Transcript [00:11] Hey, shalom everyone and welcome once [00:14] again to our wonderful program, Explore [00:19] the Bible, where Dr. Rick Yon and myself [00:22] are looking into ways to help you to [00:26] study and understand your Bible. And we [00:31] continue today where we stopped last [00:34] time as we looked into studying the [00:39] Bible in a devotional way. [00:43] Dr. Rick, shalom. How are you, my [00:45] friend? [00:46] I'm doing real real well once I can [00:49] clear my throat. [laughter] [00:52] Doing very well. [00:53] >> Yeah. [00:54] >> Wonderful. So, can you give us in a [00:57] nutshell just what is it that we covered [01:00] last time? I mean, we looked at the [01:02] Gospel of John chapter 1. We covered the [01:06] first uh 28 verses I think. And um what [01:11] is the purpose of our program? last time [01:16] and today. Explain a little bit about [01:19] this studying it devotionally. [01:24] Well, [clears throat] devotionally I'm [01:26] talking about moving from just studying [01:30] it with your mind and bringing it down [01:34] to your heart. In other words, as we [01:37] read the scriptures, we know that God [01:40] has given us the his word so that it [01:43] might change our lives. So, as we read [01:46] the Bible, what is it that God wants us [01:49] to change? What does he want us to know? [01:52] And then, what does he want us to be? [01:55] And then, what does he want us to do? [01:58] The problem is too often when we read [02:00] the Bible in a devotional way, we don't [02:04] interpret it. we just begin to apply [02:07] whatever thing that we see in there. And [02:10] uh sometimes we make the wrong [02:13] application because we don't know what [02:15] it really is saying. [02:17] And so that's why I want our viewers to [02:20] get out pen and paper and and write down [02:23] these four words. [02:25] The first word is observation. [02:28] What is it in this text that I see? What [02:31] do I see as I'm reading? [02:34] Secondly, interpretation. [02:37] What is it saying? What does it really [02:40] mean? [02:42] So, what do I see? Observation. [02:44] Interpretation. What does it mean? And [02:47] then the third step is one that we often [02:52] skip and that is correlation. [02:56] How does this text fit other passages of [02:59] scripture? [03:01] And then finally application. [03:05] >> What is God saying to me in this passage [03:08] of scripture? And if we can follow those [03:10] four steps, it will help us to [03:14] apply accurately [03:17] and uh because we've interpreted [03:19] accurately. [03:21] >> So the devotional part is the personal [03:25] application of everything we looked at [03:28] and studied. I understand. Well, listen, [03:32] uh why don't we hop right into the text [03:36] where we uh stopped last time. And I [03:39] think that this uh this is where I'm [03:41] going to read from uh verse 29 and on of [03:47] John chapter 1. So the next day John saw [03:52] Jesus coming toward him and said, [03:55] "Behold the lamb of God who takes away [03:57] the sin of the world. This is he whom uh [04:02] of he of whom I said after me comes a [04:06] man who is preferred before me, for he [04:10] was before me. I did not know him, but [04:14] that he should be revealed to Israel. [04:19] Therefore, I came baptizing with water. [04:24] And John bore witness, saying, I saw the [04:27] Spirit ascending from heaven like a [04:30] dove, and he remained upon him. I did [04:34] not know him. But he who sent me to [04:37] baptize with water said to me, "Upon [04:40] whom you see the Spirit descending and [04:43] remaining on him, this is he who [04:46] baptizes with the Holy Spirit." And I [04:50] have seen and testified that this is the [04:54] Son of God. [04:57] Again the next day John stood with two [05:01] of his disciples and look and looking at [05:03] Jesus he walked [05:07] as he walked he said behold the lamb of [05:11] God. The two disciples heard him [05:14] speaking and they followed Jesus. Then [05:17] Jesus turned and seeing them following [05:20] said to them what do you seek? And they [05:23] said to him, "Rabbi," which is to say [05:26] when translated, "teacher, where are you [05:29] staying?" [05:31] And he said to them, "Come and see." And [05:35] they came and saw where he was staying [05:38] and remained with him that day. Now, it [05:42] was about the 10th hour. I think uh we [05:46] can stop here [05:48] and uh I we'll continue