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Reading the Gospels in 2026 (7/17) John 9:35-41

Jul17

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“Lord, I believe, and he worshiped Him.” John 938

The Gospel according to John

REVIEW – The Jewish leaders found the man that Jesus cured from congenital blindness, and accused him of letting Jesus heal him “on the Sabbath.”

The more they questioned the man, the stronger and clearer became his testimony. “This Jesus is a Prophet; He ‘opened’ my eyes; He healed my blindness from birth (unheard of in the history of man); He worships God; He does God’s will; and God listens to Him. If He were not from God, He could do nothing.” And, “Do YOU want to be His disciples too?” Their response; Grrrrr!

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(NOTE: I’m trying a larger font. My glaucoma eyes struggle to see the small ones. No comments, so I guess I’ll keep it.)

(Part Three of three, Jesus heals the blind man and makes him one of His own.)

John 9:35-38.

When the authorities heard this (and had no answer), they used the only power they had. They excommunicated the former blind man, now turned a disciple of Jesus.

This was harsh. It meant no one in this synagogue/Temple (or any other synagogue in Israel) could eat with this man or trade with him. Of course, as a former beggar, he didn’t have “a trade” anyway. THIS was what his parents feared when the Pharisees questioned them.

(The “casting out” of the ex-blind man actually foretold the greater separation of the synagogues from the followers of Jesus that was coming.)

Jesus had been following what was happening to the man, and after his excommunication, “found” him.

“Do you believe in ‘the Son of Man’?” Jesus asked him.

“Who is He, sir, that I may believe in Him?”

And clearly, openly (as He had revealed to the Samaritan woman), Jesus told him WHO He was. “You have seen Him, and it is He who is speaking to you.”

Lord, I believe,” said the new believer in Jesus the Christ, and he WORSHIPED Jesus.

(I wonder what that looked like? We’ve seen people who have been healed (or had a loved one healed) and especially those to whom Jesus revealed Himself, fall on their knees and “thank” Jesus. We’ve seen them immediately testify to others about who Jesus is. But to “worship” Him….? I imagine he must have fallen on his knees and thanked the God of Heaven for sending the Messiah of Israel, and praised Jesus for WHO He was.”

How do YOU picture it?

Jesus accepted the worship. Note that.

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.John 9:39-41

Then He said a mini parable. “For judgment I came into this world, that THOSE WHO DO NOT SEE may see, and… THOSE WHO SEE… may become blind.” (Thinking of Isaiah 6:10 and 42:19, no doubt.)

Whoa, what did Jesus mean?

“Those who do not see, and yet think they do” are the ones who think they are “enlightened” and have great insight, but in reality cannot see the Messiah of God when He is standing before them. In judgment, God blinds their eyes and stops their ears so they “cannot” see and hear.

Yes, it’s a hard concept. God IS sovereign. He opens some spiritual eyes and closes others. And He gets glory from both.

“Are WE also blind??” asked some of the Pharisees standing near and hearing Jesus’ words to His new disciple.

Well, “Yes,” you and I might say. “You can’t SEE that Jesus is the Messiah!”

It was their UNBELIEF that made them blind; that is the sin that kept them in darkness. But, in a twisted way, they were satisfied that their darkness WAS light, and continued in their rejection of Jesus as Christ. If they had only come humbly to Jesus…..

John 3:18-20. “Whoever believes in Him is not condemned, but whoever does NOT believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.

And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil.

For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed.

But whoever does what is true comes to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that his works have been carried out in God.“

See also 1 John 1:5-7.

Reading the Gospels in 2026 (7/16) John 9:13-34

Jul16

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“One thing I do know, that though I was blind, now I see. “ John 9:25b

The Gospel according to John

REVIEW – (Part one of three) Jesus saw a man who had been blind from birth. He made mud from his spit and some clay on the ground, applied it to the man’s eyes, and told him to go wash in the pool of Siloam. He did, and he could instantly see. People who knew him could hardly believe it. WHO did this? They asked. “Jesus,” the man said. WHERE is He? They asked. “I do not know,” the former blind man said.

(NOTE: I’m trying a larger font. My glaucoma eyes struggle to see the small ones. Comment if you don’t like it.)

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Part Two (of three): The Pharisees harass the formerly blind man, hoping to catch Jesus.

