How do you emphasize that something is important? How do you make it clear that you want the person listening to you to really listen?
One way is to talk louder. Another way might be to talk slower. Still another way would be to say, “Listen carefully. This is important.” If you are writing to a person you might want to USE ALL CAPITAL LETTERS WITH EXCLAMATION POINTS FOLLOWING!!!
In the gospel of John, it is very apparent that a very small amount of time in Jesus’ life was of the utmost importance. How do I know that? Well, John chapters 1-12 summarize the first three years of Jesus’ public ministry. They never mention His birth or childhood at all. But there are a number of stories about His work and ministry.
But then John chapters 13-19 are about the final week of Jesus’ life. In fact, chapter 13 through most of chapter 18 is about the Thursday evening before He was crucified. Chapter 19 itself is about the crucifixion. And chapters 20 and 21 are about the resurrected Jesus.
I don’t know about you, but I get the idea that John thought the last week of Jesus’ life was the most important part of His life. I come away thinking that the apostle wanted us to realize that what Jesus did on Calvary mattered more than anything else He ever did. In fact, I am confident that is true.
There are those who would like to hold Jesus up, merely as a good example for us to follow, and He was indeed a great role model. But He was more than that.
There are some who want to talk about His great teaching, and He was the greatest teacher who ever lived. There are so many things about the life of Jesus that stand out as outstanding.
But we must always remember this. According to the Bible, Jesus came, “to give His life as a ransom for many.” In other words, Jesus came for the very purpose of dying for our sins.
Any ideas that seek to reduce that to something less are flawed from the beginning. Jesus died to take away our sin. That is why we worship Him as Lord. That is why He is worthy of our praise.
I’m so glad that John emphasized that truth by giving it so much space in his gospel because I’m so hard-headed I might otherwise miss it.
But I am even more grateful that the Lord was willing to take my place on Calvary. That is the best thing He could have ever done for me. And for you.
One way is to talk louder. Another way might be to talk slower. Still another way would be to say, “Listen carefully. This is important.” If you are writing to a person you might want to USE ALL CAPITAL LETTERS WITH EXCLAMATION POINTS FOLLOWING!!!
In the gospel of John, it is very apparent that a very small amount of time in Jesus’ life was of the utmost importance. How do I know that? Well, John chapters 1-12 summarize the first three years of Jesus’ public ministry. They never mention His birth or childhood at all. But there are a number of stories about His work and ministry.
But then John chapters 13-19 are about the final week of Jesus’ life. In fact, chapter 13 through most of chapter 18 is about the Thursday evening before He was crucified. Chapter 19 itself is about the crucifixion. And chapters 20 and 21 are about the resurrected Jesus.
I don’t know about you, but I get the idea that John thought the last week of Jesus’ life was the most important part of His life. I come away thinking that the apostle wanted us to realize that what Jesus did on Calvary mattered more than anything else He ever did. In fact, I am confident that is true.
There are those who would like to hold Jesus up, merely as a good example for us to follow, and He was indeed a great role model. But He was more than that.
There are some who want to talk about His great teaching, and He was the greatest teacher who ever lived. There are so many things about the life of Jesus that stand out as outstanding.
But we must always remember this. According to the Bible, Jesus came, “to give His life as a ransom for many.” In other words, Jesus came for the very purpose of dying for our sins.
Any ideas that seek to reduce that to something less are flawed from the beginning. Jesus died to take away our sin. That is why we worship Him as Lord. That is why He is worthy of our praise.
I’m so glad that John emphasized that truth by giving it so much space in his gospel because I’m so hard-headed I might otherwise miss it.
But I am even more grateful that the Lord was willing to take my place on Calvary. That is the best thing He could have ever done for me. And for you.