LookingtoJesus

January 17

Bible Reading: John 3:16-21

John 3:16, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.”

You’ve likely memorized this verse.  If not, you’ve probably seen it referenced on a sign at a football game.  Pastors have preached plenty of sermons on John 3:16 and no verse has been more shared with others.  But don’t let its familiarity rob you of the marvel of what we find here.  There is a God who loves us, and so much so that He’s provided an indescribable gift in His very own Son! 

John Phillips has eloquently spoken to the centrality of John 3:16: “We have now arrived at the great metropolis of gospel truth. No other single statement in the Bible so aptly sums up God’s redemptive purpose in Christ for the human race. Volumes have been written on it. It’s each and every word has been weighed and examined and marveled at and preached on. Who will ever know until the judgment seat of Christ how many millions of Adam’s ruined race have found their way to heaven by the discovery of John 3:16? The text itself revolves around ten words: God, loved, world, gave, Son, whosoever, believeth, perish, have, life. Those ten words make up the ‘constellation of the redeemer’ in the firmament of divine revelation. The creative work of God is summed up in ten commandments in Genesis 1 (‘And God said’). The legislative work of God is summed up in ten commandments in Exodus 20. The redemptive work of God is summed up in ten words here in John 3:16.”

John Phillips

What are we to take away from this wonderful verse?  There is a God who loves us! He loves us although we were born rebel sinners.  He loves us so much that He sent His Son into this sin-cursed world predetermined to die for our sins.  He loves us and has provided by His grace a means for our salvation through faith.  He loves us and has done all to rescue us from eternal destruction that we might instead experience His eternal life!  For God so loved me!  For God so loved you! Are you one of the “millions of Adam’s ruined race have found their way to heaven by the discovery of John 3:16?”  If not, devote your soul’s attention to the gift God has provided and is now offering to you!

“Wonder of wonders! While we were His enemies and thirsting for the blood of His sinless Son, God loved us so much that He gave His Son, whom He loved above all else, to die on the cross that we might be saved.” – M. R. DeHaan

THE LOVE OF GOD
The love of God is greater far
than tongue or pen can ever tell;
it goes beyond the highest star,
and reaches to the lowest hell.
The wand’ring child is reconciled
by God’s beloved Son.
The aching soul again made whole,
and priceless pardon won.

Refrain:
O love of God, how rich and pure!
How measureless and strong!
It shall forevermore endure—
the saints’ and angels’ song.

When ancient time shall pass away,
and human thrones and kingdoms fall;
when those who here refuse to pray
on rocks and hills and mountains call;
God’s love so sure, shall still endure,
all measureless and strong;
grace will resound the whole earth round—
the saints’ and angels’ song. [Refrain]

Could we with ink the ocean fill,
and were the skies of parchment made;
were ev’ry stalk on earth a quill,
and ev’ryone a scribe by trade;
to write the love of God above
would drain the ocean dry;
nor could the scroll contain the whole,
though stretched from sky to sky. [Refrain]

January 16

Bible Reading: John 3:4-15

John 3:7, “Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.”

I love Christian biographies.  One of my favorites is the account of the life of George Whitefield.  He was undoubtedly the most famous religious figure of the eighteenth century. Newspapers called him the “marvel of the age.” Whitefield preached before thousands on two continents and played a preeminent role in the Great Awakening of the mid-1700s.  In his lifetime, he preached at least 18,000 times to perhaps 10 million hearers.

As amazing as was his life, his conversion experience was equally so.  George Whitefield was a student at Oxford and a member of the so-called “Holy Club” together with John and Charles Wesley.  He was religious, but lost.  He became increasingly dissatisfied with his life, quit school, and was bedridden for a time.  In his despair, he was Spirit-led to abandon his religious self-efforts and trust only in Christ.  He prayed, “I thirst, I thirst for faith in pardoning love.  Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief.” 

God heard his prayer.  He was born again and, according to his own words, “filled with peace and joy in believing.”  His experience compelled him to write immediately to his family members of the necessity of the new birth.  That message was well-founded in his heart and became the chief characteristic of his fruitful ministry until his death.  “You must be born again” was the message that he loved to share. One time a friend asked him, “George, why is it that you preach so often upon the text, ‘ye must be born again?’ Whitefield stared at him for a moment, then said, ‘Because….ye must be born again!’”  Religion, no matter how impressive, is not enough—you must be born again!

