Category Archives: Trinity

Yeshua And The Father Are One

I have heard some say that Yeshua never claimed to be God, that somehow He is just a “good teacher”. There are many places in scripture where He clearly identifies Himself as Messiah, as God. John 10 has one obvious example. If we understand Him to be one with the Father, then we should surely obey His teaching and His example.

The fact is, once we understand that He claimed to be God, we can no longer accept the potential idea that He is a good teacher. Rather we must consider that He is either a madman, a liar, or God… as He claimed.

John 10:22-42

Jesus Asserts His Deity

     22At that time the Feast of the Dedication took place at Jerusalem; 23it was winter, and Jesus was walking in the temple in the portico of Solomon. 24The Jews then gathered around Him, and were saying to Him, “How long will You keep us in suspense? If You are the Christ, tell us plainly.” 25Jesus answered them, “I told you, and you do not believe; the works that I do in My Father’s name, these testify of Me. 26“But you do not believe because you are not of My sheep. 27“My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me; 28and I give eternal life to them, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand. 29“My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand. 30“I and the Father are one.”

      31The Jews picked up stones again to stone Him. 32Jesus answered them, “I showed you many good works from the Father; for which of them are you stoning Me?” 33The Jews answered Him, “For a good work we do not stone You, but for blasphemy; and because You, being a man, make Yourself out to be God.” 34Jesus answered them, “Has it not been written in your Law, ‘I SAID, YOU ARE GODS’? 35“If he called them gods, to whom the word of God came (and the Scripture cannot be broken), 36do you say of Him, whom the Father sanctified and sent into the world, ‘You are blaspheming,’ because I said, ‘I am the Son of God’? 37“If I do not do the works of My Father, do not believe Me; 38but if I do them, though you do not believe Me, believe the works, so that you may know and understand that the Father is in Me, and I in the Father.” 39Therefore they were seeking again to seize Him, and He eluded their grasp.

      40And He went away again beyond the Jordan to the place where John was first baptizing, and He was staying there. 41Many came to Him and were saying, “While John performed no sign, yet everything John said about this man was true.” 42Many believed in Him there.

Some just refuse to believe. They are not His sheep. Some claim to believe, but do not change their lives and do not seek to truly understand what He calls us to do. They are not His sheep either. Others believe and follow Him according to His word. They seek Him out in prayer and study. They change their lives based on what they learn of Yeshua. These are His sheep. Sadly, many can be led astray by poor or incomplete teaching. We should each seek Him by reading the Bible and testing everything against the scriptures ourselves. When we disagree, let us seek answers in prayer and verify in scripture.  This is how we find true joy dwelling with our Creator according to His ways.

*Feast of Dedication refers to Hanukkah.

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Do you know for sure if you will go to heaven or hell when you die? Are you experiencing in your life the peace and joy of a personal relationship with our Creator and Father? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

Jesus Is The Door and The Good Shepherd

The teaching of Yeshua continues to set many free from the power of sin and death while at the same time causes many more to argue that it is nonsense, or in the case of John 10, that it is from a man who is “demon-possessed”. The truth is that He is the good shepherd. He lays down His life for His sheep. Satan is real. He is the enemy. He knows He can not win, but He wants to steal, kill, and destroy… separating people from relationship with YHWH.

What a blessing to have a good shepherd to protect us. Let us seek to listen to and obey His voice. A good practice is to confirm that whatever you think He is telling you is consistent with the written word of YHWH in the Bible. Many are misled by their own feelings and perhaps even deception by demons. Yeshua’s voice will line up with scripture just as His life on earth and His teachings did.

John 10:1-21

Parable of the Good Shepherd

      1“Truly, truly, I say to you, he who does not enter by the door into the fold of the sheep, but climbs up some other way, he is a thief and a robber.2“But he who enters by the door is a shepherd of the sheep. 3“To him the doorkeeper opens, and the sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. 4“When he puts forth all his own, he goes ahead of them, and the sheep follow him because they know his voice. 5“A stranger they simply will not follow, but will flee from him, because they do not know the voice of strangers.” 6This figure of speech Jesus spoke to them, but they did not understand what those things were which He had been saying to them.

