“Jesus Knows what is in Man.”

John 2:23-25

The title someone placed above these verses in my English Standard Version of the Bible is: “Jesus Knows what is in Man.”  It is important to understand these verses are not referring to how we were designed, for our Designer has full understanding of His design.  In Psalm 139:13, we are told, “For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother’s womb.”  And in the same chapter verse 16, “Your eyes saw my unformed substance; in your book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there were none of them.”  So this heading is not addressing livers, brains, kidneys, or any other visible parts.

Jesus is referring to what Scripture calls the heart, and lets be clear He is not talking about that organ in your chest that pumps blood, He is not addressing something seen, but the real you, and the Bible addresses this as the heart or the Soul of a person.  Your Soul is unseen and cannot be removed by a medical doctor or changed from bad to good but your Creator, Jesus Christ will when invited, do just that.  The Scripture is very clear on this, that man has a choice to invite or reject this gift of life offered by Jesus.  But that does not make Christian robots, they still must choose how to walk in this world: according to the flesh, or in the Spirit.

So when it is states in John 2:24-25, “But Jesus on his part did not entrust himself to them, because he knew all people and needed no one to bear witness about man, for he himself knew what was in man.” Jesus being the designer saw the Soul of people, He designed them with mind, will, and emotions, we often see the reaction of the Soul, but none of us have the ability to look into a person’s soul, or heart.  One of the best examples of this is found in the gospel according to Mark 2:1-12.  Mark gave this account of Jesus returning to Capernaum and when the neighbors found out that he was at home so many came that no one else could get in and Jesus was preaching the word to them; that is when four guys showed up with a paralytic, and when they could not get into the house they removed the roof above Jesus, and after making an opening, they let down the bed on which the paralytic lay.

Picking up Mark’s account in verse 5, “And when Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, “My son, your sins are forgiven.”  Now some of the scribes were sitting there, questioning in their hearts, “Why does this man speak like that?”  He is blaspheming!  Who can forgive sins but God alone? And immediately Jesus, perceiving in his spirit that they thus questioned within themselves, said to them, “Why do you question these things in your hearts?  Which is easier, to say to the paralytic, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Rise, take up your bed and walk’?  But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins” –he said to the paralytic – “I say to you rise, pick up your bed, and go home.”  And he rose and immediately picked up his bed and went out before them all, so that they were all amazed and glorified God, saying, “We never saw anything like this!”

As a side note; I want friends like these four men who brought their friend to Jesus, who healed him.

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

House Cleaning

John 2:13-22

In our busy culture, one business that has done very well is the cleaning profession.  These companies clean businesses, churches, hospitals, and homes.  We have one in our area of Texas called Molly maids, and my wife also has one she prefers, it goes by the name Bob.  In the last few weeks, we as a society have observed mobs of people who take over parks, I do not know what is in their hearts, but my observations are that they need someone to come behind them and clean up their mess, or better yet, they need to put their house in order.  They need to be responsible for their personal hygiene, and to the others camped around them to remove trash, and they have a responsibility to the owners of the park and the many who work and shop in the area to keep their protest from causing harm or being disruptive to many who do or do not share their views.  I’m almost sure you are asking, how does this tie into the action of Jesus cleansing the Temple?

I do believe there is some symbolism between the two events, though time and setting are vastly different.  The people that took over the park were using it for something the owners and designers never envisioned, and the same could be said about the Temple.  Those who sold oxen and sheep and pigeons, and the moneychangers were not part of the design and builder’s plans for the temple.  These people had an agenda and it was built around self, and if you get no other message from the people in the park, it was all about them, all about self.

If you are reading this paper, more than likely you are of the Christian faith, and many of us missed the story, just like the Jews did at the time Jesus made the whip of cords and drove out those businessmen with their sheep and oxen and turned over the tables of the moneychangers.  “And he told those who sold the pigeons “Take these things away, do not make my Father’s house a house of trade.” (John 2:16)  Do you believe these businessmen were concerned that the outer court of the Temple smelled like a cow lot, no more than those people in the park who revealed by their actions that they did not care about the park or the businesses around the park?  But Jesus was telling a much bigger story, and once more we Christians, like the Jews, missed the message; the Jews wanted to know “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.” (John 2:18-19)  The Jews said, are you out of your mind it took forty-six years to build this temple, and you will 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.”

