pickledilly

This makes me think of Pharaoh and his response to the truth that Moses spoke from Yahweh. Rejection of the truth was already in his heart. Every time he was confronted with truth and chose to refuse it, his heart became set that much more against it. In Jesus’ day, the Pharisees were doing the same thing. They made mental decisions to close their own eyes to the truth before them and to choose unbelief, and that framework of refusal made their hearts more and more hardened. Such resistance could originate from just about anything (ultimately, the root is pride), but repeated and consistent denial of truth ultimately leads the LORD to give the unbeliever over to the natural progression toward total blindness to truth and deadness of understanding to spiritual reality (according to Isaiah 6:10 as quoted in John 12:40). The interesting thing about this is that in His omniscience, God already knows who will reject truth and He knows that the message of truth will harden that rejection. But as the fair Judge, He gives opportunity and responsibility for the unbeliever to demonstrate that response to truth - and to choose to believe. God offers healing of the calloused heart through the grace of Christ, if the unbeliever will only turn. But defiant rejection of truth leads to increased hardness, and persistent hardness leads toward an irreparably degenerate condition. Even a miracle won’t necessarily break through that kind of intellectual choice not to believe the truth, especially as the heart/mind become hardened from rejection. Again, I think of my brother Doug that I mentioned in an earlier lesson. He saw the same miracles that brought our mother back from death’s doorstep, yet he rejects the truth that the past 9 years of her life have been a gift from our powerful and merciful healing God. I continue to pray that his heart will soften and turn before it's too late.

In several instances, Jesus spoke of literally being “lifted up”. I agree with Pastor Ralph that He likely had triple meanings of (1) being lifted up on a cross to atone for man’s sin, (2) being lifted up out of the grave in resurrection to overcome death, and (3) being lifted up to His rightful place in heaven by ascension as Redeemer and Savior. In these specific verses, I think He particularly spoke of the crucifixion, since John tells us in verse 33 that Jesus was speaking of the way He would die. “EXTRA CREDIT”: Isaiah 52:12 speaks of Israel’s deliverance from bondage and divine protection as God goes before her and follows as her rear guard. Perhaps we’re meant here to look at Isaiah 52:13? Behold, my servant shall act wisely; he shall be high[H7311] and lifted up[H5375], and shall be exalted[H1361, H3966]. The same Hebrew words here were also used in Isaiah 6:1, where Isaiah “saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high[H7311] and lifted up[H5375]”, speaking of Christ’s position of importance and prominence. Also in Isaiah 57:15, the same words speak of “the One who is high[H7311] and lifted up[H5375], who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy.” H7311=rûm, which means to be set on high, raised, uplifted, exalted of person H5375=nâsâh, which means to lift up, bring forth H1361=gâbahh, which means to be high, exalted, made higher (H3966 is a superlative to intensify H1361 = very high) The context of all 3 of these verses regards the personal and positional lofty height, incomparable glory, and supreme majesty of Christ’s exaltation when He ascended back to heaven. Philippians 2:8-9: And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name. Jesus obeyed the Father’s will that required His death. This obedience pleased the Father by accomplishing His will, and He consequently raised Christ from the grave and restored Him to His superior elevated position of exaltation and great authority in heaven. I tend to think that, while Jesus did use the term “lifted up” in those 3 different ways and they’re all related, John 12:33 specifically identifies His statement about being lifted up from the earth in verse 32 as a prophetic word about His death, which would be by crucifixion. This was the prophesied death that would lift Him up to so effectively pour out His blood in atonement for all sin.

