Church of The Revivist

GREATER THAN

A BIBLE STUDY ON THE “GREATER THAN” BLESSING OF THE NEW TESTAMENT

God is life, and life causes growth. Our Heavenly Father has made a way for us to grow in Him, in the knowledge of His Word, and in being an effective help in His kingdom. We must be aware of the changes that were brought in through the death, burial, and resurrection of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Things have never been the same. (Remember that Jesus said the world would see Him no more, but He would never leave nor forsake His people.) There are so many transitional words used in the New Testament. We are in a whole new order of God. We have been transformed from the law of sin and death to the Law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus. We are changed from serving the flesh to serving God. In believing upon the Lord Jesus Christ and being born of the Holy Spirit of God, all things become new.

If you are still living under the old covenant and adhering to the law, remember that you must keep all the law. (Galatians 3:10, James 2:10). But if you have received Jesus and have believed upon Him, you have an entrance before you into life eternal. If we do not move on into the fulness of what God has provided we will not be able to see the reality of who He is. The world sees Him no more. They cannot comprehend His ways. (Romans 8:7-8). They are in disobedience. Jesus said, “My kingdom is not of this world: If my kingdom were of this world, then would my servants fight.” John 18:36.

Keeping in mind the extraordinary change Jesus brought about,
we are going to look at one aspect of that change.

So many beautiful sermons have been preached on the double portion blessings of the Old Testament. We learn much about our Heavenly Father and His willingness to bless His people. However, by being “stuck” on the Old Testament blessings, we may be missing out on something more. Jesus came walking in, and preaching about, a “greater than” blessing. Unfortunately, there seem to be so few people who believe that Jesus actually accomplished what He was chosen to do while He was here on the earth. He brought in a new covenant. He accomplished all that the Father had sent Him to do. He ushered in a better way for all who would believe on Him. He fulfilled the old that the new might come forth. Jesus truly exhibited a “greater than” Gospel. He not only walked in it Himself, but He opened the way for all who would believe on Him to walk in it also. I have enclosed a group of scriptures concerning the “greater than” blessings to which we have access. I ask that you carefully consider each scripture and take the time to read them prayerfully. God will bless your endeavor.

Mark 12:29-31, “The first of all the commandments is, Hear, O Israel; The Lord our God is one Lord: And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment. And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these.” He did not point them to the tablets of the 10, but rather to love God and then to love our neighbours as ourselves. In these two commandments we know all others will be kept.

Matthew 12:41, “The men of Nineveh shall rise in judgment with this generation, and shall condemn it: because they repented at the preaching of Jonas; and, behold, a greater than Jonas is here.” (Also Luke 11:32) A stranger by the name of Jonas came peaching repentance to the city of Nineveh and they all repented; yet, those to whom Jesus came (His own), “received Him not.”

Matthew 12:42, “The queen of the south shall rise up in the judgment with this generation, and shall condemn it: for she came from the uttermost parts of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and, behold, a greater than Solomon is here.” The queen of Sheba came with her entourage in great pomp and circumstance to hear Solomon; but those who should have recognized Jesus by His teachings and miracles came to entrap Him, discredit Him, and to kill Him. No wonder He said, she “shall rise up in the judgment with this generation, and shall condemn it.”

Matthew 11:11, “Verily I say unto you, Among them that are born of women there hath not risen a greater than John the Baptist: notwithstanding he that is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.” (Also Luke 7:28) Remember that Jesus was ushering in the kingdom of Heaven. He is telling us that the change of kingdoms is so great that the least one in the new kingdom is greater than the greatest of the old order. This is not because of who or what a man might be, but because of the extraordinary plan of God’s of salvation through the righteousness of Jesus. The hour had come for the change from death unto life, even life eternal.