The question, with respect to salvation, is not whether you are a member of a church, or have been baptized, or have walked the aisle, or done any other “religious” thing.  The question is “have you been born again?”  There’s no substitute for being “born again with life from above into God’s family divine!”

“No one enters life with God by resolving to do better, turning over a new leaf, and trying their hardest. Unrenewed man cannot enjoy Heaven apart from the new birth.”—George Whitefield

HEAVEN CAME DOWN
O what a wonderful, wonderful day.
Day I will never forget;
After I’d wandered in darkness away,
Jesus my Savior I met.
O what a tender compassionate friend,
He met the need of my heart
Shadows dispelling, with joy i am telling
He made all the darkness depart.

Refrain
Heaven came down and glory filled my soul.
When at the cross my Savior made me whole.
My sins were washed away
And my night was turned to day.

Born of the spirit from life of above
Into God’s fam’ly divine,
Justified fully through calvary’s love,
O what a standing is mine!
And the transaction so quickly was made
When as a sinner I came,
Took of the offer of grace he did proffer-
He saved me, o praise his dear name! [Refrain]

Now, I’ve a hope that will surely endure
After the passing of time;
I have a future in heaven for sure,
There in those mansions sublime.
And it’s because of that wonderful day
When at the cross I believed
Riches eternal and blessings supernal
From his precious hand I received. [Refrain]

January 15

Bible Reading: John 3:1-3

John 3:1, “Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews.”

John 3:12, “Jesus answered him, ‘Are you the teacher of Israel and yet you do not understand these things?”

My coworker was a man of much ambition and many vices.  We were talking one day about Christian matters, when I asked him if he had ever trusted in Jesus.  His response was telling. He said he had taken care of that, having been baptized long before when he was a teenager.  But a man’s religious deeds, no matter how impressive, are no substitute for being born again.

Nicodemus was a religious man with exemplary religious credentials.  As a Pharisee, he lived an extremely regimented life according to the countless Pharisaic rules that governed nearly every aspect of his daily experience.  He was a man who would have fasted, prayed, gave alms, read the Scriptures, attended synagogue, etc.  As a “ruler of the Jews” he was a leader amongst the Pharisees, overseeing various aspects of the Pharisaic cult that governed religious life in those days.  He was “the teacher of Israel,” well-schooled in the Scriptures and various Pharisaic laws.  But none of that worked to save him!  Jesus told him he needed to start all over with a spiritual re-birth (John 3:7).

The birth of a child is a fitting analogy to what happens in the spiritual rebirth of a person.  A newborn child is a passive participant in the process whereby he enters this world.  He expends no effort and can take no credit for it.  Likewise, to be born again, a person must “be born of the Spirit with live from above into God’s family divine.”  He must receive Jesus to be given “the right to become” a child of God (John 1:12).  It is a work of the Spirit alone (John 3:5-8).

We cannot know for sure, but it seems likely that Nicodemus was, at some point, born again.  Later, when the officers of the chief priests were sent to bring Jesus, Nicodemus defended Jesus. He advised his colleagues to hear and investigate Jesus’ claims before making a final judgment (John 7:45-52).  At Jesus’ burial, Nicodemus brought a costly mixture of myrrh and aloes for the embalming of His body (John 19:39).  According to church tradition, Nicodemus embraced the faith and eventually met martyrdom for his beliefs.  But it all started when Nicodemus went to meet with Jesus!  The preeminent word Jesus had for him is the same He has for each of us: “You must be born again!”  Have you been born again?

“Except a man be born again, he will wish one day he had never been born at all.” -J. C. Ryle

ROCK OF AGES
Rock of Ages, cleft for me,
Let me hide myself in Thee;
Let the water and the blood,
From Thy riven side which flowed,
Be of sin the double cure,
Save me from its guilt and power.

