Reflective Bible Study

As we continue our journey through Jesus’ life, we come to a long passage that contains a verse that transformed my view of Jesus when I first read it. This view is incredibly counter-cultural and it actually helps us frame several things Jesus does in His ministry that might not make any sense without this perspective.

In our culture today, we like to place people on pedestals and on platforms, and look to them for ideas, inspiration, entertainment, or escape. Our culture today loves to give glory to people who overcome unbelievable odds, it loves to talk about people who have royally messed up, and it loves to vilify the people it stereotypes.

We all in some way, shape, or form do this. When we pay attention to a singer, actor, politician, celebrity, athlete, or someone significant in our life, the focus and attention we give to them is subtly also giving them glory. This idea of giving glory also extends to us giving glory to Jesus, and this draws our attention onto a verse contained in our passage.

However, before we focus in on that verse, I want to point out that giving glory to other people is not a universally bad thing. Giving some glory to others is unavoidable in our world and in today’s culture. Where we tend to fail in this area is by not prioritizing the time, and consequently, the glory that we are giving away. The easy trap we fall into is forgetting to give glory to God personally and directly, by intentionally spending time with Him.

This then brings our attention to the passage we are focusing in on for this episode. However, because this passage is quite long, I am going to pull out a section of it to read, while encouraging you to read the broad passage on your own when you get the chance. Like many of you, I have probably read this broad passage many times, but during one of the times reading it, a verse within it hit me and completely shifted my perception of Jesus.

Our passage is found in John’s gospel, chapter 5, and we will read it from the New International Version. While I would like to begin in verse 16, for our time together to stay within somewhere close to our normal length, l’ll jump down several verses. With that said, starting instead in verse 31, we read Jesus responding to the religious leaders, saying:

³¹ “If I testify about myself, my testimony is not true. ³² There is another who testifies in my favor, and I know that his testimony about me is true.

³³ “You have sent to John and he has testified to the truth. ³⁴ Not that I accept human testimony; but I mention it that you may be saved. ³⁵ John was a lamp that burned and gave light, and you chose for a time to enjoy his light.

³⁶ “I have testimony weightier than that of John. For the works that the Father has given me to finish—the very works that I am doing—testify that the Father has sent me. ³⁷ And the Father who sent me has himself testified concerning me. You have never heard his voice nor seen his form, ³⁸ nor does his word dwell in you, for you do not believe the one he sent. ³⁹ You study the Scriptures diligently because you think that in them you have eternal life. These are the very Scriptures that testify about me, ⁴⁰ yet you refuse to come to me to have life.

⁴¹ “I do not accept glory from human beings, ⁴² but I know you. I know that you do not have the love of God in your hearts. ⁴³ I have come in my Father’s name, and you do not accept me; but if someone else comes in his own name, you will accept him. ⁴⁴ How can you believe since you accept glory from one another but do not seek the glory that comes from the only God?

Let’s stop reading here. One verse near the end of this challenge Jesus gives to the religious leaders is amazing when we stop to draw attention to it. This verse is verse 41, where Jesus tells the religious leaders, “I do not accept glory from human beings.”

I know I had read this broader passage numerous times before really seeing this verse, but one morning while studying, this verse jumped off the page at me and shifted my perception of Jesus. It’s interesting, because once I saw Jesus through this verse, I find it hard to read any passage about Jesus without using this new perspective.

By including this phrase, Jesus is either being an example of the most sinless human ever to live, or He is being an example of one of the most deluded sociopaths. I’m inclined to think He was the most sinless human, because God gave Him the power to perform miracles, healing thousands of sick people, feeding thousands more, and a little event we call the resurrection helps this thought as well.

Also, sociopaths don’t live selflessly, so Jesus doesn’t really fit that stereotype if we look at this comparison from the other angle.

Since this phrase Jesus said reveals part of His character, I don’t ever see this idea changing. I don’t see Jesus having rejected glory from people while here on earth, but then later changing His mind about this. Instead, I suspect Jesus does the same thing with the glory He is given today that He did while He walked the earth during the first century. Whenever anyone tried to give Jesus glory, He directs the glory to the Father.

If we take this idea one step further, what about Satan? If anyone was more opposite to Jesus, it would be him. Satan wanted more glory pointed towards himself. If God and the angels were not going to do this, humans are the only other candidate he has, which means that Satan will accept glory from humans. It is even possible that Satan desires glory from humanity.