Jesus came to minister the Kingdom of God to His own, the Jewish world. But the hour had come for the “whole earth” to be filled with His glory, the time when the Gentile world would be welcomed into that Kingdom and the Savior would be greatly magnified before all men. The time had come when the veil of separation would be divinely torn down, the wall of division between Jew and Gentile would be broken, and He would unite all into one Body. This would bring Him ultimate honor as His plan for the redemption of the world was fulfilled. And this could only be accomplished through the dark valley of His death. The purpose of God-come-to-earth-in-flesh was to die for all. Through that would come the release of the full weight of the worth of God and the honor that is rightfully His. To explain that concept, Jesus brilliantly used the example of a seed. The only way to produce multiplied fruit and abundant harvest is to plant a dead dried seed in the ground. New life bursts forth and produces greater fruit. Jesus is the spiritual Seed that died and was buried, the Seed that sprouted new life in resurrection, the Seed that grew strong and produced millions of fruit. The glory of God rested on Jesus in His earthly life, but because of His victory over death, the presence of that glory would now be distributed throughout the earth in the fruit of His death – His Body of all who are spiritually produced from that one Seed. We who believe are that fruit. God’s glory revealed even in death is also illustrated in the lives of those who believe on and follow Christ. We were first born of perishable mortal seed, but through faith in the resurrection and exaltation of Jesus we are now born of imperishable immortal seed (1Peter 1:21,23). In our natural state we were spiritually dead to God, but now we’ve been raised up and made alive with Christ (Colossians 2:12-13). In Christ, God proclaims us dead to sin and now alive to righteousness (1Peter 2:24). Believers have been baptized into the death of Christ and buried with Him so that we can live in the newness of His holy life in us (Romans 6:3-4). And the new life of Christ in us will produce abundant abiding fruit (John 15:16). The old life must die and be buried in order for the new one to grow and become spiritually productive. Through Christ we’re filled with the fruit of righteousness, to the glory and praise of God (Philippians 1:11).

To love and value our eternal life so much that it makes any love for this earthly life and things of this world look like hate by comparison truly is the essence of what it means to be a disciple. I think Jesus was using hyperbole, as He did many times. This doesn’t mean we must despise our life on earth, for God intends for us to enjoy life abundantly wherever we are! To me, it means that we must not become so “in love” and attached to this world that we are governed by its ways, philosophies, ideologies, desires, etc. We must not set our hearts on the things of earth more than we long for for the things of heaven. We should always consider ourselves more as citizens of heaven than residents of earth. A person blinded by a high regard for the life in the transient earthly realm will end up losing true life in the eternal realm. This is what Jesus demonstrated for us in the Garden of Gethsemane. Even as He struggled mightily and asked if there was any other way, He “died” to His own human will and surrendered completely into the perfect will of the Father. This was the only path to please God and to be exalted and honored by God.

Jesus was righteously angry, and justifiably so. The commercial activity going on in the temple revealed that the heart of Israel was far from Yahweh and the disregard of His holy House of Prayer was inexcusable and intolerable. Jesus, as God the Son, had the authority and right to be infuriated with their disrespect, dishonor, and disobedience. Psalm 4:4-5, Be angry and do not sin…put your trust in the LORD. Ephesians 4:26-27, Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger and give opportunity to the devil. Anger is sometimes an appropriate response to injustice and wrong. But we’re warned in Scripture to beware. The danger of anger is when we allow this intense feeling to take over our thoughts, words, and actions. When we nurse anger and do not deal with it, we react out of this raging emotion rather than respond with a clear reasonable head. And harboring anger leads to resentment, bitterness, and a hardness of heart. The remedy is to face it, confess it, and trust God with it so that it does not become a tool of satan that will be used to steal, kill, and destroy.

Faith in miracles is not the same thing as faith in the miracle-worker. Even today, people often believe in miraculous events but entirely miss the source when something happens that is contrary to the expected logical outcome. But this kind of “faith” is mental, unstable and insecure, it depends on what is happening and what others think. This is not the true faith that pleases God and leads to salvation. Mark 9:24, I believe; help my unbelief! True faith is not just intellectual, but moves deep into the heart. I think the main way this happens is through the process of rejoicing in the miracle but looking beyond it to see the One who accomplished it. True faith then can develop into a trust from the core of your being that becomes the primary foundation and influence for everything that you believe, the way you think, the words you speak, and the actions you take. The truest faith is placing complete trust in Christ as God the Son who has atoned your sin and redeemed you to God. Jesus knew the people were never going to be convinced and brought to faith solely by the miracles He performed, no matter how numerous. So there were times when He held back or entirely left the area. They were looking for the miracle of a king who would deliver them, and were not seeing beyond the miracles to truly believe the Miracle-Worker for who He is.

