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Reading the Gospels in 2026 (7/7) John 7:25-44

Jul7

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“If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink.” John

The Gospel according to John

REVIEW – Jesus arrived secretly in Jerusalem for the Festival of Tabernacles, but was soon openly teaching in the temple area. People were amazed by His teaching, wondering how He could know so much and be so wise without formal schooling. Jesus told them his authority came from above, from God who sent Him. And it was HIM whom He sought to glorify. Then Jesus told the people that the Jews were looking to kill Him because He broke the Sabbath Law. However, Jesus compared their “breaking the law” by circumcising a baby on the 8th day even if it fell on a Sabbath, to His healing the whole body of a man. It stumped the lot of them, that’s for sure.

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John 7:25-31

The people of Jerusalem can’t make up their minds. Now they are agreeing that Jesus IS the man the Jewish leaders are seeking to kill. They ask each other, “Can it be that the authorities really KNOW that this is the Christ?”

Others dispute, “But we know where this man comes from (Galilee), and when the Christ appears, NO ONE will know where He comes from.” (Seems like they need to take some classes in Prophecy 101.)

Jesus knows what they are disputing about, and responds. “You know me, and you know where I come from?” (Not really!!) Then Jesus speaks about His Father, God, who is in heaven, from whom Jesus Himself came. “I have not come of my own accord. He who sent Me is true and Him you do NOT know. I know Him, for I come from Him, and He sent Me.”

WE understand what Jesus was talking about, but I’m sure the average person in Jerusalem at that time was scratching their head. They hoped their teachers would clarify it all, but those in authority were jealous of Jesus, and instead of pointing to Him as the Christ, they were seeking to get rid of Him.

And yet… many people believed in Jesus. Was it true faith? Jesus alone knew hearts, but He had promised that to any who came to Him in true faith, He would give eternal life, and “raise them up” (resurrect them) on the last day.

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John 7:32-36,

Meanwhile, in their “ivory towers,” the chief priests (Sadducees) and the Pharisees heard what the crowd was “muttering” about Jesus, that He “could” be the Christ. They sent temple officers to arrest Jesus.

But Jesus continued to talk with the people. He even told them about His upcoming death and resurrection, although in a very “veiled” way.

“I will be with you a little longer, then I am going to Him who sent me. You will seek Me, and you will not find Me. Where I am, you cannot come.“

Of course they had no idea that Jesus was speaking of His death. They couldn’t fathom that He would be returning to Heaven to live in glory with His Father. Instead they threw out ridiculous possibilities.

“Where does this Man intend to go that we will not find Him?“

“Does He intend to go to the Dispersion among the Greeks and teach the Greeks?”

“What does He mean by saying, ‘You will seek me, and you will not find Me’ and ‘Where I am you cannot come ‘?”

(Jesus later tells his disciples the same thing, in the privacy of the Upper Room. (John 14:5) and they are almost just as confused. They WILL understand later, however.

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John 7:37-44.

(NOTE: On the last day of the celebration, a priest traditionally carried a golden container filled with water from the Pool of Siloam in a procession back to the temple. As the procession reached the Water Gate on the south side of the inner temple court, three trumpet blasts marked the joy of the occasion, and the people recited Isaiah 12:3 – “With joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation.” At the temple, the priests would march around the altar while the choir sang Psalms 113-118, psalms of praise. The water was then offered as a sacrifice, in thanksgiving for the blessing of adequate rainfall for their crops. Jesus used this event as an OBJECT LESSON.)

At the temple, Jesus stood up and cried out, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.'” (This was a prophecy about the Holy Spirit, whom those who believed in Jesus were to receive.)

When the people heard these words, some said, “This REALLY is the Prophet. Others said, ‘This is the Christ!”

But others said, “Is the Christ to come from Galilee? Has not the scripture said that the Christ comes from the offspring of David, and comes from Bethlehem, the village where David was?” (These people were a little more on track, but didn’t know Jesus’ early history.)

And so – like today – there was a division among the people about Jesus. SOME wanted to arrest Him! But NO ONE acted to lay hands on Him.

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To be continued…..

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 (7/1) John 6:25-40

Jul1

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“All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out.” John 6:37.