John 9:13-17

People who knew the formerly blind man brought him to the Pharisees. (Why?) It was the Sabbath (of course), and they knew that Jesus healing on this day was a big “no-no” to these uber-strict law teachers.

“How did you receive your sight?” asked the Pharisees.

“He put mud on my eyes, I washed, and I see,” explained the man simply.

Some of the Pharisees said, “This Man is not from God, for He does not keep the Sabbath.”

But others said, “How can a man who is a sinner do such signs?” And there was a division among them.

So they asked the formerly blind man again, “What do YOU say about Him, since He has opened your eyes?”

“He is a prophet.”

(Who now were the “blind” ones. The religious leaders were certainly walking in spiritual darkness, and they did it by choice.)

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John 9:18-23.

Hmmm, maybe this man was never blind. Maybe he’s faking it… So the Pharisees asked the man’s parents for verification. “Is this your son, who you SAY was born blind? How then does he see?”

His parents answered, “We know that this is our son and that he was born blind. But how he now sees we do not know, nor do we know who opened his eyes. Ask him; he is of age. He will speak for himself.”

The parents, of course, were afraid of the powerful Pharisees for these leaders had already agreed that if anyone should “confess Jesus” to be the Christ, he was to be put out of the synagogue. And so, they said that their son was of age and to ask him.

(Sheesh! Not a very caring family were they, to just throw him to the wolves, so THEY wouldn’t be persecuted.)

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John 9:24-34.

So the “court” called the ex-blind man back to give testimony again. “Give glory to God. We know that this Man is a sinner.”

“Whether He is a sinner I do not know. One thing I do know, that though I was blind, now I see.” (A fantastic personal testimony.)

“What did He do to you? How did He open your eyes? They tried again, probably to trip him up.

“I have told you already, and you would not listen. Why do you want to hear it again? Do you also want to become His disciples?”

(Whoa, this man is getting brave. He almost sounds like Paul at some of his trials.)

And now the religious leaders are on the defensive. They argue back, “YOU are His disciple, but WE are disciples of Moses. WE know that God has spoken to Moses, but as for this Man, we do not know where He comes from.”

Emboldened (perhaps even by the Holy Spirit), the former blind man speaks to the now spiritually blind teachers of the law.

“Why, this is an amazing thing! You do not know where He comes from and yet He opened my eyes. We know that God does not listen to sinners, but if anyone is a worshiper of God and does His will, God listens to Him. NEVER since the world began has it been heard that anyone opened the eyes of a man born blind. If this man were not from God, He could do nothing.”

(Wow! Jesus has let a powerhouse preacher loose in Jerusalem. Praise God!)

Humiliated and mortified, and with nothing to say back to the “seeing man’s” wisdom, the Pharisees resort to nastiness. “YOU were born in utter sin, and would YOU teach US???”

And they cast him out of the synagogue. (Excommunicated.)

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(Wow, oh, Lord, make me as strong and brave as this man when I am (so lightly teased) for my belief in Christ. Make me willing to give up anything to stand for You.)

(Part Three of three of Jesus healing the blind man, next.)

Reading the Gospels in 2026 (7/10) John 8:21-30

Jul10

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“I do nothing on my own authority, but speak just as My Father taught Me.” John 8:28

The Gospel according to John

REVIEW – Jesus continued teaching in the temple area as the week-long Festival of Tabernacles went on. But He was interrupted when some religious leaders brought a woman caught in adultery (as a test) and pushed her in front of Jesus. They asked if He thought they should do what the Law said and stone her. Jesus did not answer their multiple-choice test, but instead put it back on THEM. The one without sin should begin the stoning. None of them were sinless, so they snuck away without a comment. Jesus then judged the woman and found her a sinner. But He had come to SAVE sinners. He set her free with the admonishment to “sin no more.” —- Then at the evening lamp-lighting ceremony, Jesus declared loudly that HE was the light of the world and whoever would follow after Him would not walk in darkness but have life.”

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John 8:20.

The “hour” or “time” that Jesus often spoke about is the reason He came down from Heaven as a perfect Man. His death and resurrection are the means of salvation for sinful mankind that He and the Father planned before the beginning of time. A sinless man standing in the place of sinful humanity, then being sacrificed in their stead – well, it was the ONLY way to redeem sinful man and make them fit to live for eternity with the absolutely holy God. Jesus knew the plan, and ever since His ministry began when he was baptized by John, His mind was fixed on that “hour” of extreme suffering and forsakenness on behalf of those in His creation who believed.

