MORNING
Psalm 118
B1 What does this mean?
C1 Mercy is something received by us from God. We receive not what we deserve but what God offers us.
C2 God’s mercy is because of His love, so the word means.
C3 The Psalmist was hurting and in distress. God delivered him. God is the greatest Counselor. Even if we are not delivered but die for the faith, our souls are safe for eternity.
C4 Verse 8-9, we must seek God’s advice first before any other advice. God may use others to give good advice, but we need to seek God and His kingdom first. James 1:5-6 EMTV If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all generously and without reproach, and it shall be given to him. 6 But let him ask in faith, doubting nothing, for he that doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind.
C5 The chastening (disciplining) is noted by the Psalmist. It is for our good, not harm.
C6 This is an important prophecy: Psalms 118:22 NKJV The stone which the builders rejected Has become the chief cornerstone. Compare Matthew 21:42 and 1 Peter 2:4-8. Note how this is God’s doing. The cornerstone is the stone that is the perfect standard for all measurements, so Jesus is the perfect standard for Christianity.
C7 This is important for all of us to do. Psalms 118:28-29 NKJV You are my God, and I will praise You; You are my God, I will exalt You. 29 Oh, give thanks to the LORD, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever.
B2 How do I apply this to my life? As written above.
EVENING
John 6
B1 What does this mean?
C1 Jesus feeds the 5,000
D1 It appears from verse 5 that the large crowd was following Him only for the miracles. So I guess they just wanted a show.
D2 The didn’t accept Him as Messiah, just a miracle worker. We should be careful about what reasons we follow Him. For me, Christianity is reasonable and also is based on conviction.
D3 Verse 6, to test him. Jesus said this because all good teachers teach, then they test. Jesus knew what both He and Phillip were going to do. Jesus tests us, too. Many of the things we go through in life are a test. Will we respond God’s way or some other way? We are all in God’s school. God gives grace to help us.
D4 Jesus does give the thanked and blessed food to the disciples to distribute to the crowd. Wilbur Pickering notes: Perhaps 3% of the Greek manuscripts, of inferior quality, omit the reference to the disciples here and have Jesus distributing directly to the crowd (as in NIV, NASB, LB, TEV, etc.), making John contradict the other three Gospels.
D5 We should remember God’s provision for us. These Jews should have remembered how God provided food during the 40 years of Wilderness Wandering.
D6 Note how Jesus is careful to not waste food. Also, this shows the people had all they needed, not just a bite.
D7 Note how the people did not want God’s ways. All they wanted was God’s provisions. John 6:15 WEL When Jesus knew that they would come and take him by force to make him king, he withdrew to the mountain alone.
D8 Jesus will set up His own kingdom, not trusting the setting up the kingdom to others.
C2 Jesus Walks on Water
D1 Notice their fear, and Jesus’s calming words. Let us remember.
D2 Why did Jesus walk on water? Perhaps to show the He is Messiah, the God/Man, not just a man, not just a prophet, but God the Son. They also learn a few things about His character and style of living. He is a much different king that those we see today.
D3 Verse 24, looking for Jesus. These people were not looking for Jesus in order to worship Him, that is, accept that He is THE Messiah, or even thank Him. It seems that they wanted miracles, food, and welfare of their lives instead of welfare for their souls.
C3 Jesus Is the Bread of Life
D1 Verse 29: Jesus answered and said to them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in the one he sent.”
E1 Certain people take this to prove that faith is God’s work, that people cannot exercise faith, only do what God decrees.
E2 But notice the context. It states that they wanted, that is desired, to do God’s works, that is, miracles. Jesus replied that they needed to believe God, that is, Jesus and His teaching. Reading 28 and 30 show plainly what is meant, and how the people understood what Jesus was telling them.
E3 Adam Clarke adds: This is the work of God, that ye believe—There is nothing you can be employed in more acceptable to God than in yielding to the evidence set before you, and acknowledging me as your Messiah and the Savior of a lost world.
E4 Whedon writes: 29. Believe on him—Faith in Christ is the great saving work. Faith is work. Faith and work are one. Faith is the work in which all works is embodied. Be there a true perfect faith, and all works of righteousness will come into it and be one with it. Upon such a faith God forgives; by such a faith a man is graciously held just; consequent upon such a faith is present and eternal salvation.
To these men it was an explanation, too condensed to be overlooked, and too clear to be misunderstood. Fresh from the great miracle under whose influence they were confessedly acting, he places the offer of divine life, through faith in himself as God’s own Son, before their acceptance so plainly, that they completely see it —and finally REJECT it.
D2 Jesus is the true bread sent by the Father. It is through Him, we can have forgiveness of sins and be reconciled to our Creator.
D3 In verse 36, Jesus tells them plainly that they do not believe.
D4 The Father’s conditions for people being given to Jesus is believing the Gospel.
D5 In verse 38, we need to imitate Jesus and have an attitude that doing God’s will is more important than doing our will.
D6 Verse 40, these people do see Jesus. Today we see Jesus through the testimony of the Gospel writers.
D7 Shouldn’t the people have known. They had the prophets speaking about the Messiah?
D8 Verse 44 teaches us that God initiates salvation. We do not and cannot reach out to God until He reaches us to us first.
D9 Verse 50 is not referring to the bread of the Lord’s Supper. It refers to Jesus Himself, His teachings, His ministry, and His sacrifice as the Passover Lamb.
C4 Many Disciples Leave Jesus
D1 These people did not believe. They just wanted physical food, not submitting to Jesus’s authority, ways, beliefs, etc.
D2 Verse 62 refers to Jesus’s Ascension.
D3 Verse 63 refers to Jesus prophesying about Judas, though Judas is not named until later. It should have been the warning to Judas to repent. Judas Iscariot loved money instead of God. He is just like those who wanted to take Jesus by force and make Him king.
B2 How do I apply this to my life? As noted above.
I hope to have a devotional every day on John’s Gospel starting with the last chapter of Luke’s Gospel. This is the way I do my devotions. You may notice grammatical and spelling errors. It is my hope you will also start or continue in your daily reading and thinking about the Scriptures. I do this Monday through Friday. It is a 3 year plan of reading and thinking on 1 chapter in the Old Testament, which takes 3 years, and reading and thinking on 1 chapter in the New Testament once a year for a total of 3 times. So, I read through the Old Testament 1 time and the New Testament 3 times over a period of 3 years. I do this Monday through Friday and use Saturday and Sunday for other devotions.
