Kneel at the Cross

The Symbol of the Cross

MSW — Tue, 10 Apr 2012 21:02:45 +0000

Here is the manuscript I used to prepare my message at Hopewell Baptist on Good Friday.

I want to start and say what an honor it is to be here preaching to you on Good Friday. A very special day to be worshipping and what a great honor to get to be a part of worship with you. This day is a day of remembrance of what our God did for us. A day of remembrance of the punishment that set us free from sin and death.

As I prayed and prepared for this lesson I thought of the common verses used to talk about the cross, but did not feel led to them. I was leaning toward Deuteronomy 21: 23 “his body shall not remain all night on the tree, but you shall bury him the same day, for a hanged man is cursed by God. You shall not defile your land that the Lord your God is giving you for an inheritance.” And the theme I have tonight comes from there but I’m going to start in the beginning, because to truly appreciate the cross we have to see its purpose.

(Holding up a cross on a necklace) Everybody knows what this is. Some of you may have one around your neck right now. A cross is one of the most popular and cultural divisive symbols there are. You see it around peoples necks, tattooed on their bodies, hanging on the walls of their house. People see the cross and regardless of whether they are a Christian or not they immediately think that it is the symbol of where Jesus died. They may even know that the cross represents forgiveness of our sin. I remember a popular song on the radio when I was a teenager and a line in it said, “She wears a cross around her neck…” A line later it finishes,”…And the cross is from someone she had not met.”

A lot of people cling to the cross for salvation but they do not understand the cross. They do not know the Man, the God that hung upon it for the salvation of His people. The cross should break us down every time we think about it.

An example; my father passed away a couple of years ago. My mom keeps pictures of him everywhere, but the one that I want to use as an example of the cross is the one she has on the dash of her van. Every time she checks her speed or gas level or anything that makes the vehicle go she sees the picture of my dad. She is then reminded of the man that gave 42 years of his life to her. This can lead to a smile as she remembers him, or tears as she misses him.

The cross should be that picture for us. We should smile as we think of how much God loves us. We should smile when we think of the things He has done for us, and tears should come when we think of the sacrifice and pain our sin placed upon Him. The cross should represent something that tears us apart.

Two of my favorite verses in the bible are Genesis 1:26 Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness… And John 1:1-4 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men.

These two verses bring me to my knees when I think of what they mean. Colossians 1:16 kind of finishes up this thought. …all things were created through him and for him. You see Jesus was there in the beginning where it says God created the Heaven and Earth. And when God said Let us make man in our image. It was Jesus He was talking to. Okay that is simple and not so overwhelming, but Jesus is the Alpha and Omega he knows the end from the beginning. So when God said let us make man in our image Jesus knew about Genesis 3. It wasn’t a surprise when Eve ate the fruit. And He knew the consequence and He knew what He would have to do to fix it.

So Genesis 3 God places Adam and Eve in a garden tells them this is all for you but in the middle of the garden are two trees. One is majestic it brings life it allows you to forever walk in my presence but the other tree is horrible. It brings with it death and evil stay away from it.

So what is the first thing they do, of course eat the forbidden fruit. So this brings sin into the world, a curse and death. Just like Adam we will sin given the first chance.

Now we jump forward several thousand years. Jesus comes to the Earth as a man with a mission. From the day he was born He was heading straight for the cross. All of Jesus life was spent heading to the cross.

As Jesus preached and was persecuted He knew the cross awaited him so that he could bring about forgiveness for the ones that were persecuting Him. Jesus stepped down from heaven to take His place on the cross to pay our debt.

So when we see a cross what should we see. Over a100 years ago preacher named J.C. Ryle did a sermon entitled Freedom. In it he mentions 8 things Christ accomplished on the cross. I’m going to use his list as the basis of what I’m going to say.

