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“Therefore many of His disciples, when they heard this, said, ‘This is a hard saying; who can understand it?’ When Jesus knew in Himself that His disciples complained about this, He said to them, ‘Does this offend you? What then if you should see the Son of Man ascend where He was before? It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life. But there are some of you who do not believe.’ For Jesus knew from the beginning who they were who did not believe, and who would betray Him. And…  ( Click for more )

“An epitaph,” according to Wikipedia,” is literally: 'on the gravestone' a short text honoring a deceased person, strictly speaking that is inscribed on their tombstone or plaque, but also used figuratively. Some are specified by the dead person beforehand, others chosen by those responsible for the burial.” The particular one I remember one specific day was short and simple; it just said, “She lived by the Golden Rule.” I don't think she (whoever she was) wrote this epitaph for herself; rather, it appears that someone who cared for her ascribed…  ( Click for more )

“Do You Believe in the Son of God?”

“Jesus heard that they [the Pharisees] had cast him [the blind man] out; and when He had found him, He said to him, 'Do you believe in the Son of God?' He answered and said, 'Who is He, Lord, that I may believe in Him?' And Jesus said to him, 'You have both seen Him and it is He who is talking with you.' Then he said, 'Lord, I believe!' And he worshiped Him. And Jesus said, 'For judgment I have come into this world, that those who do not see may see, and that those who see may be made blind.' Then some of the Pharisees who…  ( Click for more )

“When He had found him.” One man's trash is another man's treasure and Beauty is in the eye of the beholder are related sayings. The events in John 9 regarding the dealings which the Pharisees had with a man who had formerly been blind illustrate perfectly just how true these saying are.

“Jesus heard that they [the Pharisees] had cast him [the blind man] out; and when He had found him, He said to him, 'Do you believe in the Son of God?' He answered and said, 'Who is He, Lord, that I may believe in Him?' And Jesus said to him, 'You have both seen Him and it is…  ( Click for more )

“I told you already, and you did not listen.” I don’t know about you, but a wall goes up when I hear these words, that is unless I actively prevent it. I hate to be told that I have chosen to ignore a bit of critical information, or that my lack of understanding is due to my own ineptness. Yet, we all do it. If anything, I told you so’s ought to be wakeup calls rather than go to sleep calls. Yet, that is how we that are self-deluded choose to treat them!

“So they again called the man who was blind, and said to him, ‘Give God the glory! We know…  ( Click for more )

“He is of age; ask him.” Some things just sound better coming from the horse's mouth. But, then again some people are so blinded by personal agendas that they will not believe truth even when the horse speaks. This was the case with the Jews who confronted the man who had been born blind and whose eyes were miraculously opened by Jesus Christ. Consider these men who refused the truth due to their own self-willed blindness; they typify those of us who have willed it such that we can never come to a knowledge of the truth; we reject the free offer of justification that issues…  ( Click for more )

“He is a prophet.” Justification was depicted in a real life event during the earthly ministry of Jesus. This series of articles explores John 9 and the events surrounding the gift of sight which was bestowed upon a man who had been blind from birth. At the end of John 9, Jesus likened the granting of sight to spiritual enlightenment and justification so we are making the same application throughout the chapter.

“They brought him who formerly was blind to the Pharisees. Now it was a Sabbath when Jesus made the clay and opened his eyes. Then the Pharisees also…  ( Click for more )

The men who saw Jesus perform the miracle of multiplying the loaves and fish said, “This is truly the Prophet who is to come into the world.” (John 6.14). They were to be commended for that statement, but the story does not end here. A crowd followed Him to Capernaum where they listened to Him for a while as He spoke of His relationship with the Father. We will note some of what He said as well as the reaction of the multitude.

“And Jesus said to them, ‘I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never…  ( Click for more )

I Went, I Washed, and I Received My Sight! The beauty of simplicity is illustrated over and over again in John 9 by the story of the blind man whose sight was granted by Jesus. Simplicity gets to the heart of the matter and strips away the irrelevant and incidental details. That is exactly what is done in this story. As a reader, you are challenged to review the entire record of these events as we proceed through this series of messages. We resume today's message just at the point where the blind beggar returned to the presence of people who had routinely seen him with his disability. …  ( Click for more )

Seen any icons today? Every computer user knows about icons. Certain religions revere icons. Some buildings are referred to as icons. Certain sports heroes are recognized as icons. Icons are a part of our 21century culture. Today's article will address the Original Icon!

When man was created, he was created in the image (Gr. = eikon) of God (Genesis 1.26,1 Corinthians 11.7). The designer behind all designs is God; He is the original icon! Everything within this universe that is subject to the laws of this universe had a predecessor. Nothing, not one thing, of a material…  ( Click for more )

The Blind Man Came Back Seeing! This is the turning point of this message and lynch pin of the entire New Testament. Had he come back not seeing, it would have proved Jesus to be an impostor. However, the fact that He came back seeing is proof in and of itself that Jesus is the Son of God and it guarantees that what He claims to be and to be able to do are real and factual claims!

“Now as Jesus passed by, He saw a man who was blind from birth. And His disciples asked Him, saying, 'Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?' Jesus answered, 'Neither…  ( Click for more )

Justification DOES NOT inherently involve consumption of gander sauce. If you are unfamiliar with the way I am using the term gander sauce, you are invited to go into the archives and read the last couple of installments of Today's Little Lift. Briefly, it involves the judgment that we bring upon ourselves when we unfairly and unjustly judge others. Personally I am opining the fact that I have been so spiritually blinded for so many years and now find myself having to retract as it were so much of what I have taught and thought to be true.

