John 20:23 part 1 Kathryn Kuhlman

Interested in every detail of our lives. He knows us better than we know ourselves. Touched with the feeling of our infirmities. Just now, wonderful Jesus. Make your person real to that discouraged one. Give complete confidence to that one. Give faith. Give peace of mind and peace of soul. Hear this simple prayer. Amen. As you well know, I do not even write out my sermons. Many ask me whether we have our sermons in print. I have never written out a sermon. When we have our little heart -to -heart talks, I just sit here before the microphone and I talk just as though I was sitting right there in your own home and you and I were literally having a little heart -to -heart talk. And it's just like that. Well, sir, a man asked this question. He had written the question on a slip of paper. He had signed his name to it. And this was the question. Dear Miss Guman, would you please explain John 20, 23? Now, before I go on with our little heart -to -heart talk today, I want you to get out your Bible. You'll need it today. I want you to turn to John in the New Testament, the 20th chapter, the 23rd verse. And while you're finding it, let me remind you something. Something that I have said over and over and over again, you cannot just take one verse of Scripture and have a complete understanding of that one verse unless you understand what precedes it and what follows. In other words, you cannot take a portion of the Word of God out of its continuity. out of its context. You must accept it as a whole. Therefore, I would not think of answering this man's question. I would not think of giving an explanation of just this one verse of Scripture without studying the entire chapter. And you'll see that at the beginning of this chapter, we have the description of the wonderful resurrection of Jesus. And it begins with the first day of the week, cometh Mary Magdalene early, when it was yet dark, unto the sepulcher, and seeth the stone taken away from the sepulcher. You know the story well. You know of the weeping Mary as she stood without at the sepulcher, weeping. And as she wept, she stooped down. The entire account is given in this chapter. Now then, the 19th verse. Go a little deeper into the happenings after the incident at the tomb. Then the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled for fear of the Jews, came Jesus and stood in the midst and saith unto them, Peace be unto you. And when he had so said, he showed unto them to them his hands and his side. Oh, to me this is most significant. I think this is thrilling. What did he do? Well, beloved, so that there might not be any doubt in any other minds, he brought forth his credentials. Oh, don't just read this very quickly and pass it by. Pause a minute and let's feast at the glory of this incident. Jesus, who had died on the cross, they had been there. They had witnessed his death. They had heard him. They had seen him. When he had dismissed his... own spirit. But prior to that moment, they stood and beheld the soldiers as they had driven the nails in his hand. They knew exactly where the nails had been driven into the hand of their master. They had stood aghast and saw the soldier as brazenly, cruelly, he had pierced that sword into the side, into the flesh of their master. They knew exactly where the sword had pierced his body. They knew exactly the place where the nails had been driven into his hands. They were witnesses to this. That is exactly why when after the crucifixion, after the resurrection, when Jesus again appeared unto his disciples, the very first thing that he did was to show them his credentials. Otherwise, nine times out of ten, after it was all over, Knowing human nature as I do, I am dead sure that some of them would have said, well, maybe it wasn't the master. Some would have doubted. Maybe it was an imposter. Maybe it wasn't Jesus at all. How do we know? After having left the room, having... told the neighbors or their friends regarding that which they had seen, some neighbor would have been sure to have argued them out of it and would have said it could not have been. It was impossible. It was someone else that you saw. Jesus, knowing human nature as he did, left no room for doubt in their minds. The very first thing that he did was to bring forth his credentials and said, Look, these are my hands. These are the hands that you saw the nails driven into. Here they are. There's no cause for doubt whatsoever. Behold my side. This is where the spear was thrust into my side. And they knew immediately it was their master. It was Jesus. Then were the disciples glad when they saw the Lord. They knew. Continue reading now. Then said Jesus unto them again, Peace be unto you. Follow very closely. As my father hath sent me, even so send I you. In other words, he's saying to them now, I'll be with you a very short time. My work has been accomplished. From here on out, the responsibility is yours. A great responsibility. And you talk about faith. You talk about the father having faith in his son when he sent him. Beloved, have you ever seen a greater faith exercised than Jesus? placed in those disciples. He knew the limit of the light that they had received. He knew they were flesh. He knew they were ordinary men. He knew their limitations. And yet the greatest responsibility has ever been placed in men. Jesus himself placed in those precious men. Many times unstable in their thinking, in their actions, even in their faith. As my... Father hath sent me. Even so send I you. He knew he would be gone. The world would see him no more. They would be left to carry on his work. They would represent him. As Paul said, for me to live is Christ. They could no longer look upon his face. They could no longer follow him in bodily form. They would see his disciples. They would see those who were called Christians, and they would represent him. him so send i you great is your responsibility is that all watch what follows and when he had said this he breathed on them and saith unto them receive ye the holy ghost Let me read it again. He breathed on them and saith unto them, Receive ye the Holy Ghost. That, of course, was a prophetic breathing, symbolic, suggestive. Remember something. They were not filled with the Holy Ghost at that time. Don't you ever let anyone deceive you and tell you that at that time they were filled with the Holy Spirit. That they had received the Holy Ghost at that time. It was impossible. They could not have received the Holy Spirit at the time. The scripture does not say that they were filled with the Holy Spirit at that time. because the Holy Spirit had not yet come. Prior to this, Jesus had told them that after he was gone, the Holy Spirit would come, but the Holy Spirit could not, would not come until after he had gone away and had taken the position of great high priest. the great intercessor at the right hand of god the father he was only reminding them of that which he had already taught them that the third person would come the mighty comforter would come unto them and that they were to wait They were to receive the Holy Spirit at that time. Let me read it again. He breathed on them and saith unto them, Receive ye the Holy Spirit. It was a prophetic breathing. It was symbolic. It was suggestive. They did not receive the Holy Spirit then. Did he not tell them in the course of these days that they were to wait until they received the Spirit? But while their mission was indicated by the outstretched hands with the wound prints in them and his declaration that he had authority and that they were to be his messengers, He symbolically revealed to them the secret of power. The word receive, I think, is better rendered by the simpler form of take ye. My father has sent me. I am authority. under which you will go. But you cannot go except in one power, that of the Holy Spirit. Oh, that's thrilling. Watch it step by step. That's the reason when the gentleman asked me to please explain John 20. And... the 23rd verse of this chapter. I cannot just take it out of its setting and give an explanation. You must see what precedes it. He knows his time is limited. He is giving them their lost instruction. He is reminding them of that which he has already told them. That's right. His work was done. He was leaving. They were to take his place. They were to represent him. Even as you and I as Christians represent him in this world of darkness. He reminds them that the... Power in their life would be the Holy Spirit, the Holy Ghost. All fruitfulness, all power would stem from this mighty third person, the Trinity. Ye shall receive power after... that the Holy Ghost is come upon you. The authority that he delegated to them is the same authority that he has delegated to you and to me. We are to be filled with the Holy Spirit. We are to become channels through which the Holy Spirit can move, can work, can speak. Then he continues after saying, Receive ye the Holy Spirit, by saying, Whosoever sins ye remit, they are remitted unto them. And whosoever sins ye retain, they are retained. The groundwork has been laid. In our next heart -to -heart talk, I will give you the full interpretation of the 23rd verse.