Not the labor of my hands
Can fulfill Thy law’s demands;
Could my zeal no respite know,
Could my tears forever flow,
All could never sin erase,
Thou must save, and save by grace.

Nothing in my hands I bring,
Simply to Thy cross I cling;
Naked, come to Thee for dress,
Helpless, look to Thee for grace:
Foul, I to the fountain fly,
Wash me, Savior, or I die.

While I draw this fleeting breath,
When mine eyes shall close in death,
When I soar to worlds unknown,
See Thee on Thy judgment throne,
Rock of Ages, cleft for me,
Let me hide myself in Thee.

January 12

Bible Reading: John 2:23-25

John 2:25, “…he himself knew what was in man.”

He was on his deathbed, weeks from dying.  I had just introduced myself to him as the hospice chaplain.  He then surprised me by saying, “I’ve spent my whole life sinning.”  From that visit, week-after-week, we talked about Jesus and His death for sins and resurrection from the dead.  I explained to him that salvation is by grace through faith, and that he could be saved by trusting in Jesus.  He had a heart to hear, but then asked, “But how can I know that my faith is real and not simply some kind of death-bed conversion?”  “Jesus knows your heart,” I said, “and the very fact that you’ve asked that question is indicative of the sincerity of your faith.” 

The Christmas song says of the mythical Santa that “He’s going to find out who’s naughty or nice!”  But Santa doesn’t know.  He’s not even real!  Jesus, on the other hand, knows all about us.  We don’t even know ourselves, but Jesus knows.  It is as Jeremiah 17:9-10 explains: “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it?  I, the Lord, search the heart and test the mind.”  He knows all about us.  He knows what we are thinking, what we are doing, and even knows what we are going to say before we say it (Psalm 139:1-4)!

The omniscience of God is a truth that cuts both ways.  To those with something to hide, it is a fearsome thing.  Jonah tried to avoid God, to no avail!  But when we lay ourselves bare to Him, in our brokenness, and look to Him alone to save, it is good to know that He is all knowing!  Consider this, the One who knew what was in a man, nevertheless came to save such men!  The Jesus who knows me and everything about me, loves me!  In the words of the Apostle Paul, “(He) loved me and gave himself for me” (Galatians 2:20)! Give some thought to this wonderful truth today. Thank Jesus for loving you, in spite of your faults and failures. Pray the prayer of the Psalmist: Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thought. And see if there be any grievous way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting (Psalm 139:23-24)!”

The One who knows all and loves still, is One who is worth knowing!

NO, NOT ONE!
There’s not a friend like the lowly Jesus–
No, not one! no, not one!
None else could heal all our soul’s diseases–
No, not one! no, not one!

Refrain:
Jesus knows all about our struggles,
He will guide till the day is done;
There’s not a friend like the lowly Jesus–
No, not one! no, not one!

No friend like Him is so high and holy–
No, not one! no, not one!
And yet no friend is so meek and lowly–
No, not one! no, not one! [Refrain]

There’s not an hour that He is not near us –
No, not one! no, not one!
No night so dark but His love can cheer us–
No, not one! no, not one! [Refrain]

Was e’er a gift like the Savior given?
No, not one! no, not one!
Will He refuse us a home in heaven?
No, not one! no, not one! [Refrain]

January 11

Bible Reading: John 2:18-22

John 2:18-22, “So the Jews said to him, ‘What sign do you show us for doing these things?’ Jesus answered them, ‘Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.’ The Jews then said, ‘It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and will you raise it up in three days?’ But he was speaking about the temple of his body. When therefore he was raised from the dead, his disciples remembered that he had said this, and they believed the Scripture and the word that Jesus had spoken.”

Have you ever asked God to show you a sign?  Somebody once asked Ken Ham (a well-known creationist), “Why doesn’t your God come and physically show Himself to us?”  He replied, “He did, and they nailed Him to a cross!”  The Jews asked Jesus for a sign.  So, He gave them one!

