SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 10/7/2016 8:59 AM
My Worship Time Focus: PT-1 The Final Call to Belief
Bible Reading &
Meditation Reference: John 12:35-36
Message of the verses: “35 So Jesus said to them, "For a little
while longer the Light is among you. Walk while you have the Light, so that
darkness will not overtake you; he who walks in the darkness does not know
where he goes. 36 “While you have the Light, believe in the Light, so that you
may become sons of Light." These things Jesus spoke, and He went away and
hid Himself from them.”
As we look
back at the events of this day we saw that Jesus had rode into Jerusalem in
what is known as the triumphal entry, as the people were hailing Jesus as the
conquering King who would destroy the Romans and bring in the promised kingdom
to Israel. As I look back at our study
in the book of Daniel, and in particular the 9th chapter which has
the 70 week prophecy I see that during this triumphal entry, and how the people
would react once they found out that Jesus was not who they thought He was,
that this was the perfect time to end this section in the 70 week
prophecy. Let me explain, the 70 week
prophecy was weeks of years and Daniel wrote that after 383 years from the time
the prophecy would begin that the Messiah would be cut off and have nothing,
and so as Jesus was rejected as the King of Israel and was soon to be crucified
for the sins of those who would accept His offer of forgiveness this part of
the prophecy would end.
Jesus knew
that the majority of the people had rejected Him, and yet He makes one more
plea of salvation to them as the title of this section shows us. We can see the love and the long-suffering of
Jesus in this last plea for these people.
Jesus not
only offers to them this last plea, but in this plea He delivers a warning to
them, a warning that is still seen today, a warning that if not followed in the
right way will mean destruction to the souls of many who will reject Him. Let us look at a three different Scriptures
that speak of this warning: “38 “Behold,
your house is being left to you desolate! 39
"For I say to you, from now on you will not see Me until you say,
’BLESSED IS HE WHO COMES IN THE NAME OF THE LORD! (Matthew 23:38-39).” “34 “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that
kills the prophets and stones those sent to her! How often I wanted to gather
your children together, just as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and
you would not have it! (Luke 13:35).” “42
saying, "If you had known in this day, even you, the things which make for
peace! But now they have been hidden from your eyes. 43 “For the days will come
upon you when your enemies will throw up a barricade against you, and surround
you and hem you in on every side, 44 and they will level you to the ground and
your children within you, and they will not leave in you one stone upon
another, because you did
not recognize the time of your visitation (Luke 19:42-44).” Notice the highlighted part of verse 44 as
this ties in with the prophecy in Daniel 9:24-27, and Jesus held them
accountable for knowing that prophecy for all they would have had to do, and
some of them did do this, is to calculate the time the prophecy began and count
off the 383 years then they would have known that the time of the Messiah had
come. When we read of the Magi coming
from the East to see Jesus when He was about two years old we know that they
had gotten their information from the prophet Daniel and therefore they knew
when the Messiah would be born.
Jesus tells
His listeners that He would soon die and that the Light would no longer be with
them, but they had the Light for just a little while longer. In 2 Corinthians 4:6 Paul speaks of Jesus
Christ as the Light “6 For God, who
said, "Light shall shine out of darkness," is the One who has shone
in our hearts to give the
Light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.”
The phrase “a
little while” is used seven times in the book of John, so we can see that this
was a favorite term of John.
“Joh 7:33 Therefore Jesus said, "For a little while longer I
am with you, then I go to Him who sent Me.
Joh 12:35 So Jesus said to them, "For a little while longer the
Light is among you. Walk while you have the Light, so that darkness will not
overtake you; he who walks in the darkness does not know where he goes.
Joh 13:33 “Little children, I am with you a little while longer.
You will seek Me; and as I said to the Jews, now I also say to you, ’Where I am
going, you cannot come.’
Joh 14:19 "After
a little while the
world will no longer see Me, but you will see Me; because I live, you will live
also.
Joh 16:16 “A little while, and you will no longer see Me; and again a little while, and you
will see Me."
Joh 16:17 Some of His disciples then said to one another,
"What is this thing He is telling us, ’A little while, and you will not see Me; and
again a little while, and you will see Me’; and, ’because I go to the
Father’?"
Joh 16:18 So they were saying, "What is this that He
says, ’A little while’?
We do not know what He is talking about."
Joh 16:19 Jesus knew that they wished to question Him, and
He said to them, "Are you deliberating together about this, that I said, ’A little while, and you
will not see Me, and again a
little while, and you will see Me’?
With that
we will stop and pick up the rest of this in our next SD, as I hope it will
only be a little while before we begin again.
Spiritual meaning for my life today: The people who were listening to Jesus were disappointed
that He was not going to conquer the Romans and set up the kingdom, and I have
to say that there are times when the answer to my prayers are either no or wait
and that is a disappointment to me also, but like Habakkuk I have to just trust
the Lord to work out His plan for my life, and at times that is difficult.
My Steps of Faith for
Today: Trust the Lord as He has
saved me for which I have trusted Him for that, I need to trust Him as He leads
my life too.
Memory verse for the week: (Romans 6:13) “13 and do not go
on presenting the members of your body to sin as instruments of
unrighteousness; but present yourselves to God as those alive from the dead,
and your members as instruments of righteousness to God.
Answer to yesterday’s Bible question: “Pharaoh” (Exodus 8:8).
Today’s Bible question:
“In whose house is the curse of the Lord?”
Answer in our next SD.
10/7/2016 9:51 AM
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