John 15:13-14 (KJV) Laying Down Our Life for Jesus

John 15:13-14 (KJV)
Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you. 

Jesus sets this passage up by inferring His friendship with the disciples and theirs for Him. As their friend He would perform the greatest act of love a man can do for his friends, He would lay down His life for them. In the next breath Jesus teaches us the best act of love we may do for Him, that is to do whatsoever He commands us.

Notice it is “whatsoever.” There are no conditions or exceptions. There can be no line of refusal, no limit to our observance. Whatsoever is “everything without question.”

In some respects then Jesus described this obedience as a laying down of our lives for Him.

In a day when Christians reject commandments and refuse standards as legalism Jesus’ words are more important than ever. No doubt it is not necessary to do the “whatsoevers” in order to be or stay saved. No question a believer can maintain many friendships with the world and still be a believer. But that isn’t the question at hand; Jesus said the greatest love was to lay down our lives for our friends.

Jesus did that for us

Can we not do that for Him? 

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John 15:13-14 (KJV) Laying Down Our Life for Jesus

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Isaiah 10:27 (KJV) Our Liberator

Isaiah 10:27 (KJV)
And it shall come to pass in that day, that his burden shall be taken away from off thy shoulder, and his yoke from off thy neck, and the yoke shall be destroyed because of the anointing.

Albert Barnes may be one of the most honest of all the commentaries when he writes concerning this verse, “I confess that none of these explanations seem to me to be satisfactory, and that I do not know what is the meaning of the expression.”

Such is the dilemma of the man with too many teachers; he comes to believe there is nothing we can know. At the risk of sounding as if I despise scholarship[1], I would remind my reader that the only capable teacher of the Word of God is the Holy Spirit of God. If we will rely upon Him, a satisfactory explanation of the Word of God is always possible. There are many passages of the Bible that we will not fully comprehend until we reach heaven, perhaps most of the Bible. But the Spirit of God will lead the dependent soul into truth that is satisfactory and enriching.

The believer’s great need in this life is liberty:

• Freedom from the bondage of sin
• Freedom to pursue Spiritual growth
• Freedom to advance in his or her relationship with Christ

We are born into this world with a yoke of bondage to sin, unrighteousness and worldliness. Even when we try to do right it is but filthy rags in the sight of God. We will not experience liberty without a liberator. The book of Isaiah is, at its core, a book about that Liberator.

• He is prophesied of in Isaiah 7:14 and 9:6
• Jesus preached this book was about Him when He opened it to Isaiah 61:1 and spoke of Himself
• Philip assured the Eunuch that Isaiah 53:7-8 was speaking of Christ

The One who destroys the yoke is Jesus Christ, the anointed, the Messiah of God.

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Isaiah 10:27 (KJV) Our Liberator

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John 13:26-27 (KJV) “Is It I?”

John 13:26-27 (KJV)
Jesus answered, He it is, to whom I shall give a sop, when I have dipped it. And when he had dipped the sop, he gave it to Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon.And after the sop Satan entered into him. Then said Jesus unto him, That thou doest, do quickly. 

I agree with John Gill that this was neither a part of the Lord’s Supper or of the Passover, but was a meal taken previous. Because of the topic in discussion, I doubt that this could be considered a high point in the spiritual life of the disciples, but it is certainly an intimate, close and extremely spiritual one.

• They are sharing in a meal with the Saviour just prior to His crucifixion
• They are sharing in His ministry to them in washing their feet
• They are sharing in His revelation of His betrayal and subsequent execution

Concerning the identity of the betrayer, all of them are asking that question, “Lord, Is it I?” Then Jesus performs this very generous act of dipping the sop, a piece of the crust of bread, in a sauce and giving it to Judas Iscariot. It is at the moment of grace that Satan entered into him.

What a lesson there is to be learned here. God’s grace in our lives is no assurance that Satan hasn’t access to our lives.

