As soon as the pilgrims streaming into Jerusalem from Bethany saw Jesus on the colt, they began to throw down their cloaks, cut palm branches and sing Hosanna–on purpose! They knew what they were doing. Continue reading Gospel of John: Three Prophecies Fulfilled
Faced with the same evidence, some were moved to belief, and some were hardened in unbelief. And yet God’s purpose for Messiah still advanced. Even with free will, no person can alter God’s divine plan. As one commentator put it, Nothing people can do will thwart or alter the sovereign will of God, and nothing God does ever sets aside the free choice of people. Continue reading Gospel of John: Emergency Council Meeting
it is actually safer to follow close to the Shepherd, even though it means the open field, new experiences, new events, new demands, rather than remain in the seeming safety of the fold.
You and I can trust he not only knows us, but he knows what it is like to go through what you and I are going through. He will not leave us in this place, he will guide us through it. Continue reading Gospel of John: The True Shepherd
None are so blind as those who refuse to see
Being willfully, stubbornly blind about something makes a person incurable.
Not believing something will not make it go away, or be untrue, or have no power in your life.
Continue reading Gospel of John: Shine the Light
This is a classic case of denial, insisting something is not so, because to accept that it is so would mean admitting personal responsibility, admitting that maybe something is wrong, maybe I need to change. Continue reading Gospel of John: The Ban
Each side insisted the other was of impure lineage, held in the sway of evil. Who was right? Continue reading Gospel of John: Who Has the Demon?
Children of Abraham would have been as attentive and obedient to God’s word now as Abraham was then. They would have taken the risk of faith Abraham took, and believed God—believed Jesus—though it would mean the complete upending of their lives, just as it had meant for Abraham. Continue reading Gospel of John: Father of Lies
was this coming from a grubby itinerant soapbox preacher, a construction worker from Galilee who fancied himself a theologian and even more, the actual son of God, the Messiah? Continue reading Gospel of John: Be Made Free
Jesus to the Pharisees: “You all are from below, I am from above; you all are from this world, I am not from this world.” Continue reading Gospel of John: Not From This World
If something is deemed implausible, the likelihood of you or me coming to believe it is vanishingly small. In fact, we will not find or even see what is right in front of us. Continue reading Gospel of John: Pressure of Persecution
