This episode also discusses the significance of the Word becoming flesh, emphasizing the dual nature of Jesus as both fully God and fully man. Rabbi Schneider explains how Christ, the incarnate Word, becomes the bridge between humanity and the divine, enabling a relationship that goes beyond historical religious experiences. Enrich your personal walk with God by understanding the foundational truths embedded in the Gospel of John and the living Word’s role in our daily lives. Uncover the mysteries of faith and prophecy as Rabbi Schneider encourages you to embrace an active, living relationship with God.
00:00:01 Mysteries from the Gospel of John Introduction
A lot of times when we think about the Word of God, we’re only thinking about the Bible. But I want to say to you once again, that when you received Jesus, the living Word came to dwell inside you. Father God, I thank you that no matter where each one of us are at, you are with us right where we’re at. And so Father, we just together now, we just praise you. We thank you, Appadetti, that you’re with us, that you will never leave us or forsake us. Father, that whatever we’re going through, there were more than conquerors. And so Father, we just right now bless you. We thank you. We praise you. We worship you in the name of Jesus. And Father, I also ask right now, Father, that you would impart revelation and faith to each one of your people, that you’d supercharge us, Father God, with the Holy Spirit and strengthen us in your love. And I ask this, Abba, for all your people and for myself as well, in Jesus’ name and for Yeshua’s fame. Amen and amen. I’m excited, beloved ones, to be beginning today with you a brand new series. I’m calling it Mysteries from the Gospel of John. The first three gospels in the New Testament, Matthew, Mark and Luke, are called the Synoptic Gospels. The reason that Matthew, Mark and Luke are called the Synoptic Gospels is because they cover very similar material. Matthew, Mark and Luke all write about the same historical events in the life and ministry of Jesus. The Gospel of John, however, is very unique. John brings to the surface deep mysteries, and we’re going to be looking at some of these mysteries. I pray that it’s a real blessing to you. I know that I really love the Gospel of John. Now, we’re going to begin today in the Gospel of John, chapter 1. I’m going to start right at the beginning in verse number 1. It says, “…in the beginning was the Word.” and the Word was with God and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. Now I want you to understand that who we’re talking about here is the pre-incarnation of Jesus. that Jesus, the God-man Christ Jesus, manifested into human history in space and time. We read about it in John 1.14, where John writes for us, and the Word became flesh. So once again, think about this. The Gospel of John starts out by saying, in the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God. And the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. And then in the 14th verse, John writes, and the Word, who’s the Word? This one that is God, this one that has always been with God. John says once again in John 1, 14, and the Word became flesh. Now I’m focusing for a second, beloved ones, on this Word that we’re calling the Word. And the Word became flesh. A lot of times when Christians hear the expression, the Word of God, they immediately and only think of the written Word, the Bible. But the Word of God is bigger than just the Bible. The Bible is the Word of God, but the Word of God is a bigger concept than just the Bible. Because the Word of God actually refers to God Himself, who has always been. Let’s look at the scripture again. I want you to see this with me. I’m going to read John chapter 1, beginning in verse number 1. In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through Him. And apart from Him, nothing came into being that has come into being. So once again, we’re seeing that the Word has always been. But in space and time, approximately 2,000 years ago, the Word became flesh. That God Himself came to earth, clothed Himself in humanity, and He then became the visible material expression of the Word. Now I want you to think about something with me. A lot of times when we think about the Word of God, we’re only thinking about the Bible. But I want to say to you once again, that when you received Jesus, the living Word came to dwell inside you. In fact, the Bible says that when we receive the Holy Spirit, Jesus said, you have no need of anyone to teach you for he himself will teach you all things. Now, this doesn’t mean that we don’t need teachers, that we don’t need pastors, that we don’t need the written word. But what it means is that we have received God who is the living word. I was recently listening to a scriptural transformation program that I put together called Seize My Word. What I did was I went through the New Testament and I took the words of the New Testament writers and the words of Jesus and I turned them into what I call personal scriptural affirmations. So, for example, Paul wrote in one of his letters, in him, Paul said, you have been made complete. Well, what I did was I simply turned that into a personal scripture affirmation that I