Daily Lesson for Monday 18th of November 2024

In addition to the specific signs and testimonies that John used to point to Jesus as the Messiah, John also appealed to the authority of the Old Testament and to its prophecies, which foretold the work of Christ. The Old Testament is central, not just to John’s Gospel but to all the New Testament. Justification for Jesus, for who He was, where He came from, what He did, and what He will do—is based on Scripture, in this case the Old Testament.

Image © Review & Herald Publishing at Goodsalt.com

All through the Gospels, time and again, Jesus points to the authority of Scripture as a key witness to Him. For instance, Jesus often uses events from the Old Testament to help point to Himself and to what He does. The following is one case, where He takes an event from Numbers 21:5-9. “ ‘As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up’ ” (John 3:14, NKJV). Here, not only does Jesus refer to the story, but by using it to point to Himself, He basically gives us the authoritative interpretation of what the story meant to convey.

And not just Jesus, but others, as well, use the Old Testament to point to Jesus. For example, early on in John, we read the words of Philip: “ ‘We have found Him of whom Moses in the law, and also the prophets, wrote’ ” (John 1:45, NKJV).

<–Sunday Tuesday–>

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Source: https://ssnet.org/blog/24d-08-the-authoritative-role-of-scripture/

Daily Lesson for Sunday 17th of November 2024

In addition to the specific miracles that John used to point to Jesus as the Messiah, he also recorded the broader discussion about the signs, works, and wonders that Jesus did.

The signs and wonders, in and of themselves, were not proof of His Messiahship because many prophets, sometimes false ones, also performed miracles. John did not record the signs because they pointed to a great miracle worker only. The signs that John wrote about had the unique character of pointing to Jesus as the Messiah and to show that He, indeed, came from God the Father Himself.

Image © Kim Justinen from GoodSalt.com

Jesus used the signs to show His close working relationship with the Father. The two were one. The works showed that “ ‘the Father is in Me, and I in Him’ ” (John 10:38, NKJV; see also John 14:10-11.)

The purpose of Jesus’ coming was to do the works of the One who sent Him, in order that these works might be made manifest to the world. That is, He came to do the work that the Father sent Him to do, and the works that He did testified, clearly, that He was from the Father.

And yet, as we have already seen, even despite the powerful signs and the testimonies from many people, people still chose not to believe.

The religious leaders asked Jesus, “ ‘How long do You keep us in doubt? If You are the Christ, tell us plainly.’ Jesus answered them, ‘I told you, and you do not believe. The works that I do in My Father’s name, they bear witness of Me’ ” (John 10:24-25, NKJV).

If Jesus had come right out and said He was the Messiah, the religious leaders—looking for anything they could find against Him—would have pounced on Him. Knowing this, Jesus instead pointed to the works He had done. If Jesus had said He was the Christ, they could easily seek to deny that. But how could they deny the signs, the works, and the wonders? These were powerful testimonies to who He was and where He had come from.

<–Sabbath Monday–>

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Source: https://ssnet.org/blog/24d-08-signs-works-and-wonders/