All Jesus did was with that “Hour” in mind – that it was coming at an exact point in time that the prophet Daniel had foretold. He did nothing to delay its arrival, and He also did nothing to cause his death to come too soon. There was an appointed time, and Jesus would be there.

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John 8:21-25

Jesus now speaks about that hour of His death, resurrection, and ascension (all as one event), but in veiled terms. Those whose hearts were opened would receive it. But everyone else would be confused, disbelieving, and hostile.

So, Jesus said to them, “I am going away, and you will seek me, and you will die in your sin. WHERE I am going, you cannot come.”

The hostile Jews were affronted by Jesus’ vagueness. “Will He kill Himself, since He says, ‘Where I am going you cannot come?'” They probably looked at one another as if this was a big joke, perhaps even elbowed their fellows. “HEY, if He kills Himself, we won’t have to! Haha.”

Jesus brought them back to seriousness. “YOU are from below; I am from above. YOU are of this world; I am not of this world.”

Yes, they knew exactly what Jesus was talking about, but they WOULD NOT believe Him.

“And you WILL die in your sins unless you believe that I AM.” Unless they believed He was one with the God of the Old Testament, there was no hope for them.

“WHO ARE YOU?” they asked.

“Just what I’ve been telling you from the beginning.” (In other words, haven’t you been listening?)

These religious leaders, priests, and teachers of the Law were completely missing the “One” about whom the Scriptures had pointed for thousands of years. And they didn’t understand He was talking about the LORD God, His Father, the Creator of Heaven and Earth who had sent Him here with a work of salvation/redemption to finish.

“I do nothing on my own authority, but speak just as the Father taught Me. He who sent me is with me. He has not left me alone, for I always do the things that are pleasing to Him.”

“WHEN you have lifted up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am He.”

As Jesus was saying these things, MANY BELIEVED IN HIM.

Reading the Gospels in 2026 (7/9) John 8:1-20

Jul9

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“I am the light of the world. Whoever follows Me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of Life.” John 8:12

The Gospel according to John

REVIEW – The religious leaders in Jerusalem are “foiled again” when the officers they sent to arrest Jesus came back empty-handed. They had been “wowed” by the words that Jesus spoke and couldn’t bring themselves to manhandle Him. The authorities were furious, especially when Nicodemus, one of them, seemed to support Jesus. I can imagine them pulling out their hair in frustration. But … today, they present another scheme to trap Jesus between His teaching/actions and the Law of Moses. Okay, their Sabbath rules ma-a-ay be in the gray zone, but who could question ADULTERY?

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John 7:53-8:2

Some people went home after the water-drawing festivities. Jesus went simply to the Mount of Olives. He could have spent the night with (or without) n the other side of the Mount. Regardless, in the morning He returned to the temple early, sat down, and began teaching the crowds again.

Then an astonishing incident occurred. I always pictured this in a solitary place with only Jesus, the woman, and the group of self-assured scribes and Pharisees. However, it could have happened right in the middle of that crowd that Jesus was teaching. When the Jews pushed the woman forward and announced her sin, the crowd probably pulled back, allowing a clear space around the scene, and quieting down to see what might happen in this drama.

(NOTE: This story is in a sort of parentheses in the middle of the Festival of Tabernacles. Some manuscripts do not include it. Others put it in a different place. However, it’s good to consider the text’s meaning and leave it there. It also shows the frustration of the Jewish leaders at their inability to arrest Jesus.)

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John 8:3-11

A group of fancy-dressed religious leaders brought a struggling woman (possibly not fully clothed) into the courtyard and shoved her toward Jesus..

“Teacher! This woman has been caught IN THE ACT of adultery. Now … in the LAW, Moses commanded us to stone such a woman. (Smirk, smirk.) So, what do YOU say?

They thought they’d trapped Jesus. If He said, “Stone her,” the crowd would have gone into a frenzy. If He gave her leniency, these pompous men would accuse Him of being a law-breaker.

