This question has been in my thoughts lately.
Here is another traditional LDS interpretation on John 5. Let me share with you the essence of James Lee Gifford’s book, As Man Now Is . . . (Rexburg: Ricks College Press, 1980). Inside the front cover is a note personally penned by Lee. (more…)
In The Four Gospels: Verse by Verse (Deseret, 2006), D. Kelly Ogden and Andrew C. Skinner write on page 265, (more…)
“Jesus saith unto them, My meat is to do the will of him that sent me, and to finish his work. Say not ye, There are yet four months, and then cometh harvest? behold, I say unto you, Lift up your eyes, and look on the fields; for they are white already to harvest” (John 4:34-35).
From grandparents to grandchildren, there is a huge harvest field up and
down the intermountain corridor. God is both good and great.
This title in the New Testament is used only two times. Both times, it is penned by John the Beloved – I John 4:14 and John 4:42.
This past Sunday, we focused on the Samaritan’s confession in John 4:42, “Now we believe, not because of thy saying: for we have heard him ourselves, and know that this is indeed the Christ, the Saviour of the world.” (more…)
Early this morning, I was reading Anytime, Anywhere (Deseret Book, 2006) by John H. Groberg, the president of the Idaho Falls temple.
By reading this man’s book, you will be immersed in missionary passion. One page after another, the author takes you on a journey through spiritual experiences bordering on the miraculous. (more…)
I am attracted to Eugene’s meditations on John 3:31-36, stumbling over them today, for he is seeing the very things I am exegeting. And he is asking the very same heart question that I am posing to you, friends.
Jesus is not just a better version of Moses, or David, or Elijah–or John. He is different entirely: “from heaven.” Jesus is not a word about God, but the very word of God. His presence brings us into the fullness of God. In him we have not just a fragment of truth but the whole picture of redemption.
What is the difference between John and Jesus (247).
– A Year With Jesus (2006)
The newest DVD, Jesus Christ / Joseph Smith, begins very nicely:
This video has been produced out of love for our Lord Jesus Christ and love for our Mormon and Christian friends. We pray that it will touch the hearts of all who watch through the grace and truth of Christ Jesus. (more…)
Beginning last fall, I have for the first time begun to seriously, personally grapple with the divinely inspired text of John’s Gospel. I can hardly express to you the wide array of emotions that I have been experiencing in feasting upon the dazzling presentation of Triune theology revealed in these pages. The activity simply intoxicates one with joy. (more…)
Gary has written some beautiful words:
John 3:22-36 is all about fragmentation that results in the kingdom of God when Jesus is made to compete with human vessels in this world. No one will admit that they are competing with Jesus. No one will say that they are impeding the kingdom’s growth. Words like envy, jealousy, and rivalry are never admitted. But just as the Baptist’s followers were interested in making him into an institution, so too the Christian church can become a human institution built on the foundation of human enterprise and personality.
At the core of the Baptist’s argument against his followers’ views is an understanding of Jesus that sets him apart from every other human being. Jesus Christ is superior to any other person on earth. He has “come from above,” he has been sent by God, and God has given him the Spirit without limit. The Baptist cannot rival these credentials. Therefore every form of human wisdom, every form of religious expression, must be seen as secondary to the revelation that we possess in Jesus Christ. Indeed, every charismatic teacher and every gifted teacher must decrease so that Jesus alone is seen as preeminent.
Is this the fundamental cry of your heart faith?
To gain a little better understanding of LDS belief on John’s Gospel, I have been reading a series of articles in The Testimony of John the Beloved (SLC: Deseret, 1998).
You can tell that Blake has spent some time scrutinizing the Gospel and the Epistles of John. I don’t know how Blake might nuance his interpretation today, but almost ten years ago he introduces his topic by saying, (more…)
Jesus in Idaho Falls 