The Gospel according to John

REVIEW – Jesus miraculously feeds 5000+ people with only 5 loaves and 2 fish from a boy’s lunch. All are filled, and there was enough leftover for the disciples to have their fill. The people wanted to make Jesus KING, so He would feed them for free every day. But He hides, sends the disciples back across the Sea, and after it’s dark, He walks to them (on the water). Another pair of miracles.

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John 6:25-29.

Jesus and the disciples had arrived back in Capernaum during the night via a miracle of Jesus. The crowds had waited around and, when they found Him gone, had boarded boats (or traipsed around) and arrived much later.

“Rabbi, when did you come here?‘” they asked Jesus in wonder. I think their real question might have been HOW did you come here? Jesus had walked on the water half way, got into the disciples’ boat, which was then miracously at the opposite shore. Wouldn’t that have shocked them!!

Jesus knew the reason for their anxious seeking Him. They still wanted to make Him king after that miraculous sign of multiplying the loaves and fish. But Jesus wanted them to “hunger” for Spiritual things, for Him.

“Don’t labor for the food that perishes, but rather for the food that endures to eternal life … which the Son of Man will give to you.” (What a promise!)

“What must we DO to be doing the works of God?” The people thought they were required to do some works to “earn” eternal life.

(OH, isn’t that what so many people think today. They HAVE to be good, not lie, cheat, steal, kill, and all the other commands, to be “good enough” to deserve eternal life. NOT SO! We can never be good enough. It is a gift of God that Jesus gives by His own sacrifice.)

“THIS is the work of God,” Jesus tells them. “that you believe in Him whom He sent.”

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John 6:30-34.

Believe in Jesus, the Son that God sent into the world to save the sinners whom He loved so much. Believe in that mercy and grace, and receive life everlasting. (John 3:16)

But the people are way off on another planet in their understanding. Jesus’ words of salvation go right over their heads. “Um…then what sign do you do, that we may see and believe you? What work do you perform? Our fathers ate manna in the wilderness (for 40 years!) Moses gave them ‘bread from heaven to eat.”

Had they completely forgotten how Jesus had just miraculously fed a crowd of 20,000 with one boy’s lunch???

(I would have given up on them and just walked away. But Jesus shows His love for His own people.)

“It wasn’t Moses who gave you Manna, but my Father in Heaven. My Father (now) gives you the TRUE bread from Heaven … the “Bread of God” is He who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” Jesus is speaking of Himself.

Then, much like the Samaritan woman who sought the water that would quench her thirst forever, these people misunderstood Jesus’ words. “Sir, give us THIS bread always.”

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John 6:35-36.

“I AM the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst.“

Jesus could not make that much plainer. HE was the answer to their heart’s hunger and thirst. HE was sent down by the Father to fill them and satisfy them. And yet they do not believe.

(Earlier in John 1:10, the apostle says, “He came to His own, and His own people did not receive Him.” Paul later explains that Israel was blinded or hardened temporarily concerning Jesus, as a mercy for the Gentiles to be included in salvation. Then the nation of Israel would believe. See Romans 11:25-31)

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John 6:37-40.

This section is full of wonderful promises. Read and meditate on them!

“All that the Father gives me WILL come to me…

“And whoever comes to me I will NEVER cast out.”

“I have come from heaven NOT to do my own will, but the will of Him who sent Me.”

“This is the will of Him who sent Me, that I should lose NOTHING of all that He has given me.”

“For this is the will of my Father, that EVERYONE who looks on the Son and believes in Him, should have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.”

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Amen! Thank You, Jesus!

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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 (6/23) John 4:27-42

Jun23

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“Come, see a man who told me all I ever did. Can this be the Christ?” John 4:29.

The Gospel according to John

REVIEW – Jesus managed His path and His time to be exactly where a certain Samaritan woman would be about noon, alone and carrying a large water jar, sweating in the noonday heat. He amazed her by asking for a drink. (Jews didn’t talk to Samaritans, especially a woman.) The conversation that followed intrigued her and whetted her thirst for things spiritual. Jesus talked to her about God the Father, worship that was neither there nor in Jerusalem, but in the Spirit. He offered HER living water, despite knowing that she was a “fallen” woman. Confused, she said that one day the Messiah would come, and He would explain all things. Jesus looked at her and said, “I am He.”

