“Though He had done so many signs before them, yet they did not believe in Him. This fulfilled the word spoken by Isaiah the prophet: ‘Lord, who has believed our report, and to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?’ Therefore, they could not believe. For Isaiah said again: ‘He has blinded their eyes and hardened their hearts, lest they should see with their eyes and perceive with their hearts and turn, and I would heal them.’ Isaiah said this when he saw His glory and spoke of Him. Yet many of the rulers also believed in Him. But because of the Pharisees, they did not confess Him, lest they be put out of the synagogue. For they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God.” John 12:37-43

As Isaiah prophesied when he wrote: “Who has believed our report? And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed?” (Isa. 53:1), most of Jesus’ Jewish hearers did not believe He was and is the Son of God in human flesh and their Messiah and Savior from sin. Even though Jesus had done so many mighty miracles and signs in front of them, they did not believe His words and look to Him in faith for salvation.

In fact, because of their rejection of the truth, God blinded their eyes and hardened their hearts as prophesied when Isaiah saw the glory of the LORD and was told, “Go, and tell this people: ‘Keep on hearing, but do not understand; keep on seeing, but do not perceive.’ Make the heart of this people dull, and their ears heavy, and shut their eyes; lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and turn and be healed’” (Isa. 6:9-10).

Though there were a good number of Jewish rulers who came to believe Jesus’ words, they would not openly confess Him because the Pharisees had threatened to excommunicate anyone who confessed faith in Jesus as the Son of God and Israel’s Messiah and Savior. They were more concerned with being accepted by men than being accepted by God.

And what about us today? We have Bibles to read in our languages, with many modern and easy-to-read translations available. There are churches around us, with many still proclaiming the truths of Holy Scripture and pointing people to Jesus as the eternal Son of God and the Savior of fallen mankind. We can read and hear of Jesus’ mighty miracles and often witness them in our lives or the lives of others. We have access to Jesus’ words in print and digital formats — we can download the Bible on our phones and take it with us everywhere.

But do we believe Jesus’ words? Do we accept His witness? Do we believe what He and the Scriptures say: He is the Son of God in human flesh, born a true man of the Virgin Mary, to fulfill all righteousness for us and bear the just punishment for our sins and the sins of all mankind? Do we believe He paid the price for our sins when He died on the cross and that He rose again in victory so that we might look to Him in faith and be pardoned, justified, and made acceptable in God’s sight?

If we reject the truth proclaimed in the Bible, if we reject the words and witness of Jesus concerning our sinfulness and the salvation He provided for us sinners by His innocent sufferings and death on the cross in our stead, if we turn away from Jesus and His Word or neglect to hear Him, God will give us over to our unbelief. He will harden us in our unbelief and sin so that we cannot hear and see the truth, leaving us to die in our sins and face an eternity under God’s wrath and judgment.

And how many of us are like those Jewish rulers who did come to believe but would not openly confess Jesus for fear of being rejected by men and their religious institutions? Do we love the praise of men more than the praise of God?

Jesus said, “Whoever therefore is ashamed of Me and of My words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him will the Son of Man also be ashamed when He comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels” (Mark 8:38). Do these words of Jesus apply to us?

What’s the point of these words of Scripture? Indeed, they warn us against rejecting the witness of the Bible and hardening our hearts against the truth. If we reject the gracious working of God’s Spirit through the Scriptures and refuse to place our faith in Jesus and confess Him as our Savior and Lord, there is no hope for us. We will become hardened in sin and unbelief.

But if, by the grace of God, He opens our eyes to the truth of His Word and we come to know and believe in Jesus as God’s Son and our Savior from sin and eternal death, we have God’s grace and mercy in Christ. We are richly blessed with forgiveness for our sins and a place in God’s eternal kingdom.

O Holy Spirit, let me see Jesus for who He is and what He has done for me and my salvation. Grant that I not turn away from Him or harden my heart in unbelief but repent of my sinful ways and look to Him and His cross for pardon, forgiveness, and the eternal joys of heaven. In Jesus’ name, I pray. Amen.

[Scripture is quoted from The Holy Bible, Modern English Version, Copyright © 2024, 2017, 2014 by United Bible Association. Published and distributed by Charisma House. All rights reserved.]