On the cross Christ stood in our place. Christ did not sin against God. You and I did. We were the ones in rebellion against God. Only one sin on our part is necessary to send us to hell. We have committed more than one sin against God. So we stand condemned to die

But Christ died on the cross in our place. I don’t think we fully grasp that we have a fear of dying; we mourn those we lose to death. We don’t fully understand what it means that Christ died in our place. If you are a Christian you will not die. Christ has already done that for you. Death here is just the beginning. A caterpillar was not born to be a caterpillar but to be a butterfly. He just has to wrap himself in a cocoon to get to what he was truly meant to be. If you are a Christian this is not what you were meant to be this is just preparation for something much more beautiful that Christ made possible for you.

Because of our sin we were meant to suffer. Because of Christ taking our place on the cross, we do not have to suffer. Our happiness should not depend on anything in this world our hope and happiness should be placed solely on the work Christ did upon the cross.

There was a curse upon us. It was placed there when Adam sinned in Genesis 3. But Christ removed that curse. Deuteronomy 21:23 said that a man hung upon a tree became a curse. Christ hanging on the cross became our curse. He took it from us and removed it.

He paid the debt we owed God and made restitution for our sin. There is no way we could have accomplished that but because of the cross and Christ we do not have to. Our sin is removed when we truly trust in Christ.

The cross became our guarantee. Because of it we have hope in a promise. A promise of eternal life; of life in the presence of God. When you look at a cross that should bring a smile. That is your deed of entitlement. Everything you owed God was paid right there. Your freedom from sin was paid. Your fear of dying was removed, because now you have the guarantee of eternal life.

The last thing is Christ on the cross became the representative of his people. Christ humbled himself to die for your sin. Christ humbled Himself to make eternal life with the Father possible for you. The cross should remind us to humble ourselves for others. It should remind us to make sacrifices to bring others to see the cross for what it is.

The cross should remind us that that everything we do should be part of our mission of heading towards eternity. That we have a promise and hope that nothing can take away from us. The cross should be a reminder of how much God loves us.

The Shadow of the Cross

Friday’s Links 02/17/2012

MSW — Fri, 17 Feb 2012 15:22:08 +0000

I have been neglecing my blog while for a while now. I have several ideas for post I want to do but lately there is no time. I have been marking some post I’ve read elsewhere and wanted to include them in a Friday’s links. I hopefully can find the time to post more regularly.

Roger Olson has a post this week discussing how university athletes get praised while scholars do not get mentioned. Kinda odd since education is the purpose of Universities.

Something’s wrong with this picture. University education is supposed to be about learning. Why don’t we highlight the achievements of our outstanding scholar students just as much, if not more, than our outstanding athletes?

John Starke has an article at the Gospel Coalition website about how churches in New York are stepping up to help the churches that have been kicked out of the schools they rented space in.

Pastor Matthew Hoskinson has planned to forfeit their Sunday school hour at 9:30 a.m. to allow for a congregation to meet during that time, even as he has arranged for another congregation to meet Saturday nights, and still another Sunday evenings.

Live 31 has an essay by Kylie Bisutti about going from being a Victoria’s Secret model to a Proverbs 31 wife

The Lord knocked me off my feet and showed me where to find true happiness and self worth. How to be truly beautiful (which has NOTHING to do with external beauty) and most importantly how to truly live a life for Him and His glory and not my own.

Calling Elisha Video

MSW — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 04:08:42 +0000

Video from the Sermon on the calling of Elisha

Calling Elisha from Scott Warren on Vimeo.

The Christmas Story: The Birth of Jesus

MSW — Sat, 24 Dec 2011 13:27:59 +0000

Today we will look at the birth of Jesus (Luke 2:1-20)

This is what we are so familiar with when we hear of the Christmas Story. Caesar Augustus issued a decree that everyone was to be registered. The decree called for you to be registered in the town of your fathers, which led to Joseph and Mary going to Bethlehem at this time when she was due for the birth of her son.

When we read there was no room at the inn and that Jesus was placed in a manger. We get an image of a very pregnant Mary being turned away from a nice hotel and sent to spend the night in a barn on a cold snowy night. The Sheppard tending their flocks make it more likely it is fall and while the nights would be cool, they probably weren’t cold and snowy.