Is your body a temple?  The answer is found in 1 Corinthians 6:19&20, “Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God?  You are not your own; you were bought at a price.  Therefore honor God with your body.”  This body of ours, houses the real you; mind, will, and emotions, and Scripture tells us it needs maid service, each and every day.  Ephesians 4:22&23, gives clear directions on what to put off.  “To put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds.” Shall we look at the short list of what you and I need to put off: (1) Lack of Love - 1John 4:7, 8, 20, (2) Judging - Matthew 7:1,2, (3) Bitterness - Hebrews 12:15, (4) Unforgiving spirit - Mark 11:26, (5) Selfishness - Philippians 2:21, (6) Pride -Proverbs 16:5, (7) Boasting (Conceit) - 1Corinthians 4:7,  (8) Ungratefulness - Romans1: 21, (9) Disrespect for Authority - Acts 23:5, (10) Prayerlessness - Luke 8:1.

Folks, that is a very short list of what needs to be cleaned up in our temple, but we also need to do some refurnishing and we find that in Romans 13:14, “But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires.”  Once more, this is a very short list of what needs to be put on: (1) Love - John 15:1, (2) Let God search my heart - John 8:9; 15:22, (3) Tender hearted and forgiving - Ephesians 4:32, (4) Forgiving spirit -Colossians 3:13, (5) Self denial - John 12:24, (6) Humility - James 4:6, (7) Esteeming others - Philippians 2:3, (8) Gratefulness - Ephesians 5:20, (9) Honor authority - Hebrews 13:17, (10) Praying - Matthew 26:41.

When you invited Christ into your life, at that moment you got all of God you will ever get, and your body is home to the Holy Spirit, is it not time to ask Jesus to send in His cleaning service?  But it will require you and me to listen and obey, and to put off and put on what He has instructed us to do in His Hand book on living life now.

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

A Mothers Secret

John 2:1-11

How long can you keep a secret, not some little something like we are going to have a baby or my wife/husband is going to be the next CEO of a Fortune 500 company, I mean a big secret, one like Mary had been keeping for thirty years.  Most of us are not that good at keeping secret the good things that have happened to us, an a good thing had happened some thirty years earlier; the Holy Spirit had placed the Son of God into a virgin and that virgin was Mary, the mother of Jesus, the Christ.  We have no record of how many weddings Mary and the family had attended, but we do know that Jesus is thirty and this friend of the family the bridegroom has a problem, too little wine, or too many big drinkers’ at the wedding.  The Scriptures do not tell us the motivation of Mary, we are not given any insight as to why she did what she did, but for some reason she says it’s time to come out of the closet, it’s time for my oldest son to show the neighbors that He is more than a carpenter. 

Now imagine, you were also invited to that wedding, if you are Baptist it will help if you imagine the wine was grape juice, and that’s ok, unless you read on and it tells us that the good stuff was served first so that when the guests got a little wasted, they would not know the cheap $3.00 per bottle wine was being served.  You may be like me, if food is being served I want to get there early, so were eating and watching, Mary the mother of Jesus shows up, and guess what, Jesus also shows up with some guys who seem to be part of a group of some kind.  We are all eating and drinking, when I over heard Mary say to Jesus, “They have no wine.” And Jesus said to her, “Woman, what does this have to do with me?  My hour has not yet come.”  His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.” (Taken from John’s gospel 2: 3b-5) 

Now, I’m not sure what you were thinking, but I was wondering why Jesus called her women and not mother, and what did he mean by my hour has not come?  By now, I had forgot all about food, in fact I got closer, so I could see what Jesus was going to tell the servants, and this is what happen, just like John reported in verses 6-10, “Now there were six stone water jars there for the Jewish rites of purification, each holding twenty or thirty gallons.  Jesus said to them, “Fill the jars with water.”  And they filled them 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 that had 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.”

I’m not sure about you, but I got back into the line and after tasting this water that was now wine, I ask the servant to fill my cup to the rim, it was the best wine I had ever drank.  But you may have been in the food line when this happened, you may not have seen Jesus do this amazing thing, and as I reflect, he did not say any magic words, all He did was pray to the Father, and it was a done deal.  I’m a little ashamed to tell you but later that night I tried to do the same thing, but I must have heard the wrong formula, because mine tasted like water. 

As I was leaving I saw that group of guys that came with Jesus and I knew they were there when the water was turned to wine so I listened to what they were saying and the biggest of the group, man did he need a bath, he smelled like a fish, but he said to the group, He is Messiah, and another, his name was Nathanael, said Jesus is the King of Israel, He is the Son of God. 

We do not use our imaginations that often in the world of I-phones, I-pads, computers, and Television, but if you had been there, and if you had seen the water become wine, would you have believed like Nathanael?  Would you agree with what was written, that Jesus is the only Son of God?