The people showed their belief that Jesus was the Messiah as prophecy became reality before their eyes. They had been awed by this miracle-worker who now made His way to Jerusalem, the city of the king, riding on the donkey of a king. They understood what this meant from their Scriptures, so they joyfully joyfully waved branches of honor as He passed by and celebrated Him with praise identifying Him as the King of Israel who came in the name of the LORD, the Son of David. They cried out to Him, “Hosanna”, oh save us now. Prior to this moment, Jesus’ work was that of the Son of Man who was proclaiming and demonstrating God’s Kingdom and will, and He only allowed Himself to be publicly known in that role. That aspect of His mission was now completed and He was to begin His final task as the Anointed One, the Son of God who would save the world from sin with His own blood and establish everlasting peace between God and man. So this was finally the hour when their declarations and praise of His true identity were appropriate.

Everything about Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection was foretold in prophecy, and this was no exception. The prophecy from Zechariah 9:9-10 clearly identified that Messiah would ride as a king on a young donkey as He came to make and proclaim peace to the world. In fulfillment of prophecy, Jesus rode such a donkey as He made this final entry into Jerusalem as The King who was coming to bring about permanent peace between God and man. The people who witnessed the resurrection of Lazarus and all those who joined them were in a state of great anticipation and excitement that Jesus was coming in the name of the LORD as the Son of David, the King of Israel. They shouted praise and waved palm branches in a procession to escort Him into the city, expecting that He had arrived to take His throne. In that moment they understood what He was clearly declaring – that He is Messiah, the Anointed One of God. They simply didn’t understand the way Messiah was coming as the Prince of Peace. The crowds became so great and so enthusiastic that the Pharisees felt they were totally losing control.

Judas objected to Mary’s extravagant act of devotion because he had been habitually stealing from the disciples’ treasury and such an expensive perfume/oil was worth a LOT of money. He would have preferred it be sold and added to the funds that he would have had access to for his own benefit. Judas was greedy, devious, and dishonest. Jesus defended Mary because of the motive for her action. Out of pure love, she anointed His feet in an honest act of generous worship, holding nothing back for herself. She apparently never intended to sell this jar of oil, but had saved it for other purposes. Yet now, she poured it out for Jesus, just as He would soon pour Himself out for her/us. It’s interesting to me that this incident occurred soon after her brother Lazarus had died and been raised back to life by Jesus. If Mary had used nard to anoint Lazarus’ body, she may have just purchased a new jar to save for a future need – a need she could see coming. She was surely aware of the intense hatred of the Jewish leadership and threats they made on Jesus’ life. She knew He faced certain danger in Jerusalem. Maybe she was thinking about the real possibility that Jesus would soon die and her time with Him was very short, and this moved her tender heart to lavish the oil on Him that evening at the dinner. It’s interesting to know that some of the effects of nard are oxygenation of the brain, emotional calmness, enhanced mood, relaxation from stress, and reduced anxiety. This anointing certainly foreshadowed Jesus’ anointing in death. But maybe Mary had a more practical compassionate thought in mind for Him as she poured it all out on His feet, massaged it in, and wiped the excess with her own hair. Her actions and the effects of the oil would have ministered to Jesus in body, mind, and spirit. Regardless of her exact intentions, they were pure and fully focused on Jesus, and they pleased and glorified Him. And she wasn’t concerned with what anyone else thought about it. When I honestly compare my worship to this example of Mary, I fall very short and am very grateful the Father does not judge me in comparison to anyone else. But what an inspiration to beware of being stingy - with my time, with my full attentiveness, and with my full resources. And to beware of being deterred by what others may think about it when I know what I should do and give. A willingness to release all to Him is what He wants most from me.

There was no fear or trepidation involved when Jesus withdrew to Ephraim. He was in full authority over the timing of all that was to happen that would lead to His death. According to God's plan and prophetic word, this was not the way it was going to happen, and it was not yet His time. When that moment came, Jesus was ready to act in obedience to the Father’s will without hesitation. There is a time for strategic retreat as we wait on the LORD’s plan and time table.

