{"id":870,"date":"2024-08-23T03:00:00","date_gmt":"2024-08-23T09:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/reflectivebiblestudy.com\/gospeladventure\/?p=870&2024"},"modified":"2024-08-20T18:00:44","modified_gmt":"2024-08-21T00:00:44","slug":"the-goal-of-the-bible-john-5-16-47","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/reflectivebiblestudy.com\/gospeladventure\/the-goal-of-the-bible-john-5-16-47\/","title":{"rendered":"The Goal of the Bible: John 5:16-47"},"content":{"rendered":"
Focus Passage: John 5:16-47 (NIV)<\/div>
\r\n

16\u00a0<\/sup>So, because Jesus was doing these things on the Sabbath, the Jewish leaders began to persecute him. 17\u00a0<\/sup>In his defense Jesus said to them, \u201cMy Father is always at his work to this very day, and I too am working.\u201d 18\u00a0<\/sup>For this reason they tried all the more to kill him; not only was he breaking the Sabbath, but he was even calling God his own Father, making himself equal with God.<\/p>

19\u00a0<\/sup>Jesus gave them this answer: \u201cVery truly I tell you, the Son can do nothing by himself; he can do only what he sees his Father doing, because whatever the Father does the Son also does. 20\u00a0<\/sup>For the Father loves the Son and shows him all he does. Yes, and he will show him even greater works than these, so that you will be amazed. 21\u00a0<\/sup>For just as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, even so the Son gives life to whom he is pleased to give it. 22\u00a0<\/sup>Moreover, the Father judges no one, but has entrusted all judgment to the Son, 23\u00a0<\/sup>that all may honor the Son just as they honor the Father. Whoever does not honor the Son does not honor the Father, who sent him.<\/p>

24\u00a0<\/sup>\u201cVery truly I tell you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be judged but has crossed over from death to life. 25\u00a0<\/sup>Very truly I tell you, a time is coming and has now come when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God and those who hear will live. 26\u00a0<\/sup>For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son also to have life in himself. 27\u00a0<\/sup>And he has given him authority to judge because he is the Son of Man.<\/p>

28\u00a0<\/sup>\u201cDo not be amazed at this, for a time is coming when all who are in their graves will hear his voice 29\u00a0<\/sup>and come out\u2014those who have done what is good will rise to live, and those who have done what is evil will rise to be condemned. 30\u00a0<\/sup>By myself I can do nothing; I judge only as I hear, and my judgment is just, for I seek not to please myself but him who sent me.<\/p>

31\u00a0<\/sup>\u201cIf I testify about myself, my testimony is not true. 32\u00a0<\/sup>There is another who testifies in my favor, and I know that his testimony about me is true.<\/p>

33\u00a0<\/sup>\u201cYou have sent to John and he has testified to the truth. 34\u00a0<\/sup>Not that I accept human testimony; but I mention it that you may be saved. 35\u00a0<\/sup>John was a lamp that burned and gave light, and you chose for a time to enjoy his light.<\/p>

36\u00a0<\/sup>\u201cI have testimony weightier than that of John. For the works that the Father has given me to finish\u2014the very works that I am doing\u2014testify that the Father has sent me. 37\u00a0<\/sup>And the Father who sent me has himself testified concerning me. You have never heard his voice nor seen his form, 38\u00a0<\/sup>nor does his word dwell in you, for you do not believe the one he sent. 39\u00a0<\/sup>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\u00a0<\/sup>yet you refuse to come to me to have life.<\/p>

41\u00a0<\/sup>\u201cI do not accept glory from human beings, 42\u00a0<\/sup>but I know you. I know that you do not have the love of God in your hearts. 43\u00a0<\/sup>I have come in my Father\u2019s name, and you do not accept me; but if someone else comes in his own name, you will accept him. 44\u00a0<\/sup>How can you believe since you accept glory from one another but do not seek the glory that comes from the only God?<\/p>

