Prophecy of Christ's Suffering, Death, and Resurrection on the Third Day

After Jesus rose from the dead, He appeared to His disciples in a room where they had met together with the doors locked for fear of the Jews. He spoke to them and explained that what had happened to Him in his crucifixion and resurrection was a fulfillment of all the things written about Him in the Scriptures.

"Now He said to them, 'These are My words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all things which are written about Me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled.' Then He opened their minds to understand the Scriptures, and He said to them, 'Thus it is written, that the Christ would suffer and rise again from the dead the third day, and that repentance for forgiveness of sins would be proclaimed in His name to all the nations, beginning from Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things.'" (Luk 24:44-48)

In this passage, Jesus summarized very concisely all the key things that were written about Him throughout Scripture, which had just been fulfilled during the previous three days. I'd like to focus on the part where He said, "Thus it is written, that the Christ would suffer and rise again from the dead the third day." In other words, Scripture had foretold that He would suffer, die, and rise again on the third day. Where does it say that in Scripture?

Suffering
There are many places where it speaks of the sufferings of Christ. There are all the sacrifices called for in the Law that prefigure Christ's sufferings, especially the paschal lamb. And one passage in particular is Isaiah 53, which I recommend you read in its entirety. It says in part:

"Surely our griefs He Himself bore, And our sorrows He carried; Yet we ourselves esteemed Him stricken, Smitten of God, and afflicted. But He was pierced through for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; The chastening for our well-being fell upon Him, And by His scourging we are healed. All of us like sheep have gone astray, Each of us has turned to his own way; But the LORD has caused the iniquity of us all To fall on Him. He was oppressed and He was afflicted, Yet He did not open His mouth; Like a lamb that is led to slaughter, And like a sheep that is silent before its shearers, So He did not open His mouth. By oppression and judgment He was taken away; And as for His generation, who considered That He was cut off out of the land of the living For the transgression of my people, to whom the stroke was due? His grave was assigned with wicked men, Yet He was with a rich man in His death, Because He had done no violence, Nor was there any deceit in His mouth. But the LORD was pleased To crush Him, putting Him to grief; If He would render Himself as a guilt offering, He will see His offspring, He will prolong His days, And the good pleasure of the LORD will prosper in His hand. As a result of the anguish of His soul, He will see it and be satisfied; By His knowledge the Righteous One, My Servant, will justify the many, As He will bear their iniquities. Therefore, I will allot Him a portion with the great, And He will divide the booty with the strong; Because He poured out Himself to death, And was numbered with the transgressors; Yet He Himself bore the sin of many, And interceded for the transgressors." (Isa 53:4-12)

That prophecy speaks of both His suffering and His resurrection. He bore our griefs, carried our sorrows, was stricken, smitten by God, oppressed, afflicted, pierced for our transgressions, crushed for our iniquities, chastened for our well-being, and scourged so that we may be healed. That spoke of His suffering.

Death
Isaiah clearly prophesied His death when he spoke of the Lord's Servant as a lamb led to the slaughter (Is 53:7), who "poured out His life unto death" (Is 53:12), and was "cut off from the land of the living for the people's transgression" (Is 52:8). Isaiah spoke of His death and His grave. He specifically prophesied with accuracy that the Servant would be with the wicked in His death (Is 53:9), which we know from history that the Lord was crucified between two criminals. The prophet spoke of the Servant being with a rich man in His death (Is 53:9), which we know was fulfilled by the wealthy Joseph of Arimathea burying the Lord in his own tomb cut out of rock.

Resurrection

The prophet also made a clear reference to the Servant's resurrection from the dead as well, when he said that He would see His offspring, prolong His days, and the good pleasure of the Lord would prosper in His hand. He would ultimately see the light of life and be satisfied after the anguish of His soul was completed, and in the end He would be given a portion with the great, dividing the booty with the strong (Is 53:10-12).

