João 1
F.B. Meyer · Citado em PreceptAustin
João 1
Meyer - John 1:50 Thou shalt see greater things than these. God’s dealings with us are always on an ascending scale. If we see clearly the lowest rung in the heavenly ladder, whilst we behold, the vail of mist will part, and we shall see the next above it, and then the next, and, in due order, the next; and so the steps that slope away through darkness up to God will always be beckoning to greater and yet greater things. Have you known Christ as the Word? He is more; both Spirit and Life. Has He become flesh? You shall behold Him glorified with the glory He had before the worlds. Have you known Him as Alpha, before all? He is also Omega. Have you met John? You shall meet One so much greater, that the latchet of his shoes the Baptist shall deem himself unworthy to unloose. Do you know the baptism by water? You shall be baptized by fire. Have you beheld the Lamb on the Cross? You shall behold Him in the midst of the throne. Have you seen the Spirit descend as a dove on one head? You shall see Him come as a fire upon an unnumbered multitude. Have you followed the Christ to the slight booth in the Jordan Valley? You shall enter with Him into mansions of eternal glory. Do you acknowledge Him as King of Israel? You shall hear the acclamations that salute Him as King of the worlds. Live up to all you know, and you shall know more. Be all you can, and you shall become more. Do all that your two talents permit, and you will find yourself ruler over four cities. C H
João 1:3
Meyer - When genius aspires to immortality, it leaves the artist’s name inscribed on stone or canvas: and so Inspiration, “dipping her pen in indelible truth, inscribes the name of Jesus on all we see—on sun and stars, flower and tree, rock and mountain, the unstable waters and the firm land; and also on what we do not see, nor shall, until death has removed the veil—on angels and spirits, on the city and heavens of the eternal world.” This thought comes out clearly in the sublime quotation made in Psalm 102:25. That inspired poem is obviously inscribed to Jehovah: “Of old Thou didst found the earth; And the heavens are the work of Thy hands.” (Ps 102:25 quoted in Heb 1:10 - Septuagint of Ps 102:25 reads "In the beginning thou, O Lord, didst lay the foundation of the earth; and the heavens are the works of thine hands.") But here (in Hebrews 1:10), without the least apology, or hint of accommodating the words to an inferior use, it is applied directly to Christ. Mark the certainty of this inspired man that Jesus is Jehovah! How sure of the Deity of his Lord! And what a splendid tribute to His immutability! (Hebrews 1:4-5 Commentary) (10) Adolph Saphir (a believing Jewish commentator) writing on Jeremiah 23:6 comments specifically on the phrase "The LORD (Jehovah) our righteousness." - "There is another righteousness of which both the law and the prophets have continually testified; which is apart from the law, which man does not work out, which is as much given to man as bread is given to a hungry person, and as water is given to a thirsty person. “Blessed are they that hunger and thirst after righteousness.” (Mt 5:6-note) What is the sad condition of the Jews? They do not see two things: they do not know that Jesus is Jehovah, and they do not know that this is our only righteousness. “Jesus our Righteousness.” And what is the lamentable condition of (professed) Christians who do not know the Lord? Simply the same thing, for if they knew Jehovah-Tsidkenu then they would have the knowledge of salvation, they would put no confidence in the works of the law, they would simply rejoice in Christ Jesus. (Jeremiah 23 Commentary - see comments on Jehovah-Tsidkenu) (See his acclaimed work The hidden life - thoughts on communion with God - Saphir, Adolph, 1831-1891) (11) Ken Hemphill in his excellent book on the Names of God has this conclusion after his exposition of the Name Jehovah Rophe and Jehovah Shammah - "Jesus is Jehovah Rophe, almighty to heal."