45\u00a0<\/sup>\u201cBut do not think I will accuse you before the Father. Your accuser is Moses, on whom your hopes are set. 46\u00a0<\/sup>If you believed Moses, you would believe me, for he wrote about me. 47\u00a0<\/sup>But since you do not believe what he wrote, how are you going to believe what I say?\u201d<\/p>\r\n

Read John 5:16-47<\/a> in context and\/or in other translations on BibleGateway.com!<\/p><\/div><\/div>\r\n

During Jesus\u2019 response to a challenge some Jewish leaders brought Him regarding something He did on the Sabbath, we find a fascinating way that Jesus frames the scriptures. The scriptures Jesus was referring to was the Old Testament, because that is what had been written at that time. Many of us living today would also bring the New Testament under the heading of scriptures because we can see evidence of how God has preserved these writings throughout history like He has preserved the Old Testament writings.<\/p>\r\n

We could even broaden the term scripture to mean anything that God (i.e. The Holy Spirit) has inspired a person to write regardless of whether it was included in the Bible. The way Jesus frames this term can equally be applied to all these different ways of understanding what people have written that was inspired, but in the context of the statement, only the Old Testament was considered Scripture to those present.<\/p>\r\n

Jesus challenges these Jewish leaders by saying, \u201cYou study the Scriptures diligently because you think that in them you have eternal life. These are the very Scriptures that testify about me, yet you refuse to come to me to have life.<\/strong>\u201d (v. 39-40)<\/p>\r\n

The idea Jesus is sharing with these leaders is that knowledge does not lead to life. Knowledge can only direct someone to where they can receive life. Words written on a page are at the most basic level sets of marks that mean something to those who can understand them. The words themselves only have the power we let them have. If we don\u2019t internalize the message a group of words shares enough to change our lives, then the words are really useless.<\/p>\r\n

At some level, this is the same with the words that make up the Bible. If someone chooses to read them and they don\u2019t impact his\/her life, then the words are not worth anything. Knowledge that is not applied is not worth much.<\/p>\r\n

The Jewish leaders had placed a heavy emphasis on studying and knowing the scriptures, but they had missed the point of what was being said. The goal of the scriptures was to point to Jesus.<\/strong><\/p>\r\n

According to Jesus, reading the Bible does not lead one to eternal life. Only those who come to Jesus and choose to believe in Him, which is another way of saying having faith in Him, trusting Him, and following His leadership and direction ultimately gain this reward. When we believe, follow, and obey Jesus, then we are walking along the path the scriptures have pointed us towards \u2013 and when this is the case, the scriptures have fulfilled their intended task.<\/strong><\/p>\r\n

This thought was inspired by studying the Walking With Jesus<\/strong> \u201cReflective Bible Study\u201d package. To discover insights like this in your own study time, click here<\/a> and give Reflective Bible Study a try today!<\/em><\/p>