“Jesus said, ‘I came into this world for judgment, that those who do not see may see, and that those who see may become blind.’” John 9:39 (Read John 9:1-41)

Could it be that your own opinions and beliefs are keeping you from knowing and trusting in Jesus as the promised Messiah and Savior of the world? Do you turn from Him and reject His mighty work as your Savior because He, somehow, doesn’t fit into your religious views and ideas?

When Jesus healed a man born blind, the blind man came to know and believe that Jesus was indeed the promised Christ and the Son of God spoken of in the Scriptures (cf. Ps. 2:7). But the Pharisees, even though it was indisputable that Jesus had opened the eyes of the blind (cf. Isa. 42:5-7), refused to believe in Him and had even agreed that anyone who came to believe in Jesus as the Messiah would be put out of fellowship with the Jewish temple and synagogues. Because Jesus had made clay and healed this man on the sabbath, they said He was not of God and called Him a sinner.

Thus, a man born blind was given sight — both physical and spiritual — and came to know and trust in Jesus as the Son of God and his Savior from sin. The Pharisees, on the other hand, though they could see with their eyes and knew of Jesus’ mighty working, refused to see and believe that Jesus is the Christ and the Savior of the world. Their own religious views and opinions blinded their eyes to the truth which was so clearly revealed to them. Thus, they forfeited the forgiveness and life Christ Jesus won for them.

But what about you? Do you let your own religious views and opinions keep you from coming to Christ Jesus in faith? Are you so convinced that God will accept you on the basis of your own religious works that you do not see your utter sinfulness and the salvation Christ Jesus freely won for you when He fulfilled all righteousness and then suffered and died on the cross for the sins of the world (cf. 1 John 1:7 – 2:2; 1 Tim. 1:15)? And if Jesus were to come to you today, would you reject Him if He did not observe your church traditions and teachings or worship in the same way as you?

The clear and unmistakable truth revealed to us in the Bible is this: We are all sinners and have come short of what God requires of us; Jesus is the Christ, true God and true man; He fulfilled all righteousness for us; He suffered and died on the cross to pay for the sins of all and rose again; In Christ Jesus and for His sake, God is gracious and merciful to sinners and freely offers and gives to all who believe His pardon, forgiveness and life everlasting.

When God graciously opens our eyes and brings us to know and believe these truths, and we place our faith in Jesus, we have His pardon and forgiveness and everlasting life. When we shut our eyes to these truths and refuse to believe in Jesus, we die in our sins and will suffer the eternal torments of hell (cf. John 3:16,18,36; 8:24; Mark 16:15-16; 1 John 5:11-12).

Do you see Jesus for who He is and what He has done for you, or are your eyes blinded by your own views and opinions?

Open my eyes, O Lord, and let me see Jesus for who He is and trust in Him for forgiveness, life, and eternal salvation. Amen.

[Scripture is quoted from The Holy Bible, Modern English Version, Copyright © 2024, 2017, 2014 by United Bible Association. Published and distributed by Charisma House. All rights reserved.]

“The crowd answered Him, ‘We have heard from the law that the Christ remains forever. Why do You say, “The Son of Man must be lifted up”? Who is this Son of Man?’ Then Jesus said to them, ‘Yet a little while the light is with you. Walk while you have the light, lest darkness overtake you. He who walks in darkness does not know where he is going. While you have light, believe in the light that you may become sons of light.’ Jesus said these things, and departed and hid Himself from them.” John 12:34-36

Jesus had told the crowds of Jews who came to the Passover feast that He was about to be lifted up on the cross and die for the sins of the world, but they did not understand or believe that He was God the Son sent into this world to redeem them from sin and death. They did not understand the prophecies of Scripture that spoke of the Messiah’s sufferings and death for the sins of all people (cf. Isaiah 53:4ff.). They did not look to Him in faith for pardon, forgiveness, and eternal life.

Jesus told them, “Yet a little while the light is with you. Walk while you have the light, lest darkness overtake you. He who walks in darkness does not know where he is going. While you have light, believe in the light that you may become sons of light” (John 12:35-36).