While the prophet spoke of the Servant's resurrection, he did not say it would be on the third day. In fact, there seems to be no Scripture that explicitly says He will rise again on the third day. However, there is a cryptic reference to His resurrection on the third day, which is hidden in one of the prophets. In Hosea we read:

“Come, let us return to the Lord. He has torn us to pieces but He will heal us; He has injured us but he will bind up our wounds. After two days he will revive us; on the third day he will restore us, that we may live in his presence. Let us acknowledge the Lord; let us press on to acknowledge Him. As surely as the sun rises, He will appear; He will come to us like the winter rains, like the spring rains that water the earth.” (Hos 6:1-3, NIV)

In this passage, the prophet speaks in the first person plural (ie., "us" and "we"), which pertained to Israel at that time, but it is also a double reference to Christ. He prophesied that the Lord would tear Him (Christ) to pieces and He would be injured, that the Lord would heal Him and bind up His wounds, that the Lord would "revive" Him after two days, and that He would be "restored to life" on the third day.  The Hebrew word for "revive" means to give life, let live, recover, revive, or save. And the Hebrew word for "restored to life" means to "rise again", so the prophet said He would rise again on the third day! This is the Scripture Jesus was referring to when He said it was written that He must rise again on the third day. Hosea spoke further of His resurrection by saying, "As surely as the sun rises, He will appear." (Hos 6:3, NIV).

Another one of the prophets named Malachi also alluded to the sun rising when he prophesied regarding Christ: "But for you who revere my name, the Sun of Righteousness will rise with healing in its rays." (Mal 4:2, NIV). Also see Light of the World.

Moreover, Jesus said that He would be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth, just as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of a huge fish (Mt 12:40). In saying so, He indicated that Jonah was a type of Christ, which means that Jonah's three days and three nights in the belly of the huge fish was a prophetic even foreshadowing the suffering and death of Christ, followed by His resurrection on the third day. Also see Jonah as a Type of Christ.

Repentance for Forgiveness of Sins
Jesus told His disciples that the Scriptures said repentance for forgiveness of sins would be proclaimed in His name (Lk 24:47). The Scripture speaks a lot about the need for repentance. For example, in this very same passage in Hosea, it says, "Come let us return to the Lord." The Hebrew word for "return" is "shub" meaning to turn back again, and it is often used to refer to repentance. I have covered this in more detail in my article, Repentance That Leads to Life. The nation of Israel had been unfaithful to God and was unrepentant. For the people had dealt treacherously with God, but the prophet was calling the nation to repentance.

Ezekiel also prophesied, "For I have no pleasure in the death of anyone who dies," declares the Lord GOD. "Therefore, repent and live." (Eze 18:32)

The passage in Isaiah 53 says, "By His knowledge the Righteous One, My Servant, will justify the many, as He will bear their iniquities." This means that by knowing the Lord's righteous Servant Jesus, many will be justified, since He Himself bore our iniquities.

Hosea also spoke of knowing the Lord in the passage from the sixth chapter that I have cited above. He said, "Let us acknowledge the Lord; let us press on to acknowledge Him." (Hos 6:3, NIV). In the NASB, it says, "So let us know, let us press on to know the LORD."

Therefore, when we put these passages together with others from the Hebrew Scriptures, we find that by repenting and knowing Jesus, men receive justification and forgiveness of sins from God. 

The psalmist also wrote, "Blessed is the one whose sin the Lord does not count against him."

Preached to All Nations

Jesus said the Scriptures prophesied that this gospel would be preached to all nations, when He said to His disciples that it "would be proclaimed in His name to all the nations" (Lk 24:47). Again, there are many Scriptures that say this. But just a couple will suffice to prove my point.

"Praise the LORD, all nations; Laud Him, all peoples! For His lovingkindness is great toward us, And the truth of the LORD is everlasting. Praise the LORD!" (Psa 117:1-2)

"Let the peoples praise You, O God; Let all the peoples praise You. Let the nations be glad and sing for joy; For You will judge the peoples with uprightness And guide the nations on the earth. Selah." (Psa 67:3-4)

All the peoples of the earth and all the nations praise the Lord, because they have received forgiveness of sins through repentance and faith in Christ.

"God blesses us, That all the ends of the earth may fear Him." (Psa 67:7).

Jehovah spoke to His Servant Yeshua (Jesus) in this passage from Isaiah that says: "I am the LORD, I have called You in righteousness, I will also hold You by the hand and watch over You, And I will appoint You as a covenant to the people, As a light to the nations." (Isa 42:6)

In Isaiah again He says, "It is too small a thing that You should be My Servant To raise up the tribes of Jacob and to restore the preserved ones of Israel; I will also make You a light of the nations So that My salvation may reach to the end of the earth." (Isa 49:6)

Glory to God!

