Gospel of John Series - If I Speak of Heavenly Things - Part 3
If I Speak of Heavenly Things - Part 3
John 3:22-36
As John again begins to testify about the disciple’s lives after leaving Jerusalem, he and the other disciples have spent some time following Jesus and those who have not been baptised earlier are now baptised in water along the Jordan or Aenon river, probably by the disciples because John testified that Jesus didn’t baptize anyone by water (Jn.4:2) Let’s look at the text, “After this, Jesus and his disciples went out into the Judean countryside, where he spent some time with them, and baptized. Now John also was baptizing at Aenon near Salim, because there was plenty of water, and people were coming and being baptized. (This was before John was put in prison.)”
Application - The scripture tell us that baptism is one of the two ordinances that the church must do as the body of Christ to show a believer’s identification with Christ’s death, burial, and resurrection, “Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life. Rom. 6:3-4 ,the other is Communion. Just as Jesus and the disciples obeyed in the act of baptism, we too need to be baptised in water, but it is not as an act of salvation. First, Jesus didn’t need to be saved. Second, salvation comes by grace through faith in Jesus Christ. Baptism is to be an act of obedience in identifying in the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus.
Next, the scene changes from Jesus and his disciples to John the Baptist and his disciples. Let’s look at the text,
“An argument developed between some of John’s disciples and a certain Jew over the matter of ceremonial washing. They came to John and said to him, “Rabbi, that man who was with you on the other side of the Jordan—the one you testified about—look, he is baptizing, and everyone is going to him.” To this John replied, “A person can receive only what is given them from heaven. You yourselves can testify that I said, ‘I am not the Messiah but am sent ahead of him.’ The bride belongs to the bridegroom. The friend who attends the bridegroom waits and listens for him, and is full of joy when he hears the bridegroom’s voice. That joy is mine, and it is now complete. He must become greater; I must become less.”
John the Baptist still had disciples following him and listening to his teachings along the Jordan river. They began to argue with a certain jewish person about the act of ceremonial cleansing done in a mikvah (a ceremonial pool or bath meant to cleanse you before marriage and Yom Kippur). The disciples and the jew must have been arguing about Jesus, whom John had baptised and testified about his divinity because he is now the main statement posed to John the Baptist. “Rabbi, that man who was with you on the other side of the Jordan—the one you testified about—look, he is baptizing, and everyone is going to him.”
John the Baptist now exhorts his disciples on the immensity of Jesus in their world. First, he states Jesus came with authority from heaven, “A person can receive only what is given them from heaven. You yourselves can testify that I said, ‘I am not the Messiah but am sent ahead of him.’ John wants his disciple to understand the origin of all authority, it comes from heaven. God has set up every authority, “...so that the living will know that the Most High rules over the kingdom of mankind and gives it to whom He wishes, setting over it the lowliest of men.” Dan. 4:17; “Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God.” Rom.13:1 And God has shown that Jesus is the authority sent from God, for he has proven this with the teachings, signs and miracles as evidenced by the testimony of Nicodemus, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the signs you are doing if God were not with him.”
John continues to instruct his disciples in the prominence of Jesus.”You yourselves can testify that I said, ‘I am not the Messiah but am sent ahead of him.” They themselves remember the words of John pertaining to Jesus, and John’s testimony was given from heaven, for they revered John as a rabbi, and many as a prophet. For he was spoken of from scripture as the one who would come and prepare the way for the Messiah, “Look! I am sending my messenger, and he will prepare the way before me. Then the Lord you are seeking will suddenly come to his Temple. The messenger of the covenant, whom you look for so eagerly, is surely coming,” says the LORD of Heaven’s Armies.” Mal. 3:1; “A voice of one calling:
“In the wilderness prepare the way for the Lord; make straight in the desert a highway for our God.” Isa. 40:3
John now reveals Jesus’ coming as symbolized by marriage. Let’s look at the text, “The bride belongs to the bridegroom. The friend who attends the bridegroom waits and listens for him, and is full of joy when he hears the bridegroom’s voice. That joy is mine, and it is now complete. He must become greater; I must become less.” The disciples of John the baptist learned an incredible truth, the church as the bride, and Jesus as the bridegroom. They would have been to many weddings in their lives, and understood the tradition and importance of the marriage rituals. John reveals to them Jesus' true role, he is the one whom the Bible spoke about, the Messiah. John in guidance from the Holy Spirit equates Jesus to the Bridegroom, and the Church the the bride. John belonged to Jesus, not as a slave, but as a friend and a part of the body of believers, the bride, as did all who believed and followed Jesus, the bridegroom. The bridegroom would have to pay the bridal price, prepare a place, and then at the call of the Father of the bridegroom, he was then to go and receive his bride, who was prepared and waiting for him. Even John didn’t completely understand that the bride price was the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross and resurrection, the preparation of a place was his ascension back into heaven, and the coming back the rapture of the church. John wanted his disciples to understand he was like a friend of the bridegroom, who like the bride was listening and alert for the coming of the bridegroom, and when he hears his voice, he is filled with uncontainable joy because he knows that the wedding is near consummation or completeness.