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John 4:27-30.

“I am He,” Jesus said to the woman. And just then His disciples came back from town with some Kosher falafel wraps. They stopped dead, marveling that Jesus was talking to a woman, and a Samaritan at that. But (wisely) none of them asked WHY he was talking to her.

Seeing the men arrive, she left her water jar and ran off into the town, saying to the people, “Come, see a man who told me all that I ever did. Can this be the Christ?”

And so the people of the town, though they had shunned the woman, were curious at her words and came out to see for themselves. (Something had sure wound up the woman!)

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John 4:31-38

Meanwhile the disciples were unwrapping the falafel pitas and urging him, “Rabbi, eat.” But he refused the food saying that he had a “food” to eat that they knew nothing about.

As they chomped the spicy falafel, they asked quietly among themselves, “Has anyone brought Him something to eat while we were gone?”

But Jesus knew their thoughts. “My food is to do the will of Him who sent me and to accomplish His work.” And looking out at the fields of grain around them, he said, “Do not say, ‘There are yet four months till harvent.’ Look, I tell you, lift up your eyes and SEE that the fields are white with harvest!” They followed his pointing finger to see the people of the town following the woman out.

And many Samaritans from that town believed in Him because of the woman’s testimony, ‘He told me all that I ever did.” When they got to Jesus that asked Him to stay with them, and He did, for three days, teaching truth.

MANY MORE believed because of His word. They said to the woman, “It is no longer because of what you said that we believe, for we have heard for ourselves, and we KNOW that this is indeed the SAVIOR OF THE WORLD.”

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(WOW, maybe we should not always avoid the places that are uncomfortable to us. Maybe there is someone who needs to hear about God’s saving grace, and the salvation that Jesus bought with His own life. Maybe we could take a chance and testify!)

Reading the Gospels in 2026 (6/22) John 4:1-26

Jun22

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“Sir, give me this water, so that I will not be thirsty…” John 4:15a

The Gospel according to John

REVIEW – John the Baptist exalts Jesus one last time. He humbly tells his disciples that the end of his mission is near, that now Jesus must increase, while he must decrease. He then goes on to lift up and praise Jesus, the Son of God. Such a man of God, and such an example of humility.

John 4:1-6

After spending a bit more time in Judea while His disciples baptized a few people, Jesus heard that the religious leaders were causing a fuss about Him because He was baptizing more than John (He wasn’t). To offset possible trouble, He and his disciples left the area and made for Galilee.

Of course, without a long detour, that meant that they had to walk THROUGH Samaria, that land where the hated Samaritans lived. (Most Jews would cross the Jordan River and walk on the east bank until they passed Samaria, then cross the river again to reach Galilee.)

(NOTE: The Samaritans were a people of mixed ancestry. After the Northern Kingdom had been defeated by the Assyrians (2 Kings 17:1-6), only a few poor Jewish farmers were left in the land. Then, as was his way, the Assyrian king relocated people from other lands he’d conquered to live in Israel. These intermarried with the Jews, and over time their “religion” became half truth and half pagan. The Jews of Israel avoided contact with these “pagans.”)

But that day, Jesus had an “appointment” with a certain Samaritan woman who lived in Sychar. The ancient well that the patriarch Jacob/Israel dug was there, and after sending His disciples into town for food (was Kosher food to be found there??), Jesus sat down at the well.

It was about noon, and it was hot.

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John 4:7-15.

A Samaritan woman approached the well carrying a water jar. She set it on the ground and glanced at Jesus. Now, usually the women of town would come in the cool of morning to draw water, so right away we know something was different about this woman. She was disliked and shunned by the Sychar Ladies Society. Why? We will find out.

“Give me a drink,” Jesus said to her.

The woman gave Him a double take. Usually men did not speak to women in public … especially JEWISH men.

“How is it that YOU, a Jew, ask for a drink from me, a woman of Samaria? she asked.

‘If you knew the gift of God, and Who it is that is saying to you, ‘give me a drink,’ you would have asked Him, and He would have given you living water.”