Herod’s temple was a glorious edifice.  It had taken a year and a half to build the temple proper and eight years to finish the courts.  Other additions continued over time such that the entire undertaking took forty-six years.  The temple trans versed an area of some 750 feet and was easily visible from any part of the city.  Some stones used in its construction were of massive proportion (over 60X9X7 feet).  Jewish life revolved around the temple, the priesthood, and the sacrifices.  The temple was a beautiful edifice and of the highest importance to the Jews—the centerpiece of their Jewish identity.  As beautiful as that temple was, something (someone) far more glorious stood in their midst!

The Jews demanded a sign that would authenticate Jesus’ authority for cleansing the temple.  His response was to draw their attention to another temple, His own body.  Temples serve as a place to meet with God.  Herod’s temple was to serve that purpose.  Jesus came to fulfill that purpose, and as He else wise explained, “something greater than the temple (was there)” (Matthew 12:6). The God who was to be the object of temple worship stood in their midst in the temple that was His body.

They demanded a sign, so Jesus offered one!  Destroy Him, and three days later He would rise from the dead!  At that point, not even the disciples understood what He was saying.  Later they would.  The sign authenticating His identity and authority was nothing less than His resurrection from the dead!  That sign is still available to everyone.  Do you wonder if God is true, if Jesus is real, if there is a God who loves you, who can deliver from sin and death?  Look to the cross!  He died for sins and rose from the dead!  Having doubts? The cross and the empty tomb are where doubts go to die!

The Resurrection places a confirming stamp on Jesus’ life and words!  His empty tomb is where doubts go to die!

MY HOPE IS IN THE LORD
My hope is in the Lord
Who gave Him-self for me
And paid the price
Of all my sin at Calvary.

Refrain:
For me He died;
For me He lives,
And everlasting life
And light He free-ly gives.

No merit of my own
His anger to suppress
My only hope is found
In Jesus’ righteousness [Refrain]

And now for me He stands
Before the Father’s throne
He shows His wounded hands
And names me as His own [Refrain]

His grace has planned it all
‘Tis mine but to believe
And recognize His work of love
And Christ receive [Refrain]

January 10

Bible Reading: John 2:13-17

John 2:13-17, “The Passover of the Jews was at hand, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. In the temple he found those who were selling oxen and sheep and pigeons, and the money-changers sitting there. And making a whip of cords, he drove them all out of the temple, with the sheep and oxen. And he poured out the coins of the money-changers and overturned their tables. And he told those who sold the pigeons, ‘Take these things away; do not make my Father’s house a house of trade.’ His disciples remembered that it was written, ‘Zeal for your house will consume me.’”

Temples are for worship, but the temple in Jesus’ day had devolved into a money-making enterprise.  Animals for sacrifice needed to be sold because some pilgrims came from long distances, not having them.  Inspectors sometimes disqualified animals that were brought by others for supposed defects, forcing folks to buy another at an exorbitant price.  Money from various regions needed to be exchanged, for a fee, for coins acceptable to the Jews. 

Jesus entered the temple, drove out the buyers and sellers, overturned the tables and chairs, and put an end to all of commerce.  In righteous indignation, He zealously intervened to cleanse the temple from all such activities.  What are we to make of this account?  Jesus Himself explained His actions: “Take these things away; do not make my Father’s house a house of trade.”  The temple was for worship, they were using it for their own evil ends.  He cleansed the temple at the start of His ministry, He cleansed it again in the end.

Temples are for worship.  The priests were to lead the people in worship.  The sacrifices were to be offered in worship.  Humble prayer was to characterize such activities.  Worship of God was to happen there (Psalm 84:1-4).  Simeon and Anna knew that (Luke 2:25-37).  Others too, no doubt, but the religious leaders had no heart for worship (Matthew 15:8-9), and they wielded much influence (Matthew 27:20; 23:13).  In its commerce and corruption, the temple had become as worthless to its purpose as a fig tree without figs (Mark 11:12-14).

Jesus’ activity in the temple is not at all inconsistent with the purpose for which He came.  Jesus is in the temple-cleansing business. We’ve been created for worship, but sin gets in the way.  Jesus came to cleanse us from sin so that we might fulfill our God-given purpose.  He has the power to cleanse our temples, freeing us to do to do what we were created to do!