Caiaphas intended to sway the Sanhedrin by saying that it would be better to have this one man die than to have a division and uprising that caught the attention of Rome and invited political intervention which would destroy the Jewish system and people. He presented the idea as a self-preservation motive for dealing with Jesus and disposing of Him once and for all. But Caiaphas inadvertently spoke a great truth of prophecy! I think he spoke the words without any heart of understanding. Jesus would die [to save] the nation, and not for the nation only, but also to gather into one the children of God who are scattered abroad. This is the same thing Isaiah 49:5-6 foretold in saying the LORD would return the dispersed but preserved people of Israel to the land He promised to them and would make them like a light for all nations so that His salvation would reach to the end of the earth. This salvation was coming through God the Son's death for our sin, and it would ultimately reconcile all to God and unite all as one in Christ (Ephesians 2:14-16).

This is the first time I’ve studied the Greek words embrimaomai and tarassō in vs.33, and my goodness, how that entirely changes the interpretation! It’s always been taught to me that this was a tender moment of Jesus’ love and compassion for His friends where God demonstrated how He is deeply moved by our sorrow. But when we apply the actual definitions and accurate tone of these words, it is obvious now that Jesus wept because of His profound sorrow over the unbelief and lack of faith that He observed all around Him. In contrast to Martha’s resolute statement of faith in the face of her sadness (vs.21,22,24,27; even though she didn’t yet understand), Jesus was now dealing with Mary and the mourners who were loudly wailing and weeping with unreserved despairing grief, thinking only of their loss. Their response was symptomatic of the generalized lack of belief and refusal to see the truth among God’s chosen people that He had come to save. He was indignant and even angered at their blinded hardened hearts, perhaps even more toward the religious leaders who were misleading and oppressing the people from truth than toward the people themselves. He was so intensely emotionally agitated and deeply disturbed in His spirit that it made Him physically wince and shudder at their complete ignorance of Yahweh’s power at work in their midst and promises being fulfilled before their eyes. Before ever leaving for Bethany, Jesus knew that He was going to raise Lazarus from physical death in order bear witness to Himself as the Resurrection and the Life, and even told the disciples (vs.4,11,14,25,40). So He had absolutely no reason to personally grieve over Lazarus. And in light of accurate understanding of the text, I no longer believe that He was overcome with a personal sense of grief for the sorrow of Mary. Yes, Jesus wept over the grieving Mary – and the rest of His chosen. He certainly has a tender heart toward us in our times of mourning. But this was not out of a mere sympathetic sadness in the death of Lazarus. Just like that moment when He would soon arrive in Jerusalem the final time before His death, He wept (Luke 19:41-44) with a broken-hearted, gut-wrenching grief over His people’s unseeing unbelief and rejection of Yahweh’s plan and promises, and their blindness to the time of their “visitation” (Greek word episkopé, meaning visitation of judgment and oversight) when God the Son came as their overseer to inspect their hearts and search their souls. What He found there is what moved Him to tears of lament.

Martha’s personality has been portrayed in a bit of a one-dimensional way, that she was a strong type-A who was in everybody’s business. She was definitely an organizer and hard worker who was focused on the task at hand, which seems to have made it more difficult for her to see the moment at hand. Mary grasped the moment, stopped everything to savor it, and probably just knew the rest would be there when she got to it. But Martha’s confession was rock-solid and clear. She believed that Jesus was the Messiah, the promised Son of God that the Jews had been waiting for. Martha wasn't one to sit and listen, but over time she had certainly been watching Jesus and hearing His message even with her body in motion tending to tasks. When she heard Jesus was finally coming into Bethany, she is the activist who dropped everything to run directly to Him with her sorrow and affirmation of faith. It was Martha who pointed grief-stricken Mary to Jesus. And perhaps it was her highest gift of worship to serve according to the personality and gifts God had given her. Wisdom for us all, I’d say.

God possesses self-existent life, therefore He is the source of all life and anything that has life (both physical and spiritual) has received it from Him (John 5:26). When the God the Son set aside His deity to come to earth in human flesh (Philippians 2:6-7), He set aside His own personal inherent power of life eternal (John 1:4). I understand this to mean that Jesus became utterly dependent on the Father to give Him this spiritual life while in His earthly physical body and to restore Him to His eternal life after that body died. When the physical body of Jesus perished, the Father raised it from death and Jesus received that eternal power of life into Himself when His body was resurrected. So He certainly embodies and personifies resurrection from physical death. This resurrection power that will raise all believers on the Last Day and the spiritual life that lives eternal already dwell in Jesus. The great and glorious promise of John 11:25 is that Jesus assures us we’ve already been given everlasting spiritual life when we believed on Him – life that cannot die. And then He promises in vs.26 that He will use that same power of resurrection He possesses to raise us from physical death into eternal life like Him! On that Day, as we are finally completely “made to be like Him”, this power of resurrection and life will be fully given as our own, just as it was given to Jesus when the Father raised Him from death! 1John 3:2 Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is. What glory awaits us on that day!

