John 7 Lesson

Perseverance

PERSEVERANCE

Jesus’ life was not easy!

From the time He was born, until the moment He died on the cross, there were people trying to harm Him.  

John Chapter 7 provides us with a look into some of the struggles that Jesus faced during His lifetime.  

When the Feast of Booths was taking place in Judea, Jesus was originally not going to go because He had not finished all that He came to do, and He knew there would be people there seeking to harm Him. However, when His brothers made the trip to Judea, Jesus decided to go also.

Jesus went into the temple and began to teach.   This required courage on the part of Jesus, who understood that there were people in the crowd that would like to see Him captured and killed.  

Despite the danger to Him personally, Jesus persevered by attending the feast and teaching publicly until the final day of the feast.

His bravery won over parts of the crowd who remarked:

  1. “This certainly is the Prophet” –John 7:40,
  2. “This is the Christ” – John 7:41,
  3. “Never has a man spoken the way this man speaks” – John 7:41

ENDURANCE AND THE EXAMPLE OF JESUS

Time after time, when adversity struck, Jesus rose to the occasion.  

And when He did, He inspired others to follow Him and to glorify God! He did not allow fear or adversity to keep Him from accomplishing the work that His Father called Him to do.

This is the example that we are to follow!

When lives get difficult, we must persevere and endure. We cannot give up!

Jesus said:

  • “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden;nor does anyone light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.” – Mathew 5:14-16.

Jesus also said:

  • “The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.” – John 1:5.

No matter how difficult the situation we find ourselves in, God will see us through it.

Our job is to continue to trust in Him and have the courage to follow His plan in good times and in bad.

When we are faced with adversity, we have a fantastic opportunity to glorify God.

We do this by constantly seeking opportunities to glorify Him and to serve others.

It is one thing to see somebody with a strong faith serving God.  

It is quite another to see somebody going through the most difficult time in their lives and not wavering on their faith.   That is a much stronger testimony!

The greater the adversity that we face, the greater the opportunity to glorify God by persevering with a Godly attitude.  

BIBLE VERSES ABOUT PERSEVERANCE

The Bible is full of scriptures highlighting the importance of perseverance. For today’s lesson, we have highlighted the following four verses:

  1. “Blessed is a man who perseveres under trial; for once he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord   has promised to those who love Him.” - James 1:12 ,
  2. “Let us not become discouraged in doing good, for in due time we will reap, if we do not become weary.” - Galatians 6:9 ,
  3. “And not only this, but we also celebrate in our tribulations, knowing that tribulation brings about perseverance; and perseverance, proven character; and proven character, hope; and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us.” - Romans 5:3-5 ,
  4. “Consider it all joy, my brothers and sisters, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faithproduces endurance.   And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.” - James 1:2-4 .

CONCLUSION

Jesus’ life was not easy.  

God did not spare Him from suffering, and He will not spare us either.  

God uses adversity for three reasons:

  1. To teach us,
  2. To discipline us,
  3. To shape us into the people that He created us to be.

The Bible teaches us that when we persevere through adversity, we bring glory to God.   As others see us holding tight to our faith in the darkest periods of our lives, they are more likely to persevere themselves.  

Regardless of how dark our situation may be at the time, if we persevere and endure, our reward in Heaven will be great!

We will end today’s lesson with the following words spoken by the Apostle Paul. These are the same words that we hope to be able to say when our time on Earth is done:

  • “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith; in the future there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day; and not only to me, but also to all who have loved His appearing.” – 2 Timothy 4:7-8.  

Comments

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1) What did today’s Bible study make you think or feel?
2) What questions do you have?
3) How can you apply what you have learned to something specific in your life?

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Kelly

In this world, times csn be tough. Sometimes it is our faith that is under fire. Others may not understand it. They can direct their anger and fear at an innocent person of faith. Wexare called to persevere as Christ did. I pray that I, too, can fight the good fight Amen.

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Eric

thank you for the quick study.

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Virtual Bible Study
Eric

Thanks for studying with us, Eric. Have a blessed day!

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Virtual Bible Study

1) What did today’s Bible study make you think or feel?
2) What questions do you have?
3) How can you apply what you have learned to something specific in your life?

***PLEASE POST YOUR QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS HERE***

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John

Never let the reactions of others stop you from doing what you know is the right thing to do.

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Leo
John

That is why Buck Showalter got fired by the Yankees. George Steinbrenner wanted to fire his coaches but Buck made the hard decision and decided to do what he felt was right and stand by the people he hired and trusted. Sports is often woven into the teachings of the bible.

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