      7So Jesus said to them again, “Truly, truly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep. 8“All who came before Me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not hear them. 9“I am the door; if anyone enters through Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture. 10“The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.

      11“I am the good shepherd; the good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep. 12“He who is a hired hand, and not a shepherd, who is not the owner of the sheep, sees the wolf coming, and leaves the sheep and flees, and the wolf snatches them and scatters them. 13He flees because he is a hired hand and is not concerned about the sheep. 14“I am the good shepherd, and I know My own and My own know Me, 15even as the Father knows Me and I know the Father; and I lay down My life for the sheep. 16“I have other sheep, which are not of this fold; I must bring them also, and they will hear My voice; and they will become one flock with one shepherd. 17“For this reason the Father loves Me, because I lay down My life so that I may take it again. 18“No one has taken it away from Me, but I lay it down on My own initiative. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This commandment I received from My Father.”

      19A division occurred again among the Jews because of these words. 20Many of them were saying, “He has a demon and is insane. Why do you listen to Him?” 21Others were saying, “These are not the sayings of one demon-possessed. A demon cannot open the eyes of the blind, can he?”

Do not be dismayed that many will reject His word. Many actually say they accept it, but it is in name only. They change the word and make up their own interpretations to live by. They change God to their image instead of changing themselves to His. However, let us rejoice in our good shepherd. He protects us. He makes a way for us to be forgiven. Ask Him for ears to hear and eyes to see the world clearly as if through His eyes and ears. Study scripture yourself. Do not rely solely on a pastor or parent or friend. True teaching lines up with the written word. Pray that He helps you to hear His voice clearly and obey. In this we will find true joy and peace regardless of circumstances that may happen around us.

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Do you know for sure if you will go to heaven or hell when you die? Are you experiencing in your life the peace and joy of a personal relationship with our Creator and Father? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

Who Is Your Father? Whom Do You Really Follow?

John 8 includes a very tense interchange between Yeshua and those who were wanting to kill Him. He makes a striking point. Our actions will clearly reflect our hearts and reflect the desires of the one we follow. The one whom we truly follow is not revealed by what we say alone, but by what we do. What we do reveals if we follow our Creator or the father of lies.

For those that believed in Him, Yeshua said, “If you continue in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine”. He goes on to highlight how they will know the truth and it will truly set them free. It does not set them free from the law. It does not set them free from physical bondage. It sets them free from the power of sin over their life.

For those who seek to kill the One sent by the Father, their rejection of Christ reveals that they do not know or follow the Father. Yeshua highlights that they are in fact following Satan, albeit unwittingly. The same is still true for us today. We are either sons and daughters of God or of Satan. Only Christ can set us free from the power of sin and reconcile us with our Creator.

John 8:31-59

The Truth Will Make You Free

     31So Jesus was saying to those Jews who had believed Him, “If you continue in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine; 32and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.” 33They answered Him, “We are Abraham’s descendants and have never yet been enslaved to anyone; how is it that You say, ‘You will become free’?”

      34Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who commits sin is the slave of sin. 35“The slave does not remain in the house forever; the son does remain forever. 36“So if the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed. 37“I know that you are Abraham’s descendants; yet you seek to kill Me, because My word has no place in you. 38“I speak the things which I have seen with My Father; therefore you also do the things which you heard from your father.”

