We have just heard about a parable that Jesus told, the parable of the good shepherd.
Jesus uses many parables.
Jesus’ parables were simple stories about natural things, but they had a spiritual meaning.
The knowledge that He imparted wasn’t something natural, but something spiritual.
He wasn’t teaching people how to raise sheep, but something of the way He was going to help people.
Another time he spoke about a man taking seed and planting it in certain kinds of ground.
That wasn’t to tell people about agriculture, but to teach them the way that God was doing this great work of salvation.
When people understand that, they can cooperate with God, and listen to the word of God.
There was spiritual benefit or advantage in that teaching.
In the course of His teaching, Jesus performed miracles.
He was able to heal sick people; cure people that were blind.
Once he fed a large number with a small quantity of food.
He was able to calm a storm, something that nobody else could do.
It was for spiritual benefit, not for natural benefit.
Not just opening the eyes of the man that was blind, or saving the lives of people in a storm.
The disciples at one time wondered why Jesus spoke in parables, and they asked Him why He spoke in parables, and He explained that unto them it was given to understand the mysteries of God’s kingdom.
It was to those who had a true heart, and those who were humble, that it was a benefit to them.
Some people never saw past the natural side of the miracle.
There was a time when Jesus fed thousands of people with a small quantity of food.
Afterwards some of those people came to Jesus, not because they saw the miracle, but because they had eaten of the loaves and been filled.
The only benefit they had received was in receiving the meal.
Not because of the sign that Jesus was sent by God.
Jesus was disappointed in them.
In Acts the apostle referred to Jesus as “Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved of God among you by miracles and wonders and signs.”
People were saying that there is no way that people could be sure that Jesus came from God.
As far as the disciples were concerned, they trusted the One that had the approval of God and the seal of God, and the miracles and wonders and signs were showing them that Jesus was the one that was approved of God.
So many were just seeking natural blessings.
In the last few years my companion and I have been invited to many prayer meetings.
People were given an opportunity to tell other people in the meeting what it was that they were praying to God to grant to them.
Not one person requested for anything spiritual and of eternal benefit; just for things that would be of advantage for this life.
We can be thankful to God if He has opened our eyes to see the spiritual benefits.
All the world is receiving natural benefits.
God has caused the sun to shine on the just and the unjust.
All we have, life and health and strength, has come from God.
The teaching of the Bible to those who would believe in God is to be content with the things that God has given to us.
But God is wanting to waken us to the value of spiritual things; eternal things.
Many people feel that the benefits that can be given because of the miracles that Jesus performed were natural benefits.
The greatest blessing received as a result of Jesus’ blessing was spiritual and not natural.
In the 5th chapter of Luke, it tells us of the time when Jesus was teaching and Simon Peter and his friends were there and they had a boat, and Jesus taught the people out of the boat.
When He had finished teaching them He said to launch out to where the water is deeper and let down your nets to catch fish.
At the very same time the disciples had toiled all night and taken nothing.
They felt there was no point in trying to fish any longer.
When Jesus mentioned to Peter to let down the nets, Peter told Jesus this.
There was nothing to indicate that it was worthwhile to do what Jesus said, but Peter added, “Nevertheless, at thy word I will let down the net.”
He was letting Jesus know that as far as they were concerned, it seemed to be something of no profit.
But when they had let down their nets, they enclosed a great multitude of fish and their boats were beginning to sink.
This man, as a result of obeying Jesus, benefited as a result.
They could sell those fish, but that was not the blessing Jesus was interested in giving them.
The benefit that those men received is shown to us in the words of Jesus.
Peter fell at Jesus’ knees and said, “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord.”
Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Fear not; from henceforth thou shalt catch men.”
The benefit at that time was that Jesus was calling those men, not to be fishers of fish, but fishers of men.
The reason that he caused this miracle to take place was that obedience to his word would always bring results.
As they went out to be fishers of men, they would have to be completely obedient and depending on His word.
If they were obedient to His word, they would be able to do what he had called upon them to do.
He was going to use them, not to seek for fish, but to seek for souls to bring them to God.
That was a far greater benefit, and I don’t believe that Peter and his companions were taken up with the multitude of fish, but they would be taken up with the benefit that the knowledge that obedience to the word of Jesus would bring results; the spiritual benefit.
In the same chapter, later on we read of a man that was sick.
His friends had faith in Jesus and they tried to bring him to Jesus, but they couldn’t get into the home because of the multitude of people.
So, they went up on to the roof and lowered him down in front of Jesus.
When Jesus saw this, He said, “Man thy sins are forgiven thee.”
Later on, Jesus had healed this man, but the greatest blessing wasn’t when Jesus healed his body, but when he heard that his sins were forgiven.
That was a far greater benefit.
When Jesus said, “Thy sins be forgiven thee”, immediately the religious people said that this was blasphemy; that no one could forgive sins but God, and they tried to destroy the belief that others had in Jesus.
The reason that Jesus was going to tell him to arise and walk was so that this man and others would know that Jesus had power to forgive sins.
It was a sign to them that He was of God.
If He was not of God and he didn’t have the power with God, He wouldn’t have been able to perform this miracle.
The greatest blessing that Jesus wanted to give was not the healing of his body, but the forgiveness of sins.
The forgiveness of sin is far more important than the healing of the body.
In the 9th chapter of John, I like to think of the account that we have another miracle, where the man was born blind.
Jesus anointed his eyes with clay and He sent him to wash in a certain place, and when he washed, he received his sight.
This created a great stir among the people.
There was a lot of questioning.
They even sent for the parents and asked them, and they were fearful.
But because of their fear they missed a great blessing that day.
Religious people tried to destroy the faith that others had in Jesus, and they said this man is not of God.
When the blind man was given a chance to speak after he was healed, he said, if this man was not of God, he could do nothing.”
Besides restoring his natural sight, he received a far greater blessing; the knowledge and the conviction that this was a man of God.
He hadn’t seen Jesus, but the miracle convicted him that this was the man of God.
Others were telling him that Jesus was not a man of God, and they were using the power of the devil, saying things to discourage people from believing Jesus.
But this man received a spiritual blessing.
Later on, it tells of Jesus coming to him and asking him if he believed in the Son of God.
He was able to say, “Lord I believe.”
It was not just a blessing for the blind man, but for everyone that was there that day that had an honest and true heart.
Afterwards Jesus said, “For judgment I am come into this world, that they which see not might see, and that they might see, and that they which see might be made blind.”
We might think that he just came to cure those who were blind, “but those which see might be made blind”, Jesus said.
He never inflicted blindness on anybody, but he was speaking about the spiritual benefit.
Even the Pharisees realised now that He was speaking about something spiritual, so they asked him if they were blind, and He said, “If ye were blind, ye should have no sin, but now ye say, ‘we see; therefore, your sin remaineth.”
When they were proud and said that they didn’t want anybody to teach them, Jesus left them in their spiritual blindness, because they were not willing to humble themselves.
I hope we understand the value of the spiritual blessing that Jesus came to give.
Truth Archive 