Second our image of the manger and stable are probably a little skewed by what we picture for a place to keep animals. Albert Barnes in

Sarihan Carivanserai, Cappadocia, Turkey built in the 13th century

his notes on the New Testament gives us a better picture of where Mary and Joseph more than likely settled down for the night. He quotes a description of an inn given by Dr. Kitto. I’m going to paraphrase that description; an inn at that time would have had a grand archway that led to a large open area with a well in the middle. In the walls around this open space would be doorways leading to oblong shaped rooms. The rooms would be unfurnished and the only light would come from the doorway which opened to the center opening. In most inns the animals would be kept in the open area. If the inn was one of the fancier establishments it would have an empty hallway that led to the back wall. The hallway would serve as the stables. There would be a bench built into the wall. So a traveler would have a place to set or place food for their animals.^[1]It was more than likely on one of these benches that Jesus was laid. So while this would not be the best accommodations for a king, it wasn’t exactly what we picture when we thing of a stable.

The thing that is significant isn’t how bad it was. We don’t have to try and make the birth of Jesus sound horrible, as if he was in a feeding trough freezing to death while animals ate food from under him. The point is that Jesus is the eternal king. He is God with us. The birth of Jesus was God’s plan of restoring fallen sinners to Himself and it was part of his plan for Jesus to coma as a humble servant that was willing to die for us. If Jesus the King can humble himself to be born in this way then shouldn’t we definitely humble ourselves in His service.

^[1] Albert Barnes, Notes on the New Testament: Luke & John, ed. Robert Frew (London: Blackie & Son, 1884-1885), 18. ↩

The Christmas Story: Joseph

MSW — Fri, 23 Dec 2011 13:31:53 +0000

Today I’m looking at Joseph. (Matthew 1:17-25)

To me Joseph is one of the most amazing characters in the Christmas story. He also seems to be one of the most overlooked. We have heard sermons about what a good guy Joseph was. How he was going to divorce her quietly until an angel showed up and told him not to. There is so much more going on here.

Joseph had some hard decisions to make. First keep in mind he truly loved Mary or he wouldn’t have been willing to divorce her quietly. The Jewish law said he could accuse her of misconduct which would suffer the sentence of her being stoned to death. (Deuteronomy 22:21) Jewish law was so strict on this that a betrothed virgin that was raped in the city could be stoned for not crying out.(Deuteronomy 22:24)

So Joseph is waiting to marry the woman he loves when he finds out she is pregnant and he knows beyond a doubt he is not the daddy. This isn’t as simple as trying to decide if you want to raise a child that is not yours. If Joseph decides he is going to go on and marry Mary and raise this child that isn’t his then he has to pay the bride price and cannot ever divorce her. (Deuteronomy 22:28) He is basically admitting to everyone that he sinned and seduced her, which brings shame upon both of their families. Plus in this shame he has the shame of knowing he did not actually commit this sin. Joseph is in a no win situation. The bible said he considered these things I imagine Joseph agonized over these things.

So an angel show s up and tells him not to worry, Mary did not cheat on him. The Angel reminds him of Isaiah’s prophecy that the virgin shall conceive and bear a son called Immanuel or God with us.

Clears everything up for Joseph right! While with all the miraculous things going on, Mary and Joseph swearing that Mary was pregnant, and the baby belonged to the Holy Spirit, and this is really God’s fulfillment of Isaiah’s prophecy seemed logical; most people did not go for it. Joseph was quite the man. He did what God told him even though it meant tremendous shame on him for the rest of his life.

The Christmas Story: Mary

MSW — Thu, 22 Dec 2011 13:30:49 +0000

Today we will look at Mary’s story. (Luke 1:26-56)

We all are probably familiar with Mary’s story. She was a teenage girl pledged to be married to Joseph. One day the Angel Gabriel shows up and greets her by calling her the favored one and telling her that the Lord is with her. Mary was afraid cause she couldn’t understand this strange greeting. Gabriel explains to her that she is going to have a baby that will be the son of God. That He will take the throne of David.