Over the years I have spoken to a number of people who believe that they are somehow safe with God because they have experienced some act of grace. I remember speaking to a lady, the first year of my pastoral ministry, who told me that she believed she was saved because she had asked God to spare her life as she underwent heart surgery. She believed that because she survived the surgery God had answered her prayer and that God had saved her eternally. How many people in this world believe that they are going to heaven because:

• They survived some tragic accident
• They had a particular prayer answered
• They were blessed in some particular way

Is impossible to estimate. What is not impossible is to proclaim that every one of them have a false hope of salvation. Jesus said “I am the way the truth and the life, no man cometh unto the Father but by me.“[1]

If your hope of heaven is in anything besides Jesus Christ alone, your hope is hopeless.

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John 13:26-27 (KJV) “Is It I?”

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Isaiah 5:3-4 (KJV) Good Grapes

Isaiah 5:3-4 (KJV)
And now, O inhabitants of Jerusalem, and men of Judah, judge, I pray you, betwixt me and my vineyard.What could have been done more to my vineyard, that I have not done in it? wherefore, when I looked that it should bring forth grapes, brought it forth wild grapes?

I suppose there have always been “wild grapes” among professing believers. As there were in Jewry, there has been in Christianity.

• Churches such as we find Paul correcting in Corinth
• Churches such as those in Galatia who were so soon removed from the faith 
• Churches such as Jude dealt with

In a sense we could call Catholicism a garden of wild grapes. Protestantism certainly is a cluster of these gardens.

A garden of wild grapes isn’t fruitless. It might in fact yield a large crop. It’s just not an ideal crop and in some cases could be a useless crop. Wild grapes also have the tendency to choke out, compromise and spoil those grapes the gardener intended.

There are a growing number of wild grape gardens among fundamental Baptists these days. It exists among those who see fruit rather than quality as the most important thing in the faith. It can take a number of forms:

• The progressive pragmatists who let anything slide so long as there is growth
• The aggressive evangelists who call anything salvation as long as they can record conversions 
• The resurgence of Reformed doctrine that sounds like a return to faith but is nothing more than an older wild grape

There will no doubt always be wild grapes but the key is to not settle for them. The only way for a vineyard to produce what God intended is have God plant it, till it and fence it in.

When God works God’s vineyard will produce choice grapes.

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Isaiah 5:3-4 (KJV) Good Grapes

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John 11:5 (KJV) Loved Especially

John 11:5 (KJV)
Now Jesus loved Martha, and her sister, and Lazarus.

Love is a giving relationship, but it grows through mutual experience.

The Bible’s says “For God so loved the world…[1]” This would be true of Jesus as well as God the Father. His love reaches out to any and every person in any and every era. Show me a human being and I will show you an object of Christ’s love.

So it could seem a bit obvious that Jesus loved Martha and Mary and Lazarus except that we know God never wastes a word in the Word of God. Jesus loves everyone and loved these three especially.

The thing to get from this is to be among the especially loved. That happens through:

• Fellowship, 
• Experience and 
• Personal devotion

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John 11:5 (KJV) Loved Especially

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John 10:3 (KJV) The Porter?

John 10:3 (KJV)
To him the porter openeth; and the sheep hear his voice: and he calleth his own sheep by name, and leadeth them out. 

John Gill writes plainly, “There is nothing in the explanation of this parable given by Christ, that directs to the sense of this clause;” He then goes on to give us what this could not mean. Concerning the identity of the porter:

• “It could not be Michael the Archangel
• It could not be the Virgin Mary
• It could not be Apostle Peter
• It could not be Moses
• It could not be preachers

It must therefore be either God the Father or else God the Holy Spirit.”

In a bit of a contrast, Jamieson, Fausset and Brown writes, “…it is better not to give the allusion a more specific interpretation…”

I am inclined in this case to agree with the later. This passage is a parable.

• Sheep
• Sheepfolds and 
• Shepherds 

Some parts of the parable are obvious to interpret. Some parts are given specific interpretation. Some parts of the parable are not necessarily meant to be interpreted to specifically.

