Scripture: John 15: 20-21

²⁰ Remember what I told you: ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’^[b] If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also. If they obeyed my teaching, they will obey yours also. ²¹ They will treat you this way because of my name, for they do not know the one who sent me. 

Scripture Commentary:

Jesus gave His life out of His love for us. The world rejected Him. He was spit on, beaten, whipped and nailed to the cross. Jesus tells us that if they persecuted Him, they will persecute His people too.

Jesus came into the world with love and forgiveness and was punished by people who only wanted to continue their lifestyle.

Are we any different than our forefathers?

Jesus gave His life for us out of love. In turn, we reject Him when we do not help or love one another. We must choose to follow Jesus or not. Without Jesus, we deny ourselves the life He offers.

We are the vine; Jesus is the trunk.

We either bear fruit for Jesus or we are an unproductive twig to be broken and burned. Be not of this world; live as Jesus teaches. The world will hate Christians because its agenda is different.

Jesus prunes us to produce godly fruit.

As a branch of Jesus’s tree, we are to love and live to spread the gospel. Christ is the vine; God is the gardener who works on us to make us fruitful.

Are you fruitful for Jesus or are you barren?

Read the Entire Chapter of the Scripture Referenced:

John 15

Read Other Commentary from the Book of John

Believe on the Name of Jesus

Wilt Thou Be Made Whole?

Scripture: Job 21: 13-14, 32

They spend their years in prosperity and go down to the grave in peace.^{[a] 14} Yet they say to God, ‘Leave us alone! We have no desire to know your ways. ³² They are carried to the grave, and watch is kept over their tombs.

Scripture Commentary:

Each of Job’s friends spends time giving their opinion of why God is punishing Job. Eliphaz tells Job that his view of God is not of the greatness that it should be. Eliphaz asks Job why he has a small, narrow view of God.

We know from reading Job that it is not God who is hurting Job. God gave Satan permission to do this. When we see someone going through hard times, we should not assume that they are being punished. We are not to be judge and jury, only God has that title.

Eliphaz gives a summary of repentance but he did not know what God was doing in Job’s life. He is correct when he says we must ask for God’s forgiveness when we sin, but this did not apply to Job. Sometimes things happen and we do not know why but our faith in God will bring us through, if not on this side of life, then on the other side if we believe.

Don’t question God. Thank and praise His name.

Who are you without God to guide you in the way to go? Without God, life is nothing but an empty shell with no purpose.

Don’t ask God to depart from you. If He does, then Satan becomes your companion. Because God gave His Son Jesus Christ for your sin, you can be forgiven if you repent and go to God.

Praise God!

Read the Entire Chapter of the Scripture Referenced:

Job 21

Read Other Commentary from the Book of Job:

Would You Curse God?

Don’t Despise God’s Discipline

Scripture: Jeremiah 44: 11, 16, 29

¹¹ “Therefore this is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: I am determined to bring disaster on you and to destroy all Judah.  ¹⁶ “We will not listen to the message you have spoken to us in the name of the Lord! ²⁹ “‘This will be the sign to you that I will punish you in this place,’ declares the Lord, ‘so that you will know that my threats of harm against you will surely stand.’ 

Scripture Commentary:

In this chapter we see how the people turned on God to worship other gods. They refused to listen to the message spoken in the name of the Lord. They refused to learn any lessons from the destructiveness of their disobedience and sinfulness.

Is our lifestyle today similar to that of the Israelites of yesteryear?

When we look at the Israelites we can see ourselves in them. What have we learned? We repeat sin because we don’t want to walk with God. The further we move away from God, the more confused we become. We refuse to recognize the true source of our sinfulness, disobedience and rejection of God. When you place worldly goods before God, that becomes what you worship.

God had Jeremiah tell the people not to go to Egypt. They disobeyed God and forced Jeremiah to go with them. This is the last we hear of Jeremiah. The Bible does not tell us what happened to him. Only God knows.

