The Lord working with them and confirming the word through the accompanying signs

Luke 7:11-35 from the daily reading in the One Year Bible

Soon afterward Jesus went to a city called Nain; and His disciples were going along with Him, accompanied by a large crowd. ¹² Now as He approached the gate of the city, a dead man was being carried out, the only son of his mother, and she was a widow; and a sizeable crowd from the city was with her. ¹³ When the Lord saw her, He felt compassion for her and said to her, “Do not go on weeping.” ¹⁴ And He came up and touched the coffin; and the bearers came to a halt. And He said, “Young man, I say to you, arise!” ¹⁵ And the dead man sat up and began to speak. And Jesus gave him back to his mother. ¹⁶ Fear gripped them all, and they began glorifying God, saying, “A great prophet has appeared among us!” and, “God has visited His people!” ¹⁷ And this report about Him spread throughout Judea and in all the surrounding region.

¹⁸ The disciples of John also reported to him about all these things. ¹⁹ And after summoning two of his disciples, John sent them to the Lord, saying, “Are You the Coming One, or are we to look for another?” ²⁰ When the men came to Him, they said, “John the Baptist has sent us to You, to ask, ‘Are You the Coming One, or are we to look for another?’” ²¹ At that very ^[h]time He cured many people of diseases and afflictions and evil spirits; and He gave sight to many who were blind. ²² And He answered and said to them, “Go and report to John what you have seen and heard: people who were blind receive sight, people who limped walk, people with leprosy are cleansed and people who were deaf hear, dead people are raised up, and people who are poor have the gospel preached to them. ²³ And blessed is anyone who does not take offense at Me.”

²⁴ When the messengers of John had left, He began to speak to the crowds about John: “What did you go out into the wilderness to see? A reed shaken by the wind? ²⁵ But what did you go out to see? A man dressed in soft clothing? Those who are splendidly clothed and live in luxury are found in royal palaces! ²⁶ But what did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and one who is more than a prophet. ²⁷ This is the one about whom it is written:

‘Behold, I am sending My messenger ahead of You,
Who will prepare Your way before You.’

²⁸ I say to you, among those born of women there is no one greater than John; yet the one who is least in the kingdom of God is greater than he.” ²⁹ When all the people and the tax collectors heard this, they acknowledged God’s justice, having been baptized with the baptism of John. ³⁰ But the Pharisees and the lawyers rejected God’s purpose for themselves, not having been baptized by John.

³¹ “To what then shall I compare the people of this generation, and what are they like? ³² They are like children who sit in the marketplace and call to one another, and say, ‘We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we sang a song of mourning, and you did not weep.’ ³³ For John the Baptist has come neither eating bread nor drinking wine, and you say, ‘He has a demon!’ ³⁴ The Son of Man has come eating and drinking, and you say, ‘Behold, a gluttonous man and a heavy drinker, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’ ³⁵ And yet wisdom is vindicated by all her children.”

In today’s text it says: The disciples of John also reported to him about all these things. And after summoning two of his disciples, John sent them to the Lord, saying, “Are You the Coming One, or are we to look for another?” When the men came to Him, they said, “John the Baptist has sent us to You, to ask, ‘Are You the Coming One, or are we to look for another?’” At that very time He cured many people of diseases and afflictions and evil spirits; and He gave sight to many who were blind. And He answered and said to them, “Go and report to John what you have seen and heard: people who were blind receive sight, people who limped walk, people with leprosy are cleansed and people who were deaf hear, dead people are raised up, and people who are poor have the gospel preached to them. And blessed is anyone who does not take offense at Me.” When Jesus was asked if he was the Coming One, He responded by pointing to the evidence of the signs and wonders. What do we point to when we are asked if we are followers of Christ? In Mark 16:15-20 it says: He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned. And these signs will follow those who believe: In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues; they will take up serpents; and if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.”So then, after the Lord had spoken to them, He was received up into heaven, and sat down at the right hand of God. And they went out and preached everywhere, the Lord working with them and confirming the word through the accompanying signs. The signs still offer proof that Jesus is the Coming One. Jesus says though that the signs will follow those who believe. We should not chase after the signs. We should be faithful to preach the gospel and believe in the word.  

In John 14:12-15 Jesus says: “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father. And whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask anything in My name, I will do it. If you love Me, keep My commandments.” Jesus says that us keeping His commandments is evidence that we love Him. He doesn’t specify a particular commandment, so we should conclude then that we are to keep all of His commandments. We can begin with what Jesus says in Matthew 22:37-40: “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the great and foremost commandment. The second is like it, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ Upon these two commandments hang the whole Law and the Prophets.”  1 John 4:19 says: We love, because He first loved us. Our love for Jesus and the Father, is our response to the love that is demonstrated in the cross. Our love for others is also a response to God’s love for us. Our ability to love and our capacity to love is rooted in our believing that God so loved us, that Jesus died for our redemption. If we truly love Jesus and the Father, and if we truly love others, then we will keep the commandment to preach the gospel to all creation. We don’t need to chase after the signs, Jesus says they will follow. He will work with us and through us to confirm the word and prove that He is the Coming One.

Here is the word: “God so loved the world, that He gave His only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish, but have eternal life. For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but so that the world might be saved through Him. The one who believes in Him is not judged; the one who does not believe has been judged already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God. And this is the judgment, that the Light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the Light; for their deeds were evil. For everyone who does evil hates the Light, and does not come to the Light, so that his deeds will not be exposed. But the one who practices the truth comes to the Light, so that his deeds will be revealed as having been performed in God.”  Amen.  Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done On earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, As we forgive our debtors. And do not lead us into temptation, But deliver us from the evil one. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.