So with this knowledge as one guide, a simple litmus test we can use to determine a genuine Christ-following disciple-leader is simply whether they point the glory to God, or if they accept glory themselves (or perhaps if they seek out more glory that they can accept).

I have not done much research into historical cult movements, but most if not all probably would have failed this simple litmus test. Someone looking in from the outside (and maybe even a rational person looking from within) could rationally say that the leader was interested in drawing people, focus, and glory onto himself or herself and not on forwarding that glory on to God.

This simple litmus test could also be one way of identifying Satan when he comes claiming to be Christ. By His own declaration, Jesus never accepted glory from humans, whereas Satan will likely be the opposite. I very much suspect that a Satan impersonating Jesus, or anyone impersonating Jesus, will fail the test of whether they are in it for their own glory or for God’s.

So where does that leave you and I today? How can we take this information and change our lives?

I cannot speak for you, but when originally reading this phrase and when the flood of ideas poured into my mind, I could not escape the clear revelation of Jesus’ character. Jesus was 100+% focused on helping others and forwarding the glory onto God the Father.

As disciples of Jesus, which is another way of saying that we model or imitate our lives after His, I see pointing all glory and praise upwards to God as a character attribute we all need to incorporate into our own lives, myself included. I must not seek glory for myself, but forward any glory onward and upward to Jesus and the Father. There is the constant pressure from culture to accept glory and praise, therefore, in my mind, since Jesus did not accept it and culture wants us to seek it, rejecting praise and pointing our focus upwards towards God must be something worth striving for in living a Jesus-like life.

As we come to the end of another podcast episode, here are the challenges I will leave you with:

As I always challenge you to do, choose to intentionally place God first in your life and choose to model Jesus and give God the glory.

Also, continue to pray and study the Bible for yourself to learn more about who Jesus really was and what Jesus ultimately did for you when He died on the cross. Accept the gift Jesus offers and don’t let anyone trick you out of holding onto the promise of salvation!

And as I end every set of challenges by saying in one way or another, never stop short of, back away from, chicken out of, or fall away from where God wants to lead you to in your life with Him!

As we continue our journey through the gospels focusing on Jesus’ life, we arrive at a passage that has an interesting opening. If you have read the gospels for any length of time, you might be surprised to see a detail in this opening that is likely very understated.

If you have ever taken a trip to see someone or something special, then you might see this detail at the opening of our passage sooner than someone who has never done this. Perhaps this detail is only included in one of the gospels and that is why many people overlook it. While this event is found in three of the four gospels, only in Luke’s gospel do we have an interesting detail – one that could help frame Jesus’ setup for this healing miracle.

Let’s look at this event, Our passage is found in Luke’s gospel, chapter 5, and we will read it using the Contemporary English Version of the Bible. Starting in verse 17, Luke sets the stage by telling us:

¹⁷ One day some Pharisees and experts in the Law of Moses sat listening to Jesus teach. They had come from every village in Galilee and Judea and from Jerusalem.

God had given Jesus the power to heal the sick, ¹⁸ and some people came carrying a crippled man on a mat. They tried to take him inside the house and put him in front of Jesus. ¹⁹ But because of the crowd, they could not get him to Jesus. So they went up on the roof, where they removed some tiles and let the mat down in the middle of the room.

²⁰ When Jesus saw how much faith they had, he said to the crippled man, “My friend, your sins are forgiven.”

²¹ The Pharisees and the experts began arguing, “Jesus must think he is God! Only God can forgive sins.”

²² Jesus knew what they were thinking, and he said, “Why are you thinking that? ²³ Is it easier for me to tell this crippled man that his sins are forgiven or to tell him to get up and walk? ²⁴ But now you will see that the Son of Man has the right to forgive sins here on earth.” Jesus then said to the man, “Get up! Pick up your mat and walk home.”

²⁵ At once the man stood up in front of everyone. He picked up his mat and went home, giving thanks to God. ²⁶ Everyone was amazed and praised God. What they saw surprised them, and they said, “We have seen a great miracle today!”

Before today, I had not ever noticed how Luke’s version of this event opened. Luke opens this passage and event by telling us that the Pharisees and experts in Moses’ Law had “come from every village in Galilee and Judea and from Jerusalem.”

This short phrase tells me that while this was early on in Jesus’ ministry, He was starting to become better known, and that His ministry was gaining traction. The detail Luke includes in his gospel that these religious leaders sat listening to Jesus implies that they initially came because they wanted to see and hear Jesus for themselves without taking other people’s word for it. Also, since people had traveled from all over the region to see and hear Jesus, we can conclude that Jesus’ fame had grown to the point where the formerly crippled man’s friends knew about Jesus and that Jesus could heal their friend.

