Morris) “They greeted Jesus as a king, though ignorant of the nature of His kingship. It would seem that they looked upon Him as a potential nationalist leader, with whose help they might be able to become wholly independent of foreign powers who ruled over them.”

What were the people really praising Jesus for? Was it for raising Lazarus from the dead? Was it because they anticipated Him to become their mighty King? Was it because, on the coming Passover, they thought He was their deliverer from their Roman oppressors? When we praise and worship Jesus it is because He is King of Kings, Lord of Lords, Son of God, and Savior. It should never be about what we can get from Him, but because of who He is. Granted, we are blessed beyond all measure, we are forgiven of sin, we are redeemed, we are redeemed, forgiven, and born again, we are given and filled with the Holy Spirit, we are given His written Word, we are given joy, peace, love, hope, power, refuge, and the promises of eternal life and His coming again. These blessings we can truly be thankful for, but our praise and worship should be for who He is. I guess this is a very fine line. Thankfulness can be an expression of praise and worship. However, the line can grow strangely wide when our heart speaks thankfulness for what we can get rather than for who the Giver is.

17.p. “Give more than all the others combined”

John 12:7 “Leave her alone,” Jesus replied. “It was intended that she should save this perfume for the day of my burial. You will always have the poor among you, but you will not always have me.” Meanwhile a large crowd of Jews found out that Jesus was there and came, not only because of him but also to see Lazarus, whom he had raised from the dead. So the chief priests made plans to kill Lazarus as well, for on account of him many of the Jews were going over to Jesus and believing in him.

Matthew 26:10 But Jesus, aware of this, said to them, “Why do you trouble the woman? For she has done a beautiful thing to me.

Deuteronomy 15:11 For there will never cease to be poor in the land. Therefore I command you, ‘You shall open wide your hand to your brother, to the needy and to the poor, in your land.

Mark 14:7 For you always have the poor with you, and whenever you want, you can do good for them. But you will not always have me.

Mark 12:41 As Jesus was sitting opposite the treasury, He watched the crowd putting money into it. And many rich people put in large amounts. Then one poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which amounted to a small fraction of a denarius. Jesus called His disciples to Him and said, “Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put more than all the others into the treasury

If we are extreme in our love for Jesus, He will not criticize us; like what Judas did. It is much better to be like Mary (extreme in our love for Jesus) than to be like Judas (criticizing others who show such great love for Jesus).

If we are generous in our giving, with an extreme love for Jesus, our giving is non in vain. What Jesus approves and whatever honors and glorifies Him will never be in vain or worthless.

We are bombarded with endless enticements to satisfy ourselves. We are told lies, deep within our hearts, that we will be happier. The truth is that we will never find the satisfaction and happiness our soul seeks when we seek only that which satisfies our fleshly desires. Satan offers us this lie tied up in a neat bow. He even makes it seem right.

Our purpose this side of eternity is to live to honor and glorify the Lord of Lords, King of Kings, Jesus Christ. When our love for Him is great than self and what this world has to offer we will do and say things that others find foolish, lacking, and worthless. We will act out of our devotion and love for Jesus Christ.

17.o. Sitting at the feet of Jesus

John 12:1 Six days before the Passover, Jesus came to Bethany, where Lazarus lived, whom Jesus had raised from the dead. Here a dinner was given in Jesus’ honor. Martha served, while Lazarus was among those reclining at the table with him. Then Mary took about a pint of pure nard, an expensive perfume; she poured it on Jesus’ feet and wiped his feet with her hair. And the house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume. But one of his disciples, Judas Iscariot, who was later to betray him, objected, “Why wasn’t this perfume sold and the money given to the poor? It was worth a year’s wages.” He did not say this because he cared about the poor but because he was a thief; as keeper of the money bag, he used to help himself to what was put into it.

Luke 10:39 And she had a sister called Mary, who also sat at Jesus’* feet and heard His word.

John 11:32 Then, when Mary came where Jesus was, and saw Him, she fell down at His feet, saying to Him, “Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died.”

Mary has sat at the feet of Jesus and learned. She sat at His feet in mournful surrender. And she sat at His feet and honored Him with oil. How can we learn if we do not spend time listening with a desire to hear Him speak? How can we surrender our broken heart at His feet if we don’t believe in His comfort in a time of grief? How can we honor Him if we do not know and see His holiness and worthiness?

Outside of the betrayal of Jesus, Judas is only mentioned in the New Testament here for doing/saying something that would indicate his heart was not right. We do not know if the disciples knew that Judas was a thief. This may have been hidden from them or not. John indicates he knew he was helping himself to the money given to them and their ministry with Jesus. Was it greed that overcame Judas’s heart? Is this how satan took a foothold? We need to be mindful that sin is the fishing pond of satan. Once hooked no amount of thrashing about will calm these troubled waters unless there is complete surrender to and belief in Jesus Christ.