Invitation

As you can clearly see from Scripture, all of the things that happened to Jesus were prophesied hundreds of years in advance, right down to the minute details, including that he would suffer, die, rise again on the third day, and that repentance and forgiveness of sins would be proclaimed in His name to all nations. That proves that He is the Son of God.

If you don't know Jesus yet, today is the day of salvation; now is the time of God's favor. Jesus is coming back soon to judge the world and take vengeance on the enemies of God, so don't wait or else it may be too late.

The Lord does not take pleasure in your perishing. Therefore, repent and live. As Peter said, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit." (Ac 2:38, NIV). 

Attribution notice: Most Scripture quotations taken from the NASB. Other Scriptures taken from the Holy Bible NIV where noted.

Author's note: If you enjoyed this post, you may also like Is Jesus God?, The Amazing Sign of Jonah, Supremacy of Christ, Repentance That Leads to Life, Ongoing Earthly Ministry of Jesus, The Son of Man, and Christ's Two Ascensions. You may also access the Main Directory for this blog, or my complete blog directory at Writing for the Master.

Do You Want to Know Him?
If you want to know Jesus personally, you can. It all begins when you repent and believe in Jesus.  Do you know what God's Word, the Bible says?

“Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God, and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.’” (Mar 1:14b-15).  He preached that we must repent and believe.

Please see my explanation of this in my post called "Do You Want to Know Jesus?"

_________________________________________________

Len Lacroix is the founder of Doulos Missions International.  He was based in Eastern Europe for four years, making disciples, as well as helping leaders to be more effective at making disciples who multiply, developing leaders who multiply, with the ultimate goal of planting churches that multiply. His ministry is now based in the United States with the same goal of helping fulfill the Great Commission. www.dmiworld.org.

The Glory of the Lord Revealed

One of God’s primary desires is to reveal His glory to men on the earth. He wants us to see it. Let’s look at the will of God about this in Scripture.

First of all, it is evident in the passage in Isaiah, where the gospel is foretold. It describes the calling of John the Baptist who would prepare the way for the Lord, and it also speaks of the coming of Christ. “Then the glory of the LORD will be revealed, And all flesh will see it together; For the mouth of the LORD has spoken." (Isa 40:5). This firmly establishes that it is God’s will to reveal His glory.

Moses cried out to God, “Show me your glory!” And the Lord answered the cry of his heart.

And He said, "My presence shall go with you, and I will give you rest." Then he said to Him, "If Your presence does not go with us, do not lead us up from here. "For how then can it be known that I have found favor in Your sight, I and Your people? Is it not by Your going with us, so that we, I and Your people, may be distinguished from all the other people who are upon the face of the earth?" The LORD said to Moses, "I will also do this thing of which you have spoken; for you have found favor in My sight and I have known you by name." Then Moses said, "I pray You, show me Your glory!" And He said, "I Myself will make all My goodness pass before you, and will proclaim the name of the LORD before you; and I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show compassion on whom I will show compassion." But He said, "You cannot see My face, for no man can see Me and live!" Then the LORD said, "Behold, there is a place by Me, and you shall stand there on the rock; and it will come about, while My glory is passing by, that I will put you in the cleft of the rock and cover you with My hand until I have passed by. "Then I will take My hand away and you shall see My back, but My face shall not be seen." (Exo 33:14-23)

In another instance, Moses and Aaron said to the sons of Israel, “And in the morning you will see the glory of the LORD…” (Exo 16:7a). Even the sons of Israel would see His glory.

“It came about as Aaron spoke to the whole congregation of the sons of Israel, that they looked toward the wilderness, and behold, the glory of the LORD appeared in the cloud.” (Exo 16:10)

“The glory of the LORD rested on Mount Sinai, and the cloud covered it for six days; and on the seventh day He called to Moses from the midst of the cloud. And to the eyes of the sons of Israel the appearance of the glory of the LORD was like a consuming fire on the mountain top. (Exo 24:16-17)

His glory once filled the tabernacle, when it was a tent. “Then the cloud covered the tent of meeting, and the glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle.” (Exo 40:34). It’s still God’s desire to fill His tabernacle with His glory.