...The simple point is that Jesus embodied the presence of God. When we see Jesus we see the Father, for He and the Father are one. Jesus is Jehovah Shammah. God's presence was not to be known in a building or in a specific location, but in His Son, the abiding presence of Holy God is experienced in relationship with Jesus Christ. (The Names of God- Ken Hemphill) (See study of Jehovah Rapha or Jehovah Rophe = The LORD our Healer and Jehovah Shammah - The LORD is There) (12) Adrian Rogers relates the following story of his encounter with a Jehovah's Witness - I was in my yard working one day and a person came up and they were carrying a satchel, and they wanted to talk about the Bible. And religion. And I was happy to do that. And we talked a little bit. And I said by the way, I said tell me a little about yourself. I said oh where do you worship? And he said, oh we meet in thus and such a place. I said, well, tell me what do you call yourself? He said, well, I just, we just want to study the Bible. I said, no, I said, don't beat around the bush. Said, tell me, of course I already knew, but I said tell me. Who are you, what are you? Well, he said, I'm a Jehovah Witness, does that make any difference? I said no, so am I. He said what? You're a Jehovah Witness? I said I surely am. I said you know, I'm going to tell you something else. I believe that Jesus is Jehovah. And Jesus said, ye shall be witness unto me (Acts 1:8). And I said I get no greater joy than to witness about Jesus, our Jehovah. END OF CONVERSATION!!! Walter Martin in his classic work "The Kingdom of the Cults" has the following note which helps us understand why the conversation of Adrian Rogers and the JW came to an abrupt halt! Martin writes "Jehovah’s Witnesses know beyond doubt that if Jesus is Jehovah God, every one of them is going to a flaming hereafter; and hell they fear above all else. This no doubt explains a great deal of their antagonism toward the doctrines of the Trinity and hell. The Witnesses, it must be remembered, consistently berate the Trinity doctrine as of the devil and never tire of proclaiming that the hell of the Bible is the grave. The thought of being punished in unquenchable fire for their disobedience to God is probably the strongest bond holding the Watchtower’s flimsy covers together." (13) Josh McDowell has an interesting chart entitled Jesus is Jehovah (Yahweh) (Ed comment: I am not sure I agree that all of his OT references can be clearly identified as Jesus. Some seem to be more general associations which could just as easily be ascribed the the Father - e.g., Ps 148:2.) (Evidence for Christianity) JESUS IS JEHOVAH (Yahweh) OF JEHOVAH Mutual Title or Act OF JESUS Isa 40:28 Creator John 1:3 Isa 45:22, 43:11 Savior John 4:42 1Sam 2:6 Raise Dead John 5:21 Joel 3:12 Judge John 5:27, cf Mt 25:31-46 Isa 60:19-20 Light John 8:12 Exodus 3:14 I Am John 8:58, 18:5-6 Ps 23:1 Shepherd John 10:11 Isa 42:8, 48:11 Glory of God John 17:1,5 Isa 41:4, 44:6 First and Last Rev 1:17, 2:8 Hosea 13:14 Redeemer Rev 5:9 Isa 62:5, Hos 2:16 Bridegroom Rev 21:2, cf Mt 25:1ff Ps 18:2 Rock 1Cor 10:4 Jer 31:34 Forgiver of sins Mark 2:7, 10 Ps 148:2 Worshiped by Angels Heb 1:6 Throughout OT Addressed in Prayer Acts 7:59 Ps 148:5 Creator of Angels Col 1:16 Isa 45:23 Confessed as Lord Phil 2:11 (14) Stuart Olyott writes "Seeing Jesus is actually called God, we are not surprised to find that the characteristics which belong to God are ascribed to Him. For instance, in Isaiah 44:6 we read of Jehovah saying, ‘I am the First and I am the Last.’ Yet in Revelation, Jesus says, ‘I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End, the First and the Last’ (Revelation 22:13). Jehovah is eternal; Jesus is eternal. Clearly Jesus is Jehovah: he is God. (What the Bible Teaches about the Trinity) Comment - It is interesting that in Rev 21:6 (see Tony Garland's comment below) the Father calls Himself the "Alpha and the Omega" so clearly we should not be surprised that some OT uses of Jehovah clearly refer to the Father [Ps 2:7, Ps 110:1]. Similarly, although we normally think of Jesus as Savior in the NT, clearly in Jude 1:24-25 the Name "God our Savior" refers to the Father and not to the Son. These examples make it imperative to examine the context to arrive at the correct interpretation of a specific use of Jehovah. See related discussion below under "Caveats." As
João 1:9
Meyer has a message on The Word as Light in which he discusses "the characteristics of the Light - Light is pure… Light is gentle… Light is all pervasive… Light reveals" (See full message - John 1:9 The Word as Light)
João 1:10
Meyer comments on John's repetition of the word world - Mark this touching repetition of the world; we shall often meet with it again. It is used repeatedly, as when a bereaved parent, brooding over the sin or misfortune of some beloved child, repeats his name again and again. "O my son Absalom! my son, my son Absalom! O Absalom, my son, my son!" Was made (1096)(ginomai) means to cause to be (cp our English word - "gen"-erate) or to become, to come into existence, to be formed. Ginomai is in the aorist tense (punctiliar) which describes an instantaneous intervention, decisive and at a moment or point in time. In other words ginomai in this context refers to a historical time in the past in which Jesus caused all things to exist. Indeed, He even created