Month: December 2022

John 8:21 – Once more Jesus said to them, “I am going away, and you will look for me, and you will die in your sin. Where I go, you cannot come.” ²² This made the Jews ask, “Will he kill himself? Is that why he says, ‘Where I go, you cannot come’?”  ²³ But he continued, “You are from below; I am from above. You are of this world; I am not of this world. ²⁴ I told you that you would die in your sins; if you do not believe that I am he, you will indeed die in your sins.”

²⁵ “Who are you?” they asked.  “Just what I have been telling you from the beginning,” Jesus replied. ²⁶ “I have much to say in judgment of you. But he who sent me is trustworthy, and what I have heard from him I tell the world.”

²⁷ They did not understand that he was telling them about his Father. ²⁸ So Jesus said, “When you have lifted up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am he and that I do nothing on my own but speak just what the Father has taught me. ²⁹ The one who sent me is with me; he has not left me alone, for I always do what pleases him.” ³⁰ Even as he spoke, many believed in him. (NIV)

I find the Gospel of John to be, perhaps, my favorite Gospel.  However, some passages can be a difficult read.  This is one of those passages!   Theologically, there is much to unpack here, but essentially it boils down to whom do you say that Jesus is?  This is an important question as we approach the celebration of the birth of Jesus – Who is Jesus to you?   

Jesus tells us in verse 24 (and again in verse 58) that, “I am he.”  Many believe that Jesus was referring back to the name that God gave Moses to use when confronting Pharaoh.  There are also a number of times in the Book of Isaiah where God uses this name.  Regardless of what came before, each of us must decide for ourselves who Jesus is to us this very day. 

The Gospel message is that Jesus is God in the flesh: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God., The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us.” (John 1:1, 14).  Then we are told that Jesus offered himself as a sacrifice for the sins of all: “He sacrificed for their sins once for all when he offered himself.” (Hebrews 7:27).

As basic as this seems to our faith, we must reaffirm to ourselves daily what we believe about Jesus.  If Jesus is who he says he is, will that make a difference in your life this day?   

Let the difference Jesus makes in your life be seen by those around you!  

Posted by Ramón Torres

Ephesians 2:1 – As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, ² in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. ³ All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our flesh and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature deserving of wrath. ⁴ But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, ⁵ made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved. ⁶ And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, ⁷ in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. ⁸ For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— ⁹ not by works, so that no one can boast. ¹⁰ For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. (NIV) 

What a wonderful portrait of God – rich in mercy and grace!  Even while we were dead in our sin, God’s grace broke through!  Personally, this is a passage I return to often.  When I fall short, more often than I care to admit, I find comfort in knowing that even in my sin the grace of God is freely given to me – again and again!

Verses eight and nine tell us that even if we were to somehow achieve perfection, that wouldn’t earn God’s grace.  That’s Good News, since none of us are will ever achieve perfection.

Note that we are God’s handiwork! How wonderful!  I love the splendor of the outdoors:  the majesty of the mountains; the peacefulness of a mountain stream; the beauty of a meadow.  I love them because I am so mindful that they are all God’s handiwork, but so are we!  Like the beautiful things in nature that point to how great God is, you and I are something beautiful, too!  When we live as a disciple, doing good works as a response of love and gratitude towards God, how much more beautiful we become!  

Today, let us give thanks to God for what God is making of us!

Posted by Ramón Torres

Ephesians 1:15 – Ever since I first heard of your strong faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for God’s people everywhere, ¹⁶ I have not stopped thanking God for you. I pray for you constantly, ¹⁷ asking God, the glorious Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, to give you spiritual wisdom and insight so that you might grow in your knowledge of God. ¹⁸ I pray that your hearts will be flooded with light so that you can understand the confident hope he has given to those he called—his holy people who are his rich and glorious inheritance.

¹⁹ I also pray that you will understand the incredible greatness of God’s power for us who believe him. This is the same mighty power ²⁰ that raised Christ from the dead and seated him in the place of honor at God’s right hand in the heavenly realms. ²¹ Now he is far above any ruler or authority or power or leader or anything else—not only in this world but also in the world to come. ²² God has put all things under the authority of Christ and has made him head over all things for the benefit of the church. ²³ And the church is his body; it is made full and complete by Christ, who fills all things everywhere with himself. (NLT)

As I have shared before, God has given me a burden for those who call themselves Christian.  I have this burden because I see so many Christians struggling in their daily lives. They struggle with personal relationships, with finances, with addictions.  The list of struggles could go on and on.  However, Jesus came to set us free from these struggles!  In fact, Jesus said in John 10:10 – The thief’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life.

I am burdened because so many Christians allow the thief to steal and destroy.  How much of life here and now are we allowing to be stolen from us? In this passage, the Word tells us that we have access to spiritual wisdom and insight.  This wisdom and insight enables us to live a rich and satisfying life right here and now!  This passage also tells us that we have access to the incredible power of God, the same power that raised Jesus from the dead.  That’s an awesome power!

As we grow in our knowledge of God, which comes through knowing God’s Word, we gain power over the thief, and life becomes more satisfying.  This does not happen in a day, or even a week, but is a process.  John Wesley said that we should be moving on towards perfection.  Spiritual wisdom allows us to make this move!

Today, let us move on towards the fullness of life that God has promised to us! Let us seek spiritual wisdom through God’s Word.  

Posted by Ramón Torres