Tag Archives: evidence

Eternal life and Dr. Phil (John 6:32-40), February 5, 2017

Today’s Podcast

Thanks for joining me today for “A Little Walk with God.” I’m your host Richard Agee.
Today’s words from Jesus made me think of a bizarre episode from Dr. Phil. In just a minute I’ll tell you why.
Scripture
1. John 6:32-40
2. Jesus: I tell you the truth: Moses did not give you bread from heaven; it is My Father who offers you true bread from heaven. The bread of God comes down out of heaven and breathes life into the cosmos.

Crowd: Master, we want a boundless supply of this bread.

Jesus: I am the bread that gives life. If you come to My table and eat, you will never go hungry. Believe in Me, and you will never go thirsty. Here I am standing in front of you, and still you don’t believe. All that My Father gives to Me comes to Me. I will receive everyone; I will not send away anyone who comes to Me. And here’s the reason: I have come down from heaven not to pursue My own agenda but to do what He desires. I am here on behalf of the Father who sent Me. He sent Me to care for all He has given Me so that nothing and no one will perish. In the end, on the last day, He wants everything to be resurrected into new life. So if you want to know the will of the Father, know this: everyone who sees the Son and believes in Him will live eternally; and on the last day, I am the One who will resurrect him.

Devotional
1. My wife is a Dr. Phil fan and the other day she was watching one of his programs she captured on our DVR and a young lady’s conversation with him captured my attention. I’m usually reading something whenever Carole listens to Dr. Phil, but when this you lady said she was pregnant and Jesus was the child, I perked up.
  1. Six home pregnancy tests
  2. Two clinic pregnancy tests
  3. Sonogram on television
  4. Still didn’t believe the results
  5. Knew she was pregnant with Jesus
  6. Mental illness causing her to think bloated belly meant pregnancy and could let go of delusion until her belly flattened one night in an institution Dr. Phil sent her to for help.
2. Jesus came to share the truth God wanted us to hear
  1. Many followed only for the miracles He performed
  2. Many followed out of curiosity to see what He would do next
  3. Many liked what He said but fell away when the pressure was on (including His closest disciples in the Garden of Gethsemane)
3. Jesus calls us to believe
  1. Not just because of the wonders He performed
  2. Not just because of the testimony of others
  3. Not just because of the evidence of scripture
  4. Exercise faith and allow His spirit to confirm who He is
4. When we exercise enough faith to believe Jesus is the Son of God who came to rescue us from the penalty of sin, death, He forgives our sins and grants us eternal life to be enjoyed with Him in heaven.
If you want to learn more about my church, you can find us at SAF.church. If you like the devotional, share it with someone. If you don’t, tell me. I hope you’ll join me again tomorrow for “A Little Walk with God.”

The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved. In accordance with the requirements for FTC full disclosure, I may have affiliate relationships with some or all of the producers of the items mentioned in this post who may provide a small commission to me when purchased through this site.

The evidence tells it all (Luke 7:22-23) October 11, 2016

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Today’s Podcast

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Today’s Bible reading plan:

Read it in a year – 2 Chronicles 16-20

see the whole year’s plan [here](http://www.bible-reading.com/bible-plan.pdf)

Today’s Devotional

Luke 7:22-23
Jesus (to John’s disciples): Go and tell John what you’ve witnessed with your own eyes and ears: the blind are seeing again, the lame are walking again, the lepers are clean again, the deaf hear again, the dead live again, and good news is preached to the poor. Whoever is not offended by Me is blessed indeed.

What do Jesus’ words mean for us today?

I don’t know if you are old enough to remember the days when we joked with each other about each other. All of us were the brunt of jokes. Every religion, every race, every socioeconomic group, every school, every age, both sexes (we didn’t talk about transgender, transsexual, gender identity, and such back then). We told funny stories and jokes about everyone. We laughed a lot at and with people, including ourselves. And we didn’t get upset about it. We all joined in and no one seemed offended by the stories. We enjoyed life.

