PHOTOPHILIC

Faith In Christ Jesus:

Faith is, first, the act of considering the Lord Jesus worthy of trust as to His character and motives.  Second, it is the act of placing confidence in His ability to do just what He says He will do.  Finally, faith is a definite taking of your self out of your own keeping and entrusting your self into the keeping of the Lord Jesus.  2 Timothy 1:12 is the perfect example of all three aspects of faith:  (1) for I know whom I have believed, and (2) am persuaded that he is able to keep that which (3) I have committed unto him against that day.           We will seek to answer two questions throughout our study of the Gospel of John.  Those questions are:  What does each chapter reveal about Jesus’ character or characteristics, motives, and abilities? What does each one indicate that you could confidently commit into Jesus’ keeping?

David Guzik on John 3:22-36

All are coming to Him! John’s disciples seem alarmed, but it didn’t bother John one bit. John’s mission was to announce that the Messiah had come, and then to step back.   The friend of the bridegroom: John is the "best man" at the "wedding" between Jesus and Jesus’ followers.   He was to arrange many of the details of the wedding and bring the bride to the groom.  Therefore this joy of mine is fulfilled: John the Baptist lost his congregation - and he was happy about it, because he lost his congregation to Jesus.  He must increase, but I must decrease: This should be the motto of every Christian, especially leaders among God’s people. He who comes from above: John wants everyone to know where Jesus came from. Jesus is different from everyone else because He came from heaven. Not only is Jesus different, but He who comes from heaven is above all - Jesus is greater than everyone else.  He whom God has sent speaks the words of God: Jesus is a uniquely reliable revelation, because He has the Holy Spirit without measure, in contrast to the previous prophets.  He who does not believe the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him: Because Jesus is the man from heaven, there is a heavy price to pay for rejecting Him. If you reject the Son, then you receive the wrath.  The wrath of God: "The word does not mean a sudden gust of passion or a burst of temper. Rather, it is the settled displeasure of God against sin. It is the divine allergy to moral evil, the reaction of righteousness to unrighteousness." (Tenney)  The wrath of God abides: It abides in this world, because there is no "statute of limitations" on sin. It abides into the next world, because those who reject Jesus cannot offer a perfect sacrifice acceptable to God. The wrath of God abides until it is satisfied by receiving the perfect payment Jesus made on the cross.