That You May Believe

“And truly Jesus did many other signs in the presence of His disciples, which are not written in this book; 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.” John 20:30-31

Truth and Trust A young father extended both arms upward toward his young son perched on a tree limb that threatened to break. “Jump! I’ll catch you.” The little boy was afraid to jump. He had to make a decision. That decision would depend upon his trust in his father. We must decide to accept or reject the claims made concerning Jesus of Nazareth. The proper decision requires truth and trust.

The Gospel according to John is a book of evidences. It’s purpose, as stated by John, is to help us believe. “And truly Jesus did many other signs in the presence of His disciples, which are not written in this book; 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.” (John 20:30-31).

The Signs At a wedding feast in Cana, Jesus changed more than one hundred gallons of water to wine. The wine was superior to that first served by the host. Note John 2:1-11. Jesus did not at any time touch the liquid nor the containers.

Jesus healed a nobleman’s son. He did not touch the boy. He was a considerable distance away. The nobleman believed (John 4:46-54.

In Jerusalem, Jesus healed a lame man at the pool of Bethesda. His enemies did not doubt the miracle. Their only objection was that He healed on the Sabbath. See John 5:1-16.

Jesus fed multitudes with five loaves and two fish. Twelve baskets were filled with the food left over. Note John 6:1-14.

In the middle of the Sea of Galilee Jesus walked on the water (John 6:16-21).

A man blind from birth followed the instructions of Jesus. He was healed. The enemies of Jesus did not doubt the miracle; they accused Jesus of being a sinner. The blind man said, “One thing I do know: that though I was blind, now I see.” (John 9:1-41).

Jesus’ friend Lazarus was in the tomb for four days. Jesus said, “Lazarus, come forth!” Lazarus came out of the tomb bound with grave clothes. The religious leaders plotted to kill Jesus because they feared many would believe following this miracle (John 11:1-57).

· The supreme sign was the resurrection of Jesus Himself on the third day. Jesus could not have contrived the miracle alone. His disciples were not expecting His crucifixion and were discouraged. They at first doubted His resurrection. See John 20. On one occasion, more than five hundred people saw the risen Lord (1 Corinthians 15:6).

WITNESSES Court procedure includes the calling of witnesses to find the truth. John recorded the testimony of many witnesses. He wrote, “... we beheld His glory, the glory of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth” (John 1:14).

· John the Baptist said, “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!”

· Philip said, “We have found Him of whom Moses in the Law, and also the prophets wrote ...”

· Nicodemus said, “... we know that You are a teacher come from God; for no man can do these signs that You do unless God is with Him.”

· A Samaritan woman said, “Come and see a man who told me all things that I ever did. Could this be the Christ?” The friends of the woman said, “... this indeed is the Christ, the Savior of the world.”

· Peter said, “... we have come to believe and know that You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”

· Pilate, who did not believe, said, “I find no fault in Him.” He delivered Jesus to be crucified for political reasons.

· Thomas, after seeing the risen Lord, said, “My Lord and my God!”

LOGICAL CONCLUSIONS If Jesus had been mere man, He would have held the prejudices of His own people. Yet, He ate with publicans and sinners, spoke with a Samaritan woman, and told of a good Samaritan. He refused the opportunity to become an earthly king. He did not accept their values. The opposition never denied His miracles. They brought false charges, but they accepted the reality of His miracles.

Jesus spoke truth. He was never wrong. He said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” Men sent to arrest Him returned and said, “No man ever spoke like this Man!”

He was without sin and could say to His enemies, “Which of you convicts Me of sin?”On the day of Pentecost following the resurrection of Jesus, three thousand were baptized in response to the message proclaimed by His apostles. Enemies of Jesus needed only to produce the body of Jesus in order to discredit the claims of the apostles. They did not because the could not!

Please read the Gospel According to John and study the details of events highlighted in this tract. The premise of John is logical. “Truly, “In Him was life, and the life was the light of men.”

WHAT CAN YOU DO? You can accept the authority of Christ by doing what He commanded (Matthew 7:21; John 14:15; 15:10-14; Luke 6:46). Notice the pattern for becoming a Christian as revealed in the Scriptures. The Gospel was heard, resulting in faith (Romans 10:17). Repentance of (turning away from) sin (Acts 17:30) and confession of Jesus as the Son of God followed (Romans 10:10). Believers were baptized INTO Christ for the remission (forgiveness) of sins (See Galatians 3:27; Colossians 2:12; Acts 2:38;22:16; Mark 16:16; Romans 6:3-5; 1 Peter 3:20-21), and added to His church (Acts 2:47). Christians were taught to be faithful even to the point of death (Revelation 2:10).

WE WELCOME YOU Following the instructions of the Scriptures, members of Christ’s body assemble as congregations for worship, encouragement, and Bible study. The congregation in your community welcomes you to investigate the Bible with us. With a spirit of brotherly love we would seek to reconcile our differences by following the Bible ONLY. We recognize the Bible as God’s inspired word, the ONLY reliable standard of faith and practice. We desire the unity for which Christ prayed and which the Bible emphasizes in the expression, “one Lord, one faith, one baptism.” Together we seek to maintain “the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.”

A friendly welcome awaits you. We do not wish to embarrass you in any way. You will not be asked for contributions. We assemble for Bible study and worship each Sunday morning and we welcome you to meet with us. We would be happy to talk to you about your questions and we want to be of encouragement.Please e-mail any comments or questions you might have or for the location of a congregation belonging to Jesus Christ meeting near your home.