When He does that, we will be unable to enter or stand. “Moses was not able to enter the tent of meeting because the cloud had settled on it, and the glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle.” (Exo 40:35)

When His glory falls, men are unable to stand. In the days of Solomon, “The priests could not stand to minister because of the cloud, for the glory of the LORD filled the house of the LORD.” (1Ki 8:11; cf., 2Ch 5:14)

“Now when Solomon had finished praying, fire came down from heaven and consumed the burnt offering and the sacrifices, and the glory of the LORD filled the house. The priests could not enter into the house of the LORD because the glory of the LORD filled the LORD'S house. (2Ch 7:1-2)

Moses said, "This is the thing which the LORD has commanded you to do, that the glory of the LORD may appear to you." (Lev 9:6)

"Moses and Aaron went into the tent of meeting. When they came out and blessed the people, the glory of the LORD appeared to all the people." (Lev 9:23)

“But all the congregation said to stone them with stones. Then the glory of the LORD appeared in the tent of meeting to all the sons of Israel.” (Num 14:10)

“Thus Korah assembled all the congregation against them at the doorway of the tent of meeting. And the glory of the LORD appeared to all the congregation.” (Num 16:19)

“It came about, however, when the congregation had assembled against Moses and Aaron, that they turned toward the tent of meeting, and behold, the cloud covered it and the glory of the LORD appeared.” (Num 16:42)

“Then Moses and Aaron came in from the presence of the assembly to the doorway of the tent of meeting and fell on their faces. Then the glory of the LORD appeared to them;” (Num 20:6)

When holy men see His glory, they bow down with their faces to the ground. “All the sons of Israel, seeing the fire come down and the glory of the LORD upon the house, bowed down on the pavement with their faces to the ground, and they worshiped and gave praise to the LORD, saying, ‘Truly He is good, truly His lovingkindness is everlasting.’" (2Ch 7:3)

His glory is great. “And they will sing of the ways of the LORD, For great is the glory of the LORD.” (Psa 138:5)

His glory is blessed. “Then the Spirit lifted me up, and I heard a great rumbling sound behind me, ‘Blessed be the glory of the LORD in His place.’" (Eze 3:12)

His glory endures forever. “Let the glory of the LORD endure forever; Let the LORD be glad in His works;” (Psa 104:31)

He wants His saints to speak of His glory and make it known to the sons of men. David said, “All Your works shall give thanks to You, O LORD, And Your godly ones shall bless You. They shall speak of the glory of Your kingdom And talk of Your power; To make known to the sons of men Your mighty acts And the glory of the majesty of Your kingdom.” (Psa 145:10-12)

Ezekiel tried to describe the glory he saw as having the appearance of a rainbow in the clouds. It was so awesome that he fell on his face. “As the appearance of the rainbow in the clouds on a rainy day, so was the appearance of the surrounding radiance. Such was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the LORD. And when I saw it, I fell on my face and heard a voice speaking.” (Eze 1:28)

“So I got up and went out to the plain; and behold, the glory of the LORD was standing there, like the glory which I saw by the river Chebar, and I fell on my face.” (Eze 3:23)

"Then He brought me by way of the north gate to the front of the house; and I looked, and behold, the glory of the LORD filled the house of the LORD, and I fell on my face." (Eze 44:4)

“And behold, the glory of the God of Israel was there, like the appearance which I saw in the plain.” (Eze 8:4)

“Then the glory of the God of Israel went up from the cherub on which it had been, to the threshold of the temple. And He called to the man clothed in linen at whose loins was the writing case.” (Eze 9:3)

When the temple is filled with His glory, there is a brightness of it. “Then the glory of the LORD went up from the cherub to the threshold of the temple, and the temple was filled with the cloud and the court was filled with the brightness of the glory of the LORD.” (Eze 10:4)

“And behold, the glory of the God of Israel was coming from the way of the east. And His voice was like the sound of many waters; and the earth shone with His glory.” (Eze 43:2)

When Israel wandered away from God into idolatry, His glory departed. “Then the glory of the LORD departed from the threshold of the temple and stood over the cherubim.” (Eze 10:18)

“When the cherubim departed, they lifted their wings and rose up from the earth in my sight with the wheels beside them; and they stood still at the entrance of the east gate of the LORD'S house, and the glory of the God of Israel hovered over them.” (Eze 10:19)

“Then the cherubim lifted up their wings with the wheels beside them, and the glory of the God of Israel hovered over them.” (Eze 11:22)

“The glory of the LORD went up from the midst of the city and stood over the mountain which is east of the city.” (Eze 11:23)

“And the glory of the LORD came into the house by the way of the gate facing toward the east.” (Eze 43:4)