I wonder what happened to those days? Now we get offended by just being titled American instead of African-American or Asian-American or Hispanic-American or Native-American. We get offended by not being recognized by a transgender or lesbian or gay title. We get offended if someone tells a joke about our school or our race. We get offended if someone doesn’t agree with our political views. We get offended if someone doesn’t agree with our religious views. We get offended about anything and everything.

I’ve just about come to the conclusion that in our society we’ve decided that we live for the opportunity to be offended and we look for ways to be offended. It’s almost like we want to be offended by something or someone so we go out of our way to find things to offend us so we can complain about it.

John’s disciples came to Jesus to find out if Jesus really was the Messiah. John had been telling everyone that He was, but now he found himself in Herod’s prison because of his preaching. He told everyone the Messiah had come and they needed to repent. He told Herod about the sins he committed and that even as king, Herod would be accountable for the wrongs he had done. His position and power would not stand against God. Herod in response to John’s accusations, imprisoned him.

Now, John asked the question, “Are you really the Messiah, as I have been telling everyone?” It’s a reasonable question considering the position he was in and the fact that everyone thought the Messiah would free them from Roman rule. John was Jesus’ herald. He proclaimed His coming. But now he found himself in jail with no prospects of escape or release.

Jesus didn’t answer John’s question directly, though. Just like He doesn’t answer directly for us. He says look at the evidence and make up your mind. He told John’s disciples to go back and report what they had see, the blind made to see, the lame made to walk, lepers cleansed, the deaf made to hear, the dead raised. Go tell John what they had seen and then let him make up his mind whether Jesus was the Messiah as John proclaimed.

Jesus asks us to do the same. Look at the evidence. Read His word. Let Him forgive your sins. Let Him act in your life and see how He acts in the world around you. Recognize His handiwork around you and weigh the evidence of what you see. Your heart will tell you the truth about Him. You can try to cover it up and say He is not divine. That’s what the Muslim religion does. They recognize Jesus as a great prophet who said good things and could perform great miracles, but they don’t recognize Him as divine, the son of God.

Many of those around Jesus didn’t accept Him for who He was. They saw the miracles, but didn’t believe. The Pharisees, Sadducees, and other church leaders didn’t accept Him as Lord. They looked at the evidence, but didn’t put it together. It’s all there. We must just exercise the faith necessary to know it to be true. How much faith does it take? As much as it takes to believe your light will come on when you turn on the light switch. As much as it takes to believe the car will start when you turn the key. A much as it takes to believe the sun will rise in the eastern sky in the morning. Just that much faith and you can know that Jesus is the Son of the living God.

When you know Him as Lord, you will be blessed beyond anything you can imagine. Not in this world, perhaps because this world doesn’t know Him or understand Him. But there is coming a day when everyone will bow to Him and those who live for Him now will continue to rejoice with Him forever.

So look around at the evidence. Do you know Jesus is the long awaited Messiah? It just takes a little faith to be sure.

The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.
In accordance with the requirements for FTC full disclosure, I may have affiliate relationships with some or all of the producers of the items mentioned in this post who may provide a small commission to me when purchased through this site.

Something is afoot! (Matthew 11:4-6) March 7, 2016

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Today’s Podcast

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Today’s Bible reading plan:

Read it in a year – Genesis 36-39

see the whole year’s plan [here](http://www.bible-reading.com/bible-plan.pdf)

Today’s Devotional

Matthew 11:4-6
Jesus: Go back and tell John the things you have heard and the things you have seen. Tell him you have seen the blind receive sight, the lame walk, the lepers cured, the deaf hear, the dead raised, and the good news preached to the poor. Blessed are those who understand what is afoot and stay on My narrow path.

What do Jesus’ words mean for us today?

John expected someone to come and rescue the nation from the oppressive rule of the Roman Empire. When he baptized Jesus in the Jordan several months earlier, God showed him Jesus was that Messiah he was looking for. But Jesus didn’t fit the image everyone, including John looked for. John did what God asked and instead of finding relief from the oppression, he sat in a prison cell in Herod’s basement. Did he make a mistake? Was Jesus really the one he was looking for? Did God really point Him out as the Messiah? How could he still be in prison if the Messiah had come?

