Jesus’s promise is greater. Jesus’s power is greater. Jesus’s position is greater. Christianity without Christ is hollow, and death without Jesus is final. Jesus is greater than all powers, and all leaders, and all nations. Never surrender what is of greatest importance for that which is less.
In this message we continue our study of John as we look at the story of the death and raising of Lazarus.
Do you believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God and that by believing, you may have life in His Name? This is the whole point of the Gospel of John, and your life and eternity hinge on your belief about Jesus. In this message we turn to John chapter 10 as Jesus teaches about those who are His and who He is.
Jesus said, “For judgment I have come into this world, so that the blind will see and those who see will become blind.” Some Pharisees who were with him heard him say this and asked, “What? Are we blind too?” Jesus said, “If you were blind, you would not be guilty of sin; but now that you claim you can see, your guilt remains.
Being authentic and truly known is a scary feeling in our world today. Admitting our emotions, confessing our sins, these create ways people could hurt us. But scripture offers a better way. By growing in our humility, we learn that confessing our weaknesses of sin and emotional burdens to our brothers and sisters is a way for us to grow in our relationship with the Lord, by glorifying His power over all.
After Jesus had His confrontation at the temple with the Jewish religious leaders, they wanted to kill Jesus, so He left. As He went along, He continued to do the work that He was called to do. In this case, He had an encounter with a man born blind. I am not going to go through every verse in this passage, but again focus our attention on what we learn about Jesus.
Jesus and the Jews are in a heated disagreement with claims and accusations dropping like bombs. Who does Jesus think He is? In His strongest statement yet, Jesus reveals who He is while offering eternal life to those who obey His word.
If we do not hold onto the truth, then we hold onto a lie. By this evidence we indicate that we are then children of the lie and the liar, who is the devil. Those who are his children look to fulfill his will, which is to steal, kill, and destroy. But those who hold onto the truth from God are the ones who belong to God, and they have received life and aim to be agents of life everywhere they go.
Jesus, the greatest of all emancipators, the hero of all humankind, conquered sin and death by His sinless life and death defeating resurrection, breaking us free from the power of sin and death. And who the Son sets free is free indeed.
Jesus makes incredibly audacious claims about Himself and what will happen to us without Him. What are we to make of this? Is Jesus telling the truth, and how can we know? Let’s listen to His teaching in John 8:12-30 to understand what He claims and discern what this means for us and the world.
