Epilogue: Knowing Jesus and His Word - 240413

SPEAKER A Hi, I'm Mike Browning. Welcome to Let God Speak. Today is our final study. In this series on the Gospel of John, we will see the importance of deliberately focusing on Jesus and His words. Our instinct is to follow our own interpretation of Jesus life, whereas God wants us to seek an understanding of Jesus life from his perspective and his worldview. So we'll explore the value of setting aside our own views. SPEAKER B It. SPEAKER A On our panel today, we have Gayl Fong and we have John Kosmeier. Thank you folks for being here today to share. Thank you. And to minister to our audience. We'd like to invite everyone to join with us in prayer before we open the Scripture. Father in heaven, we thank youk for this moment and this time to come to youo. And we pray for your Holy Spirit to touch everybody's heart here as we talk and those who'll be watching that everyone will be drawn closer to Jesus and focus more on Him. And that's our prayer. In Jesus name. Amen. Now, to begin with, today I'm going to read John chapter one and verse four, and I'd invite you to look up these scriptures with us if you can do so. John, chapter one, verse four. This is what John, who was obviously writing this gospel story, tells us about Jesus. And he says in him was life and the life was the light of men. Now, the interesting thing, Gayl, is if Jesus light was so brilliant as John describes here, why doesn't everyone come to the light? SPEAKER B John writes on in verse five of chapter one, and the light shines in the darkness and the darkness did not comprehend it. So would appear the darkness or their. Their mental capacity to understand. There was ignorance there, ignorance of God's love and mercy, of what would happen to one when one died. All these things that they did not understand or they did not appreciate the power and wonder of the light, which was Jesus. And Jesus, he was showing the light of the love of that divine love of God which was manifest in his life. They didn't understand, they just didn't get it. SPEAKER A Now it's amazing, isn't it? I notice in chapter three and verse 19, and I'm going to read that out as well, once again, talking about the light, so you can see how significant this point is. And this is the condemnation that the light has come into the world. And men love darkness rather than light because their deeds were evil. So what do you think about this explanation, John, of the reticence of people to accept Jesus light? SPEAKER C Well, it's an altruism that means all true of everyone that you like your own ideas better than somebody else's. And out of the darkness of your own ideas because you don't have the light of heaven. SPEAKER A Yes. SPEAKER C People end up either explaining away or just totally denying the facts that they hear. And so they just find fault with what Jesus said. SPEAKER A And he also said because their deeds were evil, in other words, they didn't want their darling sinful activities perhaps challenged by Jesus words. And so it was easier to do away with it. Thank you for that. Jesus said more about our own ideas. People wanting to follow their own ideas, Gayl. Didn't he? SPEAKER B He did. In Matthew chapter 6 and verse 23, the words of Jesus says, but if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in you is darkness, how great is that darkness? SPEAKER A That's a powerful statement, isn't it? SPEAKER B So what they we see with, we physically see with our eyes. But also I'm remembering that in the Bible a prophet is called a seer, someone who sees into the future by faith, they're following God's word. But here, yes, it's likened to darkness. Man's fables make the darkness so intense, yet despite that, it's going to many people will be drawn into that darkness and they will think that their darkness is light because they're just taking it as from their own ideas. SPEAKER A Okay, a great tragedy without God's faith. Think light. You have all this light and this darkness. That's a terrible thing. Look, can you give us an example, John, in the stories of Jesus life here in John, can you give us an example of someone being held back by their own erroneous ideas? SPEAKER C Mm. I'm reading from John, chapter 4 in the New King James Version, and from verse 46. So Jesus came again to Cana of Galilee, where he had made the water wine. So already a miracle had been performed, and they probably knew about it. And there was a certain nobleman whose son was sick at Capernaum. And when he heard that Jesus had come out of Judea into Galilee, he went to him and implored him to come down and heal his son, for the son was at the point of death. Now here, this man, a nobleman so used to telling others what to do, even said to Jesus, come on down. And Jesus replied to him, it works out okay. But in the meantime, Jesus said to him, unless you people seize signs and wonders, you will by no means believe. And so Jesus pointed out to him, you believe when you see it happen. When in actual fact dealing with God, we have to believe before it Happens. SPEAKER A That's right. Most people build on the idea of seeing as believing, don't they? That is true. So how did this man handle Jesus words? God? SPEAKER B Well, he throws himself on Jesus mercy. Then as the Bible reads In verse 49, Bible says the nobleman said to him, sir, come down before my child dies. He realises that his child's life now depends on his faith or belief in God's word. It's not just going, he's got to. SPEAKER A Believe before he's aware that his faith is not up to the challenge. Actually, yes. SPEAKER B And Jesus reassures him. Then in the