Bible Verse of the Day Tuesday November 1st, 2022

John 5:21 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.

Before the healing of the paralytic man on the Sabbath, the religious leaders of the Jews had only an undercurrent of opposition and protest against Jesus. However, since Jesus did this healing on the Sabbath, the Pharisees began persecuting Jesus. It is noteworthy that the sabbath rules and regulations that the Jewish people had attached to the true meaning of this most sacred day bore no resemblance to what Moses had brought forth from God. Their accusation of breaking the Sabbath was only a front for the real reason the Jewish leaders wanted to have Jesus killed. Only God can give life and heal the afflicted, and in doing this miracle, Jesus put Himself on the same footing as God, even saying He could give life just as the father gives life. Underneath their false facades, they most likely knew that Jesus had come from God, but their pietism so constrained them that they were blinded to the truth that Christ was wholly God and fully Man and was indeed God in the flesh. The Pharisees and all that followed their false teachings missed the most incredible gift known to humankind, eternal life, when they refused to believe the truth that Jesus brought forth to the world and thought He was, in fact, the true promised Messiah.

Today that sad truth is unfortunately still alive, and many do not even want to hear about Jesus and His promise of eternal life. Many people have allowed Satan to put blinders on them so they can only see what Satan wants them to see. These victims of Satan’s evil schemes are so enamored with the frills of the world that they miss the truth of the Word of God. Many blessings can be ours here in this life if we only surrender ourselves to Christ Jesus and the mission of spreading the Gospel to the uttermost parts of the earth (Acts 1:8); however, this life is only a blink of the eyes when compared to eternal life (James 4:14).

For every temporary worldly frill that we give up here in this life, there are immense blessings that we cannot describe with human words that are ours through the love and grace of Christ Jesus.

In Psalms 139:23, we read about David asking God to search Him and know what was in his heart. We should be asking that same prayer every day of our lives. We should examine our lives and thoughts as best we can, not in the light of other people but in the light of Christ Jesus. Compared to someone in our lives, we might not look so bad; however, how do we look when we gauge ourselves alongside Christ? Christ Jesus is the standard by which we should be making all of life’s decisions (2 Corinthians 13:5). When Jesus told His disciples that one of them was going to betray Him, they all responded, “surely you don’t mean me, Lord” (Matthew 26:21-22).

They were, in essence, asking Jesus if it would be them. We should be asking ourselves daily if there are any worldly mirages or fantasies that have supplanted or replaced our love for our Lord and Savior, Christ Jesus, and our desire to be doing God’s will for our lives.

If You would like the Verse of the Day sent to your daily E-Mail, send a request in the "Comments" section. Please include your e-mail address.