“Why did Christ come?  Why was He conceived?  Why was He born?  Why was He crucified?  Why did He rise again?  Why is He now at the right hand of the Father?  The answer to the question is, “In order that He might make worshipers out of rebels; in order that He might restore us again to the place of worship we knew when we were first created.”

A. W. Tozer

Jesus is zealous to cleanse from sin.  That’s the purpose for which He came.

OH, FOR A HEART TO PRAISE MY GOD
Oh, for a heart to praise my God,
A heart from sin set free,
With conscience sprinkled by the blood
So freely shed for me.

A heart in every thought renewed,
And filled with love divine;
Perfect and right, and pure and good,
A copy, Lord, of Thine.

Thy nature, gracious Lord, impart,
Come quickly from above;
Write Thy new name upon my heart,
Thy new, best name of Love.

January 9

Bible Reading: John 2:1-12

John 2:5, “Do whatever he tells you.”

A neighbor of our church called, asking if I would visit as he had some questions for me. I thought I knew him fairly well (though he didn’t attend our church), but what he shared with me came as a big shock. He had tried to kill himself and he was wondering if his attempt at suicide constituted an unforgiveable sin. He had experienced a stroke earlier that year, the pain and disability had been too much for him, so he had tried unsuccessfully to end his life. We spent some time talking about sin and Jesus and salvation. He had something on his mind. He showed me a family picture that was hanging on the wall in another room. He pointed to an aged black-and-white photo of his big family, his mom and dad, and all his siblings, and talked about how his mom had been a fine Christian lady, insisting that they attend church every Sunday. Then he said something that has stuck with me to this day: “I should have listened to my mother.” You could sense the stinging regret in his matter-of-fact statement. His health was failing. He was estranged from his daughter and his son lived far away. Having struggled with alcohol for most of his life, he was reflecting on how things might have turned out differently if he’d heeded his mom’s advice. If only he had done as she’d said!

The context of our passage is the miracle in which Jesus turned water into wine.  Mary told the servants that they should, “Do whatever he tells you.”  She knew, no doubt from experience, that Jesus had the power to fix things.  If they simply followed Jesus’ instructions, then everything would go according to plan, and He would resolve the problem of the embarrassing lack of wine.

But our phrase, “do whatever Jesus tells you,” holds wisdom beyond its immediate context, befitting of that which we find elsewhere in Scripture. There can be no better counsel! We could avoid many of our troubles if we simply listened to Jesus. Of course, it’s not that easy. To heed Jesus, we need Jesus. The first thing necessary is to believe in Him unto salvation. John elsewhere put it this way: “And this is his commandment, that we believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ and love one another, just as he has commanded us (1 John 3:23). Not only can He forgive us of our sins, but He can also give us ears to hear and hearts to obey. “Do whatever he tells you!” That’s a great formula for regret-free living!

Jesus alone can forgive us our sins and give us hearts to obey.

TRUST AND OBEY
When we walk with the Lord
in the light of his word,
what a glory he sheds on our way!
While we do his good will,
he abides with us still,
and with all who will trust and obey.

Refrain:
Trust and obey, for there’s no other way
to be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey.

Not a burden we bear,
not a sorrow we share,
but our toil he doth richly repay;
not a grief or a loss,
not a frown or a cross,
but is blest if we trust and obey. [Refrain]

But we never can prove
the delights of his love
until all on the altar we lay;
for the favor he shows,
for the joy he bestows,
are for them who will trust and obey. [Refrain]

Then in fellowship sweet
we will sit at his feet,
or we’ll walk by his side in the way;
what he says we will do,
where he sends we will go;
never fear, only trust and obey. [Refrain]

January 8

Bible Reading: John 2:1-12

John 2:6-11, “Now there were six stone water jars there for the Jewish rites of purification, each holding twenty or thirty gallons. Jesus said to the servants, ‘Fill the jars with water.’ And they filled them up to the brim.  And he said to them, ‘Now draw some out and take it to the master of the feast.’ So they took it.  When the master of the feast tasted the water now become wine, and did not know where it came from (though the servants who had drawn the water knew), the master of the feast called the bridegroom and said to him, ‘Everyone serves the good wine first, and when people have drunk freely, then the poor wine. But you have kept the good wine until now.’ This, the first of his signs, Jesus did at Cana in Galilee, and manifested his glory. And his disciples believed in him.”

