Tags

The Word of God

In the Apostle Paul’s final epistle before he met his death at the hands of the evil Roman Emperor Nero, he writes to Timothy: “You have been taught the holy Scriptures from childhood, and they have given you the wisdom to receive the salvation that comes by trusting in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right” (II Timothy 3:15-16).

In no uncertain terms, the Bible claims that it is the source of absolute universal truth concerning the origin and purpose of life; and wisdom that tells us all about the (need to choose) salvation that will determine our eternal destiny. Biblical truth defines and separates right from wrong, good from evil, light from darkness, and God’s magnificent plan of redemption by faith in Messiah Jesus alone as opposed to good works making us right with God.

Although the New Covenant of Grace had replaced the Old Covenant of Law because of Messiah Jesus’s once for all substitutionary sacrifice for sin, Paul reminded Jewish and Gentile believers that the writings of the prophets, priests, scribes, and kings of the Old Testament remain a valid source of prophetic truth. Knowledge that would continue to teach them about their spiritual heritage and glorious future upon Messiah’s return and the remarkable end-times restoration of Israel as a nation.

“Such things were written in the Scriptures long ago to teach us. And the Scriptures give us hope and encouragement as we wait patiently for God’s promises to be fulfilled” (Romans 15:4).

Jesus of Nazareth had already fulfilled all of the Old Testament prophecies of the coming Messiah, proving who he said he was by rising from the dead!

One of dozens of prophecies accomplished by Jesus was:

Now it was time for Paul and other believers to spread this Gospel Good News to the whole world, while Christians continue to, “…live in this evil world with wisdom, righteousness, and devotion to God, while we look forward with hope to that wonderful day when the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, will be revealed” (Titus 2:12-13).

There’s only one way to be made right with God: a way that existed from the beginning; a way that God revealed to Abraham long before the law was given to Moses; a way that was sealed in blood—validated retroactively and progressively by the author and finisher of the New Way (Covenant), Messiah Jesus.

It is the simple child-like way of trusting God’s prophetic promises because they are true.

“Abraham never wavered in believing God’s promise… He was fully convinced that God is able to do whatever he promises. And because of Abraham’s faith, God counted him as righteous. And when God counted him as righteous, it wasn’t just for Abraham’s benefit. It was recorded for our benefit, too, assuring us that God will also count us as righteous if we believe in him, the one who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead. He was handed over to die because of our sins, and he was raised to life to make us right with God” (Romans 4:20-25).

Prophecy and Its Fulfillment: A Trustworthy Test that Validates Scripture

Biblical prophecies and promises are virtually one and the same. The only difference is that prophecy conveys the promise. Which means that if any prophecy doesn’t come to pass, it becomes a broken promise, a misleading pledge (which is the case with man-made predictions).

Biblical promises are to be embraced by trusting in the God of those promises; they are to be believed by virtue of the remarkable 100% fulfillment of those prophecies. The Lord who inspired all of Scripture claims that he is the very source of truth and life; that HE ALONE IS GOD. What he says will happen, always happens. What he says he will do, he always does.

No other god can do this because there is no other god, except those invented by false prophets and man-made religions such as Islam, Hinduism, Mormonism, and even the unbiblical and works-oriented creeds of Roman Catholicism. Their so-called gods and religious leaders have refrained from predicting the future; they wouldn’t dare foretell what they cannot control. Non-religious seers and fortune-tellers who do make predictions are far more often wrong than right. Anyone can “guess” what’s going to happen and be correct maybe 15% of the time. If anyone is going to trust their life and destiny to a self-proclaimed prophet, the clairvoyant better be right all the time. Otherwise it’s a classic case of “crying wolf.”

People all over the world are longing to know what life is all about and what the future holds for them—tomorrow, next year, and the day they die. Yet, they refuse to consider the claims of the true and living God so meticulously detailed in the Bible; they can know those things that really matter, not the least of which is their eternal destiny. Which is why it never ceases to amaze me that so many look to astrology (the stars instead of the One who made the stars), psychics, genealogies, or ritualistic keeping of man-made religious rules that they hope will earn (merit) them a good-standing in the hereafter.

