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By Believing We Have Life Through His Name John 20:31 But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name. John was one of the first apostles to be called by Jesus. His first probable encounter with the Master was when John the Baptist pointed at Jesus and proclaimed, “Behold the Lamb of God.” Andrew and another who is thought to be John followed Jesus. Jesus turned and asked, “What do you want?” They addressed Him as Rabbi meaning Master and asked, “Where do you live? Jesus simply said, “Come and see.” They ended up spending the day with Jesus (John 1:39). From that day until the day of their deaths, they never looked back. It’s amazing what one day with Jesus can produce in our lives. Later their call was reiterated by Jesus when He found John and His brother James mending their nets at the sea of Galilee. Both brothers left their boats and nets and answered the Lord’s call of, “Follow Me and I will make you fishers of men” (Mt. 4:19). James and John, had a life changing transformation. John, whom Jesus called a son of thunder (Mark 3:17), would later become the apostle of love. When we believed on the Savior, some of us were also transformed from belligerents to lover. Aren’t you thankful for that? Our text has two phrases, the first of which is: John 20:31a But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; John presented the Deity of Jesus in the opening chapter of his gospel. He was in the beginning as the Word which was with God and was God. The Word was made flesh and dwelt among men, and His glory was beheld as the only begotten Son of God full of grace and truth (John 1:1,14). In the book of Revelation John recounts being caught up to heaven and seeing One like unto the son of man (Rev. 1:13, 14:14). He had been with Jesus at the Mount of Transfiguration where the glory of God shined forth from His being (Mk. 9:2). He had outrun Peter to find an empty tomb (John 20:3) and then he experienced a resurrected Christ appearing from behind locked doors (John 20:19). I would say that this is a rather convincing eyewitness testimony (Luke 1:2; II Peter 1:16), and certainly shows that John considered Jesus to be the Almighty God manifested in the flesh (I John 5:20). The second phrase is: John 20:31b and that believing ye might have life through his name. Throughout the gospel of John, Jesus is constantly affirming His own Deity. He boldly appropriated the name “I AM” which no devout Jew of that day would dare to utter, because it was the very name of God. God had declared in Exodus 3:15 that this would be His name forever and His memorial to all generations. I am thrilled that I have had the opportunity to believe on this eternal name. Of course believing is not a one time passing fancy. It is not just mental assent to the gospel. It is the continuous action of living the gospel every day of our lives and letting the risen Christ shine forth from our beings. We have life by believing on His name. We find a lot of references to belief and believing in the book of John. The Light of God shined on our paths and gave us an opportunity to believe (John 1:7). When we believed on His name, we received power to become sons of God (John 1:14). What a privilege to have been baptized with His Holy Spirit because we believed on Him (John 7:38-39). Because we have believed on Him, we have the promise of escaping damnation and living eternally without condemnation (John 3:15-18, 36). We passed from death to life when we believed the words of Jesus (John 5:24). Because we believed on Jesus as the Bread of Life, we find that He has satisfied our spiritual hunger and quenched our thirst (John 6:35). Because we have believed on Him, we have the promise of being a part of the first resurrection and living eternally as kings and priest unto God (John 6:40,47; Rev. 20:5-6). John 19:35 And he that saw it bare record, and his record is true: and he knoweth that he saith true, that ye might believe. John was convinced of Jesus’ eternal Deity. As a result of his belief, he followed Jesus without wavering. He was there when Jesus changed water to wine, cleansed lepers and raised the dead. He speaks of this in the opening verses of his first epistle. I John 1:1 ¶ That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life; 2 (For the life was manifested, and we have seen it, and bear witness, and shew unto you that eternal life, which was with the Father, and was manifested unto us;) 3 That which we have seen and heard declare we unto you, that ye also may have fellowship with us: and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ. And then he concludes this introduction in verse 4. I John 1:4 And these things write we unto you, that your joy may be full. Yes, my joy is full indeed. It is overwhelming to think that the God of all eternity loved us so much that He robed Himself in flesh and paid the penalty for sin that He Himself had prescribed (I Tim. 3:16). He died that we might live and live abundantly forever (John 14:19; I John 4:9). I am happy to be counted as a believer and I’m sure that you are too. Free Ebooks That You Can Download. An Expository Study on the Book of Colossians The I AMs of Jesus Your thoughts and Inquiries Contact@About-Him.Com Subscribe to this devotional? Subscribe to About-Him Devotional Keep Looking Up! Don and Marie Spooner About Him! Ministries
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