Jesus is the Light of the world, as he said in John 8:12: “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows Me shall not walk in the darkness but shall have the light of life.” He speaks the truth about our utter sinfulness before God and the condemnation we justly deserve, and He speaks the truth when He calls upon lost sinners to repent and trust in Him for forgiveness and life everlasting (cf. John 8:23-24; 8:44; 8:34-36; 8:51; 3:3-6,14-21).

Jesus, the very Son of God, took on human flesh and blood and came into this world to save sinners like you and me. He lived a holy life under God’s law and then suffered and died on the cross to bear the full and just punishment for our sins. Jesus’ resurrection is proof that God accepted His sacrifice for sin and that we can be pardoned, forgiven and justified before God through faith in Jesus and His cross (Rom. 4:23-25). Jesus is “the Light of Life.” In Him alone can we sinners have life in fellowship with God our Maker, both now and forever!

Jesus told His hearers that He, the Light of the world, would only be with them in this world a little while longer. He urged them to walk in the light, to come to Him and trust in Him as their Messiah and Savior while they had the chance and still heard the truth before the darkness overtook them and left them to wander in the lies and darkness of sin and unbelief.

The same thing is true for you and me today. We have the light of God’s Word, which reveals our utter sinfulness but also tells us of Jesus Christ, God’s Son, our Savior. It tells us of His perfect life in our stead and of His innocent sufferings and death on the cross for the sins of the entire world and of His glorious resurrection, and it calls upon us to turn from our sinful ways to Jesus in faith, trusting that He paid the just penalty for our sins and that through faith in Him and His cross, we have God’s pardon, forgiveness, and the promise of everlasting life in heaven.

The light of God’s Word shines now upon our hearts, pointing us to Jesus and His cross as the only way of salvation. However, if we reject that light and won’t let it shine into our hearts and lives, revealing our sins but also pointing us to Jesus for forgiveness and life — if we block out that light — we will be left to wander in the darkness of Satan’s lies and deception and, on the last day, to face God’s judgment without Christ and guilty of all our sins. If we fail to walk in the light while we have the light, we face an eternity of darkness!

O gracious and merciful God, shine the bright light of Your Word upon my heart, revealing my sins but pointing me to Jesus and His cross for pardon and forgiveness. Grant that I walk in that light while it still shines and repent of my sinful ways, looking in faith to Jesus and His atoning sacrifice for my sins and the sins of all. I ask this for Jesus’ sake. Amen.

[Scripture is quoted from The Holy Bible, Modern English Version, Copyright © 2024, 2017, 2014 by United Bible Association. Published and distributed by Charisma House. All rights reserved.]

“Truly, truly I say to you, if anyone keeps My word, he shall never see death.” John 8:51 (Read John 8:51-59)

Jesus’ words to His fellow Jews echo His words in John 5 and John 11. Jesus told the Jews in John 5:24: “Truly, truly I say to you, whoever hears My word and believes in Him who sent Me has eternal life and shall not come into condemnation, but has passed from death into life.” In John 11:25-26, Jesus said to Martha when her brother Lazarus had died: “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, yet shall he live. And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die.”

What does this mean? It means that the one who trusts in Jesus Christ as God’s Son and His Savior will not suffer eternal death and damnation. Though believers may die physical or temporal death and their bodies be placed in the grave, they will not die spiritually or eternally.

At death, God’s angels carry their souls into heaven to be with the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. On the Last Day, when Christ returns, He will bring their souls with Him, raise up their bodies as glorified heavenly bodies, and they will, according to both body and soul, dwell forever with the Lord Jesus.

St. Paul wrote to the Philippians: “For to me, to continue living is Christ, and to die is gain. But if I am to live on in the body, this will mean fruitful labor to me. Yet I do not know what I shall choose. I am in a difficult position between the two, having a desire to depart and to be with Christ, which is far better. Nevertheless, to remain in the body is more needful for your sake” (Phil. 1:21-24; cf. Luke 16:22-23; Rev. 6:9-11: 7:9-17).

