Daily Inspirations

  Good morning. From that city many of the Samaritans believed in Him because of the word of the woman who testified about Him. This is what is supposed to happen to us. We share what God has done for us with others, and then they believe in Him through our testimony. Jesus then went back to Galilee. He testified that a prophet has no honor in his own country. They received Him because they had seen all the things that He did in Jerusalem at the feast. They did not believe because of His words; they believed because of the signs He did. He returns to Cana where He turned the water into wine. A royal official from Capernaum heard that Jesus was in Galilee. His son was sick, so he implored Jesus to come and heal his son; for he was at the point of death. Unless you people see signs and wonders, you simply will not believe. Like any normal parent, he ignored Jesus’ criticism - please come before my child dies. Jesus simply said, go, your son lives. Most of us would’ve said, but You do...

  Good morning. I know that Messiah is coming; when that One comes, He will declare all things to us. I who speak to you am He. Jesus did not declare that He was the Messiah in front of the Jews – they would’ve gotten very angry. The disciples return, and the woman goes into the city. She tells them to come see a man who has told her all the things that she has done. This is not the Christ, is it? They went out of the city, and were coming to Him. The disciples had gotten something to eat, and so they encouraged Jesus to eat. I have food to eat that you do not know about. The disciples, as usual, were thinking in the natural. No one brought Him anything to eat, did he? My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me and to accomplish His work. Now comes the verse that is similar to the one we looked at in a different gospel. Do you not say, there are yet four months, and then comes the harvest? I say to you, lift up your eyes and look on the fields that they are white for harvest. It ...

  Good morning. Thanking in the natural, the woman at the well said “give me this water, so I will not be thirsty nor come all this way here to draw”. Call your husband. I don’t have a husband. You have had five husbands and the one you now have is not your husband. I perceive that You are a prophet. Deflecting, she now brings up the bone of contention between the Jews and Samaritans: you Jews say that in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship. God had said that Jerusalem was the place where the temple was to be built, and where worship was to occur. After the kingdom was divided, the northern kingdom worshipped in the mountains of Samaria. An hour is coming when neither in this mountain nor in Jerusalem will you worship the Father. You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews. (He didn’t say for the Jews - leaving us out). An hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in Spirit and truth; for...

  Good morning. We are with Jesus and the woman at the well. If you knew the gift of God, and who it is who says to you, give Me a drink; you would have asked Him, and He would’ve given you living water. In the book of Numbers, it talks about adding flowing or living water to the ashes of a sacrifice. The Holy Spirit is not like a lake or a pond just sitting there. He is living and moving and active in and through you. Of course the woman was thinking in the natural. Sir, You have nothing to draw with and the well is deep; where then do You get that living water? When the present well was cleaned out in 1935, it was found to be 138 feet deep. Did they have to dig that far to hit water, or was it that over time they had to keep digging and digging to keep getting water? In either case that is a desperation for water. That is the way we should be going after the Holy Spirit! You are not greater than our father Jacob, are You, who gave us this well? Everyone who drinks of this water w...

  Good morning. Jesus left Judea and went way again into Galilee. And He had to pass through Samaria. Remember that a lot of times the Jews went across the Jordan River to avoid having to go through Samaria. He went through Samaria because He was on a mission from God. Things did not happen to Him or by Him by coincidence. He came to a city near the land that Jacob gave to his son Joseph; and Jacob’s well was there. So Jesus being weary from His journey, was sitting by the well. It was about noon. We don’t think about Jesus getting tired and thirsty. There came a woman of Samaria to draw water, Jesus said to her, give Me a drink. She said, how is it that You, being a Jew, ask me for a drink since I am a Samaritan woman? (For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.) people normally drew water at the end of the day; but as we shall see, she was not what one would call respectable. My Bible says that the phrase Jews have no dealings with Samaritans implies the meaning “do not use dishe...

  Good morning. John speaking of Jesus: what He has seen and heard, that He testifies; and no one receives His testimony. Jesus didn’t make stuff up; He only said and did what the Father told Him to say and do. He who has received His testimony has set his seal to this, that God is true. For He whom God has sent speaks the words of God; for He gives the Spirit without measure. (it’s not that this person gets a little bit, and this other person gets a whole lot!). The Father loves the Son and has given all things into His hand. The Father did not hold anything back from the Son. He who believes in the Son has eternal life; he who does not obey (or believe) the Son will not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him. So that’s the big question – do you believe in the Son? Some Christians are so focused on the wrong thing that this person or that person is doing. They try to get that person to stop doing it. But that’s not the problem – the problem is they do not have the Son. The o...