confess back and I say, in him, I have been made complete or I am complete in Christ. So what I’m doing then is I’m confessing the word. So I’ve been going through these personal scriptural affirmations for months and months and months. And sometimes it just feels like I’m just saying the same thing. And one day when I was a little discouraged, I asked God, are these things really changing me? Are these really transforming me? Because it seems like I’m just confessing the same affirmations day after day out of your written word. And then I felt like the Holy Spirit, beloved one, spoke intuitively to my heart. And he said this, the word of mine that’s transforming you. Because remember, I was confessing, your words are transforming me. Remember, Jesus said in the Gospel of John, he said, my word has made you clean. And so I was saying, Lord, just by me confessing this word, is it really changing me? Am I really being transformed? And it was like the Lord spoke intuitively to my heart and he said to me, it’s not just the written word that’s transforming you. Yes, the written word is transforming you as you’re believing in it, reading it, speaking it. But the Lord said to me, it’s also my word inside you that’s transforming you. In other words, the living word, beloved ones, lives in you and me. What we read here is in the beginning was the Word, the Word was with God, the Word was God. And then in the 14th verse of the same chapter, we read the Word became flesh. So who is the Word that became flesh? Jesus. If you’re a believer, who did you receive? You received Jesus. That means the living word, the rhema living word of God lives inside you. So what the Lord was speaking to my heart, he said to me, it’s not just you confessing the written word that’s transforming you, but it’s because my living word is in you. And as I am applying truth. to your conscience and to your heart, as I am even giving you intuition through divine listening, through intuitive listening, as I’m listening to what the Holy Spirit is saying through my intuition, as that is happening, that living word inside me and that living word, beloved one, inside you, it’s transforming you. God’s word, Jesus is the word, he lives in you. Christ in you, the hope of glory. And as you practice intuitive listening to the Holy Spirit, as you practice believing that Jesus is in you, that the Holy Spirit is in you, and practice listening to your conscience, listening to your intuition, training yourself in the written word of God, as you’re open to the speaking of the Holy Spirit into your life, through dreams, visions, prophecy, but especially through your conscience and through your intuition, what is happening? Listen, beloved ones, you’re being transformed by that word. Let me give you an example. Maybe some of you here, I’m a very extroverted person. Some of you are extroverted people. Years ago, the Lord began to show me to pull back my energy a little bit, to be conscious of my energy. And that wasn’t something that I specifically read about in the written word, but that was something that the Lord was intuitively applying to my heart and my mind. He began to just give me a sense that I need to harness my energy more. that I need to become more aware of my body language, that I need to become more aware of my surroundings, that I need to become more aware of the other person when I’m having a conversation, that I need to become more sensitive to the environment and to groups of people around me. He was giving me that information, beloved one, listen now, through the living word that lives inside me. And he was manifesting his living word to my mind, to my conscience and to my heart.” Do you see, beloved? God in heaven has come to earth as the Word. The Word has always been, in the beginning was the Word, John 1, 1. And the Word was with God and the Word was God. And then John 1, 14, and the Word became flesh. And the Bible says, and as many as received him, right, John said, and as many as received him, John said, to them he gave the right to become the children or the sons of God. You have received, those of you that are his, you have received the word. The word lives in you. You have the written word, which is our only rule for faith and conduct, for right doctrine. And you also have the living word in you.
SPEAKER 01 :
You’re listening to Discovering the Jewish Jesus with Rabbi Schneider, and he’ll be right back. But first, I want to ask you, did you know why God gave the Israelites laws about what to wear and how to cook? Or maybe why lampstands in the temple always had to burn? These might seem like small things to the untrained eye, but really, God has a deep and powerful purpose in every law that he gave Israel. In Rabbi’s new book, Decoding the Torah, Ancient Wisdom for a Modern World, Rabbi Schneider unpacks the laws of the Hebrew Bible, revealing the heart in them and how the principles behind them are applicable for believers today. Though we’re no longer under the law, understanding it can help us understand our creator. Order your copy today at discoveringthejewishjesus.com. That’s Decoding the Torah, Ancient Wisdom for a Modern World. visit discoveringthejewishjesus.com. Now back to Rabbi with the second half of today’s lesson.
