KJB Daily Devotion – Following Jesus Through Every Chapter
Date: Friday, November 16, 2018
Chapters: John 20-21
Message: Knowing It Is Jesus
Hello My Friend,
I was offered a job, one that I actually thought I did not get, even asked God why I could not it, but yesterday it became official, I got the job, but do not start until the twenty-eighth of the month. I used my recent job to get a reference and told them that I was not leaving, but that did not stop my boss from cutting my hours that same day. I made the decision to just leave all together, trusting that God will supply for the weeks that I will have no income with my new jobs. The second we choose to trust God with something here comes the devil to place doubt and fear into our mind, “You fool, you had a paycheck coming in, why did you leave!” How often do we put up with unfair treatment, the bad boss, spouse, friend, relationship, partnership, whoever it is, out of fear rather than trust God to take us where He really wants us? More often than we think. Let me tell you, there really is no better feeling to discover that Jesus played a hand in making something happen because You trusted Him over your doubts. In this day and age, and with the devil working overtime, it can be hard to spot Jesus, but when you do you know it is Him. “In thee, O LORD, do I put my trust; let me never be ashamed: deliver me in thy righteousness. Into thine hand I commit my spirit: thou hast redeemed me, O LORD God of truth.” – Psalm 32:1,5.
Trust; Confidence; a reliance or resting of the mind on the integrity, veracity, justice, friendship or other sound principle of another person. When we trust Jesus with our soul, we say that we have confidence that He alone is our salvation and are resting on the fact that when we leave this earth in the flesh, our soul will be present with Jesus. If we can trust Jesus to do this, than we can trust Him with everything else in our lives. The key to trust is faith, we must have faith, not only in the Scriptures, but if God Himself. How many people walked with God before the Scriptures were even written? Many including, Adam, Abraham, Job, and Moses, remember, he is the one that God told to write about creation and Abraham. We do not need a Bible to trust God, the Bible just confirms everything and teaches us how God wants us to live with Him. Now, as we come to the last testimony regarding Jesus resurrection, John tells the story as he witnessed the empty tomb himself. Mary Magdalene and some of the other women were the first to find out that Jesus was no longer in the tomb, of course, this led to all sorts of questions. She runs down the hill, sees John and Peter, perhaps they were coming also to visit the grave, and tells them that Jesus was not there, and immediately they all ran up the hill to check it out.
“The first day of the week cometh Mary Magdalene early, when it was yet dark, unto the sepulchre, and seeth the stone taken away from the sepulchre. Then she runneth, and cometh to Simon Peter, and to the other disciple, whom Jesus loved, and saith unto them, They have taken away the Lord out of the sepulchre, and we know not where they have laid him. Peter therefore went forth, and that other disciple, and came to the sepulchre. So they ran both together: and the other disciple did outrun Peter, and came first to the sepulchre. And he stooping down, and looking in, saw the linen clothes lying; yet went he not in. Then cometh Simon Peter following him, and went into the sepulchre, and seeth the linen clothes lie, And the napkin, that was about his head, not lying with the linen clothes, but wrapped together in a place by itself. Then went in also that other disciple, which came first to the sepulchre, and he saw, and believed. For as yet they knew not the scripture, that he must rise again from the dead. Then the disciples went away again unto their own home. But Mary stood without at the sepulchre weeping: and as she wept, she stooped down, and looked into the sepulchre, And when she had thus said, she turned herself back, and saw Jesus standing, and knew not that it was Jesus.” – John 20:1-11,14.
“and he saw, and believed.” This is actually John, he refers to himself as the disciple Jesus loved or other disciple. John did not need to read the Scriptures or see Jesus physically to believe that this man walked out of that tomb alive. Jesus may not have talked about His resurrecting, but John seen Jesus raise people from the dead, he seen Him heal and cast demons out of people, as soon as he walked in the tomb he believed. Remember, we can harden our hearts to seeing Jesus if we are trusting what is in front of us rather than God. The was Mary Magdalene, Jesus cast demons out of her, and raised her brother from the dead, she could not see that it was Jesus because her grief of His death hardened her heart. While she later discovered that it was Him, do you realize how many religions grieve, year after year over Jesus’ death? Hello! Yes, He died, but He is Risen! Celebrate life! The truth about all this is that they do not believe that He has risen. There are so many religions that teach about Jesus being a prophet or man of God, who was martyred for His faith, but Jesus is all of that and more, but they cannot see Him for who He truly is for the hardness of their heart. “Now if Christ be preached that he rose from the dead, how say some among you that there is no resurrection of the dead? But if there be no resurrection of the dead, then is Christ not risen: And if Christ be not risen, then is our preaching vain, and your faith is also vain. Yea, and we are found false witnesses of God; because we have testified of God that he raised up Christ: whom he raised not up, if so be that the dead rise not. For if the dead rise not, then is not Christ raised: And if Christ be not raised, your faith is vain; ye are yet in your sins.” – I Corinthians 15:12-17.