      39They answered and said to Him, “Abraham is our father.” Jesus said to them, “If you are Abraham’s children, do the deeds of Abraham. 40“But as it is, you are seeking to kill Me, a man who has told you the truth, which I heard from God; this Abraham did not do. 41“You are doing the deeds of your father.” They said to Him, “We were not born of fornication; we have one Father: God.” 42Jesus said to them, “If God were your Father, you would love Me, for I proceeded forth and have come from God, for I have not even come on My own initiative, but He sent Me. 43“Why do you not understand what I am saying? It is because you cannot hear My word. 44“You are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him. Whenever he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own nature, for he is a liar and the father of lies. 45“But because I speak the truth, you do not believe Me. 46“Which one of you convicts Me of sin? If I speak truth, why do you not believe Me? 47“He who is of God hears the words of God; for this reason you do not hear them, because you are not of God.”

      48The Jews answered and said to Him, “Do we not say rightly that You are a Samaritan and have a demon?” 49Jesus answered, “I do not have a demon; but I honor My Father, and you dishonor Me. 50“But I do not seek My glory; there is One who seeks and judges. 51“Truly, truly, I say to you, if anyone keeps My word he will never see death.” 52The Jews said to Him, “Now we know that You have a demon. Abraham died, and the prophets also; and You say, ‘If anyone keeps My word, he will never taste of death.’ 53“Surely You are not greater than our father Abraham, who died? The prophets died too; whom do You make Yourself out to be?54Jesus answered, “If I glorify Myself, My glory is nothing; it is My Father who glorifies Me, of whom you say, ‘He is our God’; 55and you have not come to know Him, but I know Him; and if I say that I do not know Him, I will be a liar like you, but I do know Him and keep His word. 56“Your father Abraham rejoiced to see My day, and he saw it and was glad.” 57So the Jews said to Him, “You are not yet fifty years old, and have You seen Abraham?” 58Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was born, I am.” 59Therefore they picked up stones to throw at Him, but Jesus hid Himself and went out of the temple.

You can ask yourself whom you really serve. However, we often rationalize our own actions and beliefs. Seek a godly friend you can trust. Ask the Spirit to reveal to you the answer. Read the Bible critically and challenge what you do to see if it is really consistent with God’s word. Pursue the Creator as Father. Change yourself to become more in line with His image rather than redefining Him to your image.

     31So Jesus was saying to those Jews who had believed Him, “If you continue in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine; 32and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.” 33They answered Him, “We are Abraham’s descendants and have never yet been enslaved to anyone; how is it that You say, ‘You will become free’?”

      34Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who commits sin is the slave of sin.

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Do you know for sure if you will go to heaven or hell when you die? Are you experiencing in your life the peace and joy of a personal relationship with our Creator and Father? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

Choose Life

We have the same offer today from YHWH, the same choice. He has set before us each a choice. It is up to us to choose life and blessing over the curse. However this means we must choose Him, we must choose to love Him, walk in His ways, and keep His commandments, His statutes, His judgments… rather than our own or those devised by man. The source of truth is not what is taught in churches. The source of truth is God, Himself and He has provided to us a written record of His instruction in the Bible, which is available to all.

Deuteronomy 30:15-20

Choose Life

     15“See, I have set before you today life and prosperity, and death and adversity; 16in that I command you today to love the LORD your God, to walk in His ways and to keep His commandments and His statutes and His judgments, that you may live and multiply, and that the LORD your God may bless you in the land where you are entering to possess it. 17“But if your heart turns away and you will not obey, but are drawn away and worship other gods and serve them, 18I declare to you today that you shall surely perish. You will not prolong your days in the land where you are crossing the Jordan to enter and possess it. 19“I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that I have set before you life and death, the blessing and the curse. So choose life in order that you may live, you and your descendants, 20by loving the LORD your God, by obeying His voice, and by holding fast to Him; for this is your life and the length of your days, that you may live in the land which the LORD swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, to give them.”

To choose God and the ways of man is not to truly choose God. We can each have only one master. Choose and choose wisely. There are eternal consequences in addition to the trials and / or joy we can experience in this world. As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord. To do so, we realize that we must be open to change our understanding of His instructions as we study further the Bible and learn more of the ways in which the instruction found in churches today does not line up in many cases with the Bible itself and God’s instruction. Praise the Lord, we find His instructions are not burdensome, but draw us nearer to Him.

