SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 1/4/2017
9:01 AM
My Worship Time Focus: Christian
Witness is From the Father
Bible Reading & Meditation Reference: John 15:26a
Message of the
verse: “When the Helper comes, whom
I will send to you from the Father, that is the Spirit of truth who proceeds
from the Father.”
As we have been studying the book of John and this is
also seen in the other gospels that God the Father is the ultimate witness to
Jesus Christ. At His baptism we heard
the Father speak, and also when upon the mount of transfiguration, and the
right before He and His disciples were going to celebrate the Passover the
Father spoke also. Hebrews 1:1-2 shows
this witness of the Father for the Son: “1
¶ God, after He spoke long ago to the
fathers in the prophets in many portions and in many ways, 2 in these last days has spoken to us in His
Son, whom He appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the world.” Let us look at Luke 24:44 which takes place
after the resurrection of Jesus Christ: “Now
He said to them, "These are My words which I spoke to you while I was
still with you, that all things which are written about Me in the Law of Moses
and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled."” Revelation 19:10 “Then I fell at his feet to
worship him. But he said to me, "Do not do that; I am a fellow servant of
yours and your brethren who hold the testimony of Jesus; worship God. For the testimony of Jesus is
the spirit of prophecy."”
The second way that the Father testified to the Son was
through the works that Jesus did while on earth as seen in John 5:36 “"But
the testimony which I have is greater than the testimony of John; for the works
which the Father has given Me to accomplish-the very works that I do-testify
about Me, that the Father has sent Me.”
John 10:25 says “Jesus answered them, "I told you, and you do not
believe; the works that I do in My Father’s name, these testify of Me.” John 10:37 “"If I do not do the works of
My Father, do not believe Me;”
I want to go back to what I wrote about when the Father
spoke at the transfiguration of Jesus and look at it from what Peter wrote in 2
Peter 1:16-18 “16 For we did not follow cleverly devised tales when we made
known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were
eyewitnesses of His majesty. 17 For when He received honor and glory from God the Father, such
an utterance as this was made to Him by the Majestic Glory, "This is My
beloved Son with whom I am well-pleased"- 18 and we ourselves heard this
utterance made from heaven when we were with Him on the holy mountain.”
MacArthur writes “Finally, the Father testified to the
Son by sending ‘the Helper…that is the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the
Father.’ In his first epistle John
wrote, ‘It is the Spirit who testifies [about Jesus Christ], because the Spirit
is the truth’ (1 John 5:6). In Acts 5:32
the apostles declared to the Sanhedrin, ‘We are witnesses of these things
[concerning Christ]; and so is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who
obey Him. ‘The writer of Hebrews also
connects the Holy Spirit with the apostles’ testimony to Christ:
‘3 How will we
escape if we neglect so great a salvation? After it was at the first spoken
through the Lord, it was confirmed to us by those who heard, 4 God also testifying with them, both by signs
and wonders and by various
miracles and by gifts of the Holy Spirit according to His own will.’”
Answer to yesterday’s Bible
question: “Joel” (Acts 2:16).
Today’s Bible
question: “What was the final plague
placed on Egypt before Pharaoh let Israel go?
Answer in our next SD.
1/4/2017 9:20 AM
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