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

On a Scale of 1-10

John 1:45-50

It has always been difficult for me to not share what I’ve seen or heard, especially when it is a new phenomenon.  As a five year old, it was the fort we built in the farms grain crop, Tommy Black and myself had dug holes in the farms field and cut his maze and weaved it into a fort and out of the fort we fought and killed many Indians.   Both of our mothers had to come and see the fort, and I’m sure when the farmer cut his grain, it was an experience out of the ordinary.  And I remember riding our bikes to the Back Bay in Corpus Christi, with fishing poles, and bringing home a stringer of speckled trout; it was something you shared with almost anyone who gave you the chance.  In my senior year of High School the fighting Roy Miller Buccaneers won the State Championship; now that was a phenomenon, and it is something we shared with all who would listen.  Jan and I took our first trip to England, and the things we saw for the first time were extraordinary and marvelous, and we had pictures to show any poor guest who came for dinner.  Yes, when something out of the norm happens, we want to share it with any and all, and that is what Philip did after meeting Jesus.

We find this report in the gospel according to John, and we pick up the story in John 1:45-46, “Philip found Nathanael and said to him, “We have found him of whom Moses in the Law and also the prophets wrote, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.”  Nathanael said to him, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?”  Philip said to him, “Come and see.”  The name Jesus was a common name and it is of interest to see that often in the Scriptures Jesus is called, Jesus of Nazareth, and He also refers to Himself using that name.  “Now Nazareth is the city were Joseph and Mary lived, and the home of Jesus till the announcement of his messiahship at the age of thirty.  The area is secluded in the mountains, halfway between the Mediterranean and the Sea of Galilee, yet it was near the well-traveled highway between Egypt and Mesopotamia.” (Taken from the Archaeological Supplement page 1681 of the Thompson Chain Bible NIV)

It does not sound as if Nathanael is a fan of Nazareth or anyone who has come from there, but this we know, he went to see this Jesus of Nazareth, and this is what took place: “Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward him and said of him, “Behold, an Israelite indeed in whom there is no deceit!” Nathanael said to him, “How do you know me?”  Jesus answered him, “Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you.”  Nathanael answered him, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God!  You are the King of Israel!” Jesus answered him, “Because I said to you, ‘I saw you under the fig tree,’ do you believe?  You will see greater things than these.”  And he said to him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, you will see heaven opened, and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man.”

This was a new phenomenon for Nathanael, out of the ordinary and it was life changing for Nathanael; do you think he went about his daily routine as if nothing had happen?  We do not have to wonder, we have the account of Nathanael’s life after encountering this Jesus of Nazareth, he told others what had happened to him, he told others about this Jesus of Nazareth.  It was by far the greatest thing that had happened to Nathanael, and that makes me wonder, have you met the Jesus of Nazareth, and if you have has that encounter changed your life.   On a scale of 1-10, one being so-so and 10 being the greatest happening in your life, what number would you put on your encounter with Jesus of Nazareth? 

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

The Recruiter

John 1: 43

Pearl Harbor is the site of a major U.S. naval base, where a surprise attack on December 7, 1941, by Japanese carrier-borne aircraft inflicted heavy damage and brought the U.S. into World War II.  It was the next day that our Congress declared war on Japan, and Germany and the recruiters for our military did not have to solicit young men they were coming to them in mass.  We use recruiters in the business world everyday and our military, which is now voluntary, also has many recruiters, but have you ever given any thought to Jesus Christ as a recruiter?

John’s gospel sheds some light on Jesus as a recruiter in chapter 1, verse 43. “The next day Jesus decided to go to Galilee.  He found Philip and said to him, “Follow me.”  Now that sure sounds like a recruiter, so I began to wonder was Philip’s case special, or have I missed this attribute of Christ, is Jesus a “Recruiter”?  In the gospel of Matthew 4:18-20, we have this account of Jesus the recruiter; and Simon and Andrew left nets, fishing boats and followed this man who said, “Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.”  He must have be a good recruiter because we are told they immediately left their nets and followed him.  As they walked away from the nets, from the businesses they owned, from all that they knew, they came on two other men and this account is amazing.  Picking up the story in Matthew 4:21-22, “And going on from there he saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee and John his brother, in the boat with Zebedee their father, mending their nets, and he called them.  Immediately they left the boat and their father and followed him.”  Jesus, the recruiter has a strong appeal to these men, they followed him without delay, but were they the norm? 

