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Choose, Chosing, Choice ( A Biblical Look)
Posted : 29 Jul, 2012 01:58 PM
John 6:
47.Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me hath everlasting life.
48 I am that bread of life.
49 Your fathers did eat manna in the wilderness, and are dead.
50 This is the bread which cometh down from heaven, that a man may eat thereof, and not die.
51 I am the living bread which came down from heaven: if any man eat of this bread, he shall live for ever: and the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.
52 The Jews therefore strove among themselves, saying, How can this man give us his flesh to eat?
53 Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you.
54 Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day.
55 For my flesh is meat indeed, and my blood is drink indeed.
56 He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, dwelleth in me, and I in him. 57 As the living Father hath sent me, and I live by the Father: so he that eateth me, even he shall live by me.
58 This is that bread which came down from heaven: not as your fathers did eat manna, and are dead: he that eateth of this bread shall live for ever.
59 These things said he in the synagogue, as he taught in Capernaum.
60 Many therefore of his disciples, when they had heard this, said, This is an hard saying; who can hear it?
61 When Jesus knew in himself that his disciples murmured at it, he said unto them, Doth this offend you?
62 What and if ye shall see the Son of man ascend up where he was before?
63 It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.
64 But there are some of you that believe not. For Jesus knew from the beginning who they were that believed not, and who should betray him.
65 And he said, Therefore said I unto you, that no man can come unto me, except it were given unto him of my Father.
66 From that time many of his disciples went back, and walked no more with him.
67 Then said Jesus unto the twelve, Will ye also go away?
68 Then Simon Peter answered him, Lord, to whom shall we go? thou hast the words of eternal life.
69 And we believe and are sure that thou art that Christ, the Son of the living God.
70 Jesus answered them, Have not I chosen you twelve, and one of you is a devil?
71 He spake of Judas Iscariot the son of Simon: for he it was that should betray him, being one of the twelve.
My desire is that the Word of God will speak for itself here.
I merely want to draw attention to a few specific verses.
Where did the bread come down from? Did they CHOOSE to go into Heaven and bring it down to man? How many folks these days are out there "evaluating" religions? Subjecting each religion to their own carnal minds approval. How many times have you heard someone say something like " I tried Jesus once, etc" or "maybe I will check it out and see what happens"
The Gospel is NOT an offer made to a carnally minded man in order for it to be evaluated on the basis of it's perceived merits and then CHOOSE whether he likes it or not....CHOOSE whether he wants to "give Jesus a chance"... CHOOSE whether he want to "open the door of his heart and let Jesus come in" God is not telling us to go around offering "stories about Jesus" or a "free gift" for others acceptance or rejection.
Your personal testimony or ,better yet, your perception of your personal testimony is for all intent and purposes irrelevant to the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Many people have quit drinking alcohol or using drugs through an AA meeting. Many Muslims have radically changed their lives because it was Allah's will. In fact, many false religions and cults produce some of the most radical life changing experiences in people and yet... none of that has anything to do with the Gospel of Jesus Christ. I've know many people who have been transformed by sitting at a Tony Robbins seminar or reading a book by Zig Ziglar and yet still none of that has anything to do with the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Your personal testimony is that you cut your long hair, quit using heroin, burned your rock music and joined the church choir. So what? I can point to millions who have done similar things. That STILL is NOT the Gospel message of Jesus Christ. You may think it's important but who you are and YOUR life story is irrelevant to the Gospel.
The chances are very good that those who believe and teach such things have never met the Man from Galilee. They have never had their hardened hearts made into a heart of flesh. They have never been born again by the Spirit of God.
NOTICE Vs. 60. The things that Jesus was teaching were " a hard saying" - difficult to understand
Why was it hard for them? Anyone?? It was all spoken in "obvious straight forward words"
Why was it hard for them? Was Jesus speaking higher, deeper knowledge than that of the basic language"? If he was then I guess that " Words we learned and used throughout our lives take on entirely different meanings." Do they not?
Why did this offend them? The answer is right there in the text: " there are some of you that believe not." Jesus knew which ones believed and which ones did not.
Why did some believe and others not? The answer is right there in the text as well: " 65 And he said, Therefore said I unto you, that no man can come unto me, except it were given unto him of my Father. " The belief was given to them from the Father.
Watch what happens! Vs.66 Many of his disciples turned away. These were non believers. They had been "disciples" until that moment. Now they stopped following Jesus. This also was of the Father.
Look at what he asks those who were left? Do you want to turn away also? But Peter answered him - NO. Peter knew and believed who Jesus truly was. But how? Was he just a smart guy? Had he used his own will? Did some other person present it to him and ask him if he wanted to "accept it or not"? - NO - The Father had revealed it to him.
Matt 16:17 And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Bar-jona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven.
Now watch what Jesus says - Did not I CHOOSE you?
Did I not even CHOOSE which Devil would betray me?
Totally consistent with what I have already shown from John 3 and what I have already shown from Romans 9.
Restated again in John 15:16 Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you.
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