  Good morning. This is the judgment, that the Light has come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the Light, for their deeds were evil. For everyone who does evil hates the Light, and does not come to the Light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. We see this very much today with all that’s going on in Washington and elsewhere. There are a lot of cockroaches afraid right now of being exposed to the light. They hide or try to misdirect the press. As we have seen many times in the past, those that condemn a particular sin the most are quite likely doing the same or worse in their own lives. But he who practices the truth comes to the Light, so that his deeds may be manifested as having been wrought in God. Jesus and His disciples went to the land of Judea and were baptizing. John the Baptist was also baptizing. John’s disciples had a discussion with someone about purification. They told John that Jesus was baptizing, and everyone was coming to Him. They were th...

  Good morning. Continuing with Jesus and Nick at night. As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up; so that whoever believes will in Him have eternal life. There was a plague, and whoever looked at the metal serpent that Moses held up was healed. Now this statement would disturb most Jews, because they believed that the Son of Man would live forever when He came upon the earth. They did not realize that He had to die on the cross. Whoever was hung on a tree was cursed. For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. Of course that is impossible for us to conceive of; that someone would give up their only child to save people who not only did not care about the one giving his/her child but even hated the one giving. For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him. He who believes in Him is...

  Good morning. We are still with Nick at night. Do not be amazed that I said to you (singular); you (plural) must be born again. So Jesus was not just talking to Nicodemus alone. Everyone must be born again. The wind blows where it wishes and you hear the sound of it, but do not know where it comes from and where it is going; so is everyone who is born of the Spirit. How can these things be? Are you the teacher of Israel and do not understand these things? There is in the Greek a definite article “the” in front of the word teacher; so he was not just any old teacher of Israel. I don’t know if that applied to just one person, or to several. In either case, I infer that that meant Nicodemus was not a young person. He had probably been in Jerusalem during many Passovers, especially the one where the 12-year-old Jesus was in the temple asking questions and answering the spiritual leaders. That was almost 20 years before; so he probably would not have been the teacher of Israel at that...

  Good morning. While Jesus was in Jerusalem at the Passover, during the feast, many believed in His name, observing His signs which He was doing. Jesus was not entrusting Himself to them, for He knew all men. Now there was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. It doesn’t say, but I assume it is still during this time of the Passover. This man came to Jesus by night. Rabbi, we know that You have come from God as a teacher; for no one can do the signs that You do unless God is with him. It just said that the people believed in His name because of the signs He was doing; yet it does not say what those signs were. Unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God. That is why unbelievers cannot tell what is of the kingdom of God and what is not – they’re not born again. Nicodemus doesn’t have a clue. How can a man be born when he is old? He cannot enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born, can he? Unless one is born of water and the Spirit ...

  Good morning. The Passover of the Jews was near, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. John puts what will follow at the beginning of his gospel, and the other gospels put it at the end. Since John was there, then I believe he is the one that is right. And He found in the temple those who were selling oxen and sheep and doves, and the money changers seated at their tables. Of course it was necessary to have all these things, but not in the temple. People needed the animals to sacrifice; but it would’ve been a big hassle to bring them with them. People also had to have the right type of currency, and of course you could only get it here. But here should not have been in the temple. He made a scourge of cords, and drove them all out of the temple. He poured out the coins of the moneychangers and overturned their tables. Stop making My Father’s house a place of business. The Jews were upset with Him. They wanted to know what sign do You show us as Your authority for doing these things? Je...

  Good morning. Now there were 6 stone waterpots set there for the Jewish custom of purification, containing 20 or 30 gallons each. My Bible says that Jews became ceremonially defiled during the normal circumstances of daily life, and were cleansed by pouring water over the hands. Jesus told the servants to fill the water pots with water. They filled them up to the brim. That means that there was somewhere between 120 and 180 gallons of water. He then told them to draw some out and take it to the head waiter. I have no idea what type of vessel they carried the water in. I say that because I don’t know when it became evident that it was no longer water. Did it happen as they carried it, or when the head waiter tasted it? The headwaiter called the bridegroom. Every man serves the good wine first, and when the people have drunk freely, then he serves the poor wine; but you have kept the good wine until now. Have you ever wondered what the servants were thinking? The headwaiter did not...

