Open—Bob Thonney
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That chapter, Brother Don, has been one of the ones that I've so much enjoyed in recent times and I must say been a real challenge. Wonderful to think that you and I have been called into the fellowship of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. I mean, there's anybody here that has been called into the fellowship of the President of the United States.
You say that's a pretty big calling.
That pales in contrast with what we've been called to, Brother. Wonderful. I'd just like to go back to the first chapter again with your permission to rather Don.
Thank you.
That's right. Thank you. But.
I must say I so enjoyed this chapter many times with our Latin brethren, but I'd like to go back to verse one again.
You notice John's Gospel and John's epistle begin somewhat the same.
In the beginning, it says in John's Gospel was the Word.
And the Word was with God, and the Word was God. Of course, it's talking about the person of the Lord Jesus.
The Word is the full expression of all that God is in his glorious person.
If I'd stand up here and justice be silent, you look at me and say, what in the world is he thinking about? You just have to guess because there's no words coming out. But as soon as I open my mouth and use words, you know what I'm thinking about.
And God is so infinite, so eternal, so how powerful?
All knowing, all wise, how could we ever know him? We were CUNY creatures.
It's because the eternal God became flesh, and it's through him we have the full revelation of all that God is. And so that was John 11. John first, John 11.
Begins with the beginning again, but it's a different beginning. Look at it that which was from the beginning.
Which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon in our hands, have handled of the word of life.
So this is the beginning of the revelation of who God is in the person of the Lord Jesus. Look back at John's Gospel chapter 8 and you'll see this expression used.
When the Lord Jesus was talking to the.
Pharisees, I think it is.
John, Chapter 8.
And no verse 25.
Then said they unto him, Who art thou? Notice his answer, even the same that I said unto you from the beginning. That's the same expression we have in verse one, that which was from the beginning. Who was he? He was.
That eternal life which was with the Father and was manifested unto us.
Incredibly wonderful, but I want to focus on those little phrases.
That which we have heard.
That which we have seen, that which we have looked upon, our hands have handled. This wasn't, as Peter says in his second epistle, cleverly devised fables. Peter says, We have not made known unto you cleverly devised fables, when we made known unto you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. But were I?
Witnesses of His Majesty.
So.
These are tangible historical facts related to the coming of the Word of God into this world.
That which we have heard. Have you heard him? We're going to have fellowship. We're going to have to learn to hear him. How do you hear him?
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We got the word of God in our hands. But sometimes, you know, I think we read it kind of as any other article that's to be read.
Do you listen? Do you hear him? How important that is? I want to encourage either young people to make it a practice to read the Word of God on a daily basis.
I don't know why it is, but it seems like that is put on the back burner sometimes.
Don't do that.
Learn to listen. When you get up in the morning, make it a priority to give him time to listen to him. How important that is.
His word.
Sometimes like to challenge young people. I think I told this story. I don't know if I've told it here, but.
Two or three years ago at the conference in La Cumbre, Oaxaca, Mexico, we're probably close to 1000 that were together there. I between the meetings, was talking to a group of young men, said.
Do you read the scriptures?
Yeah, yeah, sometimes I say what do you mean sometimes? Well, maybe two or three times a week. Oh, OK. Well, I'm glad you read it that much, anyhow.
But another question, how often do you fellas eat?
You just two or three times a week? Oh, no, no, no, no. We ate every day. Oh, OK, that's interesting. Just once a day. No, several times a day. OK, well, that means then, that your body is a lot more important than your soul. Don't say that. They told me. Well, you're feeding your body every single day, several times a day. And your soul you don't have.
Any importance to be in it maybe two or three times a week?
Well, I think they got the point.
Is it not important to you to get food for your soul? The Lord Jesus said man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God shall man live. And so we need the Word of God on a daily basis. Learn to cultivate.
Fellowship. Our brothers talked about fellowship in verse.
Three, fellowship in verse three is with the father and with his son. Fellowship in verse seven is one with another. Which is more important. Fellowship, one with another doesn't come first.
What comes first is fellowship with the father and with his son.
And if I cultivate that fellowship, I meet up with my brother Don and others here, there is immediately something that clicks because we have that same fellowship. May that be so in our lives. Dear young people, I desire that you will be ones that cultivate.
This fellowship, by hearing him think it is so amazingly wonderful.
To hear him, that which we have heard.
Notice back in John chapter one an example of some that heard.
John chapter one and notice in verse 35.
Again the next day, after John stood and two of his disciples, and looking upon Jesus as he walked, he said, Behold the Lamb of God.
Notice this verse 37 and the two disciples heard there's that verse that verb him speak and they followed Jesus. I think this is so beautiful. They heard him speak.
Behold the Lamb of God. I think it was more of an expression of worship on the part of John the Baptist because in verse 29 he says almost the same words. There he says behold the Lamb of God which taketh away the sin of the world. But here he says, just behold the Lamb of God.
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That glorious person.
God's eternal Son is the Lamb that was going to give his life for this world. They heard him speak and evidently they wanted to get closer to that one. And it says, and I love this verse 38. Then Jesus turned and saw them following him, and he said unto them, What seek ye?
What is it that you are seeking?
They said unto him, a rabbi, which is to say, being interpreted master.
Where dwellest thou?
Where is your dwelling place?
He said unto them, Come and see, I love that simplicity, Come and see. The only way they could find out where he dwelt was follow him and observe.
Where was the Lord's dwelling place? He doesn't give an address here. Such and such a street and such and such a number. That's the way we do it.
But they came and saw where he dwelt, and they abode with him that day.