Outside of probably a few isolated cases, such as Jesus teaching up in Nazareth and being thrown out of the synagogue, this event might have been the spark that ignited the hostility the religious leaders had towards Jesus throughout the gospels.

At the beginning of this passage, there is no indication that the Pharisees were hostile towards Jesus, but they were probably curious. In reality, I am a little curious what Jesus actually was teaching about that day before the crippled man enters via the roof. Part of me suspects that Jesus was teaching on something related to forgiveness and this unexpected entrance helped bring Jesus’ sermon to its main point.

What amazes me about Jesus is that He does not tip-toe around an issue. While He is loving and compassionate to those who need healing, He is also very direct to those who need to hear truth shared directly.

In this miracle, we see a clear contrast between two ideas: mere talk verses practical action.

The Pharisees and religious leaders had mastered the ability to talk about ideas and debate theories, but they lacked the practical action to support their message. In Jesus’ statement on forgiveness, He expresses an action that is really only internally expressed or felt, since feeling forgiven by God, or by anyone for that matter, is something that has no visible signs in the moment.

When Jesus claims that this man’s sins had been forgiven, this statement gets the Pharisee’s attention. Forgiveness is an action, but it is a God-only action. Perhaps, since forgiveness is an intangible action, perhaps these religious leaders felt that it was better left in the talk realm, specifically for them to be able to encourage or discourage people when they bring their sacrifices. However, Jesus assures the man that His sins have been forgiven, and this is before the man had done anything like asking for forgiveness or bringing a sacrifice.

The Pharisee’s don’t like Jesus’ attitude towards forgiveness, so Jesus chooses to frame their model of forgiveness as mere talk by asking them the rhetorical question, “Is it easier for me to tell this crippled man that his sins are forgiven or to tell him to get up and walk?”

While we have no tangible proof when God forgives a sin, we can very easily test the command, “Get up and walk”. Get up and walk is something that is so testable that it takes mere seconds to verify. Can the man actually obey Jesus’ command?

This is a bold move on Jesus’ part.

While Jesus claimed to have knowledge of who God has forgiven, in the Pharisees’ minds, Jesus was directly taking credit for forgiveness, which was a role they believed was God’s alone – specifically the power to forgive sins. Jesus challenged their understanding and belief with a clear, direct miracle.

When reading this event, we might be tempted to think that this event is an example of Jesus drawing attention to Himself, but this would not be the case. Instead, throughout this whole event, the focus was on giving God the glory, and it was a success, because the passage closes with these words in verse 26, “Everyone was amazed and praised God. What they saw surprised them, and they said, ‘We have seen a great miracle today!’”

Another powerful truth in this passage that I want to draw our attention to is that Jesus never claims to have the power to forgive sins according to what we read in this passage. Jesus did not say “I forgive you of your sins.” Instead, He said “My friend, your sins are forgiven.” This passive statement is one subtle way that people in Biblical times attributed a truth to God. In other words, Jesus tells this man that God had forgiven His sins.

In this statement, Jesus shared the truth that God forgives sins because that is who He is – and He forgives sin with no strings attached. Jesus wanted to stretch the mind of His audience to the reality that God loves before God requires. The Pharisees believed God’s love was conditional and based on obedience to His requirements. Jesus challenged this idea with the truth that God loves first, and Jesus’ presence in a sinful, rebellious world is the biggest evidence of this truth.

Through all the details included in this event, Jesus gave 100% of the glory to God – and Jesus’ actions and message in this event reveal a profound truth about God the Father’s character and love for us.

As we come to the end of another podcast episode, here are the challenges I will leave you with:

As I always challenge you to do, intentionally seek God first in your life. If you are struggling with feeling forgiven, claim Jesus’ promise now that God has already forgiven your past sins and resolve to move forward, starting today, into a new life with Him.

Also, continue praying and studying the Bible for yourself, because the Bible reveals God’s true character, and while other people have ideas and opinions, when wanting to know who God is, it’s best to look at what He tells us about Himself in the pages of the Bible.

And as I end every set of challenges by saying in one way or another, never stop short of, back away from, chicken out of, or abandon where God wants to lead you to in your life with Him!

If you have ever wondered what was going on in the minds of Jesus’ early followers, or if you have ever questioned whether it was a good idea to follow Jesus, the event we will focus on in this podcast episode may help. As we continue our journey through Jesus’ life, we arrive at a set of passages where Jesus invites some of His closest and most well known disciples to be disciples.