(On The Serious Side, There Are Countless Advertisement for Psychics Everywhere You Look … On the Streets in the Media–Internet and Television)

If any local newspaper, such as The Arizona Republic that I subscribe to, would remove the Horoscope column, they probably would lose at least 50% of their readers!

God, himself, declares that it is fulfilled prophecy that proves: (1) He alone is God; (2) His Word as recorded in Scripture is the ultimate fountain and foundation of truth and knowledge about the past, present, and FUTURE. The proof is found in both Biblical and secular history … in the people, places, and events that come to pass exactly as predicted in Scripture. The Lord not only foretells the future with one hundred percent accuracy; he also reminds us of life-changing, eternal-destiny altering events that occurred long ago. Things otherwise forgotten or dismissed if not preserved in the Word of God—the Bible.

“Remember the former things long past, For I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is no one like Me, Declaring the end from the beginning, And from ancient times things which have not been done, Saying, ‘My purpose will be established, And I will accomplish all My good pleasure’” (Isaiah 46:9-10, NASB).

The New International Version rendition of a portion of that passage reads, “I make known the end from the beginning, from ancient times, what is still to come. I say, ‘My purpose will stand, and I will do all that I please.’”

The New Living Translation (from which I quote, unless otherwise noted) states: “Only I can tell you the future before it even happens. Everything I plan will come to pass, for I do whatever I wish.”

More from the prophet Isaiah: “This is what the Lord says—your Redeemer and Creator: ‘I am the Lord, who made all things. I alone stretched out the heavens. Who was with me when I made the earth? I expose the false prophets as liars and make fools of fortune-tellers. I cause the wise to give bad advice, thus proving them to be fools. But I carry out the predictions of my prophets!

“…When I say of Cyrus, ‘He is my shepherd,’ he will certainly do as I say. He will command, ‘Rebuild Jerusalem’; he will say, ‘Restore the Temple’” (Isaiah 44:24-28).

Here, God names the Persian king who would issue those orders 150 years before Cyrus was even born!

God issues challenges to and indictments against religions, gods, or prophets of those (so-called) gods to do what only He can do. Such as:

“Present the case for your idols, says the Lord. Let them show what they can do, says the King of Israel. Let them try to tell us what happened long ago so that we may consider the evidence. Or let them tell us what the future holds, so we can know what’s going to happen. Yes, tell us what will occur in the days ahead. Then we will know you are gods. In fact, do anything—good or bad! Do something that will amaze and frighten us. But no! You are less than nothing and can do nothing at all. Those who choose you pollute themselves” (Isaiah 41:21-24).

Synonyms of polluted are: contaminated, poisoned, adulterated, dirty, infested, infected, tainted, and rank.

(I Hope The Little Girl Didn’t Jump in After the Photo Was Taken! Adulterated Spiritual Pollution of God’s Truth Is Far Worse … Literally a Matter of Eternal Life or Death)

One more: “But you are my witnesses, O Israel! Says the Lord. You are my servant. You have been chosen to know me, believe in me, and understand that I alone am God (with the New Covenant, both Jew and Gentile can know God intimately when they are redeemed by and through the Jewish Messiah, Jesus). There is no other God—there never has been, and there never will be. I, yes I, am the Lord, and there is no other Savior. First I predicted your rescue, then I saved you and proclaimed it to the world. No foreign god has ever done this. You are witnesses that I am the only God, says the Lord. From eternity to eternity I am God. No one can snatch anyone out of my hand. No one can undo what I have done” (Isaiah 43:10-13, parenthesis mine).

Long-Term Prophecies

As a rule, the prophecies that impress us the most are those accomplished hundreds or even thousands of years after they are foretold, such as Jesus fulfilling all of the many Messianic prophecies hundreds of years later. Anything that happens one hundred years (the longest time-span definition of a generation in the Bible … the other is seventy years) after it’s predicted makes it that much more spectacular.

For example: As prophesied numerous times in Scripture, the rebirth of Israel as a sovereign nation and return of (millions of) Jews to the Promised Land—now 2nd & 3rd generations born in Israel—some 2,700 years after the first major prophet, Isaiah, foretold of such a remarkable event. Longer than that if we go back to Moses.