(What “I” want to know is where was THE MAN. If she had been “caught in the act,” it would mean another person was involved. Did the authorities “set it up?” Did they let the man (possibly one of their own) escape? It’s all “fishy” to me. Deuteronomy 22:24 says to bring them BOTH outside the city for stoning. Leviticus 20:10 says, “both the adulterer and the adulteress shall be put to death.” So……)

Jesus said nothing.

He stooped and “wrote” something with His finger on the ground. What, I wonder? A word? A name? A Scripture passage? A squiggle?

“What do you say?” Her accusers asked again. And again.

Then Jesus stood and looked them full in the face (but saw their hearts). “Let him who is without sin among you be the first to throw a stone at her.”

Then He stooped again, and wrote on the ground. What DID He write? Their names? Their sins? Words of compassion that only the woman could see?

When Jesus rose back up, all the accusing men were gone. They had slipped away (ashamed? fearful?) the oldest among them first.

“Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?

“No one, Lord.”

“Neither do I condemn you; go and from now on sin no more.”

Jesus knew the Samaritan woman had been married five times and was now living in adultery, and yet He revealed to her that He was the Christ. Jesus healed the cripple at the pool of Bethesda, and told him also to “sin no more.” What mercy and grace. At this point, Jesus had not come into the world to judge and condemn the world, but to give His life to save those who would turn to Him in faith. Surely the Samaritan woman ‘cleaned up her act.’ Did the ex-cripple and this woman turn from their sin for good?

Jesus offers US the same grace and forgiveness, based on His accomplished death and resurrection. Come to Him. Cling to Him. Love Him and serve Him.

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John 8:12

At the end of the Festival of Tabernacles, another “tradition” took place: the lighting ceremony. As with the water drawing tradition, Jesus used this as another metaphor to reveal a truth about Himself. Four large lamps were lit in the court of the women. While the Levitical orchestra played, and smaller torches were lit and held aloft, there was dancing and the singing of praises.

And Jesus said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows Me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” This saying – used often in the Old Testament- highlights Jesus’s role as the Messiah and Son of God. The coming Lord would be a “light for His people and for the whole world.” (Isaiah 50:19-22, Psalm 21:1, Psalm 119:105)

His reference to “following Him” (fully and completely) and not “walking in darkness” alludes to the pillar of fire in the wilderness that led the Israelites at night and protected them. (Exodus 13:21)

What a startling announcement!

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John 8:13-20.

Again the Jews argued with Jesus concerning testifying about Himself, which does NOT verify truth. But Jesus says, “In your Law it is written that the testimony of two people is true. I am the one who bears witness about myself, and the Father who sent me bears witness about me.”

“Where IS your Father?” they asked in scorn.

“You know neither my Father nor me. If you knew me, you would know my Father also.” Jesus was saying that even though they were priests and teachers of the Law, they did not KNOW God. If they did, they would welcome Him as God’s Messiah.

John comments that, even though Jesus was teaching openly, NO ONE ARRESTED HIM. Why? Because “His hour” had not yet come.

Reading the Gospels in 2026 (7/8) John 7:45-52

Jul8

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“No one ever spoke like this Man.” John 7:46.

The Gospel according to John

REVIEW – Jesus uses the tradition of drawing and blessing the water as an opportunity to draw the people towards Him and eternal life. Jesus calls out for the spiritually “thirsty” to come to Him (much like He said to the Samaritan woman in chapter 4) and to spiritually “drink” rivers of “living water” in their souls, quenching their spiritual longings. Many called Him the Prophet or the Christ after this. Others reminded them that the Messiah came from Bethlehem, not Galilee. As with today, there are mixed understandings about Jesus.

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John 7:32 with 45-52.

Before Jesus’s invitation to come to Him at the water ceremony, while Jesus was still teaching in the temple courtyard, the Sadducees and Pharisees had sent officers (the temple guards) to arrest Him. (vs 32). However, after the appeal to thirsty people to come to Him for refreshment, the guards couldn’t act. Some obviously were moved by Jesus’ words. Perhaps a few even felt drawn to his simple, sincere appeal.

Back at temple headquarters, they reported, “No one ever spoke like this man.”

The religious leaders were furious. “Have any of (us) the authorities or Pharisees believed in Him!!?? This crowd – that does not know the law (like we do) – is accursed!”