So, John sent his disciples to ask Jesus the ultimate question, “Are you the One we’ve been waiting for or should we look for someone else?”

I like Jesus’ answer. He didn’t answer yes or no. He just told them to look at His actions. Go back and tell John the things you’ve heard and the things you’ve seen. The blind receive sight, the lame walk, the lepers cured the deaf hear, the dead raised, the good news preached. Go tell John what you’ve seen. That will be enough for him.

I think it was not to John, but to John’s disciples and the crowds that followed Jesus out of curiousity that He said those last words, “Blessed are those who understand what is afoot and stay on My narrow path.” I think those are the critical words for us, too. Do we understand what is afoot today? Do we look for the miracles God performs in our lives and know He lives today? Do we acknowledge His authority over all things and recognize His hand at work when He comes to our rescue? Do we see Him for who He is?

Jesus told John’s disciples to just look around and see the miracles happening around them and report back to John. He will know the truth when he hears their report. Can we look around and see the truth of God’s word around us? If not, maybe it’s because we’re not in touch with Him. Maybe we need to open our eyes and look around at the things He does for us everyday to understand what’s afoot. If you have a hard time finding miracles, just think about the process of breathing the air around you, the miracle of life. Think about how extraordinary it is that God makes you in such a way that your body naturally pulls in enough oxygen to power the processes that turn food into energy so your muscles can do what they do, so your brain can think, so your body can function, so you can live. Life itself is a miracle beyond description!

God is afoot!

The other thing I think Jesus wants us to know is afoot as He talks about staying on the narrow path with Him is that there are many things that would try to pull us away from Him. We live in evil times, as did those around Him then. Then, as now, the mainstream religious institution fell far short of God’s expectations for His people. In our churches, we say we are Christian, but often our actions are no different than the world’s. A Barna survey several years ago noted that the only difference between the churched and the unchurched in terms of outward behavior was that the churched didn’t curse as much. We used cleaner language. Wow!

If that’s the only difference between those who call themselves followers of Christ and the rest of the world, something is afoot. Many have left the narrow path Jesus told us to follow. People saw a difference in Him and those who followed Him. People noted the change in behavior when Christ came to dwell in their lives. Something is afoot when others cannot see the difference Christ makes in our lives.

How does this happen? How can we be lulled to sleep and become like the world and so unlike Christ? The answer is simple. We stopped listening to Him and started listening to false prophets that tickle our ears and make us feel good about ourselves. We don’t want to hear about sin or God’s wrath or judgment. We don’t want to hear about following His standards or living under His commands. We want to hear about His love and grace and mercy and forget the rest of the story.

But to listen to the good news, the gospel, we must hear all of it. Paul reminds us the wages of sin is death. We all are sinners and all our attempts to reach God in His glory fail. But that doesn’t mean we are hopeless. We have a Savior. We have a Redeemer. We have One who wants to rescue us from the penalty we deserve. God incarnate, in the flesh as Jesus, His Son, gives us that hope. But as with almost all of God’s promises, that hope comes with an if clause. If you believe. If you follow Me. If you obey Me.

Something is afoot. It is hope for our salvation. It is hope for eternal life. But we must follow Him to have it. What path will you take?

The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.
In accordance with the requirements for FTC full disclosure, I may have affiliate relationships with some or all of the producers of the items mentioned in this post who may provide a small commission to me when purchased through this site.