Mary is now really confused since she is a virgin and therefore it would be impossible for her to have a child. The Angel explains that the child will be from the Holy Spirit and to give her a sign tells her that her aunt Elizabeth is pregnant in her old age.

We then see Mary quickly heading into Judah to see her aunt. So let’s try ro picture what Mary is going through. Mary is an unmarried young lady. For her to become pregnant is a big thing. It will bring shame on the family. I think it is interesting how Mary handled everything. She leaves Nazareth to go and see her aunt to confirm the sign the angel gave her. Imagine her surprise upon seeing her pregnant aunt and hearing her declare to Mary who would not be showing yet, “Blessed are you and the fruit of your womb.” Elizabeth even calls the baby in Mary’s womb the sin of her Lord, and blesses her for believing the Lord. Mary at hearing this breaks out in praise of God.

So many prophecies are filled in Mary right here. Isaiah 7:14 Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son. That there would be a savior king come from the line of David to rule and judge an eternal kingdom.(2 Samuel 7:12, Psalm 132:11, Isaiah 9:6-7, 1Chronicles 22:10, Daniel 7:14, Daniel 7:27, Jeremiah 23:5-6)

The Jews missed all of this happening right in front of them when God prepared three signs for them to wake up and see. Zechariah’s muteness, Elizabeth’s miraculous pregnancy and Mary’s miraculous pregnancy

The Christmas Story: Elizabeth

MSW — Wed, 21 Dec 2011 13:25:11 +0000

Today we will look at Elizabeth. (Luke 1:24, 39-45, 57-66)

Elizabeth was the wife of the priest Zechariah and the Mary’s aunt. At this time children were considered a blessing of God. The more children you had the more God had blessed you(Psalm 127:3). To not have children was shameful and it was assumed that God was holding back his blessing from you.

Elizabeth and her husband Zechariah had both faithfully served God all their life, yet she had no children. She was at an age when it was impossible to have children. Then all of a sudden her husband comes home mute, and tells her he will be that way until she gives birth to their son John. Can you imagine the disbelief that Elizabeth had? That would be the answers to the prayers she had prayed but it was impossibility.

Elizabeth hid herself from everyone while she waited for God to accomplish what he had promised through the angel Gabriel. Everyone had heard what had happened to Zechariah. The test of a prophet is did the prophecy come true. Everyone would be watching to see if Zechariah was really going to have a child. I imagine that Elizabeth was also worried even when she started showing, because of her age she probably worried about complications. Until she knew that this child was going to be born she did not want to be out where everyone could see her.

Six months into her pregnancy her niece shows up with a miraculous story of her own. Can you imagine the conversations these two ladies had? Both are in the process of a miraculous pregnancy that was foretold by an angel.

Elizabeth does give birth to John, thereby giving Zechariah his voice back.

So why did God bring John into the world in this way? I remind you it has been 400 years since God has spoken to Israel. Almost 2000 years before this there was a woman named Sarah who gave birth at 90 years of age. A birth that was physical impossible and was prophesied by God. I believe Elizabeth was a reminder that God could do the impossible. Everyone should have been expectant of Christ arrival. The Old Testament is all in expectation of Christ. God had the miraculous circumstances of Elizabeth’s pregnancy as a reminder and preparation of what was to come.

In Isaiah 7:14 Isaiah had prophesied that a virgin would give birth to a son that would be God with us. A son called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, and Prince of Peace. A son that would have the very government upon his shoulders. I think Elizabeth was God’s way of waking everyone up to what He was about to do.