John then brings his role before God to its proper place. “He must become greater; I must become less.” John’s disciples didn’t fully understand, but John must have understood that his time of prominence was coming to an end. For John would confront Herod of his many sins, and be beheaded for his stand against evil.
Application - I enclosed an article and a picture to help with our understanding of ceremonial washing and baptism. An Israeli mikvah (immersion site for ritual cleansing) for men.
For the observant Jew, the mikvah personifies both the womb and the grave and consequently, rebirth. It is regarded as a pure, unadulterated avenue of connection with God; and for that reason, it is a place where hope is reawakened and strengthened.
The mikvah, therefore, plays an important role from preparation for marriage and Yom Kippur to the purification of menstruant women.
Tevilah (full-body immersion) marks a change of status from being tamay to tahor—ritually unclean (impure or unfit for the presence of God) to ritually clean. This is necessary because anytime a person is to come into the presence of God, they must come tahor (pure).
As you can see, John’s disciples would have seen a mikvah and John’s baptism. But like today, many don’t understand that the act of baptism is a sign or identification before the world with Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection. How are the people today like John’s disciples? They get caught up in the traditions and rituals but don’t understand all that God has planned and purposed. That he sent His Son was written in the Torah and the books of the prophets. The Son was the Christ, to whom it was written about, and is spoken of in many venues and manners today.
We get divided over doctrines, and personalities (1 Cor. 1:11-12). As I woke up one morning this week thinking about this text, the Holy Spirit was telling me to make it clear, the way to God is through believing in the Son (Jn. 14:6). Today’s religious world, and I use the word religious to include all denominations of churches. We like to put our special scent on our religiosity, to show we have something special. We use our doctrines and edifices to send a message that we are unique, and to some we hold the real truth, or power. Like the disciples of John the Baptist, we get rattled and argue when there are more people at another place or they are not doing it correctly. I have heard it in messages preached from denominational pulpits: they are heretics over there, they don’t have the full gospel, they don’t have the infilling of the Holy Ghost like we do. Many churches are known for their social work, personalities, or programs, not so much about Jesus. Is the doctrinal scenting of our services, what Bible version we read, and the bent of our worship really what distinguishes us as true believers? We need to be like John, understand that Jesus is the real deal and we are all his disciples.
All who come to Jesus, come only by grace through faith in the work of Jesus on the cross. We, like the disciples, learn from God’s word, the Bible. And the Holy Spirit is promised to all who believe in Christ, no matter their ethnic background, social class, or economic class. He reveals the truth about God to all whom he infills. As John taught his disciples, Jesus is the bridegroom and we are his bride. He has paid the bride price by his sacrifice on the cross and resurrection, He promised to go and prepare a place especially for us, His Bride. And then when the Father determines the time, He will come for His Bride as the Bridegroom, rapture us to heaven to complete his promise and love for us.
Last, John the Baptist continues to teach his disciples on the divinity of Jesus the Christ. Let’s look at the text,
“The one who comes from above is above all; the one who is from the earth belongs to the earth, and speaks as one from the earth. The one who comes from heaven is above all. He testifies to what he has seen and heard, but no one accepts his testimony. Whoever has accepted it has certified that God is truthful. For the one whom God has sent speaks the words of God, for God gives the Spirit without limit. The Father loves the Son and has placed everything in his hands. Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on them.”
Again John illustrates the authority of Jesus. He is from above, he came from heaven and he is from God. The disciples were learning something that the teachers of the law and Pharisees were blind too, even though they had read and studied the scripture in debt to the jot and tittle (small marks above the words that distinguishes it’s meaning). John explains that Jesus speaks of what God has said and testifies to what he has seen and heard ( “The one who comes from heaven is above all. He testifies to what he has seen and heard, but no one accepts his testimony”), yet having seen the signs of his authority and heard the authority of his teachings, the people do not believe his testimony that He had come from God. Even though many were now following Jesus in large crowds from all social, ethinic and racial backgrounds, they were following for spurious reasons.