However, while the event we are looking at can be found in three of the four gospels, in the case of Matthew and Mark’s version of this event, we are left to wonder exactly what was so special about Jesus that caused four fishermen to abandon their careers to follow Jesus.

To help us understand Matthew and Mark’s perspective, which are both very similar, let’s read Matthew’s version of this event. This event can be found in Matthew’s gospel, chapter 4, starting in verse 18. Reading from the New Century Version, Matthew sets the stage for us by saying:

¹⁸ As Jesus was walking by Lake Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon (called Peter) and his brother Andrew. They were throwing a net into the lake because they were fishermen. ¹⁹ Jesus said, “Come follow me, and I will make you fish for people.” ²⁰ So Simon and Andrew immediately left their nets and followed him.

²¹ As Jesus continued walking by Lake Galilee, he saw two other brothers, James and John, the sons of Zebedee. They were in a boat with their father Zebedee, mending their nets. Jesus told them to come with him.²² Immediately they left the boat and their father, and they followed Jesus.

After finishing this passage, I might be tempted to finish this episode early with the big theme: “When Jesus calls, follow Him”, but while this is a good theme present in this passage, for some of us – or maybe it is just me –, the idea of following Jesus “because He asked” isn’t a good enough reason to follow. Remember, this is before most of the miracles, before the fame, before Jesus has hundreds of people asking to follow Him. This would be like a traveling homeless speaker asking you to leave your job and maybe even your family too and travel with him without any promise of fame or money. The only promise present in this passage is the play on words that Jesus would teach them how to fish for people rather than fish.

Luke must have read Matthew or Mark’s gospel and told himself that this event didn’t add up, so he went and did a little more digging to find out what else must have happened. In Luke’s gospel, we are able to read what some might call, “The rest of the story.”

For this reason, let’s focus on what Luke’s gospel tells us about this event for the rest of our podcast episode. In Luke’s gospel, chapter 5, starting in verse 1, Luke tells us that:

¹ One day while Jesus was standing beside Lake Galilee, many people were pressing all around him to hear the word of God. ² Jesus saw two boats at the shore of the lake. The fishermen had left them and were washing their nets. ³ Jesus got into one of the boats, the one that belonged to Simon, and asked him to push off a little from the land. Then Jesus sat down and continued to teach the people from the boat.

⁴ When Jesus had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Take the boat into deep water, and put your nets in the water to catch some fish.”

⁵ Simon answered, “Master, we worked hard all night trying to catch fish, and we caught nothing. But you say to put the nets in the water, so I will.” ⁶ When the fishermen did as Jesus told them, they caught so many fish that the nets began to break. ⁷ They called to their partners in the other boat to come and help them. They came and filled both boats so full that they were almost sinking.

⁸ When Simon Peter saw what had happened, he bowed down before Jesus and said, “Go away from me, Lord. I am a sinful man!” ⁹ He and the other fishermen were amazed at the many fish they caught, as were ¹⁰ James and John, the sons of Zebedee, Simon’s partners.

Jesus said to Simon, “Don’t be afraid. From now on you will fish for people.” ¹¹ When the men brought their boats to the shore, they left everything and followed Jesus.

There are so many amazing details in Luke’s gospel that part of me is surprised that Matthew and Mark shortened this event. I suspect that Mark and Matthew didn’t include the miracle because they both wanted to keep the focus on Jesus and minimize these early followers following Jesus simply because He gave them a miracle. After all, not everyone will be given a miracle when they are invited to follow Jesus.

Part of me wonders if Matthew and Mark shorten this event because they wanted to focus on a different aspect of Jesus’ ministry, and not on how Jesus called each of them. In reality, there is not much space given in any of the gospels to the details of how many of the original twelve disciples were called. All we have in some of the gospels is a list of the ones who were included.

Jesus calling you or I likely won’t be as impressive as hitting the jackpot with a catch of fish. It is likely that Matthew and Mark omit these details to help us more easily relate to how Jesus usually calls people to follow Him.

But Luke knows that Theophilus, the person he is writing to, probably won’t buy into the simplistic nature of how these most famous disciples were called. So he does some digging, and uncovers an amazing story surrounding how Jesus interacted with these four fishermen before calling them to follow.