We have in this chapter the first of John’s recorded miracles. Recalling the gospel’s purpose statement (John 20:30-31), this miracle worked to unveil the truth about Jesus’ divinity! Jesus turned water to wine and did it all in an instant.  There is an entire field of education, called “viticulture,” devoted to the study of how to prepare the best wine.  Not long after this event, in about 65 A.D., the Roman writer Columella produced a detailed work (a twelve-volume text) on Roman viticulture called De Re Rustica.  And even today, Viticulture is a field of study at major universities.  It takes a lot to prepare excellent wine—study, time, energy, etc.  Grape vines need approximately 1300–1500 hours of sunshine and about 27 inches of rainfall to develop.  The process, from beginning to end, takes many months.

Jesus took ordinary water and made extraordinary wine out of it.  He didn’t need soil, vines, grapes, rain, harvest, preparation, etc.  He skipped all the steps and created superb wine instantaneously.  The question of the propriety of Jesus turning water into wine sometimes clouds the issue when it comes to the miracle He performed.  He was a man, but no ordinary man—He was and is “the Christ, the Son of God” (John 20:31)—the miracle of the wine revealed the truth about who He is! 

The disciples witnessed the miracle and believed (John 2:11).  He had transformed ordinary water into extraordinary wine. They were ordinary men, but He would work to transform them too.  Jesus, who “does all things well” (Mark 7:37), has the power, through His creative and transforming influence, to take ordinary men and women and make something extraordinary of their lives (Ephesians 2:10).  He can do the same in you!  He has the power to transform!

If Jesus could transform ordinary water into extraordinary wine, imagine what He can do in you!

CHRIST, WHOSE GLORY FILLS THE SKIES
Christ, whose glory fills the skies,
Christ, the true and only Light,
Sun of righteousness, arise,
triumph o’er the shade of night;
Day-spring from on high, be near;
Day-star, in my heart appear.

Dark and cheerless is the morn
unaccompanied by Thee;
joyless is the day’s return,
till Thy mercy’s beams I see,
till they inward light impart,
glad my eyes, and warm my heart.

Visit then this soul of mine,
pierce the gloom of sin and grief;
fill me, radiancy divine,
scatter all my unbelief;
more and more Thyself display,
shining to the perfect day.

January 5

Bible Reading: John 1

John 1:12-13, “But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.”

The Philippian jailer asked a crucial question of the Apostle Paul when he cried out, “What must I do to be saved” (Acts 16:31)?  The Apostle Paul’s answer aligns with what we find in our passage, though found here are also three “wrong ways” by which a person cannot be saved.   

Contrary to the thinking of most, salvation is not the result of man’s own doings. As our text explains, a person cannot be made to be a child of God “of blood.” The Jews of Jesus’ day thought that their salvation to be assured because they were descendants of Abraham (Matthew 3:9). Just as some wrongly suppose they’ve been saved simply as a result of their Christian upbringing. Others think it is enough to be around Christians. But no one can inherit salvation and it cannot be transmitted via osmosis.

A person likewise cannot become a child of God by “the will of the flesh” (Ephesians 2:8-9). No amount of good works can work to wash away our sins or merit God’s favor. Deeds done in religious self-effort are like a “polluted garment” before God (Isaiah 64:6). Things like baptism, communion, going to church, reading the Bible, and doing good works are all important, but it is impossible for a person to become a child of God simply by doing them.

Thirdly, a person cannot become a child of God by the “will of man.” Man is not the arbiter of salvation, God is. False religions establish rules and assure followers of salvation if they do this or that. But God is the one who saves. It is a gift that He bestows by His grace to those who come to Him on His terms.

How then is a person saved?  John 1:12 explains: “But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God.”  God is the one who causes a person to become a child of God.  To whom does He bestow that privilege?  To those who receive Jesus, to those who believe in His name.  The key word when it comes to salvation is the word “believe.”  You’ll find the term used repeatedly in the gospel account. It represents the required response of anyone to the person of Jesus Christ.  To “believe” in Jesus is to trust with one’s heart in Him and in His finished work on the cross (Romans 10:9).  Have you placed your trust in Him?  Have you received Him as Savior and Lord?