  Good morning. Remember that we were with Nathaniel yesterday. Jesus saw him coming and says to him first, “behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom there is no deceit!” How do you know me? Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you. “Rabbi, You are the Son of God; You are the King of Israel.” Under a fig tree in the heat of the day is where an Israelite would dream of the coming of the Messiah to get their freedom from the Roman soldiers. Because I said to you that I saw you under the fig tree, do you believe? You shall see greater things than these. You will see the heavens opened and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man. That reminds one of Jacob’s ladder. On the third day from when all of this started, there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. (This was actually Nathaniel‘s hometown); both Jesus and His disciples were invited to the wedding. Cana was not far from Nazareth; so at least Jesus’ mother...

  Good morning. The next day John was standing with two of his disciples, and he looked at Jesus as He walked, and said, behold, the Lamb of God! The disciples followed Jesus. Jesus wanted to know, what do you seek? They went with Jesus and spent the night there. One of the two that followed Jesus was Andrew, Simon Peter‘s brother. It does not say who the other one was; it could’ve been John. Instead of keeping everything to himself, Andrew found Peter and said to him, “we have found the Messiah.” This of course is the way we should all be. When we come upon something so miraculous, we should share it with those who are closest to us. Andrew brought him to Jesus. It does not say whether or not Andrew had told Jesus about Peter. Jesus said first to Peter, “you are Simon the son of John; you shall be called Cephas - Peter. Jesus found Philip and said to him, follow Me. Philip then found Nathaniel. This is the way spiritual multiplication works. You find one, then that one finds anoth...

  Good morning. The next day he saw Jesus coming to him and said, “behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. This is He on behalf of whom I said, after me comes a Man who has a higher rank than I, for He existed before me. I did not recognize Him, but so that He might be manifested to Israel, I came baptizing in water. Here John is telling us why Jesus was water baptized - it wasn’t because he needed to repent from sins He had done. Even John did not recognize Him (as being the Messiah), and they were related. We do not know how much interaction they had with each other, nor how old John was when he went to live in the desert; after all his parents were old when John was born. I have seen the Holy Spirit descending as a dove out of heaven, and He remained upon Him. I did not recognize Him, but He who sent me to baptize in water said to me, He upon whom you see the Spirit descending and remaining upon Him, this is the One who baptizes in the Holy Spirit. I myself ...

  Good morning. Remember that some men had come from the Pharisees to question John the Baptist. Why then are you baptizing, if you are not the Christ, nor Elijah, nor the Prophet? I baptize in water, but among you stands One whom you do not know. It is He who comes after me, the thong of whose sandal I am not worthy to untie. These things took place in Bethany beyond the Jordan, where John was baptizing. The reason it was designated as Bethany beyond the Jordan is because Bethany was also the home village of Mary, Martha, and Lazarus. It will also help us locate where Jesus was when the messengers from Mary and Martha came to tell Jesus that Lazarus was sick. It will be called the place where John was first baptizing. Father thank You that all is well when we are in Your love and care. Help us to feel that love today and every day

  Good morning. This time it really is morning. No one has seen God at any time; the only begotten God who is in the bosom of the Father, He has explained Him. Remember that no one can see God and live. Remember when we were talking about the letters that John wrote, he was fighting the heresy of Gnosticism. They said that Jesus was just a man before the Holy Spirit came upon Him after being baptized; and that the Holy Spirit left Him when He was on the cross before He died. John is saying here that not only was Jesus God, but also that He was begotten. He became man also. Here John is also saying Jesus is presently in the bosom of the Father. This would not be true if Jesus were merely a man. When the religious leaders asked John the Baptist, “who are you?” He said that he was not the Christ. They had not experienced anyone in their lifetimes acting and speaking with the power and authority of God like John was. They were trying to put him in a box, just like people do today, so t...

  Good morning.  John testified about Jesus and cried out, saying, “this was He of whom I said, He who comes after me has a higher rank than I, for He existed before me.” Now that is an interesting statement that Jesus existed before John, because John was actually born a few months before Jesus. He was again proclaiming the fact that Jesus was the Son of God - remember that He was in the beginning with the Father. For of His fullness we have all received, and grace upon grace. For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth were realized through Jesus Christ. The letter of the law kills, but the Holy Spirit gives life everlasting! Father thank You that You give only life. Thank You for giving that life and all that goes with it to us and our families.