It appears that Thomas expected the likelihood of death because of the intensifying danger from the Jewish leadership in Jerusalem, but he was prepared with the courage and allegiance to face it if Jesus said “go”. Where He leads me, I will follow. And Thomas was a leader to the other disciples who questioned the wisdom of that plan. He certainly believed this was the Son of God, their Messiah, and was he was steadfast in his faith that Jesus is the Answer and the Hope for his eternity.

In the world of shepherds, attempts to snatch a sheep would come from thieves and robbers. The ultimate thief that Jesus identified as the one who would try to snatch a believer from the Good Shepherd if he could is satan, who stalks us as prey like a roaring lion. The wonderful assurance that this is literally IMPOSSIBLE is Jesus’ promise that no one and no thing can snatch us from the mighty unbreachable hand of God as we are jointly held by the Father and the Son. Hallelujah! He is the only One who could save me, and He has promised to keep me as His own for eternity.

A hired shepherd does not have the same vested interest in the sheep, as a herd or as individuals, that the owner has for them. The owner has paid a price for them and he is the one who invests in the costs of their care. When the going gets hard or great danger arises, the owner has a far greater concern for what belongs to him than the hired shepherd could. So this “good shepherd” owner would go to far greater lengths to provide for and protect his flock, even putting his own life in danger. Our Good Shepherd has laid down his own life to save His flock from most grave danger, even to the point of His own death. His audience here would have completely understood this analogy as they imagined a helpless sheep being relentlessly pursued to be savagely taken down by a vicious wolf who sought to rip it to shreds – but then that cruel enemy finds itself facing the good shepherd who comes to the aid of his sheep and now takes the brutal attack himself in order to make the way of escape possible for his own. Humanity is being chased by a vicious enemy who only has the goal of stealing from the Owner, killing the sheep, and destroying the flock. But Jesus is the Good Shepherd who stood between the wolf and His sheep, and laid down His own life on the beam of a wooden cross to take the full-on heinous attack in order to save us. Thank You is just not enough.

A sheep with an attentive, capable, and caring shepherd would live a life with rest in green pastures, gentle waters, tender care, and protection from dangers and predators. As a “sheep” of the Good Shepherd, we also have access to an abundant life. For those who choose life in Him rather than death in our sin, we are promised blessings rather than curses. We certainly enjoy a greater protection in the natural world as God hedges us into His care, but the abundant life of our Shepherd is much more about the spiritual realm. Our life in Jesus holds many promises. In Him are our green pastures, where we can find rest, comfort, and sustenance for our wearied hungry souls. In Him is our fountain of living water, where His own Spirit floods us with His presence, His cleansing, His refreshment, His hydration of the soul. In Him we find our Guide, Provider, Healer, Encourager, and Friend. In Him we have a fierce and loyal Guardian and Keeper whose protective eye is always on us and on those who come against us, whose presence is always with us with strength and peace, whose weapons and defenses are always available to defend us against any enemy’s attempts to steal, kill, or destroy. This abundance of life relates to His sheep in times of plenty or want, peace or conflict, freedom or oppression, joy or sorrow, physical life or death. In this life we find security and contentment and purpose, and we can maintain our confident hope of the ultimate “pasture” He has prepared for His sheep. And that gives courage for whatever we face along the way. No unbeliever has access to this kind of life that is only provided by and found in Jesus, the Good Shepherd.