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Do you know for sure if you will go to heaven or hell when you die? Are you experiencing in your life the peace and joy of a personal relationship with our Creator and Father? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

The Spirit, Not Our Persuasion, Will Draw His Chosen To Him

Yeshua was not afraid to teach boldly. He did not hesitate to confront people with the truth in uncomfortable ways. He spoke with power and authority and let those who refused to accept make their choice. Too often today we think in church or personal outreach we must be incredibly sensitive in how we teach and share the message of Christ. We fear we may offend someone and then they will not receive the message. Up to a certain point, this is true and we can be thoughtful about how we share the message. However, there are many occasions today where churches have so watered down the gospel to avoid offending people, that they must surely be offending God instead.

John 6:41-58

Words to the Jews

      41Therefore the Jews were grumbling about Him, because He said, “I am the bread that came down out of heaven.” 42They were saying, “Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How does He now say, ‘I have come down out of heaven’?” 43Jesus answered and said to them, “Do not grumble among yourselves. 44“No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up on the last day. 45“It is written in the prophets, ‘AND THEY SHALL ALL BE TAUGHT OF GOD.’ Everyone who has heard and learned from the Father, comes to Me. 46“Not that anyone has seen the Father, except the One who is from God; He has seen the Father. 47“Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes has eternal life. 48“I am the bread of life. 49“Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died. 50“This is the bread which comes down out of heaven, so that one may eat of it and not die. 51“I am the living bread that came down out of heaven; if anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever; and the bread also which I will give for the life of the world is My flesh.”

      52Then the Jews began to argue with one another, saying, “How can this man give us His flesh to eat?” 53So Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in yourselves. 54“He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day. 55“For My flesh is true food, and My blood is true drink. 56“He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood abides in Me, and I in him. 57“As the living Father sent Me, and I live because of the Father, so he who eats Me, he also will live because of Me. 58“This is the bread which came down out of heaven; not as the fathers ate and died; he who eats this bread will live forever.”

Many churches are actively redefining or rejecting Biblical truths that make people uncomfortable. Many individuals do the same. They avoid confrontational passages of scripture, such as sharing scripture about homosexuality being an abomination to God, because they fear offending someone. If we as believers will not boldly stand for the word of God, than how shall the lost find their way?

Let us not be afraid to share God’s word directly and without watering it down to make people feel better.  We can do so with gentleness and respect, but also boldness. The Father is the one who woos and draws people to Himself through the Holy Spirit. When He is at work, we need to be sharing the full truth with these people. When He is not at work, providing a watered down, feel good, version of scripture will not help anyone anyway. It is not our job to rationally convince someone based on logic that the gospel is true. We are to pray for people, release the gospel message in its power, and let the Spirit work.

44“No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up on the last day.

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Do you know for sure if you will go to heaven or hell when you die? Are you experiencing in your life the peace and joy of a personal relationship with our Creator and Father? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

Yeshua Is The Bread Of Life. Those Who Come To Him Will Not Hunger Or Thirst

Yeshua had just fed 5000 people by miraculously multiplying a small portion of food. The people wanted to follow Him and make Him king. We can gain insight by reflecting on the words He spoke to them.

John 6:26-40

Words to the People

      26Jesus answered them and said, “Truly, truly, I say to you, you seek Me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate of the loaves and were filled. 27“Do not work for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you, for on Him the Father, God, has set His seal.” 28Therefore they said to Him, “What shall we do, so that we may work the works of God?” 29Jesus answered and said to them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He has sent.” 30So they said to Him, “What then do You do for a sign, so that we may see, and believe You? What work do You perform? 31“Our fathers ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written, ‘HE GAVE THEM BREAD OUT OF HEAVEN TO EAT.’”32Jesus then said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, it is not Moses who has given you the bread out of heaven, but it is My Father who gives you the true bread out of heaven. 33“For the bread of God is that which comes down out of heaven, and gives life to the world.” 34Then they said to Him, “Lord, always give us this bread.”