• The Shepherd is Christ. He has free access to the sheepfold, no thing or no one preventing Him.
• The sheep are people; in this case the saved
• The sheepfold is heaven

But the porter? I don’t know.

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John 10:3 (KJV) The Porter?

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John 9:2 (KJV) Blame The Parents

John 9:2 (KJV)
And his disciples asked him, saying, Master, who did sin, this man, or his parents, that he was born blind?

I don’t want to be too hard on the disciples because they were, after all, no different than me. I do want to point out that they were asking the totally wrong question.

Isn’t it just like us to want to fix blame? Especially when we see someone else suffering, we have an almost natural tendency to think they must have done something to deserve such bad fortune.

• Fate
• Karma
• Destiny
• Providence 

must have let loose on them for some terrible thing they did. If it wasn’t them, it must surely have been their parents.

Oh yes, blame the parents. This is the tried and true strategy of almost all people of the “psychoanalytic culture.” It would be mentally unhealthy to carry the responsibility for our troubles and parents are the

• Most likely
• Nearest and 
• Easiest 

targets upon which we may fix that blame.

The disciples had missed the whole point. Jesus said this had happened so that the works of God should be made manifest in him. From a human point of view the issue was his blindness. From the spiritual point of view the issue was his healing. It had little to do with his parents or him. It was God at work in our world.

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John 9:2 (KJV) Blame The Parents

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Isaiah 2:22 (KJV) The High Value God Places on Man

Isaiah 2:22 (KJV)
Cease ye from man, whose breath is in his nostrils: for wherein is he to be accounted of?

Albert Barnes writes of this text, “That is, cease to confide in or trust in him. “

It may be humbling to see ourselves the way God sees us but when we do we also find it uplifting.

Do not put trust in man:

• Because his life is always but a breath away from death and
• He is of little account in the broadest scheme of things

Yet it is this creature of so little account that God has extended grace:

• Forgiveness of sin through the Gospel 
• Fellowship with Him through prayer and His Word
• Eternal life in Heaven as joint heirs with Christ

The low estate of man only serves to accentuate the high value God places upon us.

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Isaiah 2:22 (KJV) The High Value God Places on Man

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John 7:24 (KJV) How Can It Be Wrong?

John 7:24 (KJV)
Judge not according to the appearance, but judge righteous judgment. 

An old country song mused, “How can it be wrong when it feels so right?”[1] The fallen nature of man has a mixed up sense of good and evil, seeking to call things right in their own eyes when they know God says it is evil.

There is something that looks right and something that is right. The Lord urged that we would judge what is right and not just what appears right in our fallen minds:

• A woman’s right to choose may appear right but killing the baby she carries is not right
• A person’s longing for love may appear right but a same sex marriage is not right
• A person’s happiness may appear to be right but to break up a family because you have fallen for a different partner is not right
• A woman or an unqualified man may believe they are called to be a pastor might seem to be right, but to ignore the Bible in order for them to do it is not right

On and on we could go with things that might look to us to be right but that are definitely opposed to the Word of God.

The standard is that which has been established by God in His Word. Judge righteousness by that.

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John 7:24 (KJV) How Can It Be Wrong?

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John 6:6 (KJV) Tested and Proven

John 6:6 (KJV)
And this he said to prove him: for he himself knew what he would do.

I doubt any of us like being tested and proven.

• It is uncomfortable 
• It is challenging 
• It can be humbling

What if we fail the test?What if we make a mistake? What if others see we couldn’t pass muster?

And then it might seem unnecessary.Jesus knew what He would do. Philip might have blown this test and it would have seemed like he had to. Jesus could have just done what He was going to do and let Philip off the hook.

But then Philip wouldn’t have had the chance to grow and to learn.
Proving is difficult but it serves a very powerful reward. It’s worth it. When you find yourself in the proving grounds be thankful for it.

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John 6:6 (KJV) Tested and Proven

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John 5:10-11 (KJV) Law-Abiding

John 5:10-11 (KJV)
The Jews therefore said unto him that was cured, It is the sabbath day: it is not lawful for thee to carry thy bed.He answered them, He that made me whole, the same said unto me, Take up thy bed, and walk.

