Daniel L. McNab - Following Jesus

Following Jesus

Daniel L. McNab

Copyright 2011 Daniel L. McNab Th.D.

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Scripture taken from the New King James Version. Copyright 1979, 1980, 1982 by Thomas Nelson, inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture taken from the King James Version of the Bible.

ISBN: 978-1-4497-1267-9 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4497-1262-4 (dj)

ISBN: 978-1-4497-1260-0 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2011922768

Printed in the United States of America

WestBow Press rev. date: 2/28/2011

Contents

Do You Know Who Jesus Is?

Developing a Relationship with Jesus

Saving Faith

Jesus Leads the Way

Living by Faith

In His steps

Opportunities Wasted

The Divided Heart

The Human Heart

Kingdom Treasures

Fully Devoted

Without Money and Without Price

You Can Change Your World

Introduction

Most religions have a basic message that is traced back to a person important to the tenets of that belief. Judaism has Moses, Islam has Mohammad, Buddhism has Buddha, and Hinduism has Krishna.

With Christianity however it is not just the message that is important but the person behind the message of Jesus Himself.

All through the Book of Matthew it is important to be alert because this Gospel is the key to the rest of Scripture.

Jesus calls us to believe in Him. This call of faith is based on a firm foundation. When one is brought face to face with the life and work of Jesus Christ a decision is demanded. There were many opinions expressed as to who He was. It was very important that His disciples know with certainty His true identity. So it is that as He traveled with His disciples in the region of Caesarea-Philippi He sought to ascertain their understanding as to His person.

Jesus and His disciples were in the North, and He was about to turn and begin His journey south to Jerusalem and the cross.

Before He proceeded on this southward journey there were two things that had to be clear to His followers:(a) who He is, and (b) what He was about to do.

To everyone who claims the name Christian these two things must also be very clear. We must know who Jesus is, and we must be clear about what He has done in order to exercise faith in Him and be saved. Jesus and His disciples were not merely in Gentile country but they were in the midst of paganism. This area was identified with various pagan religions and was a center of Baal worship. The Greek god Pan had a temple that was built to him there. Herod the Great had a temple built there in honor of Caesar Tiberius.

It was in the midst of this idolatrous culture that Simon Peter confessed Jesus as the Son of God. His confession was a response to the revelation that God the Father through the Holy Spirit gave him. It was Gods gracious act of revealing to Peter that which had remained hidden from the Jewish rulers and the proud Pharisees There had been other confessions of Jesus as the Son God before

Nathaniel confessed Jesus as the Son of God(John 1:49).

The disciples confessed Him to be Gods Son after Jesus calmed the storm tossed sea (Matthew 14:33).

Peter previously made a confession of faith in Jesus when the crowds left after Jesus sermon on the Bread of Life(John 6:68-69). Andrew brought his brother Simon to Jesus based on his belief that Jesus was the Son of God (John 1:41). All these confessions were the emotional responses to the miracles of Jesus.

On this occasion Jesus pointedly asked Who do men say that I am? They replied, Some say John the Baptist, some say Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets. Now Jesus asked, But who do you say that I am? (Matt.16:13).

This time Simon Peter answered for the group, You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.

This confession was the studied declaration of a man who had been taught by God. Jesus used this confession of Peter to teach the disciples new truths. Peters confession was accepted by Jesus and He built on it to impart to the disciples new revelations about the mysteries of Gods eternal plan (Matthew 16 13-20).

Jesus the Solid Rock was Gods eternal plan for uniting all mankind into one unit the church. Thou art Petros (a stone). And upon this Rock {Jesus Himself} (Petra-a large rock) I will build My Church. (verse 18), and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.... On this occasion for the first time the Lord Jesus announced to His disciples His coming death and resurrection. The time was now about six months before He was crucified.

When God gives us faith to believe, that faith is anchored upon the sure foundation Jesus Christ His Son the solid Rock of Ages...

Jesus calls all to follow Him and He has given His Holy Spirit to help us do so. Today Jesus still calls us to follow Him. D.L.M.

Chapter 1

Do You Know Who Jesus Is?

Hebrews 1:1-4

God who at sundry times and in divers ways spoke in times 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;

3Who being in the brightness of His glory, and the express image of His person, .and upholding all things by the word of His power, when He had by Himself purged our sins, sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high.

4. Having become so much better than the angels as He has by inheritance obtained amore excellent name than they.(Ps.2:7))

5. For to which of the angels did he ever say: You are My Son, today I have begotten You?

And again, I will be to Him a Father, and He shall be to Me a Son? (2 Sam .7:14).

Influenced by the Holy Spirit Moses recorded in Genesis 1:1:In the beginning God created, and the writer of Hebrews was inspired to write in Hebrews 1:1 God who at various times, and in different places spoke to the fathers by the prophets has in these last days spoken unto us by His Son.

This sets God the Creator of heaven and earth apart from all competing deities. Without any pre-amble, and without any need to clarify, the Bible states the existence of God who is Maker of heaven and earth, and when God speaks all should listen.

The object of the writer of the letter to the Hebrews was to show the superior claims of the gospel of Jesus Christ, and to lead his readers from putting confidence in the rites and ceremonies of the old sacrificial system under which they had been brought up.

It was of essential importance that he should admit that their belief in the inspiration of the prophets was well founded. He fully admitted that all the beliefs of the Hebrews on that level was well founded, yet showed that the new revelation had more important claims to their attention.