Just as each Judean shepherd had a unique sound and call for the sheep of his flock, Jesus has a unique voice and call for all who belong to His flock. His is the voice of pure and holy God, and it sounds different from the voices of worldly philosophy, interpretation, and viewpoint. His voice will not be calling us in the same direction that the world and our own thoughts/understanding/desires will demand. It truly is a process and practice of learning to hear His voice, first of all because it is so often a still, quiet one amidst the loud raucous voices of the world, the persistent voice of satan in our ears, and our own insistent voices within. Psalm 46:10 directs us to “Be still and know that I am God” because it is in that quieted peace of a calm soul that we are listening and able to hear – and know. I think the most prominent way Jesus speaks to us through His Spirit is by His Word because that is where He instructs us in the truth that develops discernment. The more we learn His Word, the more we become capable of sorting out the voices, their sources, and their validity. It's by knowing what is authentic and true that we are able to identify what is false. Sometimes we will hear Him through remembrance of Scripture. Sometimes it's by a clear whisper of direction in the mind/heart. Sometimes His voice comes to us from the lips of another believer. Sometimes it's an intangible but certain "knowing". Even when it seems difficult to be completely certain, we can be sure that His voice will never contradict His Word and He will ultimately make things clear.

2Corinthians 4:4 reveals that unbelievers suffer spiritual blindness because truth is veiled to those who are perishing in their sin. They are blinded by our enemy, the “god of this world”, who darkens their minds from seeing the light of the gospel of Christ and His glory. Ephesians 2:2 tells us that those who follow the course of this world, as governed by the “prince of the power of the air” (cf Ephesians 6:12), live in the passions of the flesh to carry out their own desires. So those who belong to satan belong to the darkness and desires of their own bodies and minds. This is the natural state we all were once in. The account of Pharaoh is a great parallel to consider here, and it demonstrates the deeper understanding that comes from comprehensive Bible study. Pharaoh considered himself to be the incarnation of their Egyptian creator god Amun-Re. In his eyes, this wasn’t a power struggle between Egyptians and Hebrews, but was a battle of authority between 2 gods (and each of the 10 plagues was Yahweh’s specific demonstration of His power over the domains of the whole order of lesser gods). Pharaoh saw this as a personal challenge to his presumed deity and authority to maintain cosmic order. The LORD already knew how Pharaoh would react, but gave 10 opportunities for the ruler to recognize, accept, and yield to the truth. The record of scripture makes it clear that every single time Pharaoh stubbornly chose to reject the light he was given, his prideful heart became increasingly hardened in sin until there was no turning back. Pharaoh’s heart was hardened to the light of truth by his own doing. Though not in the same way, the Jewish priesthood of Jesus’ day had set themselves above their own God Yahweh and were threatened by and staunchly opposed to any challenge to their authority and position. In following the systems of this world (and thus being governed by its god, satan) they suffered darkness of the mind and heart. As God-in-the-flesh stood right in front of them to repeatedly demonstrate and proclaim Truth, they remained in spiritual darkness because they flatly rejected every ray of light they were given. And so, yes, the Pharisees were responsible for their hard hearts and spiritual blindness as they yielded themselves to the god of this world instead of Elohim, their omnipotent God who created this world and now revealed Himself as their Messiah, the Way and the Truth and the Life. Amazingly, the proof was so compelling and the threat of challenge to their way of life so real that they fell into a scheming blind panic mode and grasped at whatever means it would take to hold onto the worldly order they knew and treasured. In lesson 17, question 1, I mentioned my precious brother and am reminded of him again here. Doug witnessed the same miracles in our mother’s healing that I saw. Yet he has deepened his spiritual blindness because he has continued to reject God’s merciful demonstration of His power of life over death that everyone else clearly sees. His heart has become so hardened by resistance to truth that he says he doesn’t think he believes in God at all. (In our conversations he traces the roots of doubt and disbelief back to his youth as he saw profound hypocrisy in church members who called themselves Christians. What a sad, tragic condemnation.) I know God can still break through that darkness to open his spiritual eyes - and I still pray to that end!!

When Jesus heard the man had been cast out of the synagogue, He went to find him. The questions this previously blind man had been asked by these religious leaders had led him on a mini faith journey as he saw through their hypocrisy and began to discern for himself that Jesus had to be One from God, One who was sinless, One who obeyed God’s will, One who had the ear of God. The man saw firsthand the futility, emptiness, and blindness of religion, and with a well-studied Jewish background he was prepared with knowledge of history and Yahweh’s promise of Messiah. At that point, he was entirely open to the personal encounter with the Son of Man that he needed to transform that knowledge to faith. And that is the moment of conversion for every sinner!