The Bible says that Jesus came to fulfill the law. That “law” was, of course, from God as recorded in the Old Testament. Nevertheless it becomes the believer to be a law-abiding citizen. So vital was this to believers of centuries ago that the founders of our country observed that believers made the best citizens because they were instructed to abide by the laws of their land.

But Jesus routinely challenged laws that were contrary to:

• Common sense
• Moral good and
• The Word of God

The lesson is the we should, “as much as lieth in [us],” live peaceably with the laws of our land but that we must challenge those laws that are contrary to common sense, moral good and the Bible.

Jesus confronted them head on but He also possessed an authority that none of us possess. We ought to challenge legally, ethically and within the parameters of our authority.

Only in the most extreme circumstances ought we to go beyond those guidelines.

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John 5:10-11 (KJV) Law-Abiding

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John 4:1 (KJV) For Certain

John 4:1 (KJV)
When therefore the Lord knew how the Pharisees had heard that Jesus made and baptized more disciples than John,

What a contrast between the Lord and the Pharisees.

The best the Pharisees could do was to hear.Especially in their system of religion they had become accustomed to merely repeating what someone else had said. There was very little personal experience with God or with truth. They, like academia of today, studied theories rather than certainties.

The more learned a person becomes in today’s world, the less they really know. “Ever learning but never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.”

Jesus, on the other hand, knew.Jesus knew what they had heard. Jesus knew it not because He had investigated and studied it but because, being God, He knew all things. Jesus didn’t question or wonder or have a piece of the knowledge puzzle. Jesus knew. Jesus acted on knowledge, not theory or speculation. Because it was so, His actions were and are always appropriate.

Christians possess knowledgeCertainly we do not know all things but we can know spiritual truth for several very important reasons:

• Because God has given us the truth in the Word of God
• Because the Holy Spirit lives in us to illuminate that Word

There are some supernatural/faith elements to this knowledgeI do not guess whether I am saved because the Spirit bears witness with my spirit that I am saved. I cannot prove my salvation but I am sure of my salvation. I cannot know certainly about anyone else’s salvation because I am only able to look on the outward and hear what they say. I do, however, know I am saved because the Spirit of God tells me I am saved.
I am certain the Bible is the Word of God. I am as certain it is from God and perfect as I am that I am saved. The Bible tells me it is God’s Word, history demonstrates that it is and the Holy Spirit confirms it to be so in my soul.

These are the things that drive the "intelligencia" away from faith. They cannot conceive of certainty. The only thing they are sure of is that, according to their worldview, they can’t be sure of anything.

The difference between the world and the believer is not so much one of faith as it is of knowledge. We know we have eternal life because we believe on the name of the Son of God. They don’t know anything.

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John 4:1 (KJV) For Certain

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John 3:1 (KJV) There Was a Man

John 3:1 (KJV)
There was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews:

The ministry always begins right here with, “There was a man.”

• There was a man named Jesus, who is God
• There was a man sent from God whose name was John 
• There was a man who came under conviction and was saved 
• There was a man who surrendered his life to the Lord’s service 
• There was a man who needed someone to speak to him about Christ 

All around us are men and women who could benefit from the relationship of Christians with the Lord. If only we would tell them of our relationship with Him.

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John 3:1 (KJV) There Was a Man

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John 2:9 (KJV) Verified Fact

John 2:9 (KJV)
When the ruler of the feast had tasted the water that was made wine, and knew not whence it was: (but the servants which drew the water knew;) the governor of the feast called the bridegroom,

The ruler did not know that Jesus had turned plain pots of water into wine. All he knew was that this was fresh and good, the best wine of the feast. But what he did not know did not mean there was no one who knew. There were in fact servants who had witnessed and could testify that Jesus had turned the water into wine.

This account illustrates a solid truth about faith in Christ. It is based in verified fact.