next verse, in verse 50, Jesus said to him, go your way, your son lives. So the man believed the word that Jesus spoke to him and he went his way. So in his extremity, he saw that he needed to. He saw the light. SPEAKER A Yes. That's interesting. SPEAKER B He clung to that because he called out in faith there. He said, sir, come down before my child lives. It's a different reaction. The heart has changed now. He's now exercising faith in what he has not seen. SPEAKER A Yes. SPEAKER B That's fantastic. SPEAKER A Yeah. There's real value in being at the end of our own resources. SPEAKER B Yes. He's what? He's rewarded. SPEAKER A He discovered that. Okay, so what or who is behind John, all of these fables that ensnare people so easily? SPEAKER C It seems, Mike, that's an easy question because Jesus gives us the answer in John chapter 8 and verse 44 where it says, you are of your father, the devil. Ouch. When you're told that, you know you're on the devil's side. When we need to be on Christ's side and it says, in the desires of your father you want to do, these are the resources that you've got. He was a murderer from the beginning and does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him. And so all evil and all wickedness and all lies come from the devil. SPEAKER A Okay, thank you for that, John. So when it comes to interpreting the scriptures and all that God has said there, Gaya, we need some sort of best practise here. What is the best practise we can use? SPEAKER B So we need to accept by faith the clear statements of scripture. Take God at his word and the Bible becomes its own interpreter. When we approach the word with a humble, teachable heart and we seek to understand the worldview of scripture and that's through the enlightenment of the Holy Spirit, because we always pray first for God's guidance. SPEAKER A Okay. So praying and reading the scripture must go hand in hand. That's really Good. It's really important, John, to get this right, isn't it? SPEAKER C Absolutely. Got to get it right In John chapter 12 and verse 48 and 49, he who rejects me and does not receive my words has that which judges him. The word that I have spoken will judge him in the last day. Now, Jesus does not expect us to do anything that he himself wouldn't do. And he goes on to say, for I have not spoken on my own authority, but the Father who sent me gave a command what I should say and what I should speak. And the extension of that is, let us use the words and the thoughts and the actions that Jesus would like us to do. SPEAKER A Yeah. Okay. Thank you, John, for that. I'm still in chapter 14. I'd like to read verse 23 there, actually, John 14:23, where Jesus said to him, the person he was chatting to, Judas, if anyone loves me, he will keep my words, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home or make our abode with him. What is Jesus saying to us here, Gayl? SPEAKER B Well, it's talking about there. It says, if anyone loves me, he will keep my word. But that word keep is keeping on. It's a. It's a constant. It's not just once, but it's continuous there, doing his words. It's a demonstration of how we actually feel about Jesus. It's showing that we actually believe and have an obedient heart. It's our faith in action. And if we love him, then our faith in action will definitely show that by how we live our life. SPEAKER A Yeah. Our actions and our words certainly reveal what's going on in our mind, as no doubt about that still in chapter 12. Well, actually, back in chapter 12, I should say I'm going to read verse 32 and 33 there. And this is what it says. Jesus is speaking, and he says, and I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself. This he said, signifying by what death he would die. Now, what is Jesus saying here, John? What's his point? SPEAKER C Here Jesus is saying how that many people were drawn to him by his life of mercy and his words of. SPEAKER A Truth and his miracles too, of course. SPEAKER C But after his death, he received new life, and then we have new power as a result of him being lifted up. SPEAKER A And the chief message, of course, is the cross. His death on the cross for our. SPEAKER C Sin, he became our sin bearer. SPEAKER A So they were focused on miracles before. Now they're focused on Jesus as our sin bearer. Thank you, John. So what happens when people are confronted with this light that we've just been talking about from the cross. SPEAKER B Gale well, when you're confronted with the light, a choice needs to be made. And so make a choice between accepting Jesus, what he did for us on Calvary's cross, or we can reject and we can turn away from that light and turning away from that light because he is the light of life, the light of the world. We actually turning into darkness, spiritual darkness. SPEAKER A Yes. We're talking about very serious stuff here. Thank you for that. I'm going to read John 15, and I'm going to read verse four and five for a moment. Jesus is talking again, and he says this Abide in me, and I in you, as the branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it abides in the vine. Neither can you, unless you abide in me. Then he goes on to say, I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in me and I in him bears much fruit, for without me you can do nothing. So what's his message now? SPEAKER C John well, he is sharing there the only way of spiritual growth, and that is to be in communion with Christ and to pray to him. And as a result, we'll be relying upon him for the way in which we speak and also in the way we act. And this is where the light then shines into our hearts. SPEAKER A