The Christmas Story: Zechariah

MSW — Fri, 16 Dec 2011 22:12:18 +0000

The first person I want to look at is Zechariah. (Luke 1:8-23)

Zechariah was an older man. He was a priest and at the time of his meeting with the angel Gabriel his wife was past the child bearing age, and they were childless. Every morning and evening a priest would enter the temple and burn incense on the altar of incense.(Exodus 30:1-8) He would offer incense to the lord and ask forgiveness of Israel’s sins. This was a serious task as not doing it in the correct way would bring about God’s wrath leading to the death of the priest. (Exodus 30:9, Leviticus 10:1-2)

At this time in Israel’s history the priest that would offer incense was chosen by lot. All of the priest would meet in a room and a number would be agreed upon by them. They would form a circle and each would put their fingers out upon command. The priest in charge would then go around the circle counting the fingers that a person put out; be it 1, 2, or 3 fingers. The person whose fingers made the number that was agreed upon was the one that was chosen. Tradition only allowed a person to burn incense once in their life, so before they cast lots for incense the priest would call all of those who had never burnt incense to step forward. It was believed that burning the incense brought about riches.^[1] Zechariah was chosen this morning.

Keep in mind it has been 400 years since God has spoken to Israel. As Zechariah enters the temple an angel appears to him and tells him the impossible is about to happen. His wife Elizabeth is going to have a child, and this child is going to be the forerunner preparing Israel for the Christ to come.

Zechariah doubted the angel which led to the angel making him mute until the child john was born. When Zechariah comes out of the temple everyone is wondering why it took so long. Why can Zechariah not speak? He makes signs to tell what the angel said.

Just as the angel said Elizabeth becomes with child. Zechariah is mute until the day John is born when he tells them that his newborn son will be named John he gets his voice back.(Luke 1:57-66)

So why did Zechariah have to be mute for 9 months? What part was he playing in the Christmas story? God was about to bring all of the Old Testament prophecy’s about the Messiah to fulfillment. He wanted to prepare everyone. By Making Zechariah mute everyone wanted to know what happened. Zechariah was then able to give them a prophecy that seemed impossible plus they were going to be able to see it come true.(Luke 1:67-80)

When we stop expecting the supernatural we start missing it when it is right in front of our eyes. Zechariah comes out in front of thousands of worshipers and shows them that God has struck him mute. He explains what the angel has said. So the birth of John and the message that John brings when he begins his ministry was preparing Israel for what God was about to do through Jesus.

^[1] This information came from John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible ↩

The Christmas Story

MSW — Fri, 16 Dec 2011 13:06:00 +0000

The Christmas story is told every year at this time. We read through the verses in Matthew and Luke and talk about the birth of Jesus. Immanuel God with us.

We seem to forget the other characters and the part they played in the Christmas story. We do need to focus on the birth of Christ since he is the reason we celebrate, but we also need to see how God used ordinary people to accomplish His will and to see the lessons that are in their lives.

So what im hoping to do over the next week is look at the individuals that played a part in the christmas story. I intend to start with Zechariah and Elizabeth, then move on to Mary, Joseph, the shepards and wise men.

Hope you have a Merry Christmas and spend this time in reflection of the saviour sent, Immanuel, God with us.

The Gospel of John: Part 11 The Bride

MSW — Wed, 14 Dec 2011 13:24:30 +0000

John 3:22–36 (ESV) — 22 After this Jesus and his disciples went into the Judean countryside, and he remained there with them and was baptizing. 23 John also was baptizing at Aenon near Salim, because water was plentiful there, and people were coming and being baptized 24 (for John had not yet been put in prison). 25 Now a discussion arose between some of John’s disciples and a Jew over purification. 26 And they came to John and said to him, “Rabbi, he who was with you across the Jordan, to whom you bore witness—look, he is baptizing, and all are going to him.” 27 John answered, “A person cannot receive even one thing unless it is given him from heaven. 28 You yourselves bear me witness, that I said, ‘I am not the Christ, but I have been sent before him.’ 29 The one who has the bride is the bridegroom. The friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly at the bridegroom’s voice. Therefore this joy of mine is now complete. 30 He must increase, but I must decrease.” 31 He who comes from above is above all. He who is of the earth belongs to the earth and speaks in an earthly way. He who comes from heaven is above all. 32 He bears witness to what he has seen and heard, yet no one receives his testimony. 33 Whoever receives his testimony sets his seal to this, that God is true. 34 For he whom God has sent utters the words of God, for he gives the Spirit without measure. 35 The Father loves the Son and has given all things into his hand. 36 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.