Or the destruction of Tyre, an ancient city just north of Israel on the Mediterranean Sea, foretold by Ezekiel in 586 B.C. (See Ezekiel Chapters 26 & 27). That very year Nebuchadnezzar attacked Tyre: it took him 15 years to complete some of the prophesied demolition of Tyre. Then, some 250 years later, Alexander the Great utterly destroyed Tyre, an event well documented by secular history.

Or Babylon’s massive final attack on Israel and Jerusalem in that same year of 586 BC resulting in devastation of Judah, complete destruction of Solomon’s Temple, and exile of the Jews predicted by Isaiah some 120 years before it happened. And an even more precise prediction that the captivity in Babylon would last seventy years, with Jews rebuilding the Temple in Jerusalem—about 100 years after Jeremiah’s prophesy.

Short-Term (Time Lapse) Fulfillment of Prophecy

Even students and teachers of the Bible sometimes minimize prophecies that came to pass a relatively short time later. However, Biblical forecasts that materialized immediately or a few hours, days, weeks, months, or years are every bit as phenomenal as those that don’t occur for hundreds of years. We’re going to look at only five of them … three in the Old Testament and two in the New Testament. The first Old Testament example is well-known; I’m guessing the next two may not be all that familiar to someone who is not a regular student of the Bible.

First Short Term Prophecy: The Miraculous Birth of Isaac

When Abraham was seventy-five years old, God appeared to him for the first time and told him to leave his home and travel to the land that God would give to him and all his descendants. (Genesis Chapter 12).

Subsequently, the Lord reaffirmed his promise that Abraham would be the progenitor of a great nation, with many descendants. This time God specified that Abraham (and Sarah) would conceive their own child. Abraham’s heir would not be his servant, Eliezer—which was the custom if a couple did not have their own son. Not long before Abraham turned 86 years of age, Sarah became impatient and convinced Abraham to father a son through her servant, Hagar … which was also the custom in those days if the wife could not bear a son. (Genesis Chapters 15 & 16).

Four years later God appeared to Abraham (age 90) and again confirmed his covenant; the Promised Land (Israel) would be given to Abraham and his descendants. It would be, “…their possession forever, and I will be their God” (Genesis 17:8).

When Abraham turned 100, the Lord told Abraham, “Regarding Sarai, your wife—her name will no longer be Sarai. From now on her name will be Sarah. And I will bless her and give you a son from her!” (Genesis 17:15-16). Abraham didn’t disbelieve the Lord, but he did laugh at the thought of fathering a child with Sarah because of his and Sarah’s age—90 at the time.

A short time later, the Lord (the Pre-Incarnate Messiah) visited Abraham and Sarah in person … along with two angels. They told Abraham and Sarah that at about this time next year Sarah would give birth to a son, whom they were to name Isaac (meaning laughter), because this time Sarah laughed at the thought (see Genesis Chapter 18).

“…and she gave birth to a son for Abraham in his old age. This happened at just the time God had said it would” (Genesis 21:2).

Does anything ever not happen or transpire differently than the way and time and place that God said it would? Such a rhetorical question. Through the seemingly impossible birth of Isaac, God demonstrated to Abraham that which Abraham already knew and believed: God is God, and his prophetic promises always come true.

Second Short-Term Prophecy: Dramatic Description of a Queen’s Demise

The following passages are not for the faint of heart or the squeamish. But then Scripture tells it like it is. When it comes to God pronouncing judgment on evil individuals and wicked nations (including Israel during her time of punishment, which has ended) it can get pretty graphic.

Most believers and many unbelievers know the name of the infamous Queen Jezebel, who was more contemptible that her appalling husband, King Ahab. Even in today’s post-modern world, people all over the planet have been named after a Biblical character such as John or Jacob or Sarah or Mary. But do you know of any woman named Jezebel? If you do, stay away from her! No parents in their right mind would name their daughter Jezebel, would they?

(One of Many Depictions of Jezebel)

So, too, have many people heard the name of one of the mightiest prophets in the Old Testament … Elijah. (Along with the other great prophet Moses, they will be the two witnesses testifying for God during 3 ½ years of the Great Tribulation).

Not long after Elijah made a mockery of the false prophets appointed by Jezebel to represent their god Baal—then killing them because they were deceiving all of Israel—Elijah had another encounter with Ahab and, indirectly, with Jezebel.