Five groups of people (John 7:25-52), August 5, 2015

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Today’s Podcast

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Today’s Scriptures

Today’s Bible reading plans include:

Ready – John 7:25-52

Set – 2 Kings 23; John 7

Go! – 2 Kings 23; 2 Chronicles 35; John 7

John 7:25-52
Some People of Jerusalem: ²⁵ There is the man they are seeking to kill; surely He must be the one. ²⁶ But here He is, speaking out in the open to the crowd, while they have not spoken a word to stop or challenge Him. Do these leaders now believe He is the Anointed One? ²⁷ But He can’t be; we know where this man comes from, but the true origin of the Anointed will be a mystery to all of us.
Jesus (speaking aloud as He teaches on the temple’s porch): ²⁸ You think you know Me and where I have come from, but I have not come here on My own. I have been sent by the One who embodies truth. You do not know Him. ²⁹ I know Him because I came from Him. He has sent Me.
³⁰ Some were trying to seize Him because of His words, but no one laid as much as a finger on Him—His time had not yet arrived. ³¹ In the crowd, there were many in whom faith was taking hold.
Believers in the Crowd: When the Anointed arrives, will He perform any more signs than this man has done?
³² Some Pharisees were hanging back in the crowd, overhearing the gossip about Him. The temple authorities and the Pharisees took action and sent officers to arrest Jesus.
Jesus: ³³ I am going to be with you for a little while longer; then I will return to the One who sent Me. ³⁴ You will look for Me, but you will not be able to find Me. Where I am, you are unable to come.
Some Jews in the Crowd (to each other): ³⁵ Where could He possibly go that we could not find Him? You don’t think He’s about to go into the Dispersion and teach our people scattered among the Greeks, do you? ³⁶ What do you think He means, “You will look for Me, but you will not be able to find Me,” and, “Where I am, you are unable to come”?
³⁷ On the last day, the biggest day of the festival, Jesus stood again and spoke aloud.
Jesus: If any of you is thirsty, come to Me and drink. ³⁸ If you believe in Me, the Hebrew Scriptures say that rivers of living water will flow from within you.
³⁹ Jesus was referring to the realities of life in the Spirit made available to everyone who believes in Him. But the Spirit had not yet arrived because Jesus had not been glorified.
Some of the Crowd: ⁴⁰ This man is definitely the Prophet.
Others: ⁴¹ This is God’s Anointed, the Liberating King!
Still Others: Is it possible for the Anointed to come from Galilee? ⁴² Don’t the Hebrew Scriptures say that He will come from Bethlehem, King David’s village, and be a descendant of King David?
⁴³ Rumors and opinions about the true identity of Jesus divided the crowd. ⁴⁴ Some wanted to arrest Him, but no one dared to touch Him.
⁴⁵ The officers who had been sent by the chief priests and Pharisees to take Jesus into custody returned empty-handed, and they faced some hard questions.
Chief Priest and Pharisees: Where is Jesus? Why didn’t you capture Him?
Officers: ⁴⁶ We listened to Him. Never has a man spoken like this man.
Pharisees: ⁴⁷ So you have also been led astray? ⁴⁸ Can you find one leader or educated Pharisee who believes this man? Of course not. ⁴⁹ This crowd is plagued by ignorance about the teachings of the law; that is why they will listen to Him. That is also why they are under God’s curse.
50 Nicodemus, the Pharisee who approached Jesus under the cloak of darkness, was present when the officers returned empty-handed. He addressed the leaders.
Nicodemus: ⁵¹ Does our law condemn someone without first giving him a fair hearing and learning something about him?
Pharisees (ignoring Nicodemus’s legal point): ⁵² Are you from Galilee too? Look it up for yourself; no real prophet is supposed to come from Galilee.

Today’s Devotional

From today’s background scripture God might say:

What you heard today mimics conditions today. Some listen and believe in Me because of My words. Some wait until they see physical evidence of My actions before they will believe. Some remain ambivalent about Me regardless of what they see or hear. Some discard My teachings despite the truth they see and hear. And some wish to destroy Me even though the evidence points to the truth that I am God, their Creator and their only hope of salvation.

You stand in one of those groups of people. My hope is your faith in Me is enough to put you in the first group. You hear My word and you receive it gladly believing in Me. It doesn’t take much faith. Less than it takes to put the key in the ignition of your car and believe turning it will start it. Because you see, one day your car will fail to start, but I will never fail.

The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.
In accordance with the requirements for FTC full disclosure, I may have affiliate relationships with some or all of the producers of the items mentioned in this post who may provide a small commission to me when purchased through this site.