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Proverbs 23:1-11
1 When you sit down to eat with a ruler,
Consider carefully what is
before you;
2 And put a knife to your throat If you are a man given to appetite.
3 Do not desire his delicacies, For they are deceptive food.
4 Do not overwork to be rich; Because of your
own understanding, cease!
5 Will you set your eyes on that which is not?
For riches certainly make
themselves wings; They fly away like an eagle toward heaven.
6 Do not eat the bread of a miser, Nor desire
his delicacies;
7 For as he thinks in his heart, so is he. "Eat and drink!" he
says to you, But his heart is not with you.
8 The morsel you have eaten, you will vomit up,
And waste your pleasant words.
9 Do not speak in the hearing of a fool, For he
will despise the wisdom of your words.
10 Do not remove the ancient landmark, Nor enter
the fields of the fatherless;
11 For their Redeemer is mighty; He will plead their cause against you.
Father God, help us to set aside our worldly things and
focus on you and your Son Jesus at all times. Our flesh keeps us from doing
this so we ask for a special measure of guidance through the Holy Spirit. In
Jesus name we pray. Amen!
Gospel of John 11:14-31NKJV
Last
week’s lesson was about a messenger that came to Jesus with the news that
Lazarus, a dear friend of Jesus was sick. Jesus response was that Lazarus
sickness was not a sickness of death but to glorify God the Father and himself
in performing a miracle of raising Lazarus from the grave. The lesson ended
with a conversation between Jesus and His disciples. Jesus stated that Lazarus
was sleeping meaning physical death, while the disciples took Jesus as meaning
physically sleeping and resting. Let’s see how this conversation continues.
14 Then
Jesus said to them plainly, "Lazarus is dead.
Here Jesus comes right out
and tells the disciple that Lazarus is physically dead. Jesus had to do this
many times so that the disciples would understand what He was saying. Jesus
spoke in metaphors and spiritually so often, it was difficult for the Apostles
to understand what Jesus was saying. Many times Jesus had to put His words in
simple terms so the Apostles could understand Him. I’m so glad that Jesus did
explain Himself in the Bible so that we can understand also. The Apostles
weren’t filled with the Holy Ghost while Jesus was with them, therefore they
had a difficult time understanding Jesus, this also holds true for the unsaved
of today. Without the Holy Spirit residing in ones heart to help a person
understand the Bible, discouragement sets in and the Bible is set aside.
After the Holy Spirit
descended upon the disciple at Pentecost, they were filled with wisdom and
knowledge. The Sanhedrin was amazed at their teachings. Acts 4:13 Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and
John, and perceived that they were uneducated and untrained men, they marveled.
And they realized that they had been with Jesus.
15 And I am glad for your sakes that I was not there, that you
may believe. Nevertheless let us go to him."
And I am glad for your sakes that I was not there; Why do you suppose Jesus made this
statement? Well, if Jesus had been at the home of Lazarus, Mary, and Martha,
Lazarus probably wouldn’t have died, and if that happened, the miracle of
Lazarus being raised from the dead probably wouldn’t have happened for the
glory of God and Jesus. Lazarus died so that Jesus power over death (Jesus conquered spiritual death through obedience
to His Father which led to a sinless life, therefore a perfect sacrifice for us
to place our faith in.) could be shown to
his disciples and others. The raising of Lazarus was an essential display of His
power, and the resurrection from the dead is a crucial belief of the Christian
faith.
That you may believe. Nevertheless let us go to him; Not that the Apostles didn’t believe,
but to strengthen their belief. The Syriac version reads, "let us go
there"; to Bethany, where he lived, and died, and now lay interred (dead,
laid to rest, grave, tomb).
16 Then
Thomas, who is called the Twin, said to his fellow disciples, "Let us also
go, that we may die with Him."
We know that Thomas was a
doubter (John 20:25), but here we also learn that Thomas
loved Jesus, had courage, and was willing to follow Jesus anywhere even to
death. In previous verses we know that the disciples tried to talk Jesus out of
going to Bethany, but were not successful. The disciples didn’t understand that
Jesus purpose was to die for the redemption of mankind. The disciples were
loyal, loved Jesus, and would follow Him where ever He went.
There are unknown dangers
when doing God’s work, and sometimes the danger is physical death. How strong
is your faith? Are you willing to die for Jesus?
17 So when
Jesus came, He found that he had already been in the tomb four days.
It was a custom to bury the
dead on the same day of death. Decomposition sets in by the fourth day
therefore a stench would be present, Verse 39 verifies this fact.
Some of the Jews taught that
the spirit of the deceased wandered about the sepulcher for three days, called days
of weeping. They believed the spirit of the deceased, during these 3 days, was
seeking an opportunity to return to the body, but on the fourth day
decomposition sets in and at that point life was over.
18 Now
Bethany was near Jerusalem, about two miles away.
With Bethany being two miles
away from Jerusalem it would be very easy for the news to travel that Jesus was
there, and then the Jewish leaders could sent people to bring Jesus to them. So
the disciples did have a reason to be greatly concerned for Jesus and their
safety.
19 And many
of the Jews had joined the women around Martha and Mary, to comfort them
concerning their brother.
With the word “many” being
used, probably the family was of some wealth, position, and importance.
20 Now
Martha, as soon as she heard that Jesus was coming, went and met Him, but Mary
was sitting in the house.
Jesus didn’t go to Mary and
Martha’s house probably due to the crowd of people there, so Jesus sent a
messenger to the house and it appears that Martha received the message. From
what we can tell Martha then proceeded to go to Jesus, and maybe without telling
Mary. Someone had to also stay at the house to greet the guests.
21 Now
Martha said to Jesus, "Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not
have died.