Could it be that these guys Jesus recruited were in a bad business deal, maybe the fishing business was not what they wanted and they were looking for a career change, did Jesus ever recruit anyone with a thriving business, and they dropped everything to follow him?  That was precisely what I was thinking and Doctor Luke addresses it in his gospel, chapter 5, verses 27&28, “After this he went out and saw a tax collector named Levi, sitting at the tax booth.  And he said to him, “Follow me.”  And leaving everything, he rose and followed him.”  For any who may wonder, tax collectors were no more popular in the time Jesus walked on earth than they are today, and we know that Levi, was a man of wealth, for in the next verse we are told that he had a dinner party in his house and invited his friends, and who were his friends, tax collectors and some others who I’m sure were not accepted by those being taxed.  In fact, the Pharisees and the lawyers ask this question of Jesus; “Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?”

Looking at Jesus as a recruiter opens your eyes to see that is what He did, and when it came to addressing, “is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do harm,” Jesus recruited a man with a withered hand, and you can find that account in Luke 6:6-11.  We all know the story of Zacchaeus, but read it again in Luke’s gospel chapter 19:1-10.  This small man who is a tax collector wants to see Jesus, so he climbs up a sycamore tree to see Jesus as he passes, and the “Recruiter” looked up and said to him, “Zacchaeus, hurry and come down, for I must stay at your house today.”  And why was Zacchaeus recruited, so that he and his family could come to a saving knowledge of the Christ.  This is what Jesus the “Recruiter” said to the crowd who were not happy that he was going to the house of a sinner.  “Today salvation has come to this house, since he also is a son of Abraham.  For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the loss.”  Wow, the “Recruiter’s” job was seeking out those who were lost.

I’m sure you recall the man named Saul who was sent out by the Chief Priest to arrest and kill Christians, and his encounter with the “Recruiter,” Jesus Christ.  The book of Acts is Doctor Luke’s account of when Jesus recruited Saul and changed him from a tool of Satan to a follower of Christ, the full account is found in Acts chapter 9.

Was there ever an account of Jesus recruiting a person, and them rejecting his offer?  The answer is yes, we have the account of a very rich man who wanted his goodness to buy him into eternal life, and this I’ve come to understand, the “Recruiter” Jesus Christ, sees past the exterior into the heart.  This rich guy wanted Jesus on his terms, and Jesus ask him to give up the false god he was serving, but the god of wealth had his heart and he went away very sad, for he was extremely rich.  It is amazing as I reflect back on my encounters with the “Recruiter,” I also walked away sad, because I wanted control of my life.  But He sent others and then He came back to me in a hotel room, and I followed him.

Jesus is a recruiter; his mission statement is clear; “For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.” (Luke 19:10)  Need more information look at John 3:17, “For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.”  If you are not sure please read John 3:18 also, Jesus is looking for all who will put away the little worthless gods and follow him.  I understand that the enemy of your soul also is making an offer, but Jesus the “Recruiter” tells us in John 10:10, it is not in your best interest to listen to those lies.  “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy.  I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.”   For many have bought into the package of lies, the false gods of wealth, sex, but it really comes down to wanting to live life on your terms, you do not see any need for the “Recruiter” but to all who are lost, the “Recruiter” Jesus Christ’s job and mission plan is to seek out and offer life, now and it is eternal.

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

Many never Tell

John 1:35-42

Something new and exciting has taken place in your life and it is almost impossible to keep quiet about it.   I’ve yet to meet a grandparent that does not talk about the new grandchild, and if you give them a chance they will be showing you pictures.  If it is a first grandchild and the only thing they have to show is a sonogram, get ready to see the most beautiful little black and white picture and grandmother will explain all the parts.  For guys it may be the new bass boat, or corvette, but we find great pleasure in sharing our grandchildren or new house, car, kitchen and with me it would be my garden with most everyone who asks.

Not much has changed, John had been looking for the Messiah, and as he and two of his disciples were talking and he saw Jesus walking by and said, “Behold the Lamb of God!”  These two must have been with John when the priests and Levites ask him, “Who are you?”  And they remember his reply was, I am not the Christ, nor am I Elijah, nor am I the Prophet, but today this man they follow had said to them, “Behold the Lamb of God!”