While reading Luke’s version of this event, one verse and statement stood out to me. In Luke, chapter 5, verse 5, we discover a glimpse of faith in Peter. Up to this point, Jesus is simply another Rabbi, or spiritual teacher, to Simon Peter. No miracles had yet taken place, but this is how Simon Peter responds to Jesus: “Master [referring to Jesus], we worked hard all night trying to catch fish, and we caught nothing. But you say to put the nets in the water, so I will.”

Peter and the other fishermen probably had just finished cleaning their nets when Jesus finished His sermon and made this request, and the fishermen were likely tired and probably ready to head home and to bed after the long night. But Simon Peter is willing to test this new preacher out. We don’t have any idea what Jesus taught that morning while Simon Peter and the others were cleaning their nets, but it was enough of something that gave Simon Peter the courage to test Jesus. Perhaps he had faith that fish would come, or perhaps he thought to himself that after the nets come up empty again, he will politely tell Jesus to stick to preaching and let him stick to fishing.

What mattered in this event was that He obeyed; that He tested Jesus’ instructions by trying them out.

In my life, I have rarely been able to analyze my way into understanding some of the things that Jesus taught. More often, what has helped my faith is testing Jesus’ words by living them out. After several days or perhaps even a week of living in semi-blind obedience, I ask myself if my life looks any different. Is my life better, worse, or the same?

Only if my life is worse do I reconsider or analyze further. If it is better, it is pretty clear to keep obeying. If nothing changed, which is often what I feel like happens, I conclude that perhaps I have not lived long enough to see a difference and there is no harm in continuing.

I suspect some people might think this is a too simplistic view of following Jesus, but personal experience trumps intellectual theory every day they compete. While I could sit on the sidelines and watch others live lives of faith, only by living a faith-filled life myself will I ever truly discover for myself whether God’s way is best! If all of us together truly followed Jesus, modeling our lives after His, using His methods, and loving those He loved, I am positive our world would never be the same.

As we come to the end of another podcast episode, here are the challenges I will leave you with:

As I always challenge you to do, intentionally place God first in your life. Choose to test Jesus’ words and teaching for yourself to discover just who God is and how much He wants for you!

Also, continue praying and studying the Bible for yourself in order to learn more about Jesus and God. While other people have ideas and opinions, only when you open the pages to read the Bible can you discover what God wants you to learn about Him and His plan!

And as I end every set of challenges by saying in one way or another, never stop short of, back away from, chicken out of, or give up on where God wants to lead you to in your life with Him!

As we continue moving through Jesus’ life and the events the four gospels include, we arrive at an event where a group of people hear some information that seems unbelievable. If you have ever been told something you had a difficult time believing, you might be amazed to discover what we can learn within this event.

The event we will be focusing on in this episode is the story of the Samaritan woman who came to the well. This event can be found in John 4:1-45. All throughout this event, those present have their minds stretched, and for our time together, I want to focus our attention onto three specific groups of people. If you are not familiar with this event, I suggest looking up this event the next chance you get. Unfortunately, the passage is quite long and if we were to read everything that happened, our episode would stretch out much longer than I’d like it to.

In this event, two of the three groups of people are usually focused on when reading this event, while the third group is often overlooked. Because of this, I will summarize the first two groups before we focus specifically on the last group – the one that is the most overlooked.

The first group who had their mind stretched was a group of one – the woman who came to the well. A few things to note about this event is that she was alone with Jesus, since He had sent the disciples into town, and that this was the middle of the day, which was the least desirable time to go out to get water.

From these two details mixed with what we learn about the woman later on in the conversation, I suspect this woman probably would have bailed on her water gathering trip if all the disciples had been present. In my mind’s eye, Jesus probably sat just out of view and His request startled her to the fact that anyone was even there. We might conclude that since she had gone to get water at the least ideal time, she preferred to not be around other people.

As the conversation progresses, Jesus slowly opens her mind to the truth of who He is. If Jesus introduced Himself by saying, “I am the Messiah, now would you get me a drink?” I believe the woman would have simply turned and walked away. She likely believed that the Messiah, the One who would save Israel, would never talk to her. She may have believed herself to be the most rejected person in society.

However, Jesus did want to break through her preconceived ideas, and the only way for Him to get through to her was to slowly lead the conversation further. At each step in Jesus’ conversation with her, He stretches her mind, until at the end of the conversation, Jesus reveals who He is – and it is one of the only places where Jesus directly states to anyone that He is the promised Messiah.

The next group of people who have their minds stretched are the disciples. Here is a group of Jews, outside of a town in Samaria, who Jesus asks to go and get supplies. From a cultural standpoint, the Jews hated the Samaritans, and because of this, the Samaritans didn’t really like the Jews either. The first thing that stretches the disciples’ minds is the act of going into an unknown, and perhaps even an unfriendly, town.