Subscribe<\/a> to this blog and never miss an insight.<\/em><\/p><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"During Jesus\u2019 response to a challenge some Jewish leaders brought Him regarding something He did on the Sabbath, we find a fascinating way that Jesus frames the scriptures. The scriptures Jesus was referring to was the Old Testament, because that is what had been written at that time. Many of us living today would also […]","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-870","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-text"],"nelio_content":{"autoShareEndMode":"never","automationSources":{"useCustomSentences":false,"customSentences":[]},"efiAlt":"","efiUrl":"","followers":[2],"highlights":[],"isAutoShareEnabled":false,"networkImageIds":[],"permalinkQueryArgs":[],"series":[],"suggestedReferences":[]},"yoast_head":"\nThe Goal of the Bible: John 5:16-47 - Reflective Bible Study Gospel Adventure<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/reflectivebiblestudy.com\/gospeladventure\/the-goal-of-the-bible-john-5-16-47\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The Goal of the Bible: John 5:16-47 - Reflective Bible Study Gospel Adventure\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"During Jesus\u2019 response to a challenge some Jewish leaders brought Him regarding something He did on the Sabbath, we find a fascinating way that Jesus frames the scriptures. The scriptures Jesus was referring to was the Old Testament, because that is what had been written at that time. Many of us living today would also […]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/reflectivebiblestudy.com\/gospeladventure\/the-goal-of-the-bible-john-5-16-47\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Reflective Bible Study Gospel Adventure\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/reflectivebiblestudy\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2024-08-23T09:00:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Cam\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@godstruthhisway\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@godstruthhisway\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/reflectivebiblestudy.com\\\/gospeladventure\\\/the-goal-of-the-bible-john-5-16-47\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/reflectivebiblestudy.com\\\/gospeladventure\\\/the-goal-of-the-bible-john-5-16-47\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Cam\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/reflectivebiblestudy.com\\\/gospeladventure\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/6aa6c062baad6d28cd49429d13dee5e3\"},\"headline\":\"The Goal of the Bible: John 5:16-47\",\"datePublished\":\"2024-08-23T09:00:00+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/reflectivebiblestudy.com\\\/gospeladventure\\\/the-goal-of-the-bible-john-5-16-47\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":1190,\"articleSection\":[\"Written Journal Entries\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/reflectivebiblestudy.com\\\/gospeladventure\\\/the-goal-of-the-bible-john-5-16-47\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/reflectivebiblestudy.com\\\/gospeladventure\\\/the-goal-of-the-bible-john-5-16-47\\\/\",\"name\":\"The Goal of the Bible: John 5:16-47 - Reflective Bible Study Gospel Adventure\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/reflectivebiblestudy.com\\\/gospeladventure\\\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2024-08-23T09:00:00+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/reflectivebiblestudy.com\\\/gospeladventure\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/6aa6c062baad6d28cd49429d13dee5e3\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/reflectivebiblestudy.com\\\/gospeladventure\\\/the-goal-of-the-bible-john-5-16-47\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/reflectivebiblestudy.com\\\/gospeladventure\\\/the-goal-of-the-bible-john-5-16-47\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/reflectivebiblestudy.com\\\/gospeladventure\\\/the-goal-of-the-bible-john-5-16-47\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/reflectivebiblestudy.com\\\/gospeladventure\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"The Goal of the Bible: John 5:16-47\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/reflectivebiblestudy.com\\\/gospeladventure\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/reflectivebiblestudy.com\\\/gospeladventure\\\/\",\"name\":\"Reflective Bible Study Gospel Adventure\",\"description\":\"Your Life. God's Truth. His Way.\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/reflectivebiblestudy.com\\\/gospeladventure\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/reflectivebiblestudy.com\\\/gospeladventure\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/6aa6c062baad6d28cd49429d13dee5e3\",\"name\":\"Cam\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/reflectivebiblestudy.com\\\/gospeladventure\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/avatars\\\/2\\\/b94b7ad9f3de7c191324b19a0e9c49a1-bpfull.jpg\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/reflectivebiblestudy.com\\\/gospeladventure\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/avatars\\\/2\\\/b94b7ad9f3de7c191324b19a0e9c49a1-bpfull.