Authoritative Prescription

DEVOTION

THE GOSPEL OF JOHN

AUTHORITATIVE PRESCRIPTION

John 12:47-50

47 "As for the person who hears my words but does not keep them, I do not judge him. For I did not come to judge the world, but to save it. 48 There is a judge for the one who rejects me and does not accept my words; that very word which I spoke will condemn him at the last day. 49 For I did not speak of my own accord, but the Father who sent me commanded me what to say and how to say it. 50 I know that his command leads to eternal life. So whatever I say is just what the Father has told me to say." 

NIV

As we have already looked into these words of Jesus, but only considered the idea of accepting or rejecting his words and what he meant by keeping his words, we also saw something else that was interesting as well. When Jesus said that he did not speak of his own accord, but the Father, who sent him, commanded him what to say and how to say it. Then he makes this very interesting comment. He said that he knows that his, the Father’s command leads to eternal life. The Greek word translated as command carries the meaning of an authoritative prescription. We are wondering then just what does it mean to keep the commandments of God. What is his authoritative prescription that leads to eternal life? Certainly, it is not in keeping any set of rules, such as what is called the Ten Commandments. They do not lead to eternal life. It is also for certain that in keeping any of what is called the Law of Moses leads to eternal life. It would also make sense that any rule or ordinance of any denomination does not lead to eternal life. So then the only command, the only authoritative prescription that leads to eternal life is to accept the words of Jesus, which is accepting the fact the Father sent Him into the world to die on the cross for our sins and thus by our faith in Jesus we inherit eternal life. God commands that in order to have eternal life we need to accept Jesus as our Lord and Savior. So then we can say that we have obeyed the command of God. The only disobedience that would count against us and thus would not lead to eternal life is refusing to accept Jesus. All our other types of disobedience, which we would, or rather God defines as sin, does not forfeit our eternal life, for those forms of disobedience have been washed, cleansed, covered in the blood of Jesus. It is not that we go around finding ways to sin just so the grace of God will be even more evident or abound, as some translations say. No, not at all. But the fact remains when we do fail or when we are not able to attain perfection and make those mistakes, we do not lose our salvation. The only way to lose it is to reject Jesus. Then some would say if we ever reject him, it would have meant we never accepted him in the first place. That does not matter one way or another for those are only thoughts of men, not of God. The only thoughts that count, are the words of Jesus, and he only said what the Father commanded him to say and just how to say it. There is another application for us in that truth as well. Maybe we should consider saying only what God tells us to say and how we are to say it. What would that look like in our daily life? That certainly would eliminate such things like gossip, or ridicule. It might also keep us from judgmental type speech or even attitude. The idea that Jesus said about even looking at something with lust, means we are guilty of that sin. So then could our thoughts also be considered what we say, in a sense, and how we say it. Have we not been told if there is anything true, noble, right, pure, admirable, lovely and excellent and praiseworthy, to think on those things. Then it would make perfect sense if that is what was in our thoughts, our words would follow suit, and then we would be saying what God wants us to say and just how to say it. The authoritative prescription that leads to eternal life is by faith in Jesus, and the authoritative prescription for our daily life is to be like Jesus.