“And the Spirit lifted me up and brought me into the inner court; and behold, the glory of the LORD filled the house.” (Eze 43:5)

"Then your light will break out like the dawn, And your recovery will speedily spring forth; And your righteousness will go before you; The glory of the LORD will be your rear guard.” (Isa 58:8)

"Arise, shine; for your light has come, And the glory of the LORD has risen upon you.” (Isa 60:1)

The Lord wants the whole earth to be filled with His glory. “But indeed, as I live, all the earth will be filled with the glory of the LORD.” (Num 14:21)

"For the earth will be filled With the knowledge of the glory of the LORD, As the waters cover the sea.” (Hab 2:14)

Putting it All Together
It’s God’s will to reveal His glory. It will be revealed, and all flesh will see it together. It is visible, if God allows you to see it. You can cry out as Moses did, “Lord, show me your glory!” He did see God’s glory, which sometimes appeared in a cloud and at other times was like a consuming fire. Ezekiel described the glory as having a brightness and appearing as a rainbow in the clouds.

The glory of the Lord can move from one place to another. It can come in and it can depart. When the glory departs, it is desolate and empty. This is what has happened in many of the churches these days. We have come to rely on our programs so much that we seem to think we no longer need the presence of God or His glory. But if we get hungry enough and desperate enough for it, we will cry out for it to return once again.

When His glory fills the temple, His priests are unable to minister before Him. They all fall on their faces. It’s so great that they cannot stand. Blessed be the glory of the LORD in His place. If we haven’t experienced that yet, being incapacitated and prostrated under the glory, then we haven’t experienced what it means for His temple to be filled with His glory.

It’s time to seek Him until He comes, and all the earth will be filled with the glory of the LORD.

Attribution notice: Attribution notice: Most Scripture quotations taken from the NASB.

Author's Note: If you enjoyed this article, you may also like: The Light and the Glory, For the Glory of God Alone, Seeking Glory from God, Jesus Alone Reveals the Father, Light of the World, The Glory of Martyrdom for Christ, and Being a Light in a Dark World. You may also access the Main Directory for this blog, or my complete blog directory at Writing for the Master.

Do You Want to Know Him?
If you want to know Jesus personally, you can. It all begins when you repent and believe in Jesus.  Do you know what God's Word, the Bible says?

“Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God, and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.’” (Mar 1:14b-15).  He preached that we must repent and believe.

Please see my explanation of this in my post called "Do You Want to Know Jesus?"

_________________________________________________

Len Lacroix is the founder of Doulos Missions International.  He was based in Eastern Europe for four years, making disciples, as well as helping leaders to be more effective at making disciples who multiply, developing leaders who multiply, with the ultimate goal of planting churches that multiply. His ministry is now based in the United States with the same goal of helping fulfill the Great Commission. www.dmiworld.org.

Jesus Alone Reveals the Father

Many people have looked for God in all the wrong places. They have looked for Him through yoga, meditation, mysticism, occultism, New Age, Islam, Hinduism, idolatry, taking drugs, and many other ways. If you want a revelation of God, then look no further than the Lord Jesus Christ, who reveals the Father.

Jesus said, "All things have been handed over to Me by My Father, and no one knows who the Son is except the Father, and who the Father is except the Son, and anyone to whom the Son wills to reveal Him." (Luk 10:22).

This means that the Lord Jesus is the only one who knows who the Father is, and anyone to whom He chooses to reveal the Father. In other words, if Jesus doesn't choose to reveal to you who the Father is, then you will not know God. You may believe in one God according to the Scriptures, and still not truly know the Father. That was true of the Jews to whom Jesus spoke in John 8, who had believed in Him (Joh 8:31).

He told them, "You are doing the deeds of your father."

They said to Him, "We were not born of fornication; we have one Father: God." (Joh 8:41). They truly believed they had one Father, which was God. But He told them their father was the devil.

