Saturday 23 December 2017

John's Witness

John’s Witness
As I write this Christmas is but a few days away. The gospels of Luke and Matthew tell of the birth of Jesus from two different angles. Luke a gentile (non-Jew), tells the story from Mary’s perspective. Matthew tells the story from a Jewish perspective using a genealogy to link Jesus with King David and showing Jewish readers how Jesus fulfills prophecy.
The Gospel of John however makes a definite statement in the first Chapter as to who Jesus is. John states,
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.  
He was with God in the beginning. 
Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.  
In him was life, and that life was the light of men....
The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth. ” John 1:1-4,14.
John and indeed all believers in Christ Jesus truly believe that Jesus is God in the flesh. That God actually entered into the world He created in order to point mankind to Himself.
Like everything concerning Jesus this seems to be an incredible belief. Yet it is what Christians believe and ask the world to believe.
John even records this conversation between Martha and Jesus,
“Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies;  and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?”
“Yes Lord” she told Him, “I believe you are the Christ the Son of God, who was to come into the world,” John 11:25,26,27.
  This is what Christians ask the world to believe.
Christians believe that God understood that man could not live a life good enough to stand before him that is why He in the form of Jesus reached down to mankind. The apostle Paul telling us,
“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—  not by works, so that no one can boast.” Ephesians 2:8,9.
Christians believe we cannot work our way to heaven. We get into heaven by the grace of God that comes through belief in Christ Jesus.
So my question to you the reader is do you believe this?
Please think about it. 

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