We have another new name to add to these studies as I find another expository reading from J.C. Ryle. John Charles Ryle (1816 - 1900) was the Bishop of the Anglican Church in Liverpool England in 1880. He has written many devotions and all of them sound in doctrine. I pray God touches these words and our hearts.
Jhn 5:33 Ye sent unto John, and he bare witness unto the truth.
Jhn 5:34 But I receive not testimony from man: but these things I say, that ye might be saved.
Jhn 5:35 He was a burning and a shining light: and ye were willing for a season to rejoice in his light.
Jhn 5:36 But I have greater witness than that of John: for the works which the Father hath given me to finish, the same works that I do, bear witness of me, that the Father hath sent me.
- What works did the Father give Him?
- What is meant by for only a season you will rejoice?
- Are there any warnings to be taken from the last half of verse 35?
There was many great works done by Jesus while He walked on the Earth. These works bore an unmistakable witness to who He was, who sent Him, and What He came to do. J. C. Ryle had five observations about the Lords miracles that I believed was worth sharing.
1. Their number. They were many.
2. Their greatness. They were mighty and supernatural works.
3. Their public nature. They were not done secretly but publicly for all to behold.
4. Their inner nature. They were always works of love, mercy, and compassion.
5. The direct appeal to man. They were real, visible, and would bare any examination.
(John 10:25,38; 14:11; 15:24)