Next, their minds are stretched when they return and find Jesus talking with a woman. In the first century culture, this woman was the lowest on the “gender” class because she was a woman, the “ethnic” class because she was a Samaritan, and the “social” class because she was there alone in the middle of the day, which is something that only social outcasts would do. Regular people would at least bring a friend for conversation and perhaps protection.

Seeing Jesus talking to this woman, and at the point of their arrival, noting that it was a very candid conversation about her past, and specifically who He was, would have been enough to stretch their minds.

However, what happens after this woman leaves and the disciples return is what I want to focus on in this episode. Let’s read what happened after the woman left to go back into town. Our passage is found in John’s gospel, chapter 4, and we will read from the Holman Christian Standard Bible. While we have summarized the first portion of this event, jumping into the passage in verse 31, John tells us that:

³¹ In the meantime the disciples kept urging Him, “Rabbi, eat something.”

³² But He said, “I have food to eat that you don’t know about.”

³³ The disciples said to one another, “Could someone have brought Him something to eat?”

³⁴ “My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me and to finish His work,” Jesus told them. ³⁵ “Don’t you say, ‘There are still four more months, then comes the harvest’? Listen to what I’m telling you: Open your eyes and look at the fields, for they are ready for harvest. ³⁶ The reaper is already receiving pay and gathering fruit for eternal life, so the sower and reaper can rejoice together. ³⁷ For in this case the saying is true: ‘One sows and another reaps.’ ³⁸ I sent you to reap what you didn’t labor for; others have labored, and you have benefited from their labor.”

³⁹ Now many Samaritans from that town believed in Him because of what the woman said when she testified, “He told me everything I ever did.” ⁴⁰ Therefore, when the Samaritans came to Him, they asked Him to stay with them, and He stayed there two days. ⁴¹ Many more believed because of what He said. ⁴² And they told the woman, “We no longer believe because of what you said, for we have heard for ourselves and know that this really is the Savior of the world.”

⁴³ After two days He left there for Galilee.

In this conclusion to our passage, we read that the disciples’ minds were not done being stretched. Jesus then tells them that He has food that they don’t know of. Jesus is talking of spiritual food, and the satisfaction that comes from doing God’s will.

Jesus then continues stretching their minds by talking about a spiritual harvest. The temptation we all face is thinking that there must be a great season of “sowing” before we can eventually “reap” or harvest. Jesus counters this mindset by stating that spiritually, there is sowing and reaping happening simultaneously. Each person might fill a different role in the process of leading someone to Christ, but we must not assume there will be a delay. This teaching at the beginning of Jesus’ ministry, which He shared while traveling through the land of Samaria, leads into the biggest mind-stretching event for the disciples: The whole town comes out to see Jesus.

The big mind stretch in this passage comes in the third group of people – those living in the town who came out to see Jesus.

Their story begins with the transformed life and character of the woman who they all knew, and who was acting significantly differently than at the beginning of this event. At the beginning, she was shy, timid, and quiet – wanting to be hidden from sight – while now she is bold and telling everyone about this odd person, and sharing the idea that the Messiah might have come.

The townspeople seemed interested enough in Jesus that they ask Him to stay with them for a few days. John doesn’t tell us what Jesus shared during those few days, but we do see the final result: Many of the people in the down put their faith and trust in Jesus. At the end of this passage, John writes that they tell the woman, “We no longer believe because of what you said, for we have heard for ourselves and know that this really is the Savior of the world.”

The townspeople have their mind stretched personally by Jesus and then proclaim along with the woman that Jesus really is the Savior of the world.

Jesus stretched the minds of three very unique and distinct groups of people, and each person in this event would never be the same. When Jesus has stretched your mind, it can never shrink back to its original size.

As we come to the end of another podcast episode, here are the challenges I will leave you with:

As I always challenge you to do, intentionally seek God first in your life. Let God stretch your mind to the size He wants it to be, and don’t be afraid of going into the places and situations God tells you to go into. Also, never discount anyone else’s experience with God. God wants a personal relationship with everyone, and that includes you and every other person alive today!

Also, continue to pray and study the Bible for yourself in order to grow your personal relationship with God. God wants a personal relationship with you, and the best way to grow a relationship with God is through prayer and studying His Word.

And as I end every set of challenges by saying in one way or another, never stop short of, back away from, chicken out of, or give up on where God wants to lead you to in your life with Him!