A Man Sent from God

⁶ There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. ⁷ This man came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all through him might believe. ⁸ He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light. ⁹ That was the true Light which gives light to every man coming into the world.

John 1:4-5

Before we talk about John, it is important to see what Jesus himself said about him.

¹¹ “Assuredly, I say to you, among those born of women there has not risen one greater than John the Baptist; but he who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. ¹² And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it by force. ¹³ For all the prophets and the law prophesied until John. ¹⁴ And if you are willing to receive it, he is Elijah who is to come. ¹⁵ He who has ears to hear, let him hear!

Matthew 11:11-15

There has been no one greater than John. That is a powerful statement from Jesus. When you think of Moses, David, Samuel, Elijah and more of the heroes of the Bible, it’s hard for me at least to place John above them. John’s story is barely recorded in the Bible. He preached and baptized but very few words are recorded. He very quickly is put in jail and then beheaded. How can he be considered greatest above people born?

The next question of course is how can he be the greatest and also the least of all those who will be in heaven?

Let’s try and answer to these questions. He is the greatest because unlike all the other prophets and heroes who prophesied of the coming Messiah, John was the one to actually baptize him into his role. John witnessed and was a part of the fulfillment of the great promise of the Old Testament. In that way he is given an exalted position and title. He was the one chosen to introduce the light into the world. A very weak comparison would be like the person who finally carries the Olympic torch into the stadium and lights the big fire to start the Olympics.

But John is also the least because although being part of the beginning and being so close to the Messiah, he was kept at a distance and actually reduced by God so that Jesus could be increased.

³⁰ He must increase, but I must decrease.

John 3:30

John was so important and yet his story is all but pushed to the side. We must accept that our lives can follow in the same way. Just because our names might be forgotten in history because we didn’t do something world changing, doesn’t mean that we aren’t important to God’s work. We must accept the role God has for us and accept that for many of us, our true reward will only come at the end.

God bless,

Pr. Steven Couto

Creator of All

² He was in the beginning with God. ³ All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. 

John 1:2-3

There are those who debate whether Jesus is God. Besides the first verse which tells us that he was God, these verses here too make a strong emphasis of that point. One of the main aspects of God is that he is Creator. If someone of something didn’t create us, than it’s not God. You cannot separate God from Creator. You can have a powerful being who can act like God, but without this key characteristic, it cannot be God.

But verse 3, the Bible is making it very clear that Jesus, the Word, created all things. The emphasis of ‘all’ and the repetition of ‘and without Him nothing was made that was made’ make it very clear that Jesus is our Creator. This was written on purpose. John was really trying to make the point that yes, Jesus is God, because of this vital point- he is Creator.

Now you can see how this might create an apparent problem. If Jesus the Son of God is Creator, does that mean that God the Father isn’t? Does the Father stop being God if he’s not a Creator? The Bible explains this issue in several places but I’ll show it in Hebrews.

¹ God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets, ² has in these last days spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the worlds;

Hebrews 1:1-2

God the Father is also Creator in the fact that it was his idea and plan. You could say that the Father was the Architect and Jesus was the Builder. They both played a part in the creation of not just this world but the entire universe. When you read Genesis 1, you’ll see that the Holy Spirit was also present at creation though his actual role is not clearly stated.

The key of course to all of this is that we are not some accident. We are not random formations and evolutions. Our beginning was clearly planned and executed which should give you hope that your future is also clearly planned.

I hope you can take some time to look at all that God has created around you, including yourself, and realize the love that is shown in what you see.

God bless,

Pr. Steven Couto

Go

¹⁸ And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. ¹⁹ Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, ²⁰ teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.

Matthew 28:18-20

These few verses are known as the great gospel commission. They are Jesus’ last words to his apostles before returning to heaven. They are a message of hope. They are a message with a purpose and a job. It’s as if Jesus was saying, ‘This is what these last few years were all about.’

When God chose Israel in the old testament, it was to be an example of a faithful child of God to the world. The world would see the blessings and wealth of Israel and want what they had. They would learn and accept God through their lives. Instead, however, Israel moved inward and kept the blessings to themselves. They shunned anyone who tried to join them and also receive a blessing. They did the exact opposite of their mission.