Read the Entire Chapter of the Scripture Referenced:

Jeremiah 44

Read Other Commentary from the Book of Jeremiah:

The Symbolism of the Linen Girdle

Return to Me, Declares the Lord

Scripture: Jeremiah 39: 17-18

¹⁷ But I will rescue you on that day, declares the Lord; you will not be given into the hands of those you fear. ¹⁸ I will save you; you will not fall by the sword but will escape with your life, because you trust in me, declares the Lord.’”

Scripture Commentary: Rescue comes from the Lord.

In Jeremiah 39, there is no rescue for King Zedekiah, who rebelled against Nebuchadnezzar. He was captured and Jerusalem taken. Jeremiah, on the other hand, was beaten and jailed for proclaiming God’s message.

Zedekiah couldn’t decide between public opinion and God’s will. Doesn’t that sound familiar as we hear public opinion and God’s message? Has the human race learned anything yet? We seem to be acting like the people did 2000 plus years ago.

Follow God’s truth, not public opinion.

Like the people of the past we say we want accurate information, but not God’s truth. Jeremiah, both then and even now, tells us God’s message. Satan’s message spreads evil and destruction. Jeremiah never wavered from God’s Word; he stood firm.

God protects His own.

Jerusalem fell and the people were taken into captivity (except for the poor), but Jeremiah and Ebed-Melek were set free. God protects His true servants. God has special rewards for His servants, if not in this life in His eternal kingdom, our final resting place.

To know God is to serve Him and to serve God is to love Him. To obey God is to hear Him and to hear God is to worship Him.

Read the Entire Chapter of the Scripture Referenced:

Jeremiah 39

Read Other Commentary from the Book of Jeremiah:

Woe to Leaders Who Scatter God’s Flock

We Must Acknowledge Our Wickedness and Change Our Ways

Scripture: Matthew 10: 38-40

Whoever does not take up their cross and follow me is not worthy of me. ³⁹ Whoever finds their life will lose it, and whoever loses their life for my sake will find it. ⁴⁰ “Anyone who welcomes you welcomes me, and anyone who welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me. 

Scripture Commentary: What is life?

Life is a gift from God. What do you do with a gift? You may play with it, wear it, throw it away, cherish it, or use it. There are so may ways you can use a gift.

In Matthew 10: 38-40, Jesus offers ways to use the gift God has given us. He says that with this gift there may be pain, heartache and discomfort, but in the end there is eternal joy.

Jesus did not come to bring the kind of peace that eases differences just for the sake of superficial comfort.

Conflict comes to people who follow Jesus. In following Christ you are leaving the things of the world behind, and in doing this you may be leaving loved ones. Jesus says you have a choice. Take up your cross and follow Him or go the way of Satan.

The way of the world is temporary. The money, glamour and glitter are only for a moment. Jesus’ way may have hardships and difficulties but did the world give Jesus a life of roses? No! So why would you get better?

Jesus calls you to a higher mission than to find comfort and tranquility here on earth.

To take your cross and follow Jesus is to be willing to identify with Him and to experience opposition from the world that is on another path that is not following the things of Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Read the Entire Chapter of the Scripture Referenced:

Matthew 10

Read Other Commentary from the Book of Matthew:

Not Everyone Has a Relationship with God. What About You?

Jesus Came to Save the Lost

Scripture: John 3: 16

 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

Scripture Commentary: For God so loved us …

John 3:16 is one of the most important verses in The Bible. For God so loved the world that He gave us the sacrifice of His only begotten Son!

What a gift, what a promise! And what a choice we have! We can choose to accept Jesus Christ or not accept Him. We each get to choose. The entire gospel comes down to the choice in this verse.

God so loved us that He sent His Son to prepare a way for us for redemption.

When you love dearly, you are willing to give freely to the point of self-sacrifice. God paid the highest price with the life of His Son Jesus Christ. Jesus accepted taking the punishment for our sins on Himself. By this, He offers us a new life with His Father in heaven.

The eternal life Jesus has for us is not the life we are living here on earth. It is a life free from sin, sickness, death and chaos. This heavenly life is not an extension of what we are enduring here.

In the Old Testament the priest sacrificed unblemished animals daily to atone for the sins of the people. When God sent His Son as a sacrifice for our sins, He was perfect without blemish for He had no sin. As such, Jesus is the only one who could be sacrificed for the sins of all people.