That’s when Nicodemus (a Pharisee himself), who had gone to Jesus at night, way back at the beginning of Jesus’s ministry (John 3), said, “Does our law judge a man without first giving Him a hearing and learning what He does?”

This was perhaps the beginning of Nicodemus’s turning to Jesus. HE had given Jesus “a hearing” and “had learned” a bit about what He did. He didn’t fully understand the “new birth” by the Spirit that Jesus spoke of, but it had struck a chord in his soul. Later this man would turn completely – if silently – to the Lord, and help Joseph bury Jesus’ body after the crucifixion.

But now, his fellows in the Sanhedrin riled on him, insinuating that he was unlearned, even stupid, like the Galileans. “Are YOU from Galilee too? Search and see that no prophet arises from Galilee.”

Ah, the ignorance of the ultra-learned.

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(LORD, keep me from pride and pre-judgment.)

Reading the Gospels in 2026 (7/3) John 7:1-13

Jul3

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“While some said, ‘He is a good man,’ others said, ‘No, He is leading the people astray.'” John 7:12

The Gospel according to John

REVIEW – Jesus taught a very unpopular message in the synagogue at Capernaum, affirming that He was the true “bread of life,” sent by the Father, and that He had the words of eternal life for any who would come and believe in Him. Then Jesus spoke spiritual words about giving his flesh and blood for the people, and them “eating Him.” Misunderstanding the glorious message of salvation, the people were horrified, and many stopped following Him. When Jesus turned to the Twelve, spokesman Peter responded, “Where would we go? You alone have the ‘words of Eternal Life’.

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John 7:1-2

(NOTE: While the feeding of the 5,000 and the teaching that followed took place near Passover (Spring), chapters 7 and 8 take place during the Feast of Booths or Tabernacles, which is in the Fall. The next Spring, at Passover, is when Jesus will be crucified. You really see the hatred of the Jewish leaders towards Jesus grow in these chapters.)

In the six months following the feeding of the 5,000, John tells us that Jesus “went about in Galilee.” As we’ve already learned in Mark and Luke, Jesus spent a lot of time around the Sea teaching, healing the sick, and casting out demons.

But John’s intention is to show Jesus as the Messiah, the Son of God, and how men reacted to Him (mostly rejection). He says here that it was “too hot” for Jesus to publicly go to Judea/Jerusalem for the Festival “because the Jews were seeking to KILL Him.”

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John 7:3-10

Even Jesus’ half-brothers (sons of Mary and Joseph born after Jesus) ridiculed Him. They thought He had “visions of grandeur” about Himself and taunted Him to “Leave here and go to Judea, that your disciples also may see the works you are doing. For no one works in secret if he seeks to be known openly. If you do these things, show yourself to the world!”

Jesus told His brothers that the time wasn’t right for Him. He meant that His time to die for the people was still 6 months off, and the furious Jews might preempt His death if He attended the Festival openly. Of course the five brothers did NOT understand at all.

(But they would eventually. While “not even his brothers believed in Him” then, at least two of them would later. Jacob (James) and Judah (Jude) would even write books in the New Testament.).

Jesus told the brothers that He was not going to Jerusalem as they wanted Him to (with pomp and flash). But He intended to go later “incognito.” (“not publicly, but in private.”)

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The Festival of Booths was a joyous time at harvest. It was the time when the people remembered how God had taken care of them as they had wandered in the wilderness for 40 years. The makeshift “booths” they built from branches and palm fronds, which they lived in for the week, were meant to remind them of the temporary dwellings in the desert.

The Festival was also known for water-drawing and lamp-lighting, which Jesus would use to point people to Himself as Messiah when He eventually attended.

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John 7:11-13.

Meanwhile in Jerusalem, “The Jewish leaders were looking for Jesus at the feast, saying, ‘Where is He?'”

And there was much muttering about Him among the people. While some said, ‘He is a good man,’ others said, ‘No, He is leading the people astray.”

“Yet, for fear of the Jewish leaders, no one spoke openly of Him.“

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(It’s not until the middle of the Festival that Jesus shows up.)

Reading the Gospels in 2026 (7/2) John 6:41-71

Jul2

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“Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life…” John

The Gospel according to John

REVIEW – Jesus tells the crowd seeking a miracle sign from Him before they “believe” in Him … that He is the true “bread from heaven,” who gives life to the world. “I AM the bread of life,” Jesus said. “Whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst,” But it all seems to go over their heads (or rather their stomachs). (This was the first of seven “I AM” statements that John presents about Jesus in his gospel.)