  Good morning. We started out with Jesus being called the Word. Remember that in Genesis God spoke, and things happened. And of course you use words when you speak. Then He was called the Light. Now John goes back to calling Him the Word. And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father full of grace and truth. Jesus goes from being the glorious Word to becoming flesh. That is a great come down. He didn’t just stop by for a vacation; He dwelt among us. According to my Bible the Greek for dwelt is connected with the word tent or tabernacle; the verse would have reminded John’s Jewish readers of the tent of meeting which was filled by the glory of God. Jesus is the only begotten; we are adopted children of God. He came from the Father, and later would go back to the Father. He says that Jesus was full of grace and truth. Now to our minds these can sometimes be opposing concepts. We are used to thinking of grace or tru...

  Good morning. There came a man sent from God, whose name was John. This tells us that John had a divine calling on his life. Why did he come? He came as a witness, to testify about the Light, so that all might believe through him. You have to know about something to testify about it - you don’t just read about it in a book. He was not the Light, but he came to testify about the Light. He knew his position and his calling – he did not try to take the place of Jesus. There was the true Light which, coming into the world, enlightens every man. There have been many false lights over the ages. There was only one true One. He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him. They had been looking for the Messiah for thousands of years, and they did not recognize Him when He was standing in their presence. But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name. That seems simple enough. ...

  Good morning.  Now we start what is probably my favorite book – John. There is only a little bit of duplication with the other Gospels. In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. That is so compact, and includes everything that you need to know about the Father and the Son. I forget the different heresies that it denies. A little different wording and it could be translated that the Son was a god – not the God. Again a little different wording, and it could be translated that the Father and the Son were the same. He was in the beginning with God. Even before the beginning of time, Jesus was with the Father. All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being. In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men. John used so many descriptive phrases for Jesus and the Light was one of them. The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness does not comprehend it. You cannot have life n...

Good morning. So the two men return to Jerusalem, and find the 11 apostles together. The Lord has really risen and has appeared to Simon. They told the apostles what had happened. While they were telling all about these things, Jesus Himself stood in their midst and said to them “Peace to you”. Of course the apostles were not going to believe someone who told them such an incredible thing. They probably believed they were imagining things in their grief. Even though Jesus was standing right there, they still did not believe – they thought they were seeing a ghost. Of course we would probably be the same or worse. Why are you troubled, and why do doubts arise in your hearts? See My hands and feet? Touch Me and see; for a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have. That gives us an idea of how we will be one day. While they still could not believe it because of their joy and amazement, He said to them, have you anything here to eat? They gave Him a piece of fish. He remi...

  Good morning. Now we have two men on the road to Emmaus. They were talking about all that just happened – the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus. Jesus approached and began traveling with them. But their eyes were prevented from recognizing Him. He wanted to know what they were talking about. Are You the only one visiting Jerusalem and unaware of the things which have happened in these days? Jesus innocently – what things? “Jesus from Nazareth, who was a prophet mighty in deed and word in the sight of God and all the people. They had not come to recognize Him as the Christ”. They were still thinking of Him as just a great man of God. “But we were hoping that it was He who was going to redeem Israel”. They were still thinking of Him as a conquering hero, not the one who was going to die for their sins. They then tell about the women who went to the tomb and did not find the body of Jesus. They said they had seen a vision of angels who said that He was alive. Was is it not neces...

  Good morning. They go to the Mount of Olives. Luke is very similar to Matthew and Mark concerning the garden and Jesus being arrested. Then Jesus is brought before Pilate. Then they take Him to Golgotha to be crucified. The women prepared spices and perfumes for His body. Luke does not say how many there are; but they all come on the first day of the week at early dawn bringing the spices which they had prepared. The stone is rolled away, and they enter the tomb; but they do not find the body of Jesus. Two men suddenly stood near them in dazzling clothing. Why do you seek the living One among the dead? He is not here, but He has risen. They go to tell the disciples, but of course they do not believe them. Peter goes to the tomb and finds it empty. Father thank You that whatever we need, You supply us. Keep us and our family safe