For God so loved us that He lets us choose our path.

We are to serve and put our love and trust in Jesus Christ; His promise of everlasting life in His Father’s Kingdom is ours for eternity. To reject Jesus is to spend eternity in Hell. If you think you are living in hell now, this is nothing to what is waiting for those who reject Jesus.

Read the Entire Chapter of the Scripture Referenced:

John 3

Read Other Commentary from the Book of John:

Believe … Even Thomas The Doubter Believed

Jesus Is the One and Only

Sermon, Who I Am Not  – Part Three: Who Is the Messiah?

Scripture: John 1: 19-27

¹⁹ Now this was John’s testimony when the Jewish leaders^[c] in Jerusalem sent priests and Levites to ask him who he was. ²⁰ He did not fail to confess, but confessed freely, “I am not the Messiah.”  ²¹ They asked him, “Then who are you? Are you Elijah?”  He said, “I am not.”  “Are you the Prophet?”  He answered, “No.”  ²² Finally they said, “Who are you? Give us an answer to take back to those who sent us. What do you say about yourself?”  ²³ John replied in the words of Isaiah the prophet, “I am the voice of one calling in the wilderness, ‘Make straight the way for the Lord.’”^{[d]  24} Now the Pharisees who had been sent ²⁵ questioned him, “Why then do you baptize if you are not the Messiah, nor Elijah, nor the Prophet?”  ²⁶ “I baptize with^[e] water,” John replied, “but among you stands one you do not know. ²⁷ He is the one who comes after me, the straps of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie.” 

Jesus is the only perfect sacrifice.

John the Baptist said he was not worthy to be Jesus Christ’s slave or to take off His shoes.  John emphasized why he came; to prepare the way for the Messiah.  The Messiah, the Son of God, is the only one who has the power to forgive you of your sins.

A life had to be given to pay the penalty for sin and God sacrificed Himself.   Jesus Christ is the only perfect sacrifice; His death removed all obstacles between God and us. 

Jesus gives us direct access to the Father.

We now have direct access to God the Father through Jesus Christ, our advocate.  John the Baptist took his place as the humble servant.  In Luke 7:28, Jesus says, “For I say unto you, Among those that are born of women there is not a greater prophet than John the Baptist: but he that is least in the kingdom of God is greater than he.”

Think about this: the day you stand before God and He looks at you, He will ask if you did the tasks He gave you.  Will He welcome you to His heavenly kingdom or will it be as Jesus says in Matthew 25: 12, “But he answered and said, Verily I say unto you, I know you not.”

If John the Baptist felt so inadequate to even unlace Jesus’s sandals, how then are we not to serve Jesus with all of our mind, body and soul?  Whatever sense of pride and self-importance we may feel has to melt away.

In Judiasm, religion, a lamb was sacrificed in the temple every morning and evening for the sins of the people (Exodus 29: 38-42).  Isaiah 53:7 prophesied that the Messiah would be led to the slaughter like a lamb.  The price for the people’s sins was the price of a life. 

Jesus Christ was the price for all humankind.

The sacrifice had to be perfect, without spot or blemish.  The sacrifice had to be sinless.  No one except Jesus Christ fits this description.  This is the way that our sins are forgiven.

This is why John the Baptist, even though he was a well-known preacher with a large following, he knew the role he was placed here on earth for: to be the kerusso, the announcer for the coming of the Messiah.

In conclusion, John the Baptist told the Pharisees who he was not.  He was not the Messiah, not God’s only Begotten Son and not the light for the world.  Also, he was not the Lamb of God, not the one to take away the sins of the world.  Additionally, he was not the alpha or omega, and not the I AM.  And he wasn’t able to raise the dead and heal the sick.  He wasn’t the Messiah.

John the Baptist was the one who baptized with water; the voice of the one calling to prepare the way of the Lord.  He was the servant of God.

Who are you and what are you doing for God? 

What are you doing for your neighbor?  Are you reflecting the light of Jesus Christ?  Do you spread the Gospel of Jesus, help your neighbor, and show love?  Are you trying to be the servant that God placed you on earth to be?  We are not perfect but we are to be the best servant for God that God created us to be.