• There were witnesses to the supernatural nature of Christ’s conception
• There were witnesses to his fulfillment of the righteousness of the law
• There were witnesses to the miracles of Christ
• There were witnesses to His death, His burial and His resurrection.

Christians believe by faith that the events of Christ’s Gospel effectively pay our sin debt but we are not required to believe in the fact of those events by faith, they are verified and recorded in the pages of the Word of God. Those who choose to deny the factual account of Christ do so out of bias. They would never question the veracity of the life of Alexander the Great yet there is more evidence to support the resurrection of Christ than of the life of Greek conqueror. They accept the one and reject the other because to accept the truthfulness of Christ has consequences they are not willing to accept.

I do not have to be an eyewitness to the life of Christ to embrace the accounts of those who were. And, having accepted those accounts as true, I am able to accept the further teaching of the New Testament as true.

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John 2:9 (KJV) Verified Fact

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John 1:15 (KJV) He’s The One!

John 1:15 (KJV)
John bare witness of him, and cried, saying, This was he of whom I spake, He that cometh after me is preferred before me: for he was before me.

I am sure all of us have had the experience of pointing out a person and saying, ” That’s the person I was telling you about.” John the Baptist got to do that concerning Jesus Christ.

John the Baptist spent his entire, though brief, adult life telling people about the Lord. He had urged not one or two but multitudes to prepare themselves for His coming. Finally came the day when Jesus arrived and he was able to tell the crowd, “This was He of whom I spake.“

Could there be anything more thrilling than, if one day soon, we were able to point out the coming of Christ in the air and saying to someone we had led to the Lord, “There He is! The One I told you about”? Someone will have that pleasure. If it is our lot to give up this life before the coming of Christ then those of us who are saved and have told others about the Lord will still one day in heaven be able to point Jesus and say, “He’s the One of whom I spake.”

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John 1:15 (KJV) He’s The One!

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Luke 24:18-19 (KJV) Things God Enjoys

Luke 24:18-19 (KJV)
And the one of them, whose name was Cleopas, answering said unto him, Art thou only a stranger in Jerusalem, and hast not known the things which are come to pass there in these days?And he said unto them, What things? And they said unto him, Concerning Jesus of Nazareth, which was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people:

Have you ever been in a conversation when the one you are speaking to says something like, “If you have already heard this, stop me.”? Sometimes you might tell them you heard it but sometimes you want to hear it again.

Is there any question that the Lord knew those things that had come to pass in Jerusalem? The fact is Jesus asked them, “What things?” because He wanted to hear them speak about it. There are likely several reasons for that:

• To help them process what had happened and come to grips with it
• To practice the habit of speaking about the resurrection and the Gospel
• To worship the Lord through the telling the story of His death, burial and resurrection

I am reminded of the original sin in the garden. God asked Adam and Eve if they had eaten that fruit they were told not to eat. Of course He already knew but it was good for them to confess their sin and especially to confess it to God.

God enjoys our rehearsal of our Christian experience back to Him.

• To tell Him our sins and seek His cleansing
• To talk to Him about what we are learning in His Word 
• To share with Him our efforts to witness in His name and 
• To rejoice with Him concerning our joys and victories on our Christian walk 

these bring delight to the Lord.

Malachi 3:16-17
Then they that feared the LORD spake often one to another: and the LORD hearkened, and heard it, and a book of remembrance was written before him for them that feared the LORD, and that thought upon his name.And they shall be mine, saith the LORD of hosts, in that day when I make up my jewels; and I will spare them, as a man spareth his own son that serveth him.

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Luke 24:18-19 (KJV) Things God Enjoys

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Luke 23:11 (KJV) The Real Enemy of Faith

Luke 23:11 (KJV)
And Herod with his men of war set him at nought, and mocked him, and arrayed him in a gorgeous robe, and sent him again to Pilate.

It is amazing that Pilate, the Roman, was so much less hateful and mean spirited toward Jesus than the Jews or even Herod was.

