John 5:45-47 “But do not think I will accuse you before the Father. Your accuser is Moses, on whom your hopes are set. If you believed Moses, you would believe me, for he wrote about me. But since you do not believe what he wrote, how are you going to believe what I say?”
Jesus of course spoke this to the Jews of His day who refused to believe in Him, but it certainly applies to “Bible-believing” people of all stripes today, both Jews and “Christians.” The irony Jesus was pointing out is still operative! There are whole groups today who seem to believe in “Father, Son, and Holy Bible,” refusing to believe that God still speaks and works actively through His children today. Like the Pharisees of Jesus’ day, they worship the words instead of the Word. It’s not at all that the Bible is inaccurate, but that they decline to listen to the Author of the Bible. Such people range from those hung up on “textual criticism” to those who insist on “plenary inspiration,” but their defining characteristic is their lack of a personal relationship with the One of whom the Bible speaks. Their faith is in a religion rather than a relationship, and that is sad indeed. It’s not at all that God’s truth changes with the seasons, but rather that it is just as much alive today as when it was recorded, and we need to let it live in us. As Jesus was pointing out here, even Moses in the Torah spoke of the One to come after him. Jesus didn’t explicitly mention them here, but some of the prophets, most notably Isaiah, went into considerable detail about Him, so non-messianic Jews are indeed without excuse – but then, so is anyone who refuses to believe the Gospel, as Paul pointed out to the Romans. (Romans 1:20) Sometimes God has an easier time getting through to someone who has never heard the Gospel before than someone who has gone to church their whole life! Saving faith isn’t about formulas, it is about repentance and relationship – and that doesn’t make it any less miraculous.
I had the huge blessing of being raised in a home with a deep and abiding love for the Bible, with an even deeper love for the One who wrote it. (Or I should say, caused it to be written.) When I was living at home, my parents had very little of what we would call “Pentecostal” teaching, but my father had a very deep encounter with the Holy Spirit before he even married my mother, and he was certainly open to Him. As a consequence, when I was first introduced to the Charismatic Movement, back in 1973, I immediately recognized it as Biblical, not realizing that my own wife had been baptized in the Holy Spirit in 1972! She herself didn’t realize what had happened at the time, but just knew that she had a burning hunger for God and His Word, so in a number of ways, we learned together. That said, our roots are firmly in the Baptist tradition, considering the Bible to be the ultimate written guide for everything. You could call us “Bapticostals!” At the same time, I need to pay careful attention to what Jesus says here. I am never to place tradition ahead of my Lord. A major percentage, at least, of Church tradition is rooted in the Bible and what God has said and done, but if I place the tradition ahead of the roots, I’m in trouble. As I have said ever since I arrived in Omura in 1981, I didn’t come to teach a religion, I came to introduce people to the Lord Jesus Christ. (There’s a pun in that, when you say it in Japanese.) It is an unspeakable joy to have an active relationship with my Creator, and it is an incredible privilege to lead others into such a relationship themselves.
Father, thank You for this reminder. Thank You for Your overwhelming grace toward me, on every level. Thank You that my heart CT went smoothly yesterday, just as I had asked. It was a very interesting experience! I pray that the results will be interpreted accurately, so that when I go for the results on the 19th, the medical recommendations will be in line with Your healing and health for me, for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!