This is one of those sections that when I first look at it I have to ask myself, how am I going to teach that? It first seems like there isn’t much to say, but as I prayerfully read it themes start jumping out at me. As I study it I start to see that there is a lot more here than originally meets the eye. The bible tells us that Jesus talked in parables so that some would not understand. The bible does that also, when we look at a piece like this or a genealogy and forget that it is the inspired word of God, then we do not realize that God is talking to us through the scripture.

So the first thing happening here is Jesus’ disciples are baptizing followers and so is John. I know that it says Jesus was baptizing, but John makes sure we understand that it was not Jesus but His disciples in Chapter 4.

(although Jesus himself did not baptize, but only his disciples),John 4:2 (ESV)

The Scene

So let’s picture what is going on. John is baptizing at Aenon near Salim. More than likely we are talking about some springs (Aenon means springs) near the city of Salim. While it is disputed exactly where this is if you look at a map you can see the the two areas Aenon and Salim listed next too each other a little east of the Jordan river a little past the halfway point between the Dead Sea and the Seas of Gaillee.

We see a disciple of John talking to some Jews who have recently been listening to Jesus preach. They brag about his preaching and talk about His baptism. They argue over the differences in John’s baptism and the Jewish purification rites. The Jews had regulations on what made a person unclean and therefore needing purification by washing.

It includes everything from childbirth, bodily fluids, skin disease and even coming into contact with the dead. These where based on the bible, but over time Jewish Oral Law as recorded in the Talmud started adding even more rites. I imagine John’s disciple was trying to explain the difference and as in most arguments when you come to a point you aren’t getting anywhere, you start making personal attacks. The Jewish people probably started talking about how many followers Jesus was getting and how he was baptizing a lot more people than John.

John’s disciple gets sick of hearing this talk about how great Jesus is and they go straight to John and tell him. We need to realize that John had followers so loyal to him that they had a hard time becoming followers of Jesus. Acts 19 talks about an encounter Paul had with some followers of John’s but they had not yet fully became followers of Jesus.

So this loyal follower of John is mad because someone other than his teacher is gaining in popularity. This is something that happens today. Some people will compare preachers and say this one isn’t as good as that one. Some preachers gain a following that is based solely on them and their abilities. It isn’t the man delivering the message, but the message that is being delivered. I honestly believe if Jesus appeared today like He did in the bible we would not leave our celebrity preachers to go and hear Him. Even worse I believe many godly preachers would get upset that their congregations were leaving them to go and follow Jesus.

So let’s get back to what is going on in the bible. John’s disciple goes to John mad that Jesus is gaining a following.

This guy Jesus that you baptized, well, he is ungrateful. First, you teach Him, then you baptize Him, and then he steals some of your disciples, and now everyone is going to hear him preach and be baptized by Him. I tell you it aint right.

John’s Response

I love John’s response,(John 3:27-28) John answered, “A person cannot receive even one thing unless it is given him from heaven. You yourselves bear me witness, that I said, ‘I am not the Christ, but I have been sent before him.’ This response demonstrates true God worshipping humility.

John is not taking credit for anything he has done. It was all God. God is the one who is in control. God is the one who sent my disciples and He is the One that will send them to Jesus

John says, “Didn’t you hear me when I said I am not the Christ, I’m just a messenger to prepare everybody. Jesus is the one everyone needs to follow.” I’m nobody don’t look up to me Jesus is the one all eyes need to be on.

“The one who has the bride is the bridegroom. The friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly at the bridegroom’s voice. Therefore this joy of mine is now complete”.(John 3:29) It thrills me that Jesus is getting such a following. That is what is supposed to happen.

The Bridegroom

The friend of the bridegroom is kinda like our best man. Except so much more, and this illustration John is using is symbolic also. The friend of the bridegroom in Jewish culture was the one in charge of the wedding. He planned, prepared and would even walk the bride down the aisle to give her to the groom. His purpose was to serve the Groom. When the groom is happy, then the friend of the bridegroom is happy. The friend of the bridegroom doesn’t want attention on the wedding day; he wants everyone to see the groom and bride.