SPEAKER 03 :
Now, Jesus said in the book of Revelation, he that has an ear, let him hear what the spirit is saying to the churches. You’ve received the word and the word is spirit. And so what is happening is the living word that is spirit that lives in you, he’s always speaking to you. That’s why when the Holy Spirit came, In Acts chapter two, how did he manifest himself? He manifested himself, get this now, beloved one, as a what? As a tongue, as a tongue, right? A tongue of fire. Why did the Holy Spirit manifest himself as a tongue in Acts chapter two? Because a tongue, listen now, is a speaking oracle. And when we receive the Holy Spirit, what we receive was the ability to, to hear from God and to talk from God. A tongue is the key to communication. And so the Holy Spirit is speaking to you. The Word of God is speaking to you and I, both through the written Word and, get it now, through the living Word, who is Jesus and lives inside you. You see, we need a marriage in our walk with God between the written Word of God, right?, and the living word of God. Do you know that Jesus even said, and it’s recorded for us in the scriptures, Jesus even said, which is part of the written word, Jesus said, I have many more things to say to you, but you could not bear them now. So Jesus has other things to say, okay, that are not revealed in the written word. Now, nothing he says is going to contradict the written word, but for example, Just to help you understand this, those of you that are kind of wondering what’s going on here, think about it. Those of us that trust in Jesus. If you’re thinking of changing jobs, can you pray to God about looking for a different job? Can you ask God to lead you into a different job? Can you ask God to show you which job is right? Well, you can do that. We believe him to do that. But let me ask you a question. Are you going to know which job to take through the written word? Are you going to know rather by the witness of the Holy Spirit on your heart through the peace of God, through, listen now, the living word? If you’re going to get married, and you meet somebody and you’re wondering, is this the person I’m supposed to marry or not? Is the written word gonna tell you whether that’s the right person or not? Probably not, depending on your situation. But can you ask God to give you a witness as to whether it’s the right person? Absolutely. How is that gonna happen? It’s gonna happen, beloved, listen now, through the living word, Jesus, who’s a spirit and is with you and is in you. I want to help you to understand that Jesus, listen now, is your living savior. That our faith is not just confined to just reading the Bible. Jesus hasn’t locked us up in just reading about what He did for other people, but the same Jesus that revealed Himself to Peter, Paul, James, John, the same God that spoke to Moses, Abraham, Ezekiel, Jeremiah, and the others, this same God, beloved, is your possession. He’s your God. He’s still alive today because God is the God of the now, and He’s speaking to His people, beloved ones, today. That’s why when the Holy Spirit was poured out, in Acts chapter two, and it was so powerful that those whom the Holy Spirit had been poured out on were kind of like, you know, having a hard time keeping their balance. And those that were looking at the whole scene were wondering what is going on? Are these guys drunk or what? Peter got up and he said, these men are not drunk as you suppose. He said, it’s only the third hour of the day. He said, but this is what was prophesied, right? By the prophet Joel. In the last days, saith the Lord, I will pour forth my spirit on all flesh and your sons and daughters will prophesy Your young men will see visions and your old men will dream dreams. And upon all flesh, both male and female, I will pour forth my spirit, sayeth the Lord.” All these things, beloved, the prophecy, the dreams, the visions, all this is communication and it’s for the New Testament church upon whom the end of the ages has come. My goal right now, beloved ones, is to inspire you to believe in a bigger God, to believe in a greater God, to believe that God is the God of the now, that God is here, that God is alive for you today, wherever you’re at, that he’s still talking, right? He talks with me. He walks with me along life’s merry way, that Jesus is the living word and he’s here, beloved, speaking to his children, to his beloved ones today. Well, let’s continue on. Verse number three, all things came into being through him and apart from him, nothing came into being that has come into being. What are we learning here? That through Jesus, through the living word of God, that has always been from the beginning, God created the world. I want you to understand me for a second. Jesus is God incarnated into a human being, but the Word of God, the Son of God, has always been. In other words, God incarnated himself into humanity. He clothed himself in flesh and blood, get it now, at a specific point in history 2,000 years ago. But the Word of God is bigger than Jesus because the Word of God has always been. Jesus is the incarnation of the living Word