"You are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him. Whenever he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own nature, for he is a liar and the father of lies. (Joh 8:44)

Likewise, you may call yourself a Christian or profess Jesus as Lord, but not know who the Father is or do His will. You don't believe me? Listen to what Jesus said:

"Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter. Many will say to Me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?' And then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you; DEPART FROM ME, YOU WHO PRACTICE LAWLESSNESS.'" (Mat 7:21-23)

These people call Jesus their Lord and perform miracles in His name, but He does not know them, because they practice lawlessness, rather than do the will of His Father who is in heaven. A person naturally takes after their father and wants to do the desires of their father. The way to tell whose child you are is to observe your deeds. You will do the deeds of your father, whether you are a child of God or a child of the devil. Jesus said to them, "If you are Abraham's children, do the deeds of Abraham." (Joh 8:39)

So they were saying to Him, "Where is Your Father?" Jesus answered, "You know neither Me nor My Father; if you knew Me, you would know My Father also." (Joh 8:19).  If you knew Jesus, you would know His Father also. He said, "He who has seen Me has seen the Father." (Joh 14:9b). To know Jesus is to know the Father, because He reveals the Father.

The apostle John said, "No one has seen God at any time; the only begotten God who is in the bosom of the Father, He has explained Him." (Joh 1:18). This means Jesus is the only begotten God who is in the bosom of the Father, and that He has explained, made known, or revealed the Father.

"And He is the radiance of His glory and the exact representation of His nature, and upholds all things by the word of His power." (Heb 1:3a). This means that Jesus is the exact representation of God's nature or being.

This does not mean that Jesus is the Father. It means that Jesus and the Father are one. He said, "I and the Father are one." (Joh 10:30)

Therefore, if you seek to know God and who God is, seek the Lord Jesus Christ, who said, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me." (Joh 14:6). That means Jesus is the only way to the Father.

He said to His disciples, "If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also; from now on you know Him, and have seen Him." (Joh 14:6-7). He will make known who the Father is to those who truly seek Him.

Let me give you an example. When Jesus was on the cross, they said, "He saved others; He cannot save Himself. He is the King of Israel; let Him now come down from the cross, and we will believe in Him. He trusts in God; let God rescue Him now, if He delights in him; for He said, 'I am the Son of God.'"  (Mat 27:42-43)

You see, their view of God was that God would not let anyone hurt Him or nail Him to a cross. God would not suffer. God would not allow mere men to subdue Him. God would not die. God would prove who He is by miraculously coming down from the cross. They assumed God would use His divine power to save Himself. But they were badly mistaken.

They failed to realize that God is love. God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, so that whoever believes in Him would not perish but have eternal life (Joh 3:16). No greater love has any man than this: that he lay down his life for his friends. And that is what Jesus did for us, and in doing so, He revealed to us the Father's heart.

You need to know the Father for yourself, and nobody else can do that for you. Your parents cannot do it for you. Your husband or wife cannot do it for you. Your boyfriend or girlfriend cannot do it for you. Your pastor cannot do it for you. Instead you must get to know Him for yourself. Let me encourage you to to do that today. And if you believe you already know Jesus and the Father, check your deeds to see if it is really so. If your deeds are those of the devil, then you don't know the Father, no matter what you believe or say with your mouth.

If you do the deeds of your heavenly Father, then you will be bearing good fruit. We will recognize you by your fruit (Mat 7:16,20). You should have the fruit of the Spirit in your life, which is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self control (Gal 5:22-23). If you do see those fruit in your life, then that's great. Now let me encourage you to seek to know the Father more through His Son Jesus Christ.

Attribution notice: Most Scripture quotations taken from the NASB. The "All Hail King Jesus" painting © 2012 is by Danny Hahlbohm, all rights reserved by the artist.

Author's note:  I recommend reading my articles Jesus is Yehova and The Name of Jesus. Other related articles include Yehova as Both Father and Husband to the Hebrews, Is Jesus God?, Christ the Beginning, The Holy Trinity, Baptized with the Spirit and Holy Fire Baptism.

You may also access the Main Directory for this blog, or my complete blog directory at Writing for the Master.

Do You Want to Know Him?
If you want to know Jesus personally, you can. It all begins when you repent and believe in Jesus.  Do you know what God's Word, the Bible says?

“Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God, and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.’” (Mar 1:14b-15).  He preached that we must repent and believe.

Please see my explanation of this in my post called "Do You Want to Know Jesus?"

_________________________________________________

Len Lacroix is the founder of Doulos Missions International.  He was based in Eastern Europe for four years, making disciples, as well as helping leaders to be more effective at making disciples who multiply, developing leaders who multiply, with the ultimate goal of planting churches that multiply. His ministry is now based in the United States with the same goal of helping fulfill the Great Commission. www.dmiworld.org.