The woman’s jaw dropped open. Then she said,

“Sir, you have nothing to draw water with, and the well is deep. Where do you get that living water? Are you greater than our father Jacob? He gave us the well and drank from it himself, as did his sons and his livestock.” (She knew her history.)

Jesus answered her with a beautiful offer.

“Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty again. The water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.”

Silence again. And then…

“Sir, give me this water, so that I will not be thirsty … or have to come here to draw water!” The Samaritan woman wasn’t quite sure what Jesus was offering. Was this some mystical holy water? Or some special means to receive regular water without work? Was He “pulling her leg?”

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John 4:16-26.

Jesus abruptly changes the topic. “Go, call your husband and come here.”

Ah…um…“I have no husband.”

“You were right in saying, ‘I have no husband’; for you have had five husbands, and the man you now have is not your husband. What you said was true.” Jesus quickly answereed back. His eyes never left her face.

Softly she answered, “Sir, I perceive that you are a prophet.”

Then more boldly, trying to change the subject from husbands, she said, “Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, but You say that in Jerusalem is the place where people ought to worship.“

Jesus corrected her and gave her new knowledge. “Woman, believe me, the hour is coming when neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem will you worship the Father. You worship what you do NOT know, we worship what we DO know, for salvation is from the Jews. But… the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship Him. God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.”

Almost more than she could comprehend, she said firmly, “I know that Messiah is coming (He who is called Christ). When HE comes, HE will tell us all things.”

Silence, until she looked right at Him.

“I who speak to you am He.” Jesus said softly.

Whoa!

(And that’s where we leave them today. But stay tuned, it gets really exiting and amazing.)

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Reading the Gospels in 2026 (6/19) John 3:22-36

Jun19

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“” John

The Gospel according to John

REVIEW – Jesus spoke and taught Nicodemus one night and explained the wonders of new birth, true belief, and eternal life. He even gave the inquiring Pharisee a picture of how all this could happen – when He was lifted up like Moses’ serpant in the wilderness. Difficult, but Nicodemus pondered it I’m sure. And he was eventually saved. See John 7:50-51 and John 19:38-40 to see the evidence.

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John 3:22–24.

After the Passover Feast, Jesus and his disciples left Jerusalem and went through the Judean countryside to the river. They remainded there, and His disciples were baptizing. John the Baptist was also baptizing, farther south where the water was plentiful, and the people were coming to him in repentance.. (In doing this, John always pointed the people to the Messiah, Jesus.)

At one point, a discussion began between John’s disciples and a Jew.. They brought their question to John. “Rabbi, He who was with you across the Jordan (Jesus), to whom you bore witness, is baptising and all are going to HIM.” In other words, we are losing our baptees.and followers.

But this was not a probllem to the humble “voice” in the wilderness.

He said, “A person cannot receive even one thing unless it is given him from heaven. I am not the Christ, but I have been sent before Him. The one who has “the bride” is “the bridegroom”. A friend of the bridegroom rejoices greatly at the bridegroom’s voice. Therefore, this joy of mine is now complete. He must increase, but I must decrease.“

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John 3:30-36

Then John gives a speech that is surely spirit-inspired.

“He who comes from above is above all. He who is of the earth belongs to the earth and speaks in an earthly way,” (John). “He who comes from Heaven is above all. (Jesus the Messiah) He bears witness to what He has seen and heard, yet no one receives His testimony.

“Whoever receives His testimony sets his seal to this, that God is true. For He whom God has sent utters the words of God, for He gives the Spirit without measure. The Father loves the Son and has given all things into His hand.”

And as John fades from the forefront, he gives an invitation to faith in Jesus.

“Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him.”

Wow! What a testimony of truth. What a man of God. Wouldn’t you love to have heard more of his sermons before he held the baptisims? He was a preacher, and you know his words were Spirit-led, for this “invitation” is just like Jesus was preaching to Nicodemus in the previous section.

Reading the Gospels in 2026 (6/18) John 3:1-21

Jun18

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“Truly, truly, I say unto you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.” John 3:3

The Gospel according to John

REVIEW – Jesus, indignant about how “His Father’s house had been turned into a marketplace, made a whip and drove out the animals, birds, the men selling them, and the moneychangers. (They simply moved their business outside the walls.) However the chief priests were angry at Jesus, for they got a cut of all the money exchanged “for the Temple,” they said (haha). They wanted to know by whose authority Jesus had done this.