Don't get me wrong; it is not all bad.…  ( Click for more )

A huge serving of gander sauce was served up when I asked my friend where he would draw the lines of spiritual fellowship/support should he take steps to depart from the church tradition in which he and I had been reared (see yesterday’s message for a more complete explanation). This forced me to consider where I had drawn my lines of fellowship and the reasons they were drawn where they were.

Drawing lines of fellowship (i.e. deciding who is right in God’s sight and who is not right in God’s sight) is a huge undertaking. Once one starts down that path there…  ( Click for more )

Gander sauce is horrible tasting stuff! That's what we are forced to eat when the unfair rules that we impose on others are forced upon us. The idiom goes something like this: What's sauce for the goose is sauce for the gander. Gander sauce, that's what I've been eating a lot of over the past few years. And, to complicate things, it is still a frequent staple in my diet. Gander sauce is closely connected to human ideas of justification, hence today's message.

Having been reared, indoctrinated in, and formally educated in the rules of the Churches of Christ, I speak from personal…  ( Click for more )

“See that you do not refuse Him who speaks. For if they did not escape who refused Him who spoke on earth, much more shall we not escape if we turn away from Him who speaks from heaven, whose voice then shook the earth; but now He has promised, saying, ‘Yet once more I shake not only the earth, but also heaven.’ Now this, ‘Yet once more,’ indicates the removal of those things that are being shaken, as of things that are made, that the things which cannot be shaken may remain. Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us have…  ( Click for more )

Today's message contrasts those who caused problems for Jesus and those who did not. What we will find is exactly the opposite of what we might expect. It was also the exact opposite of what many thought in Jesus' day. We will let the following text speak and then make some observations about it.

"Then Jesus entered and passed through Jericho. Now behold, there was a man named Zacchaeus who was a chief tax collector, and he was rich. And he sought to see who Jesus was, but could not because of the crowd, for he was of short stature. So he ran ahead and climbed up into a sycamore…  ( Click for more )

What types of people gave Jesus his biggest headache while He was teaching here on earth? I don't mean what sect or group, but what intellectual or spiritual characteristics typified the people who always seemed to be confronting Him? Well, I would beg you to read this and the messages that follow to compare your thoughts on this matter with what I have concluded. The results can be life-changing!

First, indulge me to speak briefly about the term justification. Justification is a word which can be used in everyday language, but which has a more specialized usage in the spiritual…  ( Click for more )

Visualization techniques are modern methods used by athletes and other performers to enhance the outcomes of their efforts. These techniques vary in details but the basics are the same. The performer “sees” himself in a particular desired outcome (as the winner of a race, a star of a show, etc., etc.) and then mentally places himself into that role (including all the feelings and sensations that he might expect and intend to experience). Although these methods produce enhanced performances in the physical realm, there is another visualization technique that God requires…  ( Click for more )

The only justification that counts for eternity is the justification that occurs in the heart of God toward those who find favor with Him. We can justify ourselves, we can justify the deeds of others, and we can even seek to be justified in the eyes of other men, but all that counts for absolutely NOTHING in the courts where souls are weighed in the Divine balances. Today's message will deal with a passage which reveals something of the hearts and minds of a portion on the people with whom Jesus dealt during His earthly ministry.

In Luke 15, Jesus told three parables which directly…  ( Click for more )

Is there anyone who does not wish to believe that he/she is okay in God's eyes? This question, of course, would not be relevant for anyone who does not believe in God. But, among those who are fully convinced that the God of the Bible exists, is there anyone who is content to think that he/she stands condemned before God? To ask this yet another way, as believers isn't it our hearts' desire to be justified before the One who will determine our eternal destiny? Today's message will consider this question from a biblical perspective as well as from a practical personal point of view. …  ( Click for more )

“My enemies reproach me all day long, Those who deride me swear an oath against me. For I have eaten ashes like bread, And mingled my drink with weeping, Because of Your indignation and Your wrath; For You have lifted me up and cast me away. My days are like a shadow that lengthens, And I wither away like grass.” (Psalm 102.8-11).

The 102Psalm from which today’s focus text is taken has an introductory statement at its beginning; it reads as follows: “A Prayer of the afflicted when he is overwhelmed and pours out his complaint before the LORD.” It…  ( Click for more )

God's way is a way of clarity and not confusion. Although there is no biblical passage which directly states this fact, the principles that it embraces are repeated throughout the Bible. Any way which is a way of obscurity and confusion is not God's way. Some of the brightest and best minds I have ever known are part of a spiritual way that has produced and continues to produce confusion; my conclusion is simply that their way is not God's way. After all, a tree is known by the fruit that it produces. I am not bitter nor do I hold any disdain for those who still walk this way; I simply…  ( Click for more )

As rational human beings, we justify ourselves (to judge to be right or appropriate) throughout our accountable years. There are also times during those years that we take account of our actions and conclude that we have acted inappropriately or, speaking from a spiritual standpoint, sinned. God created us such that we rationalize (justify) our actions, or our consciences disapprove of our actions. These mental transactions are related to the subject matter of this series, i.e. justification.

There is another level at which justification can take place, but unlike the level…  ( Click for more )

If a person believes that he/she must be right about all essential points of doctrine in order to go to heaven, the most malignant and destructive form of self deception has gone to seed in that person's heart. Yet, this was the religious climate in which I grew up and in which I labored as an adult minister for many years. Please note that I placed the phrase essential points of doctrine in italics; the reason for this will become clear as today's message unfolds and as others follow along this same line.

It is not wrong to want to be right! But, it is wrong to think that one…  ( Click for more )