THAT YOU MAY BELIEVE
JOHN 20:30-31
JOHN 20:30-31 NKJ
30 And truly Jesus did many other signs in the presence of His disciples, which are not written in this book; 31 but these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name.
OBSERVATION:
One of the big words in the gospel of John is 'believe.' The word appears in some variation 88 times. This is a major theme of John's gospel. Anything that the Holy Spirit inspires in repetition needs to capture our attention.
This short passage is rather profound. John tells us that Jesus did many other signs in the presence of His disciples that are not recorded. We can imagine that living with Jesus day in and day out, you are going to see some amazing things.
But why don't we have a record of those signs? According to John, we don't need them to believe.
But these are written that you may believe. In other words, what is written is enough for us to make a faith choice and believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God.
The accounts of Jesus and his earthly ministry were inspired by the Holy Spirit. They are sufficient for us to make a decision. We don't need mass volumes to believe. We don't need everything spelled out. What we have is powerful and inspired, and simple enough for all to grasp. We don't have to hear from historians to believe. We do not need science to validate the claims of the Bible to believe. Believing is a choice, and we have enough.
It is interesting to note that John penned these words after recounting the story of Thomas. Thomas would not believe until he could see and feel. Jesus did not commend Thomas for his decision. Jesus did say that the blessed were the ones who had not seen and yet believed.
APPLICATION:
That's us. The ones who have not seen and yet have believed what is written about Jesus. And because we believe, we have the life of God in us all because of what Jesus has done.
A very smart move for us is to declare that we believe what is written. Don't identify with not believing. You are spiritually sharp, and you believe what is written. And that is a position you will never regret.
PRAYER:
Thank You, Lord, for Your inspired word. I believe it. I believe what is written.