      35Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; he who comes to Me will not hunger, and he who believes in Me will never thirst. 36“But I said to you that you have seen Me, and yet do not believe. 37“All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will certainly not cast out. 38“For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me. 39“This is the will of Him who sent Me, that of all that He has given Me I lose nothing, but raise it up on the last day. 40“For this is the will of My Father, that everyone who beholds the Son and believes in Him will have eternal life, and I Myself will raise him up on the last day.”

Yeshua first addresses that this crowd is following Him not because they believe Him to be Messiah, but because the food He gave satisfied them and they want more. He warns them not to work for simply food that we consume and then we are hungry again. Instead, devote your lives to pursuit of the bread which satisfies for eternal life… the bread that is Yeshua.  Let us recognize that not all who follow Christ actually believe in Him as Messiah. Some come along yet do not believe. This is true still today. Let us be sure we are not complacent in accepting that we “go to church” and hang out Christians and read the Bible, yet have no relationship or true belief in Him as Messiah.

They ask an important question… “What shall we do, so that we may work the works of God?” Yeshua’s answer is very important… “This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He has sent.” Our first and most important “work” is simply to believe in Yeshua as Messiah, sent from the Father. In this way we receive the bread that lasts into eternity, and satisfies… never leaving us hungry or thirsty. Of course He is referring to spiritual food that we receive in close relationship with Yeshua and the Father. We are to pursue Yeshua as bread that satisfies. There is no other “work” required. What a loving God! However, as we pursue Yeshua genuinely and wholeheartedly, our actions change and our motivations change. Our genuine pursuit of Him is reflected in our behaviors and our thoughts. We change.

I am a bit stunned at first by the dialog where they ask for a sign. Had He not just performed a great sign by the feeding of the 5000?  He will address this starting in verse 36. Never the less, Yeshua continues to address them. However, He does not perform a sign just because they asked for one. He had already performed a sign. We can learn from this. Let us not always demand signs from YHWH but rather look to acknowledge the signs and wonders already at work in our lives around us.

Starting in verse 36 Yeshua addresses the fact that some have seen Him and seen Him perform signs, but they still do not believe. They still ask for signs. Not all have been given to Him by the Father, but listen to the beautiful closing of this section of scripture in regards to those whom the Father does give to the Son.

37“All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will certainly not cast out. 38“For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me. 39“This is the will of Him who sent Me, that of all that He has given Me I lose nothing, but raise it up on the last day. 40“For this is the will of My Father, that everyone who beholds the Son and believes in Him will have eternal life, and I Myself will raise him up on the last day.”

It is an amazing thought for those of us who desperately want to take some sort of credit for our own salvation, even by simply choosing the Lord when He reveals Himself to us. Let us remain humble. Let us first and foremost pray the Lord help those who are not walking with YHWH, who have not accepted Yeshua. For we see that all the Father gives to Him, will come to Him. Yeshua accepts all of us, and we must choose to accept Him, but recognize that the Father first calls us.

This can cause some difficulty for some. They struggle with their idea of “fairness” that the Father gives some to the Son and others He apparently does not. Let us trust the Father as we seek to understand. Ask Him as we would a loving Father whom we trust deeply. But remember that He is ultimately in control and His ways are far beyond our own.

Romans 9:19-24

    19You will say to me then, “Why does He still find fault? For who resists His will?” 20On the contrary, who are you, O man, who answers back to God? The thing molded will not say to the molder, “Why did you make me like this,” will it? 21Or does not the potter have a right over the clay, to make from the same lump one vessel for honorable use and another for common use? 22What if God, although willing to demonstrate His wrath and to make His power known, endured with much patience vessels of wrath prepared for destruction? 23And He did so to make known the riches of His glory upon vessels of mercy, which He prepared beforehand for glory, 24even us, whom He also called, not from among Jews only, but also from among Gentiles.

