John by James Rochford (2024)

In our fallen nature, we prefer a formalistic relationship with God.  It is easier to perform rituals than to deeply relate to our Creator on a personal level.  But Jesus' very first miracle of turning water into wine is a sign to us that He is against formalism and wants instead a personal, love-relationship with His followers.

 Jesus felt anger at the religious leaders who were taking advantage of the people coming to worship God at the temple.  This story of Jesus cleansing the temple of the money changers can bring comfort to anyone who has ever been hurt by someone in the church.  Jesus feels anger toward anyone who hurts another person.

Jesus tells Nicodemus that he must be born both of water and of the spirit to go to heaven.  He must be born again.  Nicodemus is astonished that all his good credentials are not enough to qualify him for heaven.  He must put his faith in Jesus to be saved.

The lesson of the woman at the well teaches us that the message of Christ is for anyone and He can quench your thirst.  He can use anyone in spite of their past because He knows not just your past but your future as well.

When it comes to taking Jesus at His word, we want the feelings to come first, but God wants us to take a step of faith first.  When we step out in faith first, the feeling come afterward and our faith grows exponentially.

The religious mentality and the victim mentality share the same traits of being judgmental, angry, bitter self-absorbed and ultimately harmful.  Do you want to keep blame-shifting or do you want to get well? 

Predictive prophecy is a powerful witness to the validity of the  outrageous claims of Jesus.  With a little bit of studying Scripture, one can discern that the ninth chapter of the book of Daniel accurately predicts the year the Messiah would be killed.  Jesus died on the cross the very year that Daniel predicted hundreds of years earlier.

When Jesus fed the five thousands, He was doing more than feeding hungry crowds.  He was offering the crowds the Bread of Life so they would never hunger again and He was teaching the disciples that serving others, although rarely easy or convenient, is very fulfilling.

James explains why the people desired to follow Jesus and why they stopped following Him.  They desired their temporal needs fulfilled but Jesus desired to meet much bigger needs, eternal needs.

Since Jesus made bold claims to be God, every person must decide if Jesus was just a good moral teacher, or if he was a liar, or merely insane, or was He who He claimed to be?

The Pharisees tried to put Jesus on the horns of a dilemma by dragging a woman caught in adultery before Him.  If He condemned her, He would violate Roman law, If He defends her, He breaks Old Testament Law.  Instead, He challenges the Pharisees to cast the first stone if they have no sinful involvement in this situation.

The perils of denying the Light of the World are judgment, loss of freedom and a darkened mind. For those who have an open mind and receive the Light, they have forgiveness, regained freedom and an enlightened mind.

James Rochford contrasts the two different reactions to Jesus healing the man born blind.  The Pharisees believed they could see, but were profoundly, spiritually blind, and rejected Jesus, where as the blind man knew he was blind and was willing to see Jesus and worship Him.

Why would you want Jesus to lead your life? If you have trusted Him for eternal life, then you can trust Him to be a strong, personal, sacrificial, wise and humble leader. Why would you settle for less?

In this account of Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead, we learn why Jesus waited four days to intervene and what this reveals about the heart of God.  We also learn several important things from the grief of Mary and Martha that can help us endure difficult times of grief.

Mary anointing Jesus with the expensive perfume was viewed by the disciples as a waste, but Jesus viewed it as a beautiful thing.  She dedicated everything she had to Jesus and He promised her generous deed would be remembered and discussed wherever the Gospel is preached.

In order for a kernel of wheat to bear fruit, it must fall to the ground and die.  It needs to be broken open.  So too, do followers of Jesus need to be broken to bear fruit.  Jesus uses the difficult circumstances that come into our lives to break our outer selves to let the light of Jesus to shine through.

Why would anyone want to pursue a lifestyle of sacrificial love?  Sacrificial love is motivated by having a new identity in Christ.  God loved us first and gives us an example to emulate.  Giving is the key to a happy life.  This will make us or break us.  This was the last teaching Judas heard from Jesus and he walked away to betray Jesus. This servant love convinces others that God's love is genuine.