John 6:41-51.

At some point, this conversation/teaching moved into the synagogue at Capernaum. Jesus continued as teacher, but these Jews, who moments before were wanting to make Jesus their king so He could give them free bread every day, now grumble about His claims to be “spiritual bread” sent down from heaven. “Isn’t this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How does He say now that He has come down from heaven?”

Jesus clarifies one thing. It’s not their wisdom and understanding that will draw them to faith in Him. “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him.” Jesus then paraphrases Isaiah 54:13 and tells them that they must be “taught the truth by God” and, with that learning, they can be drawn by God. By themselves (and ourselves), they could never come to and believe in Jesus on their own. “Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever BELIEVES (the word that God has given about Jesus) has eternal life.

“I AM the bread of life. Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died. THIS is the bread that comes down from heaven, so that one may eat of it and NOT die. I am the LIVING bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of THIS bread, he will LIVE FOREVER.”

And then that statement that began their distancing from Him. “The bread that I will give for the life of the world is … my flesh.”

(Of course we know the rest of the story. Jesus DID give His life, His “flesh,” for the world, so that “whosoever believed in Him might not perish but have everlasting life.” (John 3:16) His life for theirs.

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John 6:52-59.

But the selfish, glory-seeking Jews in the audience took the wrong meaning. “How can this man give us his FLESH to eat?” (Among other obvious reasons, this would have been super UN-kosher.)

Jesus doesn’t coddle them. He trusts His Father to give understanding and belief to those He wants to draw toward faith. “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of man … and drink His blood, you have no life in you.” (Imagine their faces, aghast and cringing, as He continues.) “Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood HAS eternal life, and I will raise Him up on the last day. For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink. Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood ABIDES in me, and I in him.”

The crowd, as one, has leaned or retreated back from Jesus, imagining the gruesome “physical” picture He was painting. (Yes, there were a few who were getting the Spiritual” meaning, as we’ll see in a minute.)

Jesus concludes his Sabbath sermon with this summary. “THIS is the bread that came down from heaven, NOT like the ‘bread’ the fathers ate and died. Whoever feeds on this bread will live forever.”

To us, this is a message of hope, but to these Jews, understanding evaded them, and they did not receive His teaching.

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John 6:60-65.

Many of the crowds of Jesus’ followers now had second thoughts. This was not the great and grand Messiah who would lead Israel to victory against the Romans. This man spoke almost like a crazy man. His teaching was “hard,” and they took offense. MANY turned back and no longer followed Him.

“Do you take offense at this? Then what if you were to see the Son of Man ascending to where He was before?

And then this truth for all who are ever drawn to Jesus and saved: “It is the SPIRIT who gives life; the flesh is no help at all. The words that I have spoken to you are Spirit and LIFE.”

And again, “This is why I told you that NO ONE can come to Me unless it is granted him by the Father.”

John 6:66-71.

Jesus looked deeply at His twelve chosen disciples and said, “Do YOU want to go away as well?”

“LORD, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life, and we have believed and have come to KNOW that You are the Holy One of God,” said Simon Peter.

And yes, there was even one of the twelve who did not KNOW Jesus as the “Bread of LIFE.”

Reading the Gospels in 2026 (6/29) John 5:31-47

Jun29

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“You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have ETERNAL LIFE; and it IS they that bear witness about me, yet you refuse to come to me that you may HAVE life.” John 5:39-40

The Gospel according to John

REVIEW – Last time, Jesus claimed He was equal with God, calling Him His Father. This infuriated the religious leaders, and they began at this point to seek how they could KILL Jesus. Then, as if to drive His point home with these know-it-alls, Jesus listed the ways that He had the same authority as the Father, even to the point of raising the dead and giving life. Jesus promised that whoever heard Him and believed His words would pass from death to LIFE. And yet, to emphasize His utter “oneness” with God the Father, Jesus stated, “I can do nothing on my own.”

John 5:31-47.

In Jewish law, two or three testimonies/witnesses were REQUIRED in order to prove a fact – either guilt or innocence. (See Deuteronomy 19:15-16). Jesus tells the religious leaders that there are indeed FOUR witnesses to His authority and origin.