Read the Entire Chapter of the Scriptures Referenced:

John 1

Luke 7

Matthew 25

Exodus 29

Read Part One and Part Two of the Sermon, Who I Am Not

Sermon – Part One: Who I Am Not

Sermon – Part Two: Do You Know Who Jesus Is?

Sermon, Who I Am Not  – Part Two: Do You Know Who Jesus Is?

Scripture: John 1: 19-27

¹⁹ Now this was John’s testimony when the Jewish leaders^[c] in Jerusalem sent priests and Levites to ask him who he was. ²⁰ He did not fail to confess, but confessed freely, “I am not the Messiah.”  ²¹ They asked him, “Then who are you? Are you Elijah?”  He said, “I am not.”  “Are you the Prophet?”  He answered, “No.”  ²² Finally they said, “Who are you? Give us an answer to take back to those who sent us. What do you say about yourself?”  ²³ John replied in the words of Isaiah the prophet, “I am the voice of one calling in the wilderness, ‘Make straight the way for the Lord.’”^{[d]  24} Now the Pharisees who had been sent ²⁵ questioned him, “Why then do you baptize if you are not the Messiah, nor Elijah, nor the Prophet?”  ²⁶ “I baptize with^[e] water,” John replied, “but among you stands one you do not know. ²⁷ He is the one who comes after me, the straps of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie.” 

Do you know who Jesus is?

Jesus is the Son of God, the Messiah, the sacrificed Lamb that was led to slaughter, the High Priest, the Prince of Peace, the Light of the World, God’s Only Begotten Son, and the I Am.

John the Baptist was preordained in his mother’s womb when the angels told his mother how he was to be raised.

God has a plan for each of us, like He had for John, but to know your mission, you must know and accept God.  The Book of John shows Jesus as fully human and fully God.  Although Jesus took full humanity onto Himself, He never ceased to be the eternal God who has always existed.  He is the Creator and Sustainer of all things, and the source of eternal life.  This is who John the Baptist tells the world that Jesus is.

Jesus is the one true light.

We, like John the Baptist, are not the source of God’s light; we merely reflect God’s light.  Jesus Christ is the one true light.  He guides us to the Father.  We must never think we can be the one who brings the light; we are only reflectors of Christ’s light.

When we accept Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior, we become part of God’s family and are spiritually alive with God’s grace.  This is God’s gift to all of us. 

Don’t be like the Pharisees that went to John the Baptist asking who was he.  They had the Old Testament.  They had the Torah plus the prophets to tell them who he was. These same books told them about Jesus Christ.  These same priests outwardly obeyed God’s law to look pious while their hearts were filled with pride and greed.  These religious leaders believed their oral traditions were just as important as God’s Word.

The Pharisees asked John who gave him authority to baptize.  They really were asking why was he baptizing God’s chosen people like Gentiles? When John replied that he was baptizing with water, he was merely helping the people perform a symbolic act of repentance.  But one was coming who would truly forgive sins.  He is the Messiah, Jesus Christ, God’s only Begotten Son.   He is the only one with the power to forgive.

John the Baptist said he was not worthy to be Jesus Christ’s slave or to take off His shoes.  John emphasized why he came; to prepare the way for the Messiah.  The Messiah, the Son of God, is the only one who has the power to forgive you of your sins. 

Read the Entire Chapter of the Scripture Referenced:

John 1

Return Next Week to Read Part Three of the Sermon, Who I Am Not

Read Part One of the Sermon, Who I Am Not

Sermon – Part One: Who I Am Not

Scripture: John 1: 19-27

¹⁹ Now this was John’s testimony when the Jewish leaders^[c] in Jerusalem sent priests and Levites to ask him who he was. ²⁰ He did not fail to confess, but confessed freely, “I am not the Messiah.”  ²¹ They asked him, “Then who are you? Are you Elijah?”  He said, “I am not.”  “Are you the Prophet?”  He answered, “No.”  ²² Finally they said, “Who are you? Give us an answer to take back to those who sent us. What do you say about yourself?”  ²³ John replied in the words of Isaiah the prophet, “I am the voice of one calling in the wilderness, ‘Make straight the way for the Lord.’”^{[d]  24} Now the Pharisees who had been sent ²⁵ questioned him, “Why then do you baptize if you are not the Messiah, nor Elijah, nor the Prophet?”  ²⁶ “I baptize with^[e] water,” John replied, “but among you stands one you do not know. ²⁷ He is the one who comes after me, the straps of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie.” 