the Cradle He lay in at His birth and the Cross He was nailed to at His death! Hallelujah! What a Savior! (Hallelujah! What a Savior) (Hallelujah What A Savior - Austin Stone) In Jeremiah Jehovah tells his weeping prophet "Thus you shall say to them (rebellious, idol worshipping Judah), “The gods that did not make the heavens and the earth shall perish from the earth and from under the heavens.” It is He who made the earth by His power, Who established the world by His wisdom; and by His understanding He has stretched out the heavens." (Jer 10:11,12) Thus Jehovah speaks of the utter folly of following false gods, and the tragedy of rejecting the true God, the Creator, Sustainer and Redeemer of everything! Harris adds that "kosmos in John’s Gospel can be used to denote the world of humanity: Jn 1:10, 29; 6:33, 51; 12:19; 14:17, 19; 16:20; 17:21. An example of this usage (and another instance of hyperbole) is Jn 12:19, where the Pharisees say, “Look, the world has gone after him.” Particularly interesting is Jn 1:10, where kosmos occurs three times: the first and second refer to the created order (“he was in the world, and the world was created through him”), but the third instance (“the world did not know [i.e., recognize] him”) must refer to the world of humanity, since cognition is involved. (An Out-of-this-World Experience A Look at Kosmos in the Johannine Literature) W E Vine on in the world...world made through Him...world did not know Him - The word kosmos, world, had various meanings in the NT. Besides signifying an ornament (1Pe 3:3) and the ordered universe (Ro 1:20), and the inhabitants of the earth (Jn 1:29; 4:42), it means the earth, as in the second statement in this verse, and the world of men alienated from God, as in the last statement. They ought to have known Him. Steven
João 1:11
Meyer - This is a note which we shall hear again; but in the meanwhile, the word seems carefully chosen to suggest that it was not a case of ignorance, but of willfulness. They knew, or might have known, who He was; but they deliberately refused to enquire into his credentials, and they shut the door resolutely in His face.
João 1:13
Meyer - And for lineage, it is revealed that all such may trace their descent past earthly parentage---"not of blood"; past natural instinct or desire --"not of the will of the flesh"; past human volition--"not of the will of man" : to the thought, and purpose, and grace of the Eternal Father, to whom be glory for ever and ever. Westcott - The spring of the new life to which the believer has “right” lies solely in God. The beginning of it cannot be found in the combination of the material elements, by which physical life is represented, nor in the natural instinct, in obedience to which beings are reproduced, nor in the will of the rational man. This appears to be the meaning of the three-fold negation. The progress is from that which is lowest in our estimate of the origin of life to that which is highest. At the same time the three clauses naturally admit a moral interpretation. The new birth is not brought about by descent, by desire or by human power. (The Gospel According to St John) Utley on not of blood, etc - The term “blood” is PLURAL. This refers not to racial privilege nor to human sexual descent, but to God’s electing and drawing of those who trust in His Son (cf. Jn 6:44, 65 - "No one (absolutely no one) can come to Me, unless the Father who sent Me draws (Or "attracts him," or "pulls him." The word is used of pulling or dragging, often by force. It is even used once of magnetic attraction) him; and I will raise him up on the last day. And He was saying, “For this reason I have said to you, that no one (absolutely no one) can come to Me, unless it has been granted him from the Father.”). John 1:12 and John 1:13 exhibit the covenantal balance between God’s sovereignty and the need for human response. W E Vine on not of blood - Blood is the element which is the means of physical life (Lev. 17:11): the plural “bloods” in the original is idiomatic and emphatic, it does not indicate the two sexes. Blood (129)(haima) is literally the red fluid that circulates in the heart, arteries, capillaries, and veins of a vertebrate animal carrying nourishment and oxygen to and bringing away waste products from all parts of the body and thus is essential for the preservation of life. Click for in depth discussion of blood below. NOT OF WILL OF THE FLESH Nor of the will of the flesh - We cannot "will" ourselves into the family of God. Personal effort is of absolutely no avail in bringing about our supernatural birth! The new birth has nothing to do with our desire for the truth is no man seeks God! (Ro 3:11). A W