  • Vss 33-35 – the testimony of John the Baptist
  • Vs. 36 – the “works” (or miracles) that He does
  • Vss 37-38 – God, His Father, had given witness for Him, “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.”
  • Vss 39-47 – the very Scriptures these men revered and studied so well gave witness about Jesus.

Then Jesus’ sad words, “Yet you refuse to come to me that you may have life.”

Then Jesus tells them that Moses (his writings, the Law), which they so highly regarded, is the very thing that will accuse them to God, the Father. “If you believed Moses, you would believe Me, for he wrote of Me.”

Deuteronomy 18:15 – (Moses speaking to the Israelites.) “The LORD your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your brothers – it is to Him you shall listen.”

John 4:19 – “The woman said to Him, ‘Sir, I perceive that you are a prophet.'”

John 6:14 – “When the people saw the sign that he had done, they said, ‘This is indeed the Prophet who is come into the world.'”

John 7:40 – ‘When they heard these words, some of the people said, ‘This really is the Prophet.’ Others said, ‘This is the Christ.'”

(It seems the people were “getting it,” but the pious leaders ground their heels and refused to believe.)

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(Oh, Lord! We do believe. But help our unbelief. Help us never to let our learning or perceived knowledge block the wisdom of the Holy Spirit. Help us to see Jesus and believe all He says. Let us never refuse the eternal life He offers.)

Jesus here claimed FOUR witnesses to his veracity.

Reading the Gospels in 2026: (6/4) Luke 23:44-49

Jun4

A 5-day per week study.

June 4 – Reading Luke 23:44-49

 

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“Jesus, calling out with a loud voice, said, ‘Father, into Your hands I commit My spirit.’And He breathed His last.”  Luke 23:46

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The Gospel according to Luke 

Review – Jesus was nailed to the cross. “Father, forgive them…” Jesus was mocked by religious leaders, soldiers, and criminals, but one finally found faith and trusted in Jesus.  “Today you will be with me in Paradice.”

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Vss. 23:44-49.

Jesus was nailed to the cross at 9:00 am.  At noon, “there was darkness over the whole land until 3:00 pm, while the sun’s light failed.”  

“And the curtain of the temple was torn in two (‘from top to bottom’, says Matthew 27:51, Mark 15:38).

Jesus (knowing about that temple curtain and what it’s tearing stood for) cried out in a loud voice, ‘Father, into Your hands I commit my Spirit.”

And He breathed His last breath.

Jesus was dead.

(The other Gospels record more of Jesus’ words.  They also record how, when earthly life left the Son of God, all hell broke loose.  With the darkness, violent earthquakes, and rocks splitting, tombs were opened, and the bodies of the dead came out.)

(Satan had a sudden, horrible headache. Genesis 3:15)

The Centurion in charge of the crucifixion stood trembling. “Certainly, this Man was innocent!”

Two criminals still hung, alive, on the crosses. But the spectators who came to see Jesus die, “returned home, beating their breasts.”  All (men and women) who had followed Jesus from Galilee stood at a distance and watched. Stunned? Horrified?

But Jesus was with His Father, just as all true believers will be with the LORD the minute they die.” (2 Corinthians 5:8) Did God say to Jesus, “WELL DONE, Son!  Salvation is accomplished.”  There needed but one final seal – His resurrection.

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So, what did it mean that the curtain in the Temple was torn in two, and from  TOP to bottom?

  • Inside the original Wilderness Tabernacle, then in the Great Temple, and the ones to follow, the tall, thick curtain, or veil, separated the Holy Place, where the priests ministered daily before the Lord, from the Most Holy Place, where God’s Glory dwelled, and where the High Priest was allowed to enter ONCE a year on the Day of Atonement, to sprinkle the sacrificial blood on the Mercy Seat to atone (cover) the sins of the people.
  • This golden lid (mercy seat) covered the box of the Ark of the Covenant, which contained THE LAW, and the judgments on man for breaking them.
  • Jesus’ death (He was the total righteous Lamb of God) represented the final sprinkling of blood (His) on the mercy seat, covering and atoning for the sins of all who would believe in the world.
  • No longer was the separating curtain needed. Jesus’s death opened the way for true believers to approach God (and not die).
  • And it was God who, satisfied with His Son’s sacrificial death, tore it apart (represented by the veil being torn FROM THE TOP, or Heaven).

