I felt God woke me this morning at 5:30 am to tell me something. It was that sometimes we don't pay attention to the smallest of things. He gave me John 12.47-50, "If anyone hears does not keep them, I do not judge him; for I did not come to judge the world but to save the world. The one who rejects me and does not receive my words has a judge; the word that I have spoken will judge him on the last day. For I have not spoken on my own authority, but the Father who sent me has himself given me a commandment—what to say and what to speak. And I know that his commandment is eternal life. What I say, therefore, I say as the Father has told me."
http://bible.us/John12.47.ESV
I have found that many times we come to this text to prove the fact that Jesus did all of the things He did and said all of the words He said not with His own authority, but with the Authority of God, the Father. One thing that is odd to me is that we skip right over that Jesus says, "that His [God the father's] command is everlasting life." This is huge, With the authority of God the father, and following what the Father tells Him to do he says into existence that God the Father's command is everlasting life.
Think about it, God's commandments are the laws we have to live by to be in relationship with Him, right? If He didn't set the bar high enough with the first ten, then over 300 commandments, try this one on for size. He wants us to have everlasting life. I don't think God ever thought that we could pull that one off. What I think is that God, like the perfect parent that His, wants to be with us, his children, forever. Being the righteous and omniscient God that He is knows that if we come into his presence in the unrighteous state that we are in, we would be annihilated. The problem is that the debt that we owe because of our sin is too great for us to pay. But because Jesus fits the bill, He pays our bill, and then purifies our unrighteousness so that we may obey this commandment.
Everlasting life, that's a pretty cool one to be a part of. Most of us look at the whole washing of our hands and some of the ritual commandments as not exciting, but I can get really excited about that one.
Remember, God didn't give us the commandments to boss us around or to toy with us and laugh when we missed the mark. He was showing us that only someone perfect like Himself, or Himself could come before Him without being annihilated. It simply points out to all that we need a savior, that we can't do it without His help. That's all he ever wanted was for us to reach to Him so He could love on us. Remember that all came possible by the Son, Jesus, Jeshua, the Messiah, dieing for us.
This last part is for anyone who has not been born again, John 3:3-6 ESV
"Jesus answered him, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God." Nicodemus said to him, "How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother's womb and be born?" Jesus answered, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit."
If you do not know the Lord Jesus as your Lord, please take a moment search deep in your heart and listen for the sweet voice of the Holy Spirit. If you hear God asking you to be close to him, to come to him so he can love on you, you must become born again. How you do that is simply in your own words, confessing that you can't live up to perfection, you are flawed, and asking him to purify you through the blood of Jesus. One other crucial part is asking Him to take the reigns from here, let His will be done. Surrender your will for his, as in Jesus's prayer, your will be done on Earth as it is Heaven. Accept it, embrace it, enjoy the Love of God. I pour blessings out over you and ask God to pour His love on you as you live in His will from this day forward.
P.S. you will never get it right, you will never be perfect, you will continue to sin, but if you always come back to Him asking for His will those sins will become fewer and fewer and you will continue to become more like him. God Bless.