Yeah. Yep. No, thank you, John, for that. I want to move on a little bit in time now. And we're moving past Jesus, death and resurrection. And he appeared after his resurrection on a number of occasions to his disciples. Now, on this occasion that we're looking at, he appears to them beside the Sea of Galilee, and something very interesting happened which was similar to an event that took place here in the Sea of Galilee at the beginning of Jesus ministry. So what is it? SPEAKER B Gaya yes, well, they the Bible is going to tell us that they caught a lot of fish. But yes, if you go back to the beginning of the ministry in Luke chapter five, you discover that they had toiled all night, they'd caught nothing. And Jesus tells them to cast their net in again on the other side, which they do. And then they caught so much fish, and that's when he asked them to follow him. So it was a call into ministry. And here again, after Calvary's cross, after his resurrection, he appears to them. This is the third time that he appears to them, although they don't know it's him when he does the calling, because they again had toiled all night. And I'll just read the Verse there in John, chapter 21 and verse 6. And he said to them, because they'd caught nothing, cast the net in on the right side of the boat and you will find some. And they are experienced fishermen. God knows everything. So we go to verse 11 then. And Simon Peter went up and dragged the net to land full of large fish. 153. Although there were so many, the net was not broken. So again, I toiled all night. And here God works a mighty miracle. A huge catch, A huge catch. And they were large fish and the net hadn't broken. And that's quite significant as well, because it's symbolic of their faith and spiritual development after Jesus resurrection, that they would have spiritual power and the net would not break. SPEAKER A Okay, well, I want to just focus on that a little more. I'm going to read Luke 5, where he talks about that initial catch, the big catch. And this is what it says. 5, 6, and 7. When they had done this, they caught a great number of fish and their net was breaking. And there's the difference that you pointed out, Gar. So they signalled to their partners in the other boat to come and help them. And they came and filled both the boats so that they began to sink. So there's quite a bit of difference here, John, in the two catches of fish, isn't there? SPEAKER C It's interesting that we have those two stories, one at the beginning and one at the end. And between that event, those two events, there comes the cross, where after Christ's death and his resurrection, they would have a message to give in the power of the Holy Spirit. And then we'll be catching fish and the net will not break. SPEAKER A Yes. SPEAKER C What a blessing. SPEAKER A Very significant statement. Now, after this fishing incident, Gayl, Jesus turns his attention to Peter. Now, Peter, as we know from the story that's been told, Peter, Peter denied Christ on the night that Jesus was arrested before the cross, denied that he even knew him. And In John chapter 21, it records how Jesus actually has a serious talk with Peter. I'm going to read it. John, chapter 21 and verse 15. This is what Jesus says to John. For I will give you. I'm in Luke. Sorry. We want John. John, chapter 21 and verse 15. Here we are. So when they had eaten breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, Simon, son of Jonah, do you love me more than these? Presumably referring to the other disciples. And he said to him, yes, Lord, you know that I love you. He said to him, feed my lambs. How did Peter reply to that? Because this must have been hard for Peter, right. He was on the spot. SPEAKER B Yes. Well, so it's so different from Peter's boasting here and denial before the cross where Christ had told him he would deny him three times when he was so full of confidence and bravado. But here, now Peter is humble and self distrustful. And Peter is now ready to rely on Jesus instead of his own resources because Jesus puts this question to him three times. And just as Christ had told him he would deny him three times, which he didn't realise, but had happened. And now Peter, Jesus is affirming him, he's restoring him as a role as a leader. SPEAKER A Okay, thank you for that. The real humility in Peter this time for a moment we need to consider, John, how important is humility as a characteristic of a person who's in leadership, Christian leadership. SPEAKER C The Dr. Luke, he made it very, very plain when he wrote here in Luke chapter 22 and verse 25 and 26. And he said to them, this is Jesus speaking because the printing is in red. And Jesus said, the kings of the Gentiles exercise lordship over them and those who exercise authority over them are called benefactors. But not so among you. See here, out of darkness God is giving light. Christians don't act that way. Not so among you. On the contrary, he who is greatest among you, let him be the younger. And he who governs as he who serves. So in leadership, it's essential that we have humility. SPEAKER A And that's what Jesus point is. SPEAKER C Yes. And that we're humble because we are dealing here with the things of heaven which are far greater than us anyway. So it's amazing that God uses us. SPEAKER A Yeah, it is, John. And Jesus goes on to say, I'm among you as one who serves. He is demonstrating the humility he wants to see in his children. Then Jesus tells something. We're going to move along fairly quickly here. Jesus tells Peter something quite shocking. SPEAKER B He does. And reading in John 21:18 and 19, most assuredly, Jesus says, I