To the Thessalonians, St. Paul wrote: “But I would not have you ignorant, brothers, concerning those who are asleep, that you may not grieve as others who have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and arose again, so God will bring with Him those who sleep in Jesus. For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord will not precede those who are asleep. For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet call of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we shall be forever with the Lord.” (1 Thess. 4:13-17; cf. Phil. 3:20-21; 2 Cor. 5:1-9; 1 Cor. 15:1-58).

Jesus called upon His hearers — and He calls upon us today — to hear and believe His words, to believe He is the eternal Son of God who came into this world a true man to redeem us by His perfect atoning sacrifice, to turn from our sinful ways, and to look to Him and His cross for pardon, forgiveness, and life eternal.

As Jesus said, those who keep His saying and look to Him for pardon and forgiveness will not see death — they won’t be condemned to eternal damnation in the fires of hell but have passed from death to life. At death, their souls will be carried by God’s angels into the presence of Abraham and all the saints who have looked to Christ for mercy, and on the Last Day, their bodies will be raised up as glorified and heavenly bodies and reunited with their souls, and they will dwell forever with the Lord!

Grant that I hear and believe Your words, dear Lord Jesus, so that I may share in Your victory over death and live in Your presence forever. Amen.

[Scripture is quoted from The Holy Bible, Modern English Version, Copyright © 2024, 2017, 2014 by United Bible Association. Published and distributed by Charisma House. All rights reserved.]

“Now judgment is upon this world. Now the ruler of this world will be cast out. And if I be lifted up from the earth, I will draw all men to Myself.” John 12:31-32 (Read John 12:27-33)

Jesus came into this world to suffer and die on the cross and make atonement for the sins of all, and by doing so, He would bring glory to God the Father (cf. John 12:27-28).

While Jesus, who was in perfect communion with the Father, did not desire to be condemned and forsaken by God as He bore the guilt of mankind’s sin, that is what the Father sent Him into this world to do. And, by His sacrificial death on the cross for all our sins, He would make it possible for you and me and for all people to be pardoned, forgiven, and restored to fellowship with God our Maker.

After God the Father again spoke from heaven that all might know and recognize Jesus as the Son of God and their Messiah and Savior, Jesus said, “Now judgment is upon this world. Now the ruler of this world will be cast out. And if I be lifted up from the earth, I will draw all men to Myself” (John 12:31-32). What did Jesus mean?

God’s judgment was about to be meted out upon this sinful world and all its inhabitants, and Jesus would bear that judgment for all when He was lifted up on the cross and there suffered and died the just punishment for the sins of all people. By bearing our guilt and dying in our stead, Jesus made it possible for us to look to Him and His cross in faith and be justified, forgiven, and restored to communion and fellowship with God our Father. He would, through the preaching of the cross, draw all people to Himself, offering them forgiveness from God and everlasting life in fellowship with the Father through faith in His name.

Jesus’ voice, His call, still sounds forth today, calling upon lost sinners to repent of their rebellious and sinful ways and to look in faith to Him and His cross for pardon and forgiveness. He promises pardon and eternal life to all who turn to Him in faith.

Jesus suffered our punishment, and He rose again on the third day in victory. He defeated Satan, who rules over all in this world, having brought us under the curse and condemnation of God’s law by our sin. But Satan is now overcome and defeated through Jesus’ atoning sacrifice. He is cast out of heaven and will suffer God’s eternal punishment, along with all whom he has deceived into living in accordance with his lies.

Jesus now offers you the benefits of His victory over Satan. He seeks to rescue you from Satan’s rule and draw you to Himself, forgiving your sins and restoring you to fellowship with God the Father. Will you acknowledge your sins and turn to Him in faith, or will you turn away from Him in unbelief and continue on in your sinful and rebellious ways to partake of God’s eternal wrath and judgment?

As the Scripture says, “He who believes and is baptized will be saved. But he who does not believe will be condemned” (Mark 16:16).

O gracious God, have mercy upon my soul and draw me to Jesus and His cross in faith that I might receive of Him pardon, forgiveness, and the eternal joys of fellowship and communion with You. In Jesus’ name, I pray. Amen.

[Scripture is quoted from The Holy Bible, Modern English Version, Copyright © 2024, 2017, 2014 by United Bible Association. Published and distributed by Charisma House. All rights reserved.]