Give us a “sign,” they said. Jesus told them the only sign of His authority was His own resurrection from the dead. (He’d cloaked this information in an allegory – “Destroy this temple (His body) and in three days I will raise it up.” They took it wrong, of course, and thought He meant the temple King Herod was restoring. He was crazy!)

After this, “many believed in His name when they saw the miracles He was doing,” but Jesus knew their hearts and did not trust their allegience to be genuine..”

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John 3:1-8.

But there was a man, a Pharisee, a renowned teacher of the law and member of the Jewish “Supreme Court,” the Sanhedrin, who wanted to know more about this country rabbi who spoke so forceibly and performed miracles. But this important man did not want to be seen inquiring. He might have been black-balled, even thrown out of the court. So he came to Jesus by night.

(Perhaps, Jesus was already establishing the garden on the Mount of Olives, as a place for He and His men to relax and sleep. It was quiet and private.)

Nicodemas came up to Jesus in the dim light of a torch and began his shpeal. “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher come from God, for no one can do these signs that you do unless God is with him.” You can almost here him open his mouth to continue, but Jesus spoke first, getting right to the question that bothered this man the most.

“Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.”

Taken aback, Nicademas blurted out, “How can a man be BORN AGAIN when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born? (Good question, Nick.)

Again Jesus emphasized the truth of what He was saying. He wasn’t joking. “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. That which is flesh is FLESH. And that which is Spirit is spirit. Don’t marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’

Then Jesus clarifies (and confuses) with, “The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. SO it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.”

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John 3:9-15.

Okay, now Nick is really confused. “How can theses things be?” he asks.

Jesus scolds him. Are you a teacher of Israel and yet you do not understand these things? Truly truly, I say to you, we speak of what we know, and bear witness to what we have seen, but YOU do not receive our testimony. If I have told you earthly things and you do not believe, how can you believe it if I tell you heavenly things? No one has ascended into heaven except He who descended from heaven, the Son of Man. And … as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that … WHOEVER believes in Him may have eternal life.”

Whoa, that was a mini-sermon that Jesus spoke to Nicodemas. 1) Who is the “we” and “our” that Jesus uses first? 2) Is Jesus declaring openly to this Pharisee that He came down from heaven? 3) Why is He comparing Himself to a serpant?? 4) And when anyone looks on Him (lifted up like Moses’ snake) and believes they will have eternal life.What does THAT mean? WOW.

  1. Jesus’ use of “we” and “our” (speaking for the Godhead) in verse 11 counters Nicodemus’s “we” in verse 2, and places the real, devine testimony of God against the flawed understanding of the Pharisees.
  2. And yes, Jesus reveals to Nicodemas that He, like the Son of Man of Daniel’s prophecy (Daniel 7:13-14), has descended from heaven and has true knowledge of heavenly things.
  3. Yes, as an “picture” or simile, Jesus was saying that LIKE the bronze image of the serpant that Moses made and lifted on a pole for the people to see (in obedience to God’s instructions) and be healed … HE would be lifted up on a cross.
  4. In Numbers 21:5-9, God sent vipers to the people as a judgment on their sin. In His mercy, He told Moses to make an image of the vipers and put it high on a pole. If the people would look on the image – NOT to worship it, but in obedience and faith in God’s words – He promised them they would not die from the poison, but live. And so, those who will look on Jesus – lifted up on the cross to pay for the sins of man, and believe what God says about Him – they too will live. TAnd this time have eternal life.

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John 3:16-21.

You know this wonderful and well know verse. Say it with me and think of the wonderful sacrifice and promise God makes in it.

“For God so loved the world, that He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.”

Jesus came to earth to die as the judgment on the sins of man because of the great LOVE of God for His human creation. God sent His only beloved Son to be tortured, disgraced and die in the place of all who would believe (place their trust) in Him. BELIEVE that His death covers their sin once and for all… that His death gives them the righteousness they need to one day stand before a super-holy God of the universe, and not desinergrate.