  Good morning. Jesus said to Peter, Simon, Simon, behold, Satan has demanded permission to sift you like wheat. (sounds like the devil talking to God about Job). I have heard speakers saying that that was applied to Peter. There are two things wrong with that statement. First, the word you is the plural you. Second, it’s very hard to sift one item. So Jesus was talking about the entire group of disciples. But in the next part, He switches to the singular you. But I have prayed for you (talking just to Peter), that your faith may not fail; and you, when you have turned again, strengthen your brothers. Jesus did not pray that Peter would not be tempted; but that when he fell, we would rise again stronger than ever before. Peter of course says he will even die with Jesus; and Jesus tells Peter that he will deny Him three times. When I sent you out without anything, you did not lack anything, did you? No. Now bring things with you; and whoever has no sword is to sell his coat and buy ...

  Good morning. The disciples prepare what Luke says is the Passover. I have earnestly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer; for I say to you, I shall never again eat it until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God. We then have the bread and wine. For indeed, the Son of Man is going as it has been determined; but woe to that man by whom He is betrayed! It was a done deal. Everything had been predetermined before the beginning of time. Now we would not like that – that something that important in our lives had been predetermined, and we had no say so in what was to happen. (now Jesus could have refused; but He could not change any one thing because the Scriptures had to be fulfilled.) Here Jesus is about to go through horrible suffering and death and what do His disciples do – there arose a dispute among them as to which one of them was regarded to be the greatest. You are those who have stood by Me in My trials; and just as My Father has granted Me a kingdom, I gra...

  Good morning. Just when things look like they couldn’t get any worse – then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. But when these things begin to happen, straighten up and lift up your heads, because your redemption is drawing near. It’s like the fig trees; as soon as they put forth leaves, you see it and know for yourselves that summer is now near. So you also, when you see these things happening, recognize that the kingdom of God is near. So it should not come as a surprise when it happens. Truly I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all things take place. First of all, the phrase “will not pass away” is a double negative which I’ve said before in Greek means it is a certainty that it will not happen. Second, as I also have said before, the phrase “all things take place” probably should be translated “all things begin to take place”. What are we to do – be on our guard. We have to be sure that we do not get distracted with th...

  Good morning. We then have the triumphal entry into Jerusalem. Jesus goes into the temple and throws out those who were selling. Then He tells the parable about the man who owns a vineyard and rented it out to some vine growers. Eventually they killed his son. All of this we have seen before. Now we get to Luke chapter 21. This is Luke’s version of Jesus’ prophecy about the end times. He tells the disciples that not one stone will be left upon another. They want to know when this will happen, and what will be the sign that it is about to happen. He says many of the same things that Matthew and Mark said. He talks about all the different things that will happen in nature and between peoples. Disciples will be put in prison and go on trial; but do not worry about what you will say because the Holy Spirit will give you the words. Some of things that Jesus talked about apply to the times around 70 A.D.; but a lot of the words are yet to be fulfilled. There some words that are very re...

  Good morning. As Jesus was approaching Jericho, a blind man was sitting by the road begging. In Matthew, it was two blind men, and it was as they were leaving Jericho not approaching it. In Mark, it was also as they were leaving Jericho coming from beyond the Jordan, and it was blind Bartimaeus that received his sight. All three of these cases plus the one with Lazarus were shortly before Palm Sunday; so they were all within the same timeframe. Jesus enters Jericho (I believe coming from beyond the Jordan) and was passing through. There was a man named Zaccheus, he was a chief tax collector - he was rich! He tried to see who Jesus was, but he could not because he was too short. It is possible that the crowd was there because Jesus had just healed that blind man. He climbed up a tree in order that he could see Jesus. (right now that song about Zaccheus that you used to sing when you were a child is going through your head and won’t get out of it – ha ha ha!). When Jesus came to th...

  Good morning. Jesus told this parable to some people who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and viewed others with contempt: two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee stood and was praying this to himself (He definitely was not praying to God): God, I thank you that I am not like other people; swindlers, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I pay tithes of all I get. His righteousness consisted of all the religious things that he did for God. This kind of person defines righteousness in such a way that he or she definitely excels in those acts versus those around him or her. But that tax collector, standing some distance away, was even unwilling to lift up his eyes to heaven, but was beating his breast, saying, God be merciful to me the sinner. All of our righteousness is as filthy rags. I tell you, this man went to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who ...