later reading [05:52] more but uh [05:54] >> so obviously we clearly see [05:59] that uh there's a problem here and I [06:04] have to ask you [06:06] I thought John knows Jesus I thought [06:09] they're relatives [06:11] how come he said that he doesn't know [06:16] Yeah, I'm sure a lot of people are [06:18] asking that same kind of question. Uh, [06:21] weren't they related to one another? Uh, [06:25] most likely cousins or something. And [06:27] the answer is yes, they were related to [06:30] one another. But when we really look at [06:33] this text, [06:35] John, though he knew Jesus, [06:38] wasn't certain, [06:41] are you [06:43] the one that we're looking for? I mean, [06:45] I know you. You, we are related. We've [06:49] met each other before. We've talked with [06:51] each other before, but [06:53] are you the Messiah? [06:57] And he didn't know that until he was [07:00] told that when you see the Holy Spirit [07:05] come down upon this one, you will know [07:09] this is the Messiah. That's the only way [07:13] he knew that Jesus, his relative, was [07:18] actually the chosen one, the anointed [07:21] one, the one God promised down through [07:24] the centuries. And what a surprise that [07:27] must have been. Uh even though John knew [07:30] that Jesus was really connected with [07:33] God, yet now he knows this is truly the [07:40] Messiah [07:42] indeed. [07:44] And uh it's quite interesting because um [07:48] here is Jesus [07:50] and [07:52] approaching [07:54] and we can clearly see [07:57] maybe for the first time in the Gospel [08:01] of John [08:02] a beautiful display of the Trinity, [08:05] don't we? [08:08] >> Yeah. You don't have to go many places [08:11] to look for the trinity be uh even [08:13] though the trinity can be seen in a [08:16] number of places. This is one of the [08:19] best ones [08:20] because we see Jesus [08:23] the son of god and then the voice from [08:26] heaven this is my son and then the holy [08:30] spirit coming down upon the lord. A [08:33] great passage for us to understand this [08:36] is the triune Godhead. [08:39] >> Amen. This is wonderful. And then of [08:42] course Jesus is approaching [08:47] and John is saying [08:51] behold the lamb of God. And I think last [08:55] last time when we discussed that [08:58] you were asking about the lamb of God [09:00] and we talked about [09:03] the aspects of what what it means to be [09:06] the lamb. We talked about Isaiah as a [09:10] lamb that goes to [clears throat] its [09:13] ears. We talked about the yum kipur the [09:16] passover. We talked about the [09:19] sacrificial [09:21] uh uh animal and I think that from the [09:25] moment [09:27] John is saying behold the lamb of God. [09:32] Isn't that already a hint [09:36] that [09:37] it's a sacrificial animal that he has to [09:41] be sacrificed? I mean what else would a [09:43] lamb be used for? [09:46] I mean, um, I think that this this is [09:50] why in a lot of people, I think a lot of [09:54] people don't know that, but the Jewish [09:56] people then, as much as they are now, [09:59] they're not expecting a Messiah that [10:02] will sacrifice himself. They're not [10:04] expecting a Messiah that will be a lamb. [10:06] They They want a lion. [10:09] They They want a victor. They They want [10:12] a king. They want a ruler. They they [10:15] they want a shepherd and they don't want [10:18] a they don't want a a sheep or and and [10:22] it's interesting because the Bible, [10:26] the word of God, [10:29] the the spirit of God is testifying that [10:32] he is the lamb of God. And that's why, [10:37] by the way, when when John the Beloved [10:39] was in heaven's throne room, he saw both [10:45] the lamb that was uh slain as well as [10:50] the lion of the tribe of Judah [10:52] >> both in the same person. [10:55] >> Yeah. [10:56] >> Yeah. I I just I just think it's amazing [10:59] because uh I mean up until today the [11:02] majority of the Jewish people are still [11:05] waiting for the Messiah and they're [11:07] still waiting for the way he's supposed [11:10] to come in his second coming and they [11:12] believe that's what first [11:15] >> absolutely [11:17] >> and although the introduction that we [11:20] have [11:21] to the Messiah in the very beginning of [11:24] his ministry the very beginning of his [11:26] ministry was actually a lamb of God, not [11:30] anything else. [11:31] >> And it caught the attention of two of [11:33] John's