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Do you know for sure if you will go to heaven or hell when you die? Are you experiencing in your life the peace and joy of a personal relationship with our Creator and Father? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

Read The Bible Like You Are Searching For Treasure

John 6 documents a time when Yeshua walked on water. This is a fantastic miracle, but there is more to the story than that. Let us put that aside for a moment and dig beyond the surface of the scripture to see what treasure we can find and apply to our lives.

After feeding the 5000, Yeshua realized that the people were wanting to come to Him to make Him king. However tempting that may be for all of us to deal with, Yeshua chose to withdraw to avoid this because He knew that this was not what His Father had called Him to do. He did not seek power for Himself, but only to do the will of the Father. If we take the time to really think about it, this may be almost as stunning as walking on water. How many of us would really seek to avoid the distraction of thousands of people praising us and trying to give us power? How tempting might it be to just let them follow you and cheer for you?

If I flip the situation to the other side, we can also appreciate the passion of the people to follow Yeshua as they did. They recognized Him for what He was and did not want to simply go about their regular business as if they had not encountered Him. This is another challenge for us to consider personally. Do we passionately pursue Christ?

Finally, a third point to consider… the disciples were afraid, but they trusted Yeshua when things looked frightening to them. Once they had trusted Him, their situation was quickly resolved.

John 6:15-25

Jesus Walks on the Water

      15So Jesus, perceiving that they were intending to come and take Him by force to make Him king, withdrew again to the mountain by Himself alone.

      16Now when evening came, His disciples went down to the sea, 17and after getting into a boat, they started to cross the sea to Capernaum. It had already become dark, and Jesus had not yet come to them. 18The sea began to be stirred up because a strong wind was blowing. 19Then, when they had rowed about three or four miles, they saw Jesus walking on the sea and drawing near to the boat; and they were frightened. 20But He said to them, “It is I; do not be afraid.” 21So they were willing to receive Him into the boat, and immediately the boat was at the land to which they were going.

      22The next day the crowd that stood on the other side of the sea saw that there was no other small boat there, except one, and that Jesus had not entered with His disciples into the boat, but that His disciples had gone away alone. 23There came other small boats from Tiberias near to the place where they ate the bread after the Lord had given thanks. 24So when the crowd saw that Jesus was not there, nor His disciples, they themselves got into the small boats, and came to Capernaum seeking Jesus. 25When they found Him on the other side of the sea, they said to Him, “Rabbi, when did You get here?”

There is a lot of activity going on in John 6 besides just Yeshua walking on water. How will you apply what you have read today in your life? Pray for the Spirit to guide you.

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Do you know for sure if you will go to heaven or hell when you die? Are you experiencing in your life the peace and joy of a personal relationship with our Creator and Father? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

The Father Has Testified About The Son

Yeshua declares multiple witnesses declaring His coming. He provides a good summary… John the Baptist, the works that Yeshua performed, the Father, and the scriptures all point to Him as the Messiah. Sadly, some reject Him altogether, despite the evidence. Others cling to only the law and reject Christ. The law points to and leads to Christ. Yeshua is the word come to life to walk amongst us. Yeshua is our path to reconciliation with the Father.

John 5:31-47

     31“If I alone testify about Myself, My testimony is not true. 32“There is another who testifies of Me, and I know that the testimony which He gives about Me is true.

Witness of John

      33“You have sent to John, and he has testified to the truth. 34“But the testimony which I receive is not from man, but I say these things so that you may be saved. 35“He was the lamp that was burning and was shining and you were willing to rejoice for a while in his light.

Witness of Works

      36“But the testimony which I have is greater than the testimony of John; for the works which the Father has given Me to accomplish—the very works that I do—testify about Me, that the Father has sent Me.

Witness of the Father

      37“And the Father who sent Me, He has testified of Me. You have neither heard His voice at any time nor seen His form. 38“You do not have His word abiding in you, for you do not believe Him whom He sent.