We like the rest of the story, they started to follow Jesus and look at what happen, “Jesus turned and saw them following and said to them, “What are you seeking?”  And they said to him, “Rabbi” (which means Teacher), “where are you staying?”  He said to them “Come and you will see.” So they came and saw where he was staying, and they stayed with him that day, for it was about the tenth hour.” (John 1: 38-39)  Have you heard the expression, “I would like to have been a fly on the wall,” but God did not share what took place as these two disciples of John went and spent the night with Jesus.  But one thing is  a fact, Andrew’s life was changed that night, and he wanted to share with his brother Simon the good news that he had found the Messiah.  This is what happen on the next day; “The first thing Andrew did was to find his brother Simon and tell him, “We have found the Messiah” (that is, the Christ).  Then he brought Simon to Jesus, who looked at him and said, “You are Simon son of John.  You will be called Cephas” (which, when translated, is Peter). (John 1: 41-42)

We live in a time where many who go by the family name of Christian, who claim they are members of the family of God, Christ has redeemed them from the penalty of sin and death, and yet they never tell anyone else about this great gift.  Many act as if they did God a favor to join His family, and others bring shame on His holy name.  Could it be that Andrew and Simon were looking, waiting, and expecting the Christ to visit them?  And could it be that many who go by the name of Christian are not looking, not waiting, and not expecting His soon return?  I do not know the answers to those questions, but this I know, I told all my neighbors about a 13 inch broccoli head I grew in my garden, it was something, but it has been eaten, it’s gone, and it has no power, no hope, no authority to give life, to change a heart, to redeem a person.  But let me tell you Jesus does, he is the giver of life, I know because for 27 years of my life I was religious, but without hope, without life, and one night in a hotel I read this verse, “Because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” and I acted on it as if it were truth, and Jesus forgave my sins and came to live in my life and now I live in Him.  Note: Never forget “Do and done,” “Do” is religion, what I can do for God, but “Done” is Christianity what Jesus Christ has done for you.

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice

Imagine Yourself being in the Audience

John 1:15-34

We live in a time of “double talk” it might be defined as, deliberately combining nonsense syllables and actual words to form unintelligible speech.  As you read verse 15, it sure comes across in that manner: “(John bore witness about him, and cried out, “This was he of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me ranks before me, because he was before me.’”)  Now it is clear that someone born after us could move into a position of rank or authority over us, but how could someone born after us be alive before us?  You and I have read the story, but let your imagination place you as part of this audience, there is no New Testament, you are under the harsh rule of Rome, and you are hoping for a Messiah to come and defeat Rome, to put things in order, that is if you are still hoping at all.  And this guy John, who is a man’s man, dresses funny, and needs a hair cut is speaking very powerful words, and many are coming to him to confess sin and be baptized.

As we place ourselves in that group that has come to see this John the baptizer, we are not the only ones who are curious about his position of importance, was he of a high status.  If John showed up today we would ask where he got his education, what he did for a living, who was his family, and what church or denomination and political party he belonged to.  But that day as we stand in the crowd, we see priests and Levites from Jerusalem coming to ask this question: “Who are you?”  Now I must confess, the crowds that had come before us had returned saying is this the Christ, the Messiah, or could it be Elijah, if not, surely John is a Prophet sent by God.

The first thing John said when asked “Who are you” is “I am not the Christ” and then they ask, are you Elijah and his answer was no.  One of the groups sent from Jerusalem say then you must be a Prophet sent by God, and to my shock, John replied, no.  At this point things are getting real interesting, if he is not the Messiah, nor Elijah, and not even a Prophet sent by God, who is he and that is what they ask next.  You see they needed to give an answer to those who had sent them.  This is what John said about himself.  It is recorded in John’s gospel, chapter 1:23, “He said, “I am the voice of one crying out in the wilderness, ‘Make straight the way of the Lord,’ as the prophet Isaiah said.” 

The crowd was pushing in on us and yet it was very quiet, so it was easy to hear what those that had been sent said; and John’s reply is recorded in verses 25-27, “They asked him, “Then why are you baptizing, if you are neither the Christ, nor Elijah, nor the Prophet?”  John answered them, “I baptize with water, but among you stands one you do not know, even he who comes after me, the strap of whose sandal I am not worthy to untie.”  Now I do not know about you but I came back the next day, I had to know more about this person John is referring to, as one whose sandal he is not worthy to untie.  And early that morning while John was baptizing, he stopped and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!  This is he of whom I said,’ After me comes a man who ranks before me, because he was before me.’  I myself did not know him, but for this purpose I came baptizing with water, that he might be revealed to Israel.” (Recorded in John 1:29-31)  Then John said to us, “I saw the Spirit descend from heaven like a dove, and it remained on him.  I myself did not know him, but he who sent me to baptize with water said to me, ‘He on whom you see the Spirit descend and remain, this is he who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.’ And I have seen and have borne witness that this is the Son of God.” (This also was recorded in John 1:29-34) 

Often, it helps me to place myself in the story, what seems to be “double talk” became very clear, and I believe the Spirit of God who descended on Jesus also made it clear to some of those in that crowd, my prayer is that He did the same with you.

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice