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Amazing Grace
John 8:4-5 'They say unto him, Master, this woman was taken in adultery, in the very act. Now Moses in the law commanded us, that such should be stoned: but what sayest thou?'
JOHN 8:1-11
This was possibly the most potentially damaging temptation the scribes and Pharisees ever presented to Jesus. Much of Jesus' widespread popularity with the people was because of His examples of and teachings about God's mercy and forgiveness towards sinners. This was received with great enthusiasm by the people who, before this time had been presented with only a harsh, legalistic, judgmental picture of God.
The scribes and Pharisees had often tried to portray Jesus as condoning or practicing sin because of His association...
Effortless Fruit
John 7:38 'He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water.'
JOHN 7:37-41
These rivers of living water are referring to the Holy Spirit and the effects He produces in the life of the believer. Galatians 5:22-23 says, 'the fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance.' These qualities should flow out of us as an artesian well. They should not have to be pumped. They will flow as we conform our thinking to God's Word.
Jesus speaks of bearing fruit in John 15 and declares that '. . . without me ye can do nothing' (Jn. 15:5). This fruit is the product of the Holy Spirit, not our effort. However,...
DO YOU HAVE PRAYERS THAT YOU BELIEVE HAVEN'T BEEN ANSWERED? DON'T GIVE UP BECAUSE THEY HAVE BEEN ANSWERED AND THE MANIFESTING OF THOSE PRAYERS COULD BE JUST AROUND THE CORNER. HERE ARE THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW WHEN YOU ARE PRAYING. LOOK AT THESE THREE SCRIPTURES IN THE BOOK OF JOHN. TWO OF THEM ARE ALMOST IDENTICAL SO WHAT IT SAYS MUST BE IMPORTANT.
The Heart Matters
John 7:22 'Moses therefore gave unto you circumcision; (not because it is of Moses, but of the fathers
and ye on the sabbath day circumcise a man.'
JOHN 7:21-24
The covenant of circumcision was given to Abram in Gen. 17:9-14. In v. 14, the Lord said that any man who did not carry this sign of the covenant in his flesh was to be killed. This placed a great importance on the act of circumcision. Paul says in Rom. 4:3-13, that Abraham had already been justified by faith before he was circumcised. It was Abram's faith that saved him at least 13 years before the Lord commanded Abram to be circumcised. The Jews...
DO YOU WANT TO DO SOMETHING REALLY EXCEPTIONAL TODAY? GO TO SOMEONE WHO IS SICK AND HEAL THEM. IF YOU ARE BORN-AGAIN, YOU HAVE THAT POWER. YOU AND I KNOW THAT IT IS THROUGH JESUS THAT WE GET THIS POWER AND HE IS DOING THE HEALING BUT IF WE WERE NOT SUPPOSED TO USE IT, HE WOULD NOT HAVE TOLD US TO. IN MATTHEW 10:8 JESUS SAYS TO " Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils: freely ye have received, freely give." OUR PROBLEM IS NOT THAT WE DON'T THINK JESUS CAN HEAL, WE ARE JUST NOT SURE HE WILL DO IT FOR US.
WHEN YOU DO PRAY FOR SOMEONE, DON'T EXPECT IT TO HAPPEN IMMEDIATELY. SOMETIMES IT DOES BUT...
Rebirth
John 7:19 'Did not Moses give you the law, and yet none of you keepeth the law? Why go ye about to kill me?'
JOHN 7:16-19
These Jews prided themselves on their observance of the law, but they were keeping the letter of the law and missing its true intent. The greatest of all the Old Testament laws was to love God and then to love your neighbor as yourself. The Jews were violating these laws by having hatred in their hearts toward Jesus and wanting to kill Him. They denied that they desired to kill Him, but the scriptures declare that they had already plotted or tried to kill Him three times.
They also knew much about God. It was required of the Jewish men to memorize large portions of the Torah (the first five books...
Holy Ghost Teacher
John 7:15 'And the Jews marvelled, saying, How knoweth this man letters, having never learned?'
JOHN 7:14-15
Jesus received His wisdom and knowledge by direct revelation from the Spirit of God rather than by the teachings of man. Jesus had been learning, but not through man. The Holy Ghost was His teacher. Jesus had to be taught the things of God. This looks contrary to Colossians 2:3, which says that all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge are hidden in Jesus. If Jesus was God manifest in the flesh, why would He have to learn or be taught?
The harmony between these apparently opposite statements is that Jesus' spirit man was 100% God and had all of the wisdom and understanding of God in it, but it was...