This statement of Martha’s
states two things; first she had faith in Jesus that He could have kept her
brother alive. Second she limited Jesus power and what He could do. Jesus
didn’t have to be present to keep Lazarus alive. The Centurion servant and the
Nobleman’s son Jesus healed from afar. Matthew
8:6-8; John
4:47-53
22 But even
now I know that whatever You ask of God, God will give You."
This statement of Martha’s
tells us that she still really doesn’t know who Jesus was; that He was God.
Jesus didn’t have to ask God anything because He was God.
23 Jesus
said to her, "Your brother will rise again."
Here Jesus totally bewilders
Martha. He is speaking of the miracle He was about to perform, while Martha was
thinking the end of time he would rise from the dead. She is about to witness
one of the greatest miracles Jesus performed.
24 Martha
said to Him, "I know that he will rise again in the resurrection at the
last day."
Martha believed in the
resurrection of the righteous at the end of time. She no doubt listened to
Jesus teaching about it. What a glorious day that will be! Daniel
12:2, 13; John 6:39–40, 44, 54; John 12:48
25 Jesus
said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life.
He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live.
Jesus has power over life
and death as well as power to forgive sins. This is because He is the Creator
of life. He is life and can
restore life. Whoever believes in Christ has a spiritual life that death cannot
conquer or diminish in any way. When we realize His power and how wonderful His
offer to us really is, how can we not commit our lives to Him? To those of us
who believe, what wonderful assurance and certainty we have: "Since I
live, you also will live".
26 And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die. Do you
believe this?"
And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die; What a great phrase to cling to. Any
human being that lived or is living or will live on earth has a blessed hope of
eternal life by believing in Jesus Christ and placing their faith in Jesus.
What a promise Jesus has given us if we just reach out and take it. If our
faith is in Jesus death, resurrection, and ascension to Heaven, eternal life is
what the believer has to look forward to.
Do you believe this?;
Do you believe?
27 She said
to Him, "Yes, Lord, I believe that You are the Christ, the Son of God, who
is to come into the world."
Just previously Martha was
selling Jesus short of power stating if He had been present Lazarus wouldn’t
have died, but here she states just exactly who Jesus is; the Messiah; the Son
of God; that He was God; that He came to redeem mankind. Here we see the deep
faith this woman had in Jesus.
28 And when
she had said these things, she went her way and secretly called Mary her
sister, saying, "The Teacher has come and is calling for you."
And
when she had said these things, she went her way; We aren’t told here that Jesus told
Martha to go get Mary, but the end of this verse indicates He did. He may have
whispered it so bystanders wouldn’t hear Him. Based on the next phrase He may
have even instructed Martha to send Mary discreetly so a crowd wouldn’t follow.
And
secretly called Mary her sister, saying; Somehow Martha signaled Mary and gave her the message from
Jesus secretly, maybe by hand signals or whispered it in her ear. This was done
to avoid drawing attention that Jesus was present. If they knew Jesus had come,
the Sanhedrin would be notified and the result would be conflict.
The
Teacher has come and is calling for you; Teacher appears to have been the term He was known to the
family.
29 As soon
as she heard that, she arose
quickly and came to Him.
Mary had an equal affection
for Jesus just as her sister. This was shown here because she went to Jesus at
once leaving the mourners. Being in Jesus presence gives more comfort than any
humans can give.
If you have ever experienced
the presence of our Lord you know this fact to be true. It is a feeling of
total comfort, security, warmth, well being, etc. Words can’t describe the
experience.
30 Now Jesus
had not yet come into the town, but was in the place where Martha met Him.
Now
Jesus had not yet come into the town; The
town referred to here was Bethany.
But
was in the place where Martha met Him; Jesus stopped here knowing the grave site was someplace
near and by stopping there, He wouldn’t draw attention to Himself.
31 Then the
Jews who were with her in the house, and comforting her, when they saw that
Mary rose up quickly and went out, followed her, saying, "She is going to
the tomb to weep there."
The first days of mourning
among the Jews were observed with great seriousness and many ceremonies of
grief. Not hearing what Martha said to her, but observed that she rose off her
seat in great haste, and went out of the house at once they went after her to
see what was happening or where she was going. It was customary to go to the
grave several times in the first few days, therefore they thought that she went
to weep.
Colossians
1:16
For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth,
visible
and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers.
All things were created through Him and for Him.
Romans
3:23 for
all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
Romans
6:23
For the wages of sin is death,
but the gift of God is eternal
life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
John 3:3 Jesus answered and said to him, Most
assuredly, I say to you,
unless
one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God."
The
Lighthouse Full Gospel Church
Sinners Prayer; Pray this, and if you
believe it with your heart, Jesus will save you!
“Lord Jesus I know I am a
sinner. I confess my sins to you; I am
sorry for my sins; I repent (Meaning, desiring to turn from a sinful
lifestyle.) of all my sins, and I am asking for your forgiveness. I believe that only you can forgive sin. I commit my life to you and ask you to come
into my heart, direct, and take charge of my life. I believe that you died to set me free from
my sinful lifestyle and you rose from the dead to give me eternal life, and
right now you are seated at the Right Hand of God Almighty. I believe you are
the Son of God; the only Way, the only Truth, the only Life, and my
Savior.” I believe this and have faith
you will make a new person out of me, by sending the Holy Spirit to dwell in my
heart and lead me in a new life. In Jesus name I pray Amen.”
(John
3:16,17; Romans 3:23; 6:23; 5:8;
10:9-13; Ephesians 2:8-10;
1 John 5:11-14; 1:6-10) (Sin: Rom. 1:22-32; Gal.
5:19-21; Eph. 5:3-7)
