PT-2 Christian Witness is Through Believers (John 15:27)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 1/8/2017 11:17 PM

My Worship Time                                        Focus:  PT-2 Christian Witness is Through Believers

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                 Reference:  John 15:27

            Message of the verse:  “27 and you will testify also, because you have been with Me from the beginning.”

            A though just came to me as to why Jesus said what He said here, and that is it was because His disciples spent three years with Him, learning from Him that this made them qualified to tell others what they learned when they were with Him.  They were the only ones who were able to tell this story and thanks to them we have it written down in the New Testament so that we too can understand the story.

            In his commentary on this section John MacArthur talks about how the disciples went about to replace Judas which is recorded in Acts 1:21-22 as far as saying that one of the qualifications was that the replacement had to have been with the others since Jesus was baptized.  I have to say that there are problems with this in my mind for Jesus told Peter and the rest of the disciples to wait until the Holy Spirit came and in this case this decision was made before that.  Another problem I have is that Peter before he received the Holy Spirit had a tendency to put his foot into his mouth, but after receiving the Holy Spirit this got much better.  The last part of my problem with this decision is because Paul who was Saul of Tarsus became an apostle of Jesus Christ as seen in the last part of the book of acts, and when you look into the book of Revelation we read in Rev. 21:14 “And the wall of the city had twelve foundation stones, and on them were the twelve names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.”  I realize that many people that I have respect for believe that what Peter did in naming another Apostle is right, but I still have some doubts about it.

            John MacArthur concludes chapter sixteen in his commentary, the last chapter on the 15^th chapter of John by writing:  “God has chosen His people as a means to reach the elect among the lost.  The blessed truth is that ‘whoever will call on the name of the Lord will be saved’ (Rom. 10:13).  But that can happen only when believers proclaim to them the saving truth of the gospel: 

            “14 How then will they call on Him in whom they have not believed? How will they believe in Him whom they have not heard? And how will they hear without a preacher? 15 How will they preach unless they are sent? Just as it is written, "HOW BEAUTIFUL ARE THE FEET OF THOSE WHO BRING GOOD NEWS OF GOOD THINGS!" 16 However, they did not all heed the good news; for Isaiah says, "LORD, WHO HAS BELIEVED OUR REPORT?" 17 So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ Rom. 10:14-17).

Answer to yesterday’s Bible question:  “Peter” (Acts 3:6).

Today’s Bible question:  “Where was Peter when he raised Dorcas from the dead?”  

Answer in our next SD.

1/8/2017 11:36 PM