disciples. [11:35] >> Absolutely. [11:37] >> There was something with that phrase [11:39] that captured I I was just wondering [11:42] what about the other disciples of John? [11:44] They did not catch on. But two of them, [11:48] man, the lamb of God. [11:51] That's interesting. [11:54] I wonder who this man really is. [11:57] And so two of them began to follow him. [12:00] And of course, my big question is, we [12:03] know the one, but who is the other one [12:06] who followed? [12:08] I'm not told. [12:10] >> Two of John's disciples [12:13] >> followed [12:15] Jesus [12:16] because they heard the lamb of God. That [12:20] really clicked. [12:22] And they must have known something that [12:25] the other disciples were just not aware [12:27] of. [12:28] >> Yep. Yep. And it's interesting because [12:32] uh [12:33] >> Yeah. We have a span of how many days? [12:36] Four days in that chapter. [12:39] >> Yeah. Yeah. [12:41] >> It's a span of four days only. And uh [12:44] and again we have the lamb of God. And I [12:47] I must ask you because I I mean this is [12:50] something that kind of I mean we can [12:52] continue and read until verse 51. So [12:56] people will will probably have a better [12:59] understanding of it. But one of them uh [13:03] um one of the two who heard John speak [13:06] and followed him was Andrew, Simon [13:09] Peter's brother. He first found his own [13:11] brother Simon and said to him, "We have [13:14] found the Messiah," which is translated [13:17] the Christ, and he brought him to Jesus. [13:22] Now when Jesus looked at him, he said, [13:25] "You are Simon, the son of Jonah. You [13:29] shall be called Keas [13:32] or Cphus, you call it in in your [13:34] language, which is translated as stone." [13:38] Uhhuh. Uh why you probably [13:41] >> why all those names? [laughter] [13:43] >> Yeah, you know it's very interesting [13:45] because uh we have three languages [13:50] right there. Simon, [13:52] kaya or Cphus and Peter. Cphus kaya is [13:58] stone in Aramaic. Peter is stone in [14:02] Greek. And Simon is of course his Hebrew [14:06] name. And uh the the Hebrew name that uh [14:10] we're talking about here is God. I mean [14:15] it's about the the Shimon Simeon [14:18] basically. [14:20] And um [14:23] and uh [14:25] the amazing thing is that we see in all [14:29] three languages [14:32] that uh Peter [14:35] uh was described here um the same I mean [14:39] the same way I mean in in Greek and [14:42] Aramaic the same way. Shimon is God has [14:45] heard. So [14:49] it's about to hear. Shema is to hear. So [14:55] Simeon about God is hearing. [14:58] In Greek, [14:59] >> a pebble, a stone, in Aramaic, kaya is a [15:04] rock as well. So these are the three [15:06] names that one person had in three [15:10] different languages. [15:11] Amazing, isn't it? [15:15] >> Yeah. And [15:19] I mean again I I just wonder what it was [15:23] that these two disciples [15:26] heard or saw in Jesus to follow him. And [15:30] the only thing I can come up with is the [15:34] lamb of God. [15:36] So there's something that connected the [15:39] sacrifices of the of the Old Testament [15:42] with seeing Jesus [15:45] >> and they followed him. [15:46] >> I agree with you. [15:47] >> And very first thing that Andrew does [15:51] is to find his brother and let him know [15:56] we have found the Messiah. [15:58] >> He found the Messiah. [15:59] >> We found the Messiah. [16:01] >> Wow. [16:04] It's quite amazing because it tells you [16:07] that few [16:10] few [16:12] did understand that he could be the the [16:14] the lamb of God. Not only the lion, not [16:19] only [16:22] >> the tribe of Judah. [16:23] >> Exactly. Not only the the king, but he [16:26] could actually be a servant. He could [16:28] actually be a simple man. He could [16:30] actually walk right among us. [16:34] he could actually live in a in a very [16:37] little shack and not in the palace. [16:40] Um, [16:41] and I think that's [16:44] I mean I'm amazed at at the anticipation [16:46] for the Messiah during those days. They [16:48] knew I mean look at Simeon in the temple [16:52] and look at uh at uh everyone that were [16:55] there at that time of the of the birth [16:57] of Christ. It they all knew he has to [17:00] come. this is the right time. [17:03] And some knew because they calculated. [17:06] Some knew because uh the magi, you know, [17:10] said what they said. Some knew because [17:13] everything around them showed that this [17:15] is it. There were signs everywhere. And [17:19] they knew that they live in a world [17:23] where Messiah is already here present [17:27] walking among them. I mean, it's one [17:30] thing to say Messiah has come. By the [17:32] way, I want you to know, I don't know [17:35] what day this uh program is going to be [17:38] broadcasted, [17:41] but the day that we are recording right [17:43] now, [17:45] there's a an Israeli guy who claimed to [17:48] have seen the light [17:51] of [17:53] God who claims that in few hours from [17:58] now Messiah will be revealed. build in [18:02] Jerusalem today. Now, why am I saying [18:05] that? Because you would think that this [18:08] is something 2,000 years ago people were [18:10] dealing with and it's all about the [18:15] anticipation in those days. They they [18:18] didn't have anything better to do. Well, [18:20] it's 2026 [18:23] and people are still busy, thinking, [18:26] guessing, hoping, [18:29] trying to figure when and where will he [18:33] come. And that person, that person is a [18:36] celebrity. He was on reality shows and [18:40] TV. He belongs to a well-known family in [18:43] Israel. And he just announced to [18:46] everyone tonight [18:49] in Jerusalem, it's a very special date [18:52] on the Hebrew calendar, [18:55] Messiah will be revealed at the temple [18:57] mount or the western wall area. Just to [19:01] tell you that the anticipation for his [19:04] coming is still there among his people. [19:06] And as Paul once said, [19:09] >> as Paul once said, they have the zeal, [19:12] >> but they don't have the knowledge. And [19:15] that's what we see. That's probably what [19:17] we saw then and that's what we see [19:18] today. [19:20] >> I would like to, if you don't mind, I [19:22] would like to read further more so we [19:24] can complete this. Um, the following day [19:28] Jesus wanted to go to Galilee and he [19:31] found Philillip and he said to him, [19:33] follow me. Now, Philip was from Beta, [19:36] the city of Andrew and Peter. Philip [19:39] found Nathaniel, and said to him, "We [19:41] have found him, of whom Moses in the [19:44] law, and also the prophets wrote, Jesus [19:47] of Nazareth, the son of Joseph." And [19:50] Nathaniel said to him, "Can anything [19:53] good come out of Nazareth?" [19:56] And Philip said to him, "Come and see." [20:00] And Jesus saw Nathaniel coming toward [20:02] him and said to him, "Behold, an [20:05] Israelite indeed in whom [20:09] is no deceit." Nathaniel said to him, [20:12] "How do you know me?" And Jesus answered [20:15] and said to him, "Before Philillip [20:18] called you, when you were under the fig [20:20] tree, I saw you." Nathaniel answered and [20:24] said to him, "Rabbi, [20:26] you are the son of God. you are the king [20:30] of Israel. [20:32] Jesus answered and said to him, because [20:35] I said to you, I saw you under the fig [20:37] tree, do you believe? [20:39] You will see greater things than these. [20:42] And he said to him, most assuredly I say [20:45] to you, hereafter you shall see heaven [20:48] open, and the angels of God ascending [20:51] and descending upon the Son of Man. Wow. [20:58] I mean, think about that. [21:01] What an amazing thing that uh Nathaniel [21:06] experienced with Jesus. And I'm amazed [21:10] that Nathaniel said, [21:13] "You are the son of God." [21:16] >> Yeah. [21:17] >> And and then he also said, "You're the [21:19] king of Israel." I mean, these are two [21:23] big proclamations. [21:26] Um, and I think that very few, [21:30] if any, could say such a thing [21:34] without the Holy Spirit directing them [21:37] because [21:40] uh again the teachings, the tr [21:44] traditions, the customs were not [21:46] pointing at someone like Jesus to be the [21:49] Messiah. The teaching was that he has to [21:52] come and he has to defeat the enemies [21:55] and he has to rule and he has to bring [21:57] peace and prosperity and we have to have [21:59] independence and all of that and nothing [22:01] of this was [22:04] Jesus is not a general. He's not a [22:06] leader. He's not a he's not a conqueror. [22:09] He's not any of those things. And yet he [22:12] saw in him in that simple man. He saw in [22:16] him king and the son of god which I [22:22] think only the holy spirit could have [22:23] revealed that to him [22:26] >> very definitely in when you just think [22:30] of what you've just read uh [22:33] >> we find that uh he actually goes back to [22:37] the old testament this is what the one [22:40] that Moses was talking about and So, [22:44] >> and the prophets. [22:46] >> Yeah. And the prophet. [22:49] And to realize that here are young men [22:52] who actually knew the scriptures. [22:57] They must have been brought up pretty [23:00] well in understanding [23:03] the word of God. And so when they saw [23:07] Jesus, they began to make this [23:09] connection. But again, it has to be the [23:12] Holy Spirit revealing it to them. But at [23:16] the same time, they had to know [23:18] the scriptures. And [23:21] >> correct, [23:22] >> you have a beautiful relationship. [23:25] And that's what we're talking about now, [23:27] that when you read the scriptures, you [23:29] want to have the Holy Spirit making [23:32] known what it is you are reading. And [23:36] one of the things that came to my mind [23:38] as I went through this passage of [23:40] scripture is all the things that we [23:44] learn about Jesus [23:46] in this passage. [23:49] >> Yeah. [23:51] >> Yeah. I mean let's start from verse one. [23:53] Yeah. [23:54] >> Go ahead. [23:55] >> He is the word, the word of God. [24:00] And [24:02] as the word that means that he is the [24:05] one who reveals. [24:07] He is the one who tells. He is the one [24:10] who is speaking. He is the one who is uh [24:14] revealing. [24:16] That's what a word does. The word makes [24:18] known something that we did not know. [24:22] So in the beginning was the word and the [24:26] word was with God and the word [24:29] was God. He is also in him was life [24:35] and then that life was the light of all [24:39] mankind. So he is the word is the life. [24:43] He is the light [24:46] >> and then we see that [24:48] >> he is God [laughter] [24:50] and grace and truth came through Jesus [24:54] Christ. So he is the one who brings [24:56] grace and truth. He is the Messiah. He [25:00] is the one that Elijah spoke about. He [25:04] is the prophet that Moses spoke about. [25:08] He is the lamb of God. [25:13] He is [25:15] the [25:16] >> the son of God, [25:18] >> king. [25:18] >> He is the son of God. So all of these, [25:21] if you want to know who Jesus is, [25:24] John chapter one gives you a lot of [25:27] information as to who he is. [25:34] >> Yeah. And and so when you see all of [25:36] these, that's a long list by the way. I [25:39] mean the word, God, creator, life, [25:42] light, human, glory of the father, all [25:44] of that. So, and you mentioned in the [25:47] beginning of our program together that a [25:52] devotional approach [25:54] is actually has an application for our [25:58] lives. So, when you read all of that, [26:01] where do you see the application for our [26:04] lives? I mean, we you just gave us a [26:06] whole list of of titles and who he is, [26:11] but how what would you apply for your [26:14] own life from this portion of God's [26:17] word? [26:20] >> Well, of course, it really speaks to me [26:22] is the response [26:26] of these men. [26:29] It it tells us that Andrew [26:33] as soon as he sees Jesus and understands [26:37] who he is, the first thing he does is [26:41] find his brother Peter. Come. [26:44] >> Correct? [26:45] >> We have found the Messiah. [26:48] And then Philillip [26:51] gets Nathaniel, [26:53] come look at what we have found. And my [26:58] question even in my own life is [27:02] with the things that God has revealed to [27:04] me, what am I doing with them? Am I [27:07] sharing what he has revealed to me to [27:11] others? I mean, I go back to the three [27:15] parables in in Luke 15. [27:18] As soon as these individuals found [27:21] something that was lost, [27:24] the first thing they wanted to do [27:26] [clears throat] was to tell others about [27:27] it, tell their friends so they could all [27:30] rejoice. [27:32] And this is where Andrew comes in. [27:36] We have found the Messiah, Peter. We [27:40] found him. We've been looking for him [27:43] and is right here in our midst. [27:46] And my question to myself is, okay, with [27:51] all that God has entrusted me with, [27:56] with the spiritual gifts he has given [27:58] me, with the knowledge I have of [28:02] scripture, [28:03] with whom am I sharing this? [28:07] And I find each day I just ask God, give [28:11] me someone I can encourage, someone I [28:13] can share Jesus with. [28:16] because of this great treasure that I [28:18] found and and the gifts he has given to [28:22] me. I want to use