Do you recall Jezebel’s devious plan when an Israelite named Naboth refused to sell his land to Ahab, who desperately wanted the beautiful and productive vineyard belonging to Naboth?

Simple solution for a wicked queen: just have Naboth killed (stoned to death) which is exactly what she did. When Jezebel broke this happy news to her husband, “…Ahab immediately went down to the vineyard of Naboth to claim it” (I Kings 21:16).

Soon afterward the Lord sent Elijah to confront Ahab with some really bad news (for Ahab and for Jezebel). Said Elijah to Ahab:

“…I have come because you have sold yourself to what is evil in the Lord’s sight. So now the Lord says, ‘I will bring disaster on you and consume you …I am going to destroy your family as I did the family of Jeroboam son of Nebat and the family of Baasha son Ahijah, for you have made me very angry and have led Israel into sin.’ And regarding Jezebel, the Lord says, ‘Dogs will eat Jezebel’s body at the plot of land in Jezreel’” (I Kings 21:20-23).

Subsequently, Ahab was killed in battle, which was also foretold by another prophet named Micaiah. Remember: Ahab disguised himself as a common soldier instead of his royal robes (which made a king an easy target). Yet, an arrow randomly shot by an enemy soldier hit Ahab “…between the joints of his armor” (I Kings 22:34).

Poor Ahab … his wine guzzling days from Naboth’s vineyard were over!

Then a few years later, Elisha who had been given the prophetic mantle of Elijah—while Jezebel was still the “Queen Mother” during the reign of King Joram of Israel, son of Ahab and Jezebel—commanded a young prophet in Elisha’s circle to prophesy to Jehu, a Commander in the Israelite army. Accordingly, the young prophet anointed Jehu as the next king of Israel and told him to avenge the murder of the Lord’s prophets and servants by wiping out the entire family of Ahab as well as many priests of Baal. Jehu did what he was told and even what he wasn’t commanded to do … when he also killed Ahaziah the King of Judah in addition to King Joram.

Now it was Jezebel’s turn (to die).

“When Jezebel, the queen mother, heard that Jehu had come to Jezreel, she painted her eyelids and fixed her hair and sat at a window. When Jehu entered the gate of the palace, she shouted at him, ‘Have you come in peace, you murderer? You’re just like Zimri, who murdered his master!’” (II Kings 9:30-31).

Talk about the pot calling the kettle black. Jezebel was deplorably proficient at murder.

Reading on: “Throw her down! Jehu yelled. So they threw her out the window, and her blood spattered against the wall and on the horses. And Jehu trampled her body under his horses’ hooves … But when they went out to bury her, they found only her skull, her feet, and her hands. When they returned and told Jehu, he stated, ‘This fulfills the message from the Lord, which he spoke through his servant Elijah from Tishbe. At the plot of land in Jezreel, dogs will eat Jezebel’s body. Her remains will be scattered like dung on the plot of land in Jezreel, so that no one will be able to recognize her” (II Kings 9:33-37).

Thus, the prophecy was precise, right down to the dogs. And its fulfillment took place within a couple of decades.

Third Short Term Prophecy: The Phenomenal Healing of a Gentile’s Incurable Disease

Before Messiah Jesus implemented the New Covenant of Grace to the whole world—Jew and Gentile alike—nearly all Old Testament encounters that the Lord initiated with Gentiles involved prophecies of how God would use them or what would happen to them (good if they listened to the Lord’s message, bad if they didn’t).

The Commander of the Aramean army was no exception.

“The king of Aram had great admiration for Naaman, the commander of his army, because through him the Lord had given Aram great victories. But though Naaman was a mighty warrior, he suffered from leprosy” (II Kings 5:1).

*Note: By this time the Lord had periodically used Israel’s enemies to discipline his people as they had already begun to rebel against the Lord, imitating the despicable practices of surrounding pagan nations.

A young Jewish girl who had been taken captive (as a slave) to Aram recommended that Naaman seek the help of a prophet in Israel (Elisha). But the King of Aram sent Naaman first to the king of Israel; who in dismay, but nonetheless cynical and insensitive said, “…This man sends me a leper to heal! Am I God, that I can give life and take it away? I can see that he’s just trying to pick a fight with me” (II Kings 5:7).