“And if Christ be not raised, your faith is vain; ye are yet in your sins.” Do you see this? If you believe that Jesus died, but did not resurrect, your faith is in vain, and you will die in your sins. Jesus told this exact same thing to the disciples. They along with several others later that night gathered together as they feared the Jews would capture them, when Jesus came in the midst of them and spoke to them.
“Then the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled for fear of the Jews, came Jesus and stood in the midst, and saith unto them, Peace be unto you. And when he had so said, he shewed unto them his hands and his side. Then were the disciples glad, when they saw the Lord. Then said Jesus to them again, Peace be unto you: as my Father hath sent me, even so send I you. And when he had said this, he breathed on them, and saith unto them, Receive ye the Holy Ghost: Whose soever sins ye remit, they are remitted unto them; and whose soever sins ye retain, they are retained.” – John 20:19-23.
“Whose soever sins ye remit, they are remitted unto them;” This does not mean that Jesus gave them the power to forgive people of their sins once they confessed them, only God can forgive sin. This means that whoever they speak to, if they believe in the Gospel, His death, burial, and resurrection, that it alone will forgive them of their sins, then they will be removed and saved. If they do not believe then their sin will remain, and will die in their sin. We must believe in the entire Gospel, and that He alone is our salvation if we want to be saved. In all my years of reading this I discovered something, the disciples did not get saved either until the believed on the Gospel. One of the disciples was not there and did not see Jesus, Thomas, he refused to believe that Jesus was alive until, not only he saw Him, but placed his fingers in His nail pierced hands.
“But Thomas, one of the twelve, called Didymus, was not with them when Jesus came. The other disciples therefore said unto him, We have seen the Lord. But he said unto them, Except I shall see in his hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and thrust my hand into his side, I will not believe. And after eight days again his disciples were within, and Thomas with them: then came Jesus, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, Peace be unto you. Then saith he to Thomas, Reach hither thy finger, and behold my hands; and reach hither thy hand, and thrust it into my side: and be not faithless, but believing. And Thomas answered and said unto him, My Lord and my God. Jesus saith unto him, Thomas, because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed. And many other signs truly did Jesus in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book: But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name.” – John 20:24-31.
“and be not faithless, but believing.” Do you know how many people see something miraculous right before their eyes and still do not believe in the power of God? Jesus wanted Thomas to understand that seeing Him was not believing in Him, but He must have faith to believe in what he was seeing. You know, we can see some amazing things with our eyes, imagine what we can really see by opening them to Jesus? Blessed are those who have faith and believe without seeing, for they will truly see the power of God working in their lives. “These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God. And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us: And if we know that he hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of him.” – 1 John 5:13-15.
Jesus Christ Magnified: “Jesus saith unto her, Touch me not; for I am not yet ascended to my Father: but go to my brethren, and say unto them, I ascend unto my Father, and your Father; and to my God, and your God.” – John 20:17.
Today’s Prayer: God, There is nothing more powerful than Your Word, no matter how many people try to alter it or our perception of it it always remains as it is written. It is comforting to know that when You have a plan You stop at nothing for it to come to pass, including Your plan for me. Thank You for loving me and not giving up on me, for waiting patiently for me to learn the truth about Your Son, and how important it is to have Him in my life. Thank You Jesus, for dying for me, for redeeming me, for making me one of Your very own, and for revealing Yourself to me more times than I can count. You have done so many things for me and my family alone that the book would be humongous. I love You Lord, and pray in your name, Jesus, Amen.
God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina
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