Salvation is by grace through faith in Jesus Christ!  He’s the ONE way!

ONLY TRUST HIM
Come, every soul by sin oppressed,
There’s mercy with the Lord;
And He will surely give you rest,
By trusting in His word.
Only trust Him, only trust Him,
Only trust Him now;

Refrain:
He will save you, He will save you,
He will save you now.

For Jesus shed His precious blood
Rich blessings to bestow;
Plunge now into the crimson flood
That washes white as snow.
Come to Jesus, come to Jesus,
Come to Jesus now; [Refrain]

Yes, Jesus is the truth, the way,
That leads you into rest;
Believe in Him without delay,
And you are fully blest.
Don’t reject Him, don’t reject Him,
Don’t reject Him now; [Refrain]

January 4

Bible Reading: John 1

John 1:29, “The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, ‘Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!’”

John 1:35, “The next day again John was standing with two of his disciples, and he looked at Jesus as he walked by and said, ‘Behold, the Lamb of God!’”

“What can wash away my sin?” The old hymn asks a great question, arguably the most important of questions. How can I be acquitted of the sin-guilt that plagues my existence before my creator God?

The principle of a substitutionary sacrifice for sin was well established from that day when God took a lamb and shed its blood to provide garments of skin for Adam and Eve (Genesis 3:21). When God commanded Abraham to sacrifice his son, Isaac asked, “Where is the Lamb?” to which Abraham replied, “God will provide for Himself the Lamb for the burnt offering” (Genesis 22:8)! ”And Abraham lifted up his eyes and looked, and behind him was a ram, caught in a thicket by its horns” (Genesis 22:13). As God provided a substitute that day, so in Jesus He provided a sacrifice for the “sin of the world.” Year after year, day by day, sacrifices were made in the temple. And it is estimated that some 20,000 lambs were slaughtered for Passover in Jesus’ day. But none of those sacrifices could take away sins (Hebrews 10:4). They instead foreshadowed God’s provision of the lamb of God, who would. The Jews of that day knew all about sacrificial lambs but were no doubt surprised by John the Baptist’s declaration! As the forerunner of Christ, John spoke of many things, but no more eloquent words could pass from his lips!

Jesus was a great teacher, wonderful healer, and a perfect example in all he said and did, but those weren’t the primary reasons for His coming.  He came to provide a way of salvation for sinners through His substitutionary sacrifice (1 Timothy 1:15).  The multitudes looked to John the Baptist, as he called folks to repentance, but then, before a multitude of followers, he directed their attention to Jesus as the sole means by which sins could be forgiven. 

What does that mean for you and me? God has provided a perfect sacrifice in Jesus, through which our sins can be forgiven (1 Peter 1:19). It is as we read in 2 Corinthians 5:21, “For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” A divine transaction of miraculous proportion is availed to those who trust in Jesus. He was made to be sin, so that God might exchange our sin for Christ’s righteousness! Behold the Lamb! It is as the hymn says, “Oh, perfect redemption, the purchase of blood, to every believer the promise of God; The vilest offender who truly believes, that moment from Jesus a pardon receives” (To God be the Glory)!

What can wash away your sins?  Nothing but the shed blood of the Lamb of God!

LAMB OF GOD
Your only Son no sin to hide
But You have sent Him from Your side
To walk upon this guilty sod
And to become the Lamb of God

Your gift of love they crucified
They laughed and scorned Him as he died
The humble King they named a fraud
And sacrificed the Lamb of God

Oh Lamb of God, Sweet lamb of God
I love the Holy Lamb of God
Oh wash me in His precious Blood
My Jesus Christ the Lamb of God
I was so lost I should have died

But You have brought me to Your side
To be led by Your staff and rod
And to be called a lamb of God

Oh Lamb of God, Sweet lamb of God
I love the Holy Lamb of God
Oh wash me in His precious Blood
My Jesus Christ the Lamb of God

Oh wash me in His precious Blood
My Jesus Christ the Lamb of God

-Twila Paris