When Elisha found out that Naaman was in Israel and why, he advised Israel’s king to send Naaman to him. Upon Naaman’s arrived at Elisha’s house, he became angry when Elisha didn’t come out to greet him. Instead, Elisha sent a messenger instructing Naaman to: “…Go and wash yourself seven times in the Jordan River. Then your skin will be restored, and you will be healed of leprosy” (Verse 10).

Naaman was furious as he, “…expected him (Elisha) to wave his hand over the leprosy and call on the name of the Lord his God and heal me!” (Verse 11).

Then his officers got real profound, through an intuitive insight of the ability of God’s anointed prophet Elijah to heal Naaman. They told him: “…Sir, if the prophet had told you to do something very difficult, wouldn’t you have done it? So you should certainly obey him when he says simply, ‘Go and wash and be cured!’ So Naaman went down to the Jordan River and dipped himself seven times, as the man of God had instructed him. And his skin became as healthy as the skin of a young child’s, and he was healed!” (II Kings 5:13-14).

Listen to Naaman’s response: “Now I know that there is no God in all the world except in Israel…” (Verse 15).

God’s prophetic promise of healing came to pass immediately when Naaman accepted the fact that he didn’t have to do anything but agree with Elisha. All he had to do was immerse himself seven times in the Jordan. Actually, it wasn’t the “dipping” that healed him; it was believing God’s prophet and totally trusting God.

It’s a beautiful illustration of the Lord’s healing salvation extended through his grace (even to Gentiles!), accomplished by simply trusting in the Son of God, Messiah Jesus. That is the Bible’s wonderful prophetic promise—just as relevant now as it was two thousand years ago. “But to all who believed him and accepted him, he gave the right to become children of God” (John 1:12).

“But God is so rich in mercy, and he loves us so much, that even though we were dead because of our sins, he gave us life when he raised Christ from the dead. (It is only by God’s grace that you have been saved) … God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it” (Ephesians 2:4-5, 8-9, parenthesis in the text).

New Testament Short-Term Prophetic Fulfillments

Now let’s look at two amazing events in which Messiah Jesus foretold what would happen, each one coming to pass soon afterwards. For you see: Jesus is Prophet, Priest, and King, all in one. No king of ancient Israel could be both a priest and a king. Jesus was the greatest prophet ever, greater even than Moses and Elijah and all the prophets who spoke about his coming. He is also our final High Priest who gave himself as the once for all time substitutionary sacrifice for sin (Hebrews Chapter 7, 8, & 9); thereby, replacing the Levitical sacrificial system that had to be repeated continuously—actually one that ceased to exist when the 2nd Temple was destroyed in 70 AD. And Jesus is the King of all kings, who one day soon will return in power and great glory (Matthew 24:30 & Revelation 17:14).

First Short-Term Prophecy: A Coin in the Mouth of a Fish!

“On their arrival in Capernaum, the collectors of the Temple tax came to Peter and asked him, ‘Doesn’t your teacher pay the Temple tax?’ ‘Yes, he does,’ Peter replied. Then he went into the house.

“But before he had a chance to speak, Jesus asked him, ‘What do you think, Peter? Do kings tax their own people or the people they have conquered?’

‘They tax the people they have conquered,’ Peter replied.

‘Well then,’ Jesus said, ‘the citizens are free! However, we don’t want to offend them, so go down to the lake and throw in a line. Open the mouth of the first fish you catch, and you will find a large silver coin. Take it and pay the tax for both of us’” (Matthew 17:24-27).

Astonishing!

This isn’t your ordinary weather prediction, stock market projection, or sporting event prognostication.

What are the odds? There are no odds, not really. The laws of probability are off the charts; to whatever tenth power you care to calculate. How many fish in the Sea of Galilee? How many of those fish had a coin in its mouth? Not just any coin … a “large silver coin.” Instead of using the usual nets to catch a lot of fish at once, all Peter had to do was throw in one single fishing line. What were the chances that it would be the first fish that Peter would catch?!

Come on, give yourself a break! Open your heart and mind to your Creator and Savior, Messiah Jesus. He loves you so much. If you’ve already been born again, then praise him some more for doing the impossible—such as saving you!