What an accomplishment!  You did it!  Oh, thank you, Jesus!  Praise You!

 

 

 

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Reading the Gospels in 2026: (6/3) Luke 23:26-43

Jun3

A 5-day per week study.

June 3 – Reading Luke 23:26-43

 

Read and believe in Jesus.

“Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise.”  Luke 23:43

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The Gospel according to Luke 

Review – Jesus stood under the interrogations of Pilate, of Herod, and of Pilate again.  The Roman governor declared him not guilty of anything worthy of death. But the religious leaders and the incited crowds demanded crucifixion.  Pilate gives in and delivers Jesus to their will (not knowing it was GOD’S will for Jesus to die).

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Vss. 23:26-32.

As they led the weakened Jesus away from the court and up the hill to Golgotha with the heavy cross on His bleeding back, He stopped, unable to continue.  A Roman soldier grabbed the nearest strong-looking guy and made him carry Jesus’ cross the rest of the way.

(Not what HE expected to do on Passover morning! Did he stay and watch Jesus crucified and hear Him speak?)

(Simon of Cyrene evidently told this experience to his sons, Alexander and Rufus.  Paul later references them as believers.)

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A great multitude followed the procession up the hill. The women in the crowd were mourning and lamenting for Jesus.

Jesus turned to them with this warning.

“Daughters of Jerusalem, do not weep for ME, but weep for yourselves and for your children. For behold, the days are coming when they will say, ‘Blessed are the barren and the wombs that never bore and the breasts that never nursed.’  At that time, they will begin to say to the mountains, ‘Fall on us,’ and to the hills, ‘Cover us.’

For if they do THESE THINGS when the wood is green, what will happen when it is dry?”

(These women were not necessarily believers. More probably, they were professional mourners who attended “high-profile” executions. Jesus’ words to them were a prophetic warning about what was coming to their city and nation.)

Two other criminals were led away as well, to be put to death with Jesus.  We will hear more of them later.

 (NOT the murderer Barabbas, however. He got off scot-free. He was like us.  We were sinners, condemned to death. But Jesus became our substitute, dying in our place.  The sinless for the sinful.  His death and resurrection made it possible for us to then be declared righteous by God when we trust in Him.)

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Vss. 23:33-38.

(Such a horrible scene, I can hardly write about it.)

When they came to the top of the hill, a place called ‘The Skull,’ they stripped Jesus and the others and nailed Him to the wood. Then they raised those instruments of torture and dropped them into prepared holes.

“Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do,” Jesus cried out.

Beneath His cross, the soldiers picked through His clothes and cast lots for them.

(Pitiful garments of His earthly journey.)

People stood around watching.

  • The rulers scoffed at Him, saying, “He saved others, let Him save Himself, if He is the Christ of God, His Chosen one.”

(Such blasphemy!)

  • The soldiers also mocked Jesus, coming up and offering Him sour wine and saying, ‘If you are the King of the Jews, save Yourself!)

(Pilate had put a placard over Jesus’ head with that inscription.)

  • One of the criminals who was also hanged on a cross railed at Jesus, saying, ‘Are you not the Christ? Save yourself AND US!”

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(Luke gives three of the horrible verbal assaults thrown at Jesus. They remind me of the mocking assaults Satan hurled at Jesus after His 40 days of fasting in the desert.  And, indeed, these, at His crucifixion, were inspired by the devil himself, trying to cast doubt on Jesus’ heredity and mission – the “seed of woman” who would “crush the head of the serpent.” Genesis 3:15.)

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Then we meet the second of the two criminals on the crosses on either side of Jesus.  He said to the scoffing one, “Do you not fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation?  And we indeed justly, for we are receiving the due reward of our deeds, but THIS MAN has done nothing wrong!”

And turning to Jesus, he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.”

Jesus answered, “Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise.”

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(Did you see that beautiful conversion?  A confession of sin and acknowledgment that he deserved death.  A declaration of who Jesus was (sinless, the King of the Jews). A plea for remembrance and forgiveness.  And then …  Jesus’ beautiful acceptance of the saved sinner. 

(And this is how people are born again today, too!  GLORIOUS!!)