Bible verses to build your life on

Jesus said: “… whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock…” ~ Matthew 7:24

John 10 - Part 7

(vs. 31-42)
³¹Then the Jews took up stones again to stone Him. ³²Jesus answered them, “Many good works I have shown you from My Father. For which of those works do you stone Me?” ³³The Jews answered Him, saying, “For a good work we do not stone You, but for blasphemy, and because You, being a Man, make Yourself God.” ³⁴Jesus answered them, “Is it not written in your law, ‘I said, “You are gods”’? ³⁵If He called them gods, to whom the word of God came (and the Scripture cannot be broken), ³⁶do you say of Him whom the Father sanctified and sent into the world, ‘You are blaspheming,’ because I said, ‘I AM the Son of God’? ³⁷If I do not do the works of My Father, do not believe Me; ³⁸but if I do, though you do not believe Me, believe the works, that you may know and believe that the Father is in Me, and I in Him.” ³⁹Therefore they sought again to seize Him, but He escaped out of their hand.

⁴⁰And He went away again beyond the Jordan to the place where John was baptizing at first, and there He stayed. ⁴¹Then many came to Him and said, “John performed no sign, but all the things that John spoke about this Man were true.” ⁴²And many believed in Him there.

Jesus’ question “For which of those works do you stone Me?” is a very interesting question. As He explains further, those who reject Jesus are not only rejecting Him, but also that fact that He came doing the things that God the Father was directing. So, that’s strike one, but not only that, but they are rejecting the testimony of the amazing miracles He did do and that are recorded! What is interesting is that even though they were rejecting the fact that Jesus is God (which the ‘Jehovah’s [False] Witnesses’ followers do too…) – even though they were rejecting the fact that He was telling them the truth, He pleaded with them to really think about the amazing works He did – healing the sick, opening the eyes of a man born blind, making whole those that were broken, maimed, lame, dumb, deaf – mighty works that only God could do! Jesus, always gracious and yet always challenging people, pleads with them to accept His Word based on the evidence that they could see – the mighty works. By the way, Jesus states that He is the Son of God – meaning equal to God (100% God/ 100% man) 3 times: vs. 30: “I and My Father are one.” and vs. 36: “I AM the Son of God.” and again in vs, 38: “… believe that the Father is in Me, and I in Him.” So, the next time you hear someone say that Jesus never claimed to be God, you can show them these verses among many others. (other verses: Mark 14:62; the book of John is full of Jesus stating that He was God – Jn. 6:35; 8:12; 8:58; 10:7; 11:25; 14:6; 18:4-6…) Also, when you point out to people that Jesus not only said He is God, but proved it, I hope you will also point out that the Jews weren’t going to stone Him for a petty crime, but what: _______?Blasphemy – a man claiming to be God. Only difference is that Jesus really is and all others are counterfeit. J

It’s interesting in this small section of verses, Jesus’ main theme is in effect – believe the works that I do because they are proof that I Am the Son of God. [That doesn’t translate into English as clearly as it did in Hebrew and/or Greek, but they knew that by claiming to be the Son of God, he was making Himself equal to God.) The sad part is they still rejected Him. But not all of them rejected: “⁴²And many believed in Him there.” God always has a remnant, even if the majority chooses to rebel and do their own thing, wandering like sheep, He always has a remnant.

Matthew Henry, a respected Bible scholar, mentioned one key principle about this section: It is better to be divided while walking in Christ, than to be united with sin and the world - against Christ. Jesus said a lot about this subject. “¹⁸If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you. ¹⁹If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you. ²⁰Remember the word that I said to you: ‘A servant is not greater than his Master.’ If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you. If they kept My Word, they will also keep yours.” (John 15:18-20) And 1^st John 3:13 - “¹³ Do not be surprised, brothers, that the world hates you.” So, if we are hated for Christ’ sake, we just have to remember that we are in good company – with Him and His followers! - J And when we are rejected for Christ, we have a great reward in Heaven! “¹⁰Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven. ¹¹Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. ¹²Rejoice and be [exceedingly] glad, for your reward is great in Heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.” (Matthew 5:10-12) and “¹⁴If you are insulted for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you.” (1^st Peter 4:14)

A fascinating little tidbit. Did you notice that when they were about to stone Him, Jesus walked right out through them? He did that on 2 other occasions too (Luke 4:30; John 8:59). How amazing! Jesus just used His power – like froze them, walked through them and went His way. It shows how powerful He is, but it also shows that even while they were showing that they had made themselves to be His enemies, He was still reaching out to them, by showing them who He really was! He also did the same type of thing in the Garden of Gethsemane: “Jesus therefore, knowing all things that would come upon Him, went forward and said to them, ‘Whom are you seeking?’ ⁵They answered Him, ‘Jesus of Nazareth.’ Jesus said to them, ‘I am He’ And Judas, who betrayed Him, also stood with them. ⁶Now when He said to them, ‘I am He,’ they drew back and fell to the ground.” (John 18:4-6) Jesus was in complete control of the all four of these situations, and He was also doing things right before their eyes so that they might be repent, and be saved.

So, the question of this chapter that we must really think about is this: Are we truly saved? Before you quickly answer that question, I encourage you, even plead with you, think with me for just a minute about this serious question, because so many people say they are saved now, but according to Jesus in Matthew 7:21-23, many will say “Lord, Lord [Master, Master]…” and will hear: “Depart from me… I never knew you.” According to this chapter (among many others, including Matthew 13), only those who follow Him are saved. So, the question still stands: are you one of His sheep? Am I one of His sheep? Do we continue to work daily to clear our ears of the distractions of this world and culture to hear and then follow the voice of the Savior, the Good Shepherd and the Master? The proof will be not in what we say, but what we do. And it isn’t proved in just one action, but with the collection of actions – who do the collection of our actions show we are following? As 1^st John says, are we practicing righteousness? As Jesus says in“⁴⁶But why do you call Me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do the things which I say? ⁴⁷Whoever comes to Me, and hears My sayings and does them, I will show you whom he is like: ⁴⁸He is like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid the foundation on the Rock. And when the flood arose, the stream beat vehemently against that house, and could not shake it, for it was founded on the Rock…”

May we be active and learning to be busy looking for more ways to join Him in what He is already doing: “… All authority has been given to Me in Heaven and on earth. ¹⁹Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, ²⁰teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.” (emphasis added)

Date: 2008, February 15^th.