In John 1,  John the Baptist is asked, “Who are you?”  In verses 20 and 21, he tells them who he is not.  People today will tell you who they are.  I am a banker, a brick layer, and lawyer, a car washer, a teacher.  The list goes on and on.  But the real question is who are you really?

Are you a follower of Jesus Christ? 

Do you believe Jesus is God’s Only Begotten Son, the Lamb of God, The Messiah, the light for the world?

Some will say yes but their words have no meaning.  What does Jesus mean to them?  If they do not love or study the Word, and there is no forgiveness in their life, they practice or worship a religion of self-gratification. 

What is your real agenda?

The priests and Levites sent the Pharisees to question John the Baptist about who he was, not about who he was serving.  But their real agenda was to find out why so many people were coming to hear him preach and be baptized in the wilderness. 

The Jews did not baptize.  Their duty as guardians of faith caused them to want to investigate any new preaching.  (Deuteronomy 13: 1-5 and Deuteronomy 18: 20-22).  Deuteronomy tells them to beware of false prophets who encourage worship of other gods.

In questioning John the Baptist, they wanted to find out if he had the credentials of a prophet.  John’s popularity was growing to the point that his followers were leaving them for John.  They were jealous. 

The Pharisees had four questions regarding John the Baptist’s identity:

1. Was he a prophet foretold by Moses (Deuteronomy 18: 15)?
2. Elijah (Malachi 4: 5)
3. The Messiah, a high priest
4. A false prophet

John denied being the first 3 personages.  He called himself, in the words of the Old Testament prophet Isaiah, “The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make straight in the desert a highway for our God.”

The Pharisees kept pressing John to say who he was because they were expecting the Messiah.  The Pharisees were Jewish leaders educated in the Jewish law, religious prophecy, and the Book of Isaiah telling of the voice of him crying in the wilderness, preparing the way of the Lord.

These same priests rejected Jesus Christ, the Messiah, when He came.  The Pharisees missed the point.  They wanted to know who John was but John wanted them to know who Jesus is.

Read the Entire Chapter of the Scriptures Referenced:

John 1

Deuteronomy 13

Deuteronomy 18

Malachi 4

Read Other Sermons from The Gospel Mailman:

What Would God See From Heaven Today?

We All Have Sinned

Return Next Week to Read Part Two of the Sermon, Who I Am Not

Scripture: 2 Kings 20: 1-3

In those days Hezekiah became ill and was at the point of death. The prophet Isaiah son of Amoz went to him and said, “This is what the Lord says: Put your house in order, because you are going to die; you will not recover.”  Hezekiah turned his face to the wall and prayed to the Lord, “Remember, Lord, how I have walked before you faithfully and with wholehearted devotion and have done what is good in your eyes.” And Hezekiah wept bitterly.

Scripture Commentary:

Isaiah tells Hezekiah he is going to die soon and there is nothing that can be done.  Death will happen to all of us and there is nothing we can do about it.  It’s an appointment each of us will have to keep.

The question before you is what are you doing before you die?  Are you out partying and lounging around doing nothing or are you serving God to the best of your ability?

Your arrival date is recorded in the book of life as is your departure date.  But as you read on in 2 Kings 20, you see that God says, “I have heard your prayer and seen your tears; I will heal you.”  Hezekiah does not die right away; He is given 15 more years.  

Maybe someone you know was told they would die soon.  Maybe it was you.  But it didn’t happen and more time was given.  Did you acknowledge God for what He did?  Did you thank Him? And what will you do with that time?

Life is a one-time gift from God.  And death, also, is part of the journey.

Read the Entire Chapter of the Scripture Referenced:

2 Kings 20

Read Other Commentary from the Old Testament:

What Is Your Purpose?

Wait Upon the Lord