all of this to share [28:27] with others what I have found. [28:30] And those of you who are viewing these [28:34] uh sessions, [28:37] we so appreciate that you really want to [28:40] know that's why you were watching. And [28:43] so my question to you, what are you [28:45] doing with what you are learning? Are [28:49] you sharing these discoveries [28:53] >> with your friends? [28:55] >> And isn't that interesting [28:57] that really hits home? [29:00] >> You you you shared with me quite a few [29:02] times [29:04] uh something very interesting and [29:06] personal. I guess you said [29:10] the older I get, the more I understand [29:14] that he must increase and I must [29:16] decrease [29:17] >> and that um [29:19] >> Oh yeah. [29:20] >> that and that I all I want to do is [29:24] share him with others. [29:27] But the reason I'm saying that because [29:28] you know there's certain age and certain [29:30] time in life where you you are so busy [29:33] you think there's so many things to do [29:36] and then the older you get the more you [29:39] understand that there's really nothing [29:41] more important nothing more important [29:44] than sharing him [29:46] with everybody around. [29:49] Uh, I mean everything else is just [29:51] meaningless compares to this. Um, so [29:57] with that in mind, [30:00] >> yeah, when we were on the cruise, all I [30:02] wanted to do is to be with people and [30:06] talk to them about the scriptures [30:08] >> and and that that's that's what I saw [30:10] also. Yeah. [30:13] >> Yeah. I remember the what was it 6:00 at [30:16] night uh people would go up to where [30:19] they serve the ice cream and sit around [30:23] and [laughter] [30:24] >> you created you created what we call the [30:27] ice cream forum. Uh it's [laughter] [30:30] basically [30:32] >> the the section of the dining room where [30:34] the ice cream is served is where [30:37] eventually [30:39] there was a small Bible study every [30:41] evening headed by you. [30:44] >> I mean you just wanted to sit there and [30:46] share with people and they asked you [30:48] questions and you answered and it was so [30:50] beautiful and we almost [30:52] institutionalized it. We almost created [30:55] uh it as a as a thing that is going on [30:59] every day. And uh [31:02] >> we also had [31:04] >> Yep. And we also had some guest speakers [31:07] uh people who showed up and ended up [31:10] staying there and also sharing. So Dr. [31:14] Rick, listen. Thank you for for [31:17] everything you do in sharing the word [31:20] and the message of the Messiah with [31:22] everybody, whether it's through teaching [31:25] people [31:27] um when you see them in person, whether [31:29] it's in writing [31:32] uh books together with me and or whether [31:35] it's uh joining us online for things [31:39] like that. Um, it's definitely [31:42] noticeable [31:44] that [31:45] >> the Messiah is your king. The Messiah, [31:49] >> Amen, [31:51] >> is uh everything in your life. And I can [31:57] see that John chapter 1 and all the [32:02] multiple [32:06] uh descriptions and titles of the [32:09] Messiah are actually very personal to [32:12] you and are something that you want to [32:17] share with as many people as possible. [32:20] So with that in mind um we will uh [32:23] conclude today's um explore the Bible. [32:27] Next week or next time we're going to [32:30] meet we're going to go again to another [32:32] portion of scriptures. I think it's [32:35] going to be from the epistles and we [32:37] will look into another way of studying [32:41] the Bible devotionally. [32:44] Until then I want to remind people that [32:47] you can ask Pastor Dr. Rick also uh [32:51] questions online go to our website [32:53] beholdisrael.org [32:55] there is a section where you can find uh [32:59] the [33:01] presentation of our uh program today and [33:05] there's a section where you can ask Dr. [33:07] Rick a question related to today's [33:10] topic. Thank you for watching. Thank you [33:13] Dr. Rick. Thank you for everyone that is [33:16] watching. Please like, [33:19] subscribe, share and comment so the [33:23] algorithm of Facebook and YouTube and [33:27] others will immediately prompt this uh [33:31] video and bring it to the attention of [33:33] as many people as possible. It takes few [33:35] seconds but it makes all the difference [33:37] in the world. Thank you. God bless you [33:41] and shalom. [33:43] [music] [33:49] >> [music]