Here Jesus is making it very clear that that mistake is not to occur again. They are not to keep the good news to themselves. They are not to hoard the blessings of God. They are told to go! Go out and teach and preach and baptize. To avoid any temptation of keeping the blessings to themselves, they aren’t just to be passive teachers and sharers. No. They are to actively go out and proclaim the good news.

The best part of course is that they will not be doing it in their own strength. Jesus will be with them through the Holy Spirit. Its Gods power and blessing that will be the catalyst in bring people in. There is no need to be afraid of feel alone. They will never be alone.

And now there’s us. Is our mission or purpose any different? No. These same words that were spoken to the apostles are for us as well. We cannot be passive but active. We cannot hide what we have but share it with others. We too are to go!

We are to finish what the apostles started. Through God we may be able to be the last link of this work. When the work is done, the greatest blessing and gift arrives. It is with the end of the work that Jesus will come back and take us to our promised land. Let us all be part of this calling.

God bless,

Pr. Steven Couto

Conspiracies

¹¹ Now while they were going, behold, some of the guard came into the city and reported to the chief priests all the things that had happened. ¹² When they had assembled with the elders and consulted together, they gave a large sum of money to the soldiers, ¹³ saying, “Tell them, ‘His disciples came at night and stole Him away while we slept.’ ¹⁴ And if this comes to the governor’s ears, we will appease him and make you secure.” ¹⁵ So they took the money and did as they were instructed; and this saying is commonly reported among the Jews until this day.

Matthew 28:11-15

We live in a world today where it seems impossible to know the truth. There are so many ideas, opinions, sources, surveys, studies and experts and they never seem to agree with one another. We think this is a modern issue or problem but it really isn’t. The difficult search for truth has been a human struggle since the very beginning.

² And the woman said to the serpent, “We may eat the fruit of the trees of the garden; ³ but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God has said, ‘You shall not eat it, nor shall you touch it, lest you die.’ ” ⁴ Then the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. ⁵ For God knows that in the day you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”

Genesis 3:2-5

From the very beginning, the truth has been twisted, abused, hidden and rejected. This of course is a problem because truth is very important to us to make right decisions. Truth about health can make the difference between life and death. Truth about law can make you free or put you behind bars. Truth in relationship can keep marriages together, families united and friendships strong. Truth about God can mean the difference between eternal life or death. So is there anything that we can trust in?

³¹ Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, “If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. ³² And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.”

⁶ Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.

John 8:31-32 and John 14:6

God bless,

Pr. Steven Couto

Witnessing Prophecies

⁵ But the angel answered and said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. ⁶ He is not here; for He is risen, as He said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay. ⁷ And go quickly and tell His disciples that He is risen from the dead, and indeed He is going before you into Galilee; there you will see Him. Behold, I have told you.” ⁸ So they went out quickly from the tomb with fear and great joy, and ran to bring His disciples word.

Matthew 28:5-8

It is one thing to be told a prophecy or the future. It’s another actually experiencing and seeing it with your eyes. Jesus had told his followers that he would die and come back. He said this multiple times in multiple ways but it appears that no one really believed him. Jesus was known for his stories and parables and they must have thought it was something like that. There must have been a hidden meaning and message to his words. Little did they know how literal he was being.

Now and angel stood before them confirming Jesus’ words. Jesus was no longer dead. He was risen. Imagine the mixture of emotions of hearing that. Imagine the fear of being in the presence of a heavenly being. Imagine the joy of hearing that Jesus was alive. Imagine the confusion you’d experience hearing this for the first time. Imagine the doubt even with the angel standing before you. The angel knew this which is why he confirms his words by telling them to go inside and see for themselves.

We too have been told a prophecy. The Bible teaches us that one day Jesus will return in the clouds of the sky to take us to heaven. It teaches of a unified world bent on destroying God’s true followers. Many things are told but just like the women, it is one thing to hear it and another to witness it with your eyes. Many believe that we are already at the beginning of those events rolling out. Most of the prophecies in the Bible are actually behind us.

Will you truly believe when you see the signs? Will you, like the women, go out to tell the good news or will you doubt in your heart? We know that there will be false christs and also false events. September 11^th or Y2K are good examples of that. So many people believed that end was during those times. This of course makes it harder to believe when the true signs begin to appear. How will you know the difference unless you study?

You don’t want to shrug off God’s warnings or doubt his signs. May we all seek wisdom in knowing what is true and false. Let us all be ready when Jesus really does appear in the sky.

God bless,

Pr. Steven Couto