• The Jews accused Him and insisted on His death
• Herod mocked Him and set Him at nought
• Pilate would have released Him and let Him free

Religion is the enemy of faith.

Governments, even agnostics, are not the problem. It’s when systems of religion gain some sort of power that they take ought against Christ. It’s not difficult to understand why. Christ and thus true Christianity do not pose a threat to the agnostic. Christ gives the individual freedom of conscience. No one is forced to become a Christian. Christ is not basically opposed to government. It was, after all, God who instituted it.

The enmity is always between religion and Christianity because it is religion that Christ opposed. It is religion, a system of works for righteousness, often enforced by governments, that attacks the Christian faith because it is that which is threatened by the Christian faith.

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Luke 23:11 (KJV)  The Real Enemy of Faith

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When the Towers Fell

When the Towers Fell
September 11, 2001

Three thousand miles lay between
My own home and that awful scene

I did not hear one crash or two
I did not see the smoke and hue

I did not know those souls so dear
Whose lives were lost on that morning clear

But when those planes hit the World Trade Towers
I sensed the attack on this land of ours

And all America, at least the most
Joined together as a solemn host

We felt the sorrow pain and loss
And most of us looked to the Cross

We knew our country needed healing
From the hurt which she was feeling

We stood to defend our precious land
And knelt to place it in God’s hand

But fifteen years has turned some pages
I am sorry to say there have been great changes

Let’s turn back with dedication
And again unite as a nation

Let’s honor our founders, history and Old Glory
And once more rejoice in our story

Let’s once again trust in God
And seek His blessing for this, our sod.

Marvin McKenzie
9-11-16

Ecclesiastes 5:12 (KJV) Whether With Little or A Lot

Ecclesiastes 5:12 (KJV)
The sleep of a labouring man is sweet, whether he eat little or much: but the abundance of the rich will not suffer him to sleep.

The preacher of Ecclesiastes is not straight thinking and one must carefully consider his frame of mind before accepting what he says. It is possible that, though what he said is accurately preserved in the Bible, what is accurately preserved is not an accurate statement.

But this verse does ring true both in other sources in the Bible and in life in general. Indeed, to sleep sweetly at night is of much more significance that whether one has little or a lot.

• I have met people who fight to sleep at night fretting over bills
• I have met some others who struggle to sleep trying to land their next big job

Neither is in better shape than the other.

Better than both is to work as unto the Lord and trust Him with the outcome. It would be foolhardy to ignore obligations. It is wicked to make work and possessions our idol.

Work and work hard. Just work with the full understanding that your true employer is God. Responsibly pay your bills and live within your means. At all times leave your standard of living in the hands of the Lord.

Then you can sleep well whether it is with little or a lot.

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Ecclesiastes 5:12 (KJV) Whether With Little or A Lot

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Ecclesiastes 3:14-15 (KJV) Believe It and Move On

Ecclesiastes 3:14-15 (KJV)
I know that, whatsoever God doeth, it shall be for ever: nothing can be put to it, nor any thing taken from it: and God doeth it, that men should fear before him.That which hath been is now; and that which is to be hath already been; and God requireth that which is past.

This wrestling soul, who is Solomon, here muses on the immutability and eternality of God. Those believers who struggle in their souls tend to struggle with such things.

• God knows everything
• God sees everything before it happens
• God is in the past present and future at the same time.

For God:

• The past is now
• The future is passed and
• The present is just the same as past and future

The believer who is in his right state believes it and moves on. The one who struggles gets caught up in these things:

• How can God know and not control
• How can God control and not will
• How Can God see and not stop what is bad

There is a difference between knowing “whatsoever God doeth, it shall be forever” and trusting in it. Come to trust God’s righteous goodness and not just grudgingly accept His sovereign power.

To my readers:
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If you have been blessed by this blog, please subscribe to my feed and share it with others

Ecclesiastes 3:14-15 (KJV) Believe It and Move On

Please consider helping our church’s teen department by signing up for cash back shopping at Bible Baptist Church Fundraiser. This program has three levels of participation, the first being completely free.