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/reflectivebiblestudy.com\\\/gospeladventure\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/avatars\\\/2\\\/b94b7ad9f3de7c191324b19a0e9c49a1-bpfull.jpg\",\"caption\":\"Cam\"}}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"The Goal of the Bible: John 5:16-47 - Reflective Bible Study Gospel Adventure","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/reflectivebiblestudy.com\/gospeladventure\/the-goal-of-the-bible-john-5-16-47\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"The Goal of the Bible: John 5:16-47 - Reflective Bible Study Gospel Adventure","og_description":"During Jesus\u2019 response to a challenge some Jewish leaders brought Him regarding something He did on the Sabbath, we find a fascinating way that Jesus frames the scriptures. The scriptures Jesus was referring to was the Old Testament, because that is what had been written at that time. Many of us living today would also […]","og_url":"https:\/\/reflectivebiblestudy.com\/gospeladventure\/the-goal-of-the-bible-john-5-16-47\/","og_site_name":"Reflective Bible Study Gospel Adventure","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/reflectivebiblestudy\/","article_published_time":"2024-08-23T09:00:00+00:00","author":"Cam","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@godstruthhisway","twitter_site":"@godstruthhisway","schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/reflectivebiblestudy.com\/gospeladventure\/the-goal-of-the-bible-john-5-16-47\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/reflectivebiblestudy.com\/gospeladventure\/the-goal-of-the-bible-john-5-16-47\/"},"author":{"name":"Cam","@id":"https:\/\/reflectivebiblestudy.com\/gospeladventure\/#\/schema\/person\/6aa6c062baad6d28cd49429d13dee5e3"},"headline":"The Goal of the Bible: John 5:16-47","datePublished":"2024-08-23T09:00:00+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/reflectivebiblestudy.com\/gospeladventure\/the-goal-of-the-bible-john-5-16-47\/"},"wordCount":1190,"articleSection":["Written Journal Entries"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/reflectivebiblestudy.com\/gospeladventure\/the-goal-of-the-bible-john-5-16-47\/","url":"https:\/\/reflectivebiblestudy.com\/gospeladventure\/the-goal-of-the-bible-john-5-16-47\/","name":"The Goal of the Bible: John 5:16-47 - Reflective Bible Study Gospel Adventure","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/reflectivebiblestudy.com\/gospeladventure\/#website"},"datePublished":"2024-08-23T09:00:00+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/reflectivebiblestudy.com\/gospeladventure\/#\/schema\/person\/6aa6c062baad6d28cd49429d13dee5e3"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/reflectivebiblestudy.com\/gospeladventure\/the-goal-of-the-bible-john-5-16-47\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/reflectivebiblestudy.com\/gospeladventure\/the-goal-of-the-bible-john-5-16-47\/"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/reflectivebiblestudy.com\/gospeladventure\/the-goal-of-the-bible-john-5-16-47\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/reflectivebiblestudy.com\/gospeladventure\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"The Goal of the Bible: John 5:16-47"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/reflectivebiblestudy.com\/gospeladventure\/#website","url":"https:\/\/reflectivebiblestudy.com\/gospeladventure\/","name":"Reflective Bible Study Gospel Adventure","description":"Your Life. God's Truth. His Way.","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/reflectivebiblestudy.com\/gospeladventure\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/reflectivebiblestudy.com\/gospeladventure\/#\/schema\/person\/6aa6c062baad6d28cd49429d13dee5e3","name":"Cam","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/reflectivebiblestudy.com\/gospeladventure\/wp-content\/uploads\/avatars\/2\/b94b7ad9f3de7c191324b19a0e9c49a1-bpfull.jpg","url":"https:\/\/reflectivebiblestudy.com\/gospeladventure\/wp-content\/uploads\/avatars\/2\/b94b7ad9f3de7c191324b19a0e9c49a1-bpfull.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/reflectivebiblestudy.com\/gospeladventure\/wp-content\/uploads\/avatars\/2\/b94b7ad9f3de7c191324b19a0e9c49a1-bpfull.jpg","caption":"Cam"}}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/reflectivebiblestudy.com\/gospeladventure\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/870","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/reflectivebiblestudy.com\/gospeladventure\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/reflectivebiblestudy.com\/gospeladventure\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/reflectivebiblestudy.com\/gospeladventure\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/reflectivebiblestudy.com\/gospeladventure\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=870"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/reflectivebiblestudy.com\/gospeladventure\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/870\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/reflectivebiblestudy.com\/gospeladventure\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=870"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/reflectivebiblestudy.com\/gospeladventure\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=870"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/reflectivebiblestudy.com\/gospeladventure\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=870"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}