of God. But the Word of God has always been. He existed before God manifested Himself into the world in flesh and blood. Are you understanding what I’m saying? Now, don’t get me wrong. The fullness of the Godhead was manifested through Jesus. but Jesus is just the Word of God that has always been, get it now, incarnated. Now let me also say this, when we worship Jesus, we’re not first worshiping a man, we’re first worshiping God. When we worship Jesus, listen now, we’re not saying that God is a man, We’re not worshiping a man, we’re worshiping God, listen now, who has clothed himself in humanity. Are you hearing what I’m saying? Jesus is God in the flesh. When we worship Jesus, we’re not worshiping a man, we’re worshiping God clothed in humanity. God is our savior and he’s manifested himself in physical form in this physical reality as Jesus. In the person of Jesus, what we have is one that is incarnated into a world that is both, listen now, fully God and fully man. Jesus is both fully God and fully man. And he’s become the bridge between God and man. Because Jesus is fully God, he communicates with God as in spirit. But because Jesus is also fully man, he communicates with you and I who were born into this world as flesh and blood. First of all, we’re born in the spirit, but we’re also flesh. So Jesus communicates with God in spirit as God. And he communicates with you and I, beloved, as human beings that were born into the world in the flesh. And thus he’s become the bridge, listen now, between God and man. and between man and God. Father, we thank you for Jesus. We thank you for sending your Son. Lord Jesus, we worship you as our Savior today. We declare that every knee shall bow and every tongue confess that Yeshua HaMashiach, that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. Beloved, one of the things I’m always examining myself about and lifting my heart up to the Lord for is to make sure that I’m as much of a giver as He’s called us to be. I mean, we think about those first disciples in the book of Acts, and they were selling all their possessions and putting all the money in one pool. And we think about Ananias and Sapphira that sold their possessions and held back just a little bit of it and how God struck them dead. And when I read about that, I feel like, oh, my gosh, Lord, you know, am I living right? I mean, I’m trying to be generous. I’m trying to show love to everybody, but I haven’t sold all my possessions and given them all away so that I don’t have a house or retirement or a bank account. And so I think there’s wisdom and I think there’s balance in this. But I’m always asking myself, Lord, am I doing enough? And so I would simply say the same thing to all of us. We need to make sure that we’re sowing our finances into the kingdom of God, and Yeshua promised it would come back pressed down, good measure, and running over into our laps. And now, Dustin, could you tell our brothers and sisters in Christ about how they can give?
SPEAKER 01 :
Absolutely. I love the way you share that, Rabbi. And friends, you can take that step of faith right now. Just go online to give at discoveringthejewishjesus.com. Your support helps us to continue to provide biblical insights that bridge the gap between the Old Testament and the New Testament, bridging ancient Jewish wisdom and our Christian faith today. So please help us continue this mission. Give a donation today. Call us at 800-777-7835. And the truth is, friends, we really can’t do it without you. I know a lot of people think, well, there’s a lot of people giving so someone else can give. I want to challenge you today. Be that person that gives. You can really be the one that makes a difference. And I also want to let you know that we are really excited to share Rabbi’s messages on Roku TV. They’re available on demand, absolutely free. Watch Rabbi in full color from the comfort of your own home. Make sure to deep dive into scripture in a brand new way. Just search for Discovering the Jewish Jesus on Roku TV to join your journey today. We’re also on Amazon Fire and Apple. And if you’d like to catch up with us in other ways, visit our website, discoveringthejewishjesus.com. We’ve got podcasts. We’ve got short devotionals. Thanks so much for joining us today and for all of your support. And now here’s Rabbi again to speak God’s sacred blessing over us.
SPEAKER 03 :
The words from the Aaronic blessing in the book of Numbers chapter 6 verses 22 through 27 helps us to realize how good God is to you and I personally. So receive his blessing into your life and then beloved one go bless somebody else in Jesus name today.
The Lord bless you and keep you. The Lord make His face shine on you and be gracious to you. The Lord lift you up with His countenance. And the Lord give you, beloved one, His peace. God bless you and shalom.
SPEAKER 01 :
This program is produced and sponsored by Discovering the Jewish Jesus. And I’m your host, Dustin Roberts. Join us again next week when Rabbi Schneider reveals some lesser known truths regarding the Trinity. Do you really understand it? Well, find out Monday on Discovering the Jewish Jesus.