Where was his dwelling place?
Oh brother, I love to go back to the.
18th verse to give that answer.
Of this same chapter no man hath seen God at any time.
The only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, He hath declared Him, where was His dwelling place.
The bosom of the Father.
You know, the Lord Jesus said different times. He said foxes have holes, birds of the air have nests, Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head. It's just amazing to think about. Here's the creator of the universe coming into the world.
When one of the Princess is going to a new Prince is going to be born into the royal family in England, they make sure that everything's ready to receive him in royal form.
Here's the eternal God, the Son of eternal God.
His poor mother.
After a grueling trip, evidently from Nazareth, there is no room for him in the end. Maybe you can find some space out there where the animals are.
There's where the eternal Son of God was born into this world.
And so you never find him in this world looking for, in a dwelling place. I, I, I think I like to think of it in this way, brethren, he said. I came from my father's house and there's nothing in this world that corresponds to that. I'm really not interested in anything further.
He dwelt in the Blues and of the Father and that's where he wants to guide us, that we do.
Will enjoy those same divine affections that he enjoyed from all eternity.
So going back to the first verse of chapter one, the second one is second phrase is that which we have seen with our eyes and notice the third phrase, that which we have looked upon Mr. Darby's translation says that which we have contemplated. What's the difference between?
Seeing and looking upon or contemplating.
Looking upon or contemplating is more detained.
You might say I saw that person on the street today. It was just a passing glance, but you could say I saw him.
But to look upon somebody.
I'm going to have to really examine this for a while and see what I see, and I love to think if somebody has put it this way, brethren.
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One look to Jesus saves the soul. Every afterlook is the power of Christian living.
Look at him.
You know, listen.
I've done something with printing, not as much as Brother Don and BTP as Don, but I noticed that those that run the printing Press of times have a magnifying glass and after they pull it off. I guess you're familiar with this too, Robert. You're taking magnifying glass and they run it across there to make sure and so the defects are seen when you make magnify it.
Hey brethren, please don't use the magnifying glass on me. You'll see too many defects.
But if you use the magnifying glass on the Lord Jesus, all you're going to see is complete perfection all the way.
Oh, it's wonderful, brethren, to look at him, to see him, to look at him.
So go back again to 1St, the 1St chapter of John's Gospel to see those two verbs used in John's chapter one.
We've already read one of them, but just to put it into perspective. John 129.
The next day, John.
See it Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world. There it is, that word. See, now go back to.
Verse 36 we already read this and looking upon Jesus as he walked, he said behold.
The Lamb of God. There it is, looking detained, looking on the Lord Jesus.
Oh, how wonderful it is to go through the Gospels and look at him in all the detail that you can.
And like I say, everything you see will be perfection. That's all you see in him because of who he really is.
How important that is. I love to think of that poor woman that was taken in the very act of adultery and brought right into the public eye in the temple, surrounded by all those people and those Pharisees say to the Lord Jesus, this woman.
Was taken in adultery in the very act their hypocrisy was so evident. Where was the man? Because adultery involves a man.
Come on, bring them in too. But they didn't do that.
And so instead of answering, he Stoops down and writes on the ground.
They keep asking and he finally says.
He that is without sin among you, let him cast the first stone at her.
And they all were convicted by their own conscience, and they start walking out, beginning with the oldest who had the most sins, I guess.
Until there was nobody left except the poor woman and the Lord Jesus.
Was there no one there that had no sin?
Yes, there was.
Was he going to cast a stone at her?
He had not come to condemn.
He had come to save.
But to say to her as he did, neither do I condemn you, Go and sin no more. It was going to cost him terribly. He was going to have to go to that cross and die there.
Oh, what perfection in that glorious person of the Lord Jesus. So I encourage you not only to see Him.
But to look upon him?
But then the third or the last phrase that we have in verse one of John first John 11 our hands have handled of the word of life.
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I can hear you if you speak to me, Brother Sam.
I can hear you, but you're at a little distance.
I can see you out there, but I can't really examine you very closely. You that's sitting in the back row back there.
I need you to be a little closer to be able to look upon you.
But to handle you, I'm sorry, I can't reach any of you to handle you.
To handle you, I've got to be pretty close. But that's the word that John uses here. Our hands have handled of the word of life. He could say, I know we're not talking cleverly devised fables here. I've handled the word of life. That glorious person, where did he get so close to the Lord Jesus?
Go back to John's Gospel chapter 13, please, just for a brief moment before we end our meeting here.
John 13.
And verse.
21 Says Jesus had said thus he was troubled in spirit and testified and said, Verily, verily, I say unto you, that one of you will betray me. And the disciples looked one on another, doubting of whom he spake. That's I find that interesting. They never suspected Judas Iscariot. Now there was there was leaning on Jesus bosom.
One of his disciples whom Jesus loved.
Simon Peter therefore beckoned to him that he should ask who it should be of those of whom he spoke. Spake.
You know, Peter could have asked too, but he didn't seem to have the confidence to be able to ask if there was someone closer. I think he had the sense that this one that was closer was the better one to ask the Lord.
So Simon and Peter therefore beckoned to him, that he should ask who it should be of whom he spake. He then, lying on Jesus breast, saith unto him, Lord.
Who is it? Jesus answered. It is to whom I shall give a SOP when I have dipped it. Just this point, brethren.
He was close enough.
In his relationship with the Lord Jesus.
That he could ask such an important question. Oh, brethren, may the Lord help us that we would cultivate fellowship in the ways that we have talked about, that which we have heard, that which we have seen.
That which we have looked upon.
And our hands have handed of the word of life.