Jesus didn’t come to condemn the world, but in order that it might be saved through Him.

And sadly, those who reject Jesus and His work on the cross, have no chance, for they are ALREADY condemned. They love darkness instead of that Light that has come into the world. And why? Because their deeds (thoughts, speech) was evil, and Light shows that up, and they would stand … EXPOSED.

Not so, those of the Light. They eagerly come to the light to show what God has worked in them.

"This is the message we have from Him and proclaim to you, 
that God is light and in Him is no darknesses of all.
If we say we have fellowship with Him while we walk in darkness,
 we LIE, and do not practice the truth.
But if we walk in the light, as He is in the light, 
we have fellowship with one another, 
and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin.
1 John 1:5-7

Reading the Gospels in 2026 (6/16) John 2:1-12

Jun16

Read and believe in Jesus

“This, the first of His signs, Jesus did in Cana of Galilee, and manifested His glory. And His disciples believed in Him. “ John 2:11

The Gospel according to John

REVIEW – Jesus’ first disciples believe and begin to follow Him: John and Andrew, Simon (Peter), Philip, and Nathaniel. John and Andrew are directed by John the Baptist to Jesus. Andrew brings his brother Simon, and Jesus gives him a new name. After Jesus invites Philip to follow Him, the disciple finds his friend Nathaniel and simply says, “Come and see.” Nathaniel believes when he hears that Jesus “saw” him earlier, and Jesus promises him more supernatural revelations.

John 2:1-5

Three days after Jesus called Philip and Nathaniel, there was a wedding in the nearby town of Cana. Jesus’ mother was there. (It was possibly a family member’s wedding, and she had some responsibilities.) If that was the case, it was natural that Jesus was also invited to the wedding with His disciples. The newest disciple, Nathaniel, was from Cana. (John 21:2)

The celebration was going along nicely (it could be up to a week!) when Mary noticed they were out of wine. This would be a big embarrassment to the host (the groom & family), and Mary told Jesus about the problem.

Did she expect Him to do something about it? (Run to the nearest BEV MO?) Verse 11 says that this was the FIRST of Jesus’ miracles, so she couldn’t have expected a miracle of Him. Perhaps she was simply used to going to Jesus as her oldest and first-born son with any problems that arose after the death of Joseph.

What follows is hard for us to understand. It seems like Jesus is rude to His mother, telling her that since He had begun His ministry (acclaimed by John the Baptist and calling His first disciples), He could no longer be involved in her household problems. From that time onward, His eye (concern) would be on the cross and His death on it for the sins of man. (His “hour”)

What Mary understood of that, we don’t know. It seems she might have said, “Whatever!” and then turned to the servants with, “You do what He says.” After that, she walked away, leaving everything in His hands.

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John 2:6-11

In this house where the wedding was being held (it must have been grand), there were six stone water jars for the Jewish rite of purification (ritual baths). Each held 20-30 gallons. GALLONS!! Jesus told the servants to fill each of them up with fresh water (from a well or nearby spring). It must have taken some time. When they were full (you could see the inside bottom of the jars through the clear liquid), Jesus told the servants to draw some out and take it to the master of the feast.

Were they scared to do so? Water to the head master? But they were servants; they obeyed. A pitcher was carried to the man at the head table. And sometime between drawing the water out and pouring it into a wine glass … the water had become wine. The freshest and best wine from the highest-quality grapes.

The head of the feast was flabbergasted. He turned to the groom with high praise. The groom must have been wide-eyed in wonder himself. Where had it come from? (Only the servants knew.) Whatever, the wedding feast went on in splendid form.

“This, the first of His signs, Jesus did at Cana in Galilee, and manifested His glory. And His disciples believed in Him.“

John emphasized that miracles were not merely displays of power, but had spiritual significance. They were “signs” that pointed to deeper realities through the eyes of faith.

(What do YOU believe this sign of turning water to wine at a wedding feast pointed to in Jesus’ life and ministry?)

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John 2:12.

After the wedding feast, Jesus and His disciples (and His mother and brothers) went down to Capernaum on the Sea of Galilee. Jesus would soon establish this town as His northern headquarters. For now, they stayed only a few days before heading to Jerusalem for Passover (next reading).