say to you, when you were younger, you girded yourself and walked where you wished. But when you are old, you will stretch out your hands and another will gird you and carry you where you do not wish. This he spoke, signifying by what death he would glorify God. And when he had spoken this, he said to him, follow me. So Peter's coming death on the cross was foretold to conclude his ministry. SPEAKER A Okay, thank you for that. Why do you suppose he told Peter that rather grisly insight into the future? SPEAKER C I think it gave Peter an insight into the cost both of what Jesus did, but also of what Peter was going to be asked to do. And he regarded it as a privilege, really. And he wasn't put off. SPEAKER A No, he wasn't put off by the. SPEAKER C Fact that he'd heard about a nasty death. SPEAKER A That's very interesting. SPEAKER C Yeah. SPEAKER A Okay, so go. What did Peter do next after that? SPEAKER B Well, in verse 21, it says the Bible reads, peter, seeing him, said to Jesus, but, Lord, what about this man? And of course, that was John that was also walking, following that direction. What about him? So Jesus, in his reply, he doesn't allow Peter's curiosity to take the focus of the main thing here. But he tells Peter, in verse 22, Jesus said to him, if I will, that he remain till I come. What is that to you? You follow me? SPEAKER A Yes. SPEAKER B So focus faithfully on following Jesus, Mike. SPEAKER C But through it all, Peter was still Peter because he had the rest of his life to work out how he was going to do. And when they crucified him, history has it, he said to them, crucify me up and down. I don't want to be crucified like my Lord. And so he had humility compared to what he'd had before. SPEAKER A Yes, it was an amazing transformation. Sometimes it takes a crisis to do that, doesn't it? Thank you for that. Some at the time misunderstood Jesus saying, when he mentioned to John, if I. If I want him to stay alive till I come, what's that to you? Don't you worry about that. So it's very interesting. I'm going to read 21:22 again, if I will, that he remains till I come. What is that to you? You follow me. It's very interesting. He said that John actually sets the record straight. What does he say? John. SPEAKER C In the same chapter, John 21, verse 23. And this is right at the end of the book. Now we've come to the last lesson, and here we are at the end of the book. And here he's saying. Then this saying went out among the brethren that his disciples, that his, this disciple would not die. Yet Jesus did not say to him that he would not die, but if I will, that he remains till I come. What is that to you? And this is where Jesus is saying, don't worry about that. Yeah, Just follow me. SPEAKER A Okay. So he made it very clear, didn't he, really? SPEAKER C And John in his book makes it very clear that the only thing that we need to do is to follow Christ because he was God. SPEAKER A Yes. And that's the focus of this Whole, the whole book of John, as we were discussing earlier, before the programme started, to get our focus off all the non essentials of life, onto Jesus himself. That's our greatest need. And that is what Jesus was trying to say to Peter and to the disciples. They're all listening to what's going on and the discussion that's taking place. So he's making it very clear. I like that. This statement that we just read in verse 23 there, Gayl, where it says, if I will, that he remains till I come, what's that to you? He's more or less saying, look, don't you worry about that. You just get your focus on me, follow me. Because otherwise, if the focus is not on Jesus, it's on ourselves. And that's not going to be helpful. So there's got to be a message here for us. Gayl, what do you see as the main message? SPEAKER B There certainly is, and I agree with what John has been saying too. If we keep our minds off the minor details of life, we need to focus on Jesus. Jesus said, if I be lifted up, I'll draw all men unto me. So if I had that upward look, if I'm looking to Jesus, rather than looking around at what's happening for others or, you know, good things or bad things, but keep my focus on Jesus. He's the light of the world and follow him. That's right, simply follow Jesus. SPEAKER A Look, life is very full for most of us, if not all of us, isn't it? There's lots to do, lots to think about and to get our focus. Just coming here today, you had a lot of things to do and think about. And having a heart and mind that is continually focused on Jesus and keeps our attention on him is the thing that Jesus is trying to help us to do. So through all the demands of life and through all the things that are calling us to give them attention and time, Jesus is saying, don't forget, keep your focus on me. All right. Thank you very much for your input today, folks. In this series on John, we have seen some beautiful insights into the life of Jesus and his mission to save the human race. We've seen his love and compassion for all of humanity's fallenness. And we can only thank him for his patience and perseverance in our lives. I certainly do. Well, we hope you've been blessed by Let God Speak today. Remember, all past programmes plus teacher's notes are available on our website 3abnaustralia.org au. You can email us on lgsreeabnaustralia.org and we invite you to join us next time for a new series on God's love and justice. SPEAKER B You have been listening to let God speak, a production of 3ABN Australia television. To catch up on past programmes, please visit 3abnaustralia.org.au. Call us in Australia on 02 4973 3456. Or email [email protected]. we'd love to hear from you.