Witness of the Scripture

      39“You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; it is these that testify about Me; 40and you are unwilling to come to Me so that you may have life. 41“I do not receive glory from men; 42but I know you, that you do not have the love of God in yourselves. 43“I have come in My Father’s name, and you do not receive Me; if another comes in his own name, you will receive him. 44“How can you believe, when you receive glory from one another and you do not seek the glory that is from the one and only God? 45“Do not think that I will accuse you before the Father; the one who accuses you is Moses, in whom you have set your hope. 46“For if you believed Moses, you would believe Me, for he wrote about Me. 47“But if you do not believe his writings, how will you believe My words?”

Let us embrace Yeshua in full recognition that it is He who saves. Let us embrace Him with the understanding that He fulfills and abides by the law and does not change or abolish it. He is our savior and the example we should follow.

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Do you know for sure if you will go to heaven or hell when you die? Are you experiencing in your life the peace and joy of a personal relationship with our Creator and Father? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

We Will All Face Judgment Before Him

All of us will die, unless the Lord returns before we do. All of us will face judgment before Him. Our deeds will reflect our heart and obedience toward God, or against Him. Our deeds will reflect whether or not we have submitted to Christ and asked forgiveness, turning our lives over to Him.

John 5:25-32

Two Resurrections

      25“Truly, truly, I say to you, an hour is coming and now is, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live. 26“For just as the Father has life in Himself, even so He gave to the Son also to have life in Himself; 27and He gave Him authority to execute judgment, because He is the Son of Man. 28“Do not marvel at this; for an hour is coming, in which all who are in the tombs will hear His voice, 29and will come forth; those who did the good deeds to a resurrection of life, those who committed the evil deeds to a resurrection of judgment.

      30“I can do nothing on My own initiative. As I hear, I judge; and My judgment is just, because I do not seek My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me.

      31“If I alone testify about Myself, My testimony is not true. 32“There is another who testifies of Me, and I know that the testimony which He gives about Me is true.

We know not when our time will be to face Him. We should make ourselves prepared to face Him now and remain ready any time thereafter. If we live in the light we will find joy in this world and the next. If we live darkness we may chase contentment and joy in this world and may even catch it from time to time, but we will face judgment and punishment which Yeshua warns us not to take lightly.

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Do you know for sure if you will go to heaven or hell when you die? Are you experiencing in your life the peace and joy of a personal relationship with our Creator and Father? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.

Yeshua Is Equal With God

John 5 is just one of many passages that clearly define Yeshua as one with the Father. Some will claim He is but a prophet or a teacher, but this can not be. He claimed to be son of God… to be one with God. The Jewish leaders understood this. This is why they claimed it was blasphemy and sought to kill Him. One who claims to be God is either God, a liar or a madman. It is not an option to be a teacher or prophet of God and claim to be God.

John 5:18-24

Jesus’ Equality with God

      18For this reason therefore the Jews were seeking all the more to kill Him, because He not only was breaking the Sabbath, but also was calling God His own Father, making Himself equal with God.

      19Therefore Jesus answered and was saying to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, unless it is something He sees the Father doing; for whatever the Father does, these things the Son also does in like manner. 20“For the Father loves the Son, and shows Him all things that He Himself is doing; and the Father will show Him greater works than these, so that you will marvel. 21“For just as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, even so the Son also gives life to whom He wishes. 22“For not even the Father judges anyone, but He has given all judgment to the Son, 23so that all will honor the Son even as they honor the Father. He who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent Him.

      24“Truly, truly, I say to you, he who hears My word, and believes Him who sent Me, has eternal life, and does not come into judgment, but has passed out of death into life.

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Do you know for sure if you will go to heaven or hell when you die? Are you experiencing in your life the peace and joy of a personal relationship with our Creator and Father? Learn more about salvation through The Message of the Cross.