John is saying I’m the friend of the bridegroom. I am preparing the bride for the wedding. It thrills me to know that the wedding is going good. He must increase, but I must decrease.(John 3:30) Because this is His wedding, I don’t want the honor today.

31 He who comes from above is above all. He who is of the earth belongs to the earth and speaks in an earthly way. He who comes from heaven is above all. John is again pointing out to his disciples that Jesus is from above. He was sent from God. John is just an earthly messenger. He is just preparing everyone for Jesus’ ministry. John is just calling everyone to repentance and baptism. Jesus is going to make repentance, forgiveness and baptism with the Holy Spirit possible.

He bears witness to what he has seen and heard, yet no one receives his testimony. 33 Whoever receives his testimony sets his seal to this, that God is true. 34 For he whom God has sent utters the words of God, for he gives the Spirit without measure. Jesus’ message is straight from God. It is the very words of God. As you read through the bible you will notice that when all the prophets speak they start by saying, “Thus saith the Lord.” They acknowledge that the message is God’s and not theirs. Jesus spoke with the very authority of God. “ I say to you.” The prophets and John spoke the words of God. Jesus was the Word of God.

35 The Father loves the Son and has given all things into his hand. 36 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. It is important that in these final verse of this chapter we see the importance of Jesus. God the father has given all things to Jesus. We are saved by Jesus. Nothing else will do! Jesus was sent to die so that you could be saved. The curse of death that God has put on you has been taken by Jesus. Your sin has been put on Jesus.

The wrath of God is on everyone of us. Everyone of us is an enemy of God. But if you believe in Jesus you will have eternal life. The only way to have the wrath of God removed from you is by believing in Jesus. There are many religions that believe in God. There are many religions that worship God, but they are not enough. Jesus is the only way to eternal life, without Him you are still under God’s wrath and must be punished.

I want to take a minute to clarify what it means to believe in Jesus. John 3:16 said whoever believes in Jesus shall have eternal life. Verse 36 has just repeated that whoever believes in Jesus shall have eternal life. There is no exercising faith as some religions try to teach^[1]. Pisteuōn means to think to be true. If you believe the word of Jesus you can be saved.

because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved. Romans 10:9–10 (ESV

The confession that Jesus is who he says He is, that he died and resurrected so that you could be forgiven of your sins and given eternal life is all it takes. Now that does require repentance. See it is easy to argue that all it says is believe, it doesn’t say anything about repenting, but the thing is if you believe in Your heart that is to say that you truly believe and it’s not just head knowledge. It’s not something you write on the test just to get a 100 even though you don’t understand it. If you believe that Jesus is the Son of God, that God has put Him over all things, if you truly believe this then you are going to listen to what He says and tells you to do.

I know this is a poor illustration but it was what came to mind. If you have ever seen the movie Tombstone with Kurt Russell there is a scene where Curly Bill shoots Sheriff Fred White. Wyatt goes out to arrest Curly Bill and Ike Clanton steps into stop him. Wyatt puts a gun to his head and threatens to turn his head into a canoe if Ike’s friends rush him. Billy Clanton said he’s bluffing and Ike says, “He ain’t bluffing”. You see Ike knew that what Wyatt was saying was true and he would do exactly as he said he would.

If you believe in Jesus, then you are going to do exactly what He tells you! And Jesus tells us to repent. Let’s look.

From that time Jesus began to preach, saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” Matthew 4:17 (ESV)

Jesus taught repentance. You can go through the gospels and see over and over Jesus teachings on repentance. In John 5:14 Jesus tell the paraplegic he has healed Go and sin no more. In John 8:11 Jesus tells the woman caught in Adultery go and sin no more. When on the day of Pentecost the people asked Peter, “what must we do to be saved.” “He said Repent and be baptized.” Repentance is a very important part of the gospel because if you believe Jesus is who He says He is then you are going to want to repent.

^[1] Jehovah’s Witness NWT translates these two verse as exercise faith to go along with their doctrine. ↩