How many leaders or followers of any religion or cult or occult system on earth, or anyone at any time could have predicted this; let alone with such certainty that all Peter had to do was go fishing. Easy answer: Absolutely no one. And the situation was seemingly an every-day ordinary detail in the life of Peter and the disciples. But then, Jesus is no ordinary man. Who but the Son of God could do such a thing?

Second Short-Term Prophecy: Meticulous Details of Jesus Death

“As Jesus was going up to Jerusalem, he took the twelve disciples aside privately and told them what was going to happen to him. ‘Listen,’ he said, ‘we’re going up to Jerusalem, where the Son of Man will be betrayed to the leading priests and the teachers of religious law. They will sentence him to die. Then they will hand him over to the Romans to be mocked, flogged with a whip, and crucified. But on the third day he will be raised from the dead’” (Matthew 20:17-19).

Astounding!

Once again, who but the Son of God (who came to this earth as the Son of Man through a Virgin Birth … fully God and fully man) could predict that he would be killed, let alone by crucifixion? Moreover, it would happen on this specific trip to Jerusalem. After all, the Jewish religious leaders had other opportunities to seize Jesus, but did not in fear of an uprising among the people. How did Jesus know that this time the common people would also turn on him, especially just a few days after many of them hailed him as the Messiah?

How did he know that he would be betrayed (by Judas), which created the opportunity for the religious leaders to find Jesus in a secluded area, and arrest him in the middle of the night?

Jesus even predicted what would happen to him before and after he was handed over to the Romans for crucifixion, and in precise sequence. First, betrayal; then sentencing him to die; then turning him over to the Romans with the religious leaders hoping the Romans would agree to carry out the sentence (the Jews were not allowed to execute anyone). But that didn’t mean that the Romans would mock him and then beat him with a whip. That was reserved for criminals or traitors who had been tried and convicted by the clear evidence of their crime. Jesus was totally innocent and the Roman Governor, Pontius Pilate, knew that.

Although the law of probability may not have been as high as the coin in the fishes mouth (or the donkey’s colt that Jesus told the disciples to fetch on which Jesus would ride triumphantly into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday, and exactly where they would find it); the fact of Jesus’s trial and the precise prophetic order of what would happen is absolutely extraordinary.

And let’s not forget the crowning wonder of that prophecy: the stunning fact that Jesus would rise from the dead! And he would do so on the third day, just like he said.

(See Eye of Prophecy article: There’s Resurrection; And There’s Resurrection! Posted 3-19-16)

Things to Ponder

The matchless, marvelous message of the Gospel (Good News) of salvation and eternal life comes from the Word of God. The Bible and its promises are backed up by countless miracles found in no other religion or belief system. The truths of Scripture are founded on and verified by numerous prophecies that have come to pass and many more awaiting fulfillment when the Day of the Lord will soon arrive. Man-made religions are devoid of prophecy. Only the true and living God can declare the end from the beginning.

Personally, I’ve chosen to stake my eternal destiny on a God who loves me; on his Son who has saved me by taking the punishment for my sins and granting me a full pardon; and the Holy Spirit who indwells me (all believers) and who has sealed my new birth in Christ forever.

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God … In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men” (John 1: 1, 4, NASB). The Apostle John is referring directly to Jesus of Nazareth, the Jewish Messiah for all … Jew and Gentile alike.

“So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ (the living Word of God)” (Romans 10:17, NASB, parenthesis mine).

“…And that message is the very message about faith that we preach. If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is by believing in your heart that you are made right with God, and it is by confessing with your mouth that you will be saved” (Romans 10:8-10).

I am persuaded not only by the powerful truths and historical accuracy of Scripture, but also by the spectacular fulfillment of prophecy and the mighty miracles found in the Bible. With the miracle of salvation continuing to this very day—changing the lives of people from every race, language, and nation.

Regarding Messiah Jesus, the Jewish Apostle Peter powerfully proclaimed:

Do you believe that? Do you believe in Messiah Jesus?

Or, do you think that you need to do more, be more, give more, or work more to earn God’s favor? Are you weary of trying?

“They replied, ‘We want to perform God’s works, too. What should we do?’

“Jesus told them, ‘This is the only work God wants from you. Believe in the one he has sent’” (John 6:28-29).

“Then Jesus said, ‘Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest’” (Matthew 11:28).