John now explains the crux of his lesson, “Whoever has accepted it has certified that God is truthful. For the one whom God has sent speaks the words of God, for God gives the Spirit without limit. The Father loves the Son and has placed everything in his hands. Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on them.”
God is truthful, Jesus is the one sent from God from heaven and only speaks God’s word, and God’s Holy Spirit will be given without limit. The disciples of Jesus will learn this lesson as well as the Holy Spirit reveals who Jesus really is to them. Those at Jesus’ baptism had already heard the voice of God after Jesus’ baptism (Matt. 3:16-17) and they will hear it again on the Mount of Transfiguration.
Everything comes from God the Father, and He has given it to the Son. The love of the Father is now seen through the Son, and whoever believes in the Son has eternal Life. Life in the Son will be further explained as we continue in the lessons from John, as well as death not life will be for all who don’t believe in God’s Son. The curse of sin from the garden is still upon them, as well as God’s wrath.
Application - Truth has been misrepresented by the father of all lies in this world. God is the absolute truth, in him is no deceit (“God is not man, that he should lie,
or a son of man, that he should change his mind. Has he said, and will he not do it? Or has he spoken, and will he not fulfill it? (Num. 23:19); He was assigned a grave with the wicked, and with a rich man in His death, although He had done no violence, nor was any deceit in His mouth.” (Isa. 53:9, 1 Pet. 2:22))
Jesus is the Son of God. He had come from heaven, and returned there (Acts 1:6-11), and all that He spoke was from God the Father. “for, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” How then can they call on the One in whom they have not believed? And how can they believe in the One of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone to preach? And how can they preach unless they are sent? As it is written: “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!” (Rom. 10:13-15) This is the command, mandate, and commission from Jesus to all believers. Many in our days do not know Jesus as the Savior, they have not read His Word because of the darkness, unbelief, and lies from the god of this age. Many are still blinded and deafened by him and his minions (2 Cor. 4:4). We are to take the light of Jesus that will dispel the darkness (the Word of God) to the world that is perishing and will experience the wrath of Almighty God upon a sinful world.
I’m again including the ABC’s of salvation (JD Farag). Please, Jesus, God the Son, came to this world to save all who would believe and trust in him. He is Life and that eternal, He is the Light that overcomes the darkness of this lawless world. If you haven’t asked him to be your Lord and Savior, today could be that day.
First, A - Admit that you are a sinner. This is where that godly sorrow leads to genuine repentance for sinning against a righteous God and there is a change of heart, we change our mind and God changes our hearts and regenerates us from the inside out. Romans 3:10 - As it is written: "There is none righteous, no, not one." Romans 3:23 - For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. (We are all born sinners which is why we must be born spiritually in order to enter the Kingdom of Heaven). Romans 6:23 - For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. The bad news is that the wages of sin is death, in other words our sin means that we have been given a death sentence, we have the death penalty hanging over our heads, that's the bad news. But here's the good news: The good news is that the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. Ephesians 2:8-9 - For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith —and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast. Second,
B - Believe in your heart that Jesus Christ died for your sins, was buried, and that God raised Jesus from the dead. This is trusting with all of your heart that Jesus Christ is who he said he was. Romans 10:9-10 - That if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved. Third,
C - Call upon the name of the Lord. Every single person who ever lived since Adam will bend their knee and confess with their mouth that Jesus Christ is Lord, the Lord of lords and the King of kings. Romans 14:11 - For it is written: "As I live, says the Lord, Every knee shall bow to Me, And every tongue shall confess to God." Don't wait until later — do this now. Romans 10:13 - For "whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved." "O God, I am a sinner. I'm sorry for my sin. I want to turn from my sin. I believe Jesus Christ is Your Son; I believe that He died on the cross for my sin and that He was buried and You raised Him to life. I have decided to place my faith in Jesus Christ as my Savior, trusting only in His shed blood as sufficient to save my soul and to take me to heaven. Thank You, Lord Jesus, for saving me. Amen."
Please share this with someone this week, the Lord knows that we and they need it.
If you would like other lessons, please go to http://pmdinhisservice.blogspot.com
Until next week, In His Service Mike Davis
I am developing a new webpage on Spiritual warfare
Please give it a look. Thank you
http://uss-warfare3.webnode.com
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