I feel certain Jesus ministered healing in these seemingly random ways with defined purpose in each situation. We don’t know those specific reasons, only the general objective of His earthly life to glorify the Father in doing the works and will of the Father. His healing miracles were (are) always to the glory of God, with tremendous benefit to the people involved – both physical and spiritual. The ways He healed reflected His knowledge of the impairment of the body and also the damage to the soul. And I think people recognized some of His choices in cultural ways we don’t understand. For example, making a poultice of mud with His saliva was in direct contrast to the eye salves of that day that perhaps had been tried but were useless for this man’s congenital blindness. Jesus was so in tune with the Father and so utterly dependent on Him that it’s impossible for me to think the individual decisions to heal and the methods used were led by anything other than the Father’s direction. When we seek to minister to others, this is an important lesson about our need to rely on the Spirit as He communicates the Father’s direction to us. Only He knows the true need of body and soul, and the accurate remedy and method for healing in each individual situation.

Sin and affliction are sometimes caused by sin of self or others, but certainly not always. John 9:3 became an important lesson in faith for me in June of 2005 when my mother suffered a ruptured brain aneurysm and subsequent serious heart attack that brought her to the doorstep of eternity. We learned that if you have an aneurysm you were born with it, and the heart attack was brought on by the extreme stress of the brain injury, so she had done nothing to “deserve” this. My mother’s condition continually worsened and the doctors prepared us for the worst. Yet the Lord impressed John 9:3 on my heart. I wrote it down and kept it in my pocket to read over and over all during those long days of waiting at the hospital. I shared my faith in God’s goodness, but in light of the circumstances I just felt it was audacious to share that particular verse with my family and struggled at times to fully hope in what it seemed to clearly say. So I just kept trusting His wisdom and praying that everyone involved would be astounded by whatever He chose to do. On the 11th day after she was stricken, my mother woke up from what was thought to be her final state in a coma, and she began an astonishing recovery that took her all the way through rehab and discharge to go home 6 weeks from the day she fell ill - at 95+% restored function! She is still a walking talking miracle today! I am convinced that what was a medical crisis and impending sorrow to us was an opportunity for God to display His glorious works. He used that circumstance to grow our faith, to inspire an entire community of believers to fervently pray and trust Him, to remind the medical professionals that He is greater than all the best of their knowledge and expertise (her doctors still remind her what a miracle she is), to display His power to unbelievers, to remind His own people that He is a miracle-working God, and to give us a new perspective and heart for others in their own situations of affliction and loss. He sometimes allows sickness and suffering in order to use it as a powerful undisputable testimony of His great and mighty works, as He did in my mother’s life! And I don’t believe He does this without regard for the person suffering the hardship, using us like pawns. We know He allows all kinds of things in our lives that are meant to more fully reveal Himself to us and teach us deeper lessons of faith and hope that strengthen our relationship with our Father in ways that can’t be accomplished any other way. And then these lessons also become assets in our own ministries to others. None of us knows His mind and can’t know His reasons for physically healing some and not others. But His will is perfect and intended for our ultimate good, even when we can’t see it.

Jesus Christ is the “I AM” who existed before Abraham and called him to be the father of a great nation of God. He is I AM who revealed this name to Moses in the burning bush as He set in motion the divine plan to deliver His people from slavery. He is I AM, the self-existent One, the Alpha and Omega who was, and is, and shall forever be the true and living Lord God Almighty (Revelation 1:4,8; 4:8). He is the Word who was with God in the beginning of creation when all things were made. Jesus is I AM who is equal with God because He IS GOD. He is I AM, the source of life and the light for all mankind, I AM who can never be overcome by the darkness of evil and sin. (John 1:1-5) Hallelujah, what a Savior!

John 8:44 teaches us that the devil has never been anything but a murderer and a liar who has nothing to do with the truth. When we do not tell or believe the truth, we are acting according to the character of this “father of lies”, the originator of deceit. Because Jesus Himself is the Truth, when we do not believe Him we are rejecting truth in favor of lies. That would make the habitual liar a child of the devil, not of God.