John 5:36, “But I have greater witness than that of John: for the works which the Father hath given me to finish, the same works that I do, bear witness of me, that the Father hath sent me.”
(Why do some still look for another to come? John the Baptist sent his disciples to inquire of Jesus. “Are you he or look we for another? Jesus answered, “Go your way, and tell John what things ye have seen and heard; how that the blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, to the poor the gospel is preached.” Luke 7:22) These are the signs of His coming! We hear testimonies from around the world of healing, deliverance, and salvation. Truly, Jesus IS come!

Then Jesus spoke another “greater than” that would be hard for people to believe in this twenty-first centrury when so many are wanting to rebuild a natural building in a natural city. Jesus said, “But I say unto you, That in this place is one greater than the temple.” This is further enlarged upon by Paul. Hebrews 9:11, “But Christ being come an high priest of good things to come, by a greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this building;” Matthew 12:6.

It is recorded in John 1:50, “Jesus answered and said unto him [Nathaneal], Because I said unto thee, I saw thee under the fig tree, believest thou? thou shalt see greater things than these.” When choosing the disciples, Jesus knew they were to see marvelous things. The reason is stated in John 5:20, “For the Father loveth the Son, and sheweth him all things that himself doeth: and he will shew him greater works than these, that ye may marvel.”

John 13:16, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord; neither he that is sent greater than he that sent him.” John 15:20, “Remember the word that I said unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you; if they have kept my saying, they will keep yours also.” We carry the message of the Lord Jesus and can have signs following, always keeping in mind that HE is the reason and HE alone is worthy to be praised.

Hebrews 11:24-26, “By faith Moses, when he was come to years, refused to be called the son of Esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt: for he had respect unto the recompence of the reward.” God’s ways are not the ways of man, and neither will the ways of a true man of God be as the way of a man caught up in the treasures (or fashion) of this world. A true man of God will prefer the reward of God and being found faithful at the end of his life’s journey to all the riches this world has to offer.

Luke 22:27, [Here we see the humblness of the Lord Jesus, our example to follow.] “For whether is greater, he that sitteth at meat, or he that serveth? is not he that sitteth at meat? but I am among you as he that serveth.” John 15:13, “Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.” This scripture, as well as the previous one, are good ways to measure a leader in the house of God. We must always keep an humble heart and remember that it is Jesus who is Lord and we best serve Him by obedience in love.

John 10:29, “My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father's hand.” We must know the Father and realize all good things come from God. He is greater than all and there is nothing He cannot do. He watches over His word to perform it. Jesus came exemplifying the father/son relationship. And we benefit because of this very special relationship.

John 14:28, “Ye have heard how I said unto you, I go away, and come again unto you. If ye loved me, ye would rejoice, because I said, I go unto the Father: for my Father is greater than I.” and in John 14:12, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my FATHER.” Here we find the promise that “He that believeth on Jesus” shall do, not only the same works, but greater works, because Jesus went to the Father! Here we are promised not only two miracles for every one miracle of Jesus, but we are promised “greater than” works.

I John 5:9, “If we receive the witness of men, the witness of God is greater: for this is the witness of God which he hath testified of his Son.” In remaining faithful to the Father, we have a greater witness than that of a flesh and blood man with personal motives that will change with the changing fashions of the society.

I John 4:4, “Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world.” Remember this message is centering on the “greater than” of the New Testament. Here we find that we are overcomers because of this great God that created man, made a way of redemption, and will now inhabit His people if they will receive Him. We can have the confidence that He is greater than the witness of man or the works of man. No man can pluck us out of His hand.

I John 3:20, “For if our heart condemn us, God is greater than our heart, and knoweth all things.” God is greater than our heart and wants to do more for us and through us than we can even imagine. He is doing more than we know. Let us open our Spirit to know He is not limited by our beliefs nor our unbelief.

I Corinthians 14:5, “I would that ye all spake with tongues, but rather that ye prophesied: for greater is he that prophesieth than he that speaketh with tongues, except he interpret, that the church may receive edifying.”

III John 1:4, “I have no greater joy than to hear that my children walk in truth.”

Compiled by Rev. Joyce Rankin