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Start with verse 4.
John 14 John's gospel to Ave. one verse four. And him was light, and the light was the light of him, and the light shineth in darkness, and the darkness comprehended it not. It was a man sent from God. His name was John.
The same came for a witness to bear witness of the light that all men through him might believe. He was not that light, but was sent to bear witness of that light. That was the true light which lighted every man that cometh into the world. He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not. He came onto his own, and his own received him not, but as many as received him.
Gave the power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name, which were born out of blood, nor the will of the flesh, nor the will of man, but of God.
And the Word was made flesh and dwelt among us. We beheld His glory, the glory as of the only Begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.
John bear witness of him, and cried, saying, This was he of whom I spake. He that cometh after me is preferred before me, for he was before me.
Know His fullness of all we received and grace for grace.
For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ. No man has seen God at any time. The only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, He flared him. And this is the record of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, Who art thou? And he confessed, and denied not, but confessed I am not the Christ.
They asked him, what then art Dal Elias? He said, I am not with all that profit. And he answered no, and said they unto him, Who art thou, that we may give an answer to them that sent dogs. What saith thou thyself? He said, I'm the voice of one crying in the wilderness. Make straight the way of the Lord has, said the prophet Isaiah.
They which were sent were the Pharisees.
They asked him, said unto him, Why baptize this thou then, if thou be not that Christ nor Elias neither that Prophet John answered them, saying, I baptized with water, but to stand with one upon you whom you know not. It is who coming after me is preferred before me, and whose shoes last, that I am not worried to want to lose. These things were done.
Bearer of John Jordan, where John was baptized.
Next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and said, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world. This is he of whom I said, After me cometh a man which is referred before me, for he was before me. I knew him not, but that he should be made manifest to Israel. Therefore I come baptizing with water.
And John Mayer records saying, I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dog, and in a bowl upon him.
I knew him not, but he that sent me to baptize with water, the same said unto me, Upon whom thou shalt see the Spirit descending and remaining on him, same as he which baptizes with the Holy Ghost. I saw and bear record that this is.
The Son of God.
Again the next day, after John stood in two of his disciples and looking upon Jesus as he walked, he said, Behold the Lamb of God.
The two disciples heard him speak, and they followed Jesus. Then Jesus turned and saw them falling, and saith unto them, What seek ye? They said unto him, Rabbi, which is to say, being interpreted, Master.
Where dual style death unto them come and see they came and saw where he dwelled, and abode with him that day, for it was about the 10th hour. One of the two which heard John speak and followed him was Andrew Simon, Peters brother. He first find that his own brother Simon, and saith unto him, We have found the Messiah.
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Which is being interpreted to Christ, and he brought him to Jesus.
When Jesus beheld and he said, Thou art Simon the son of Joan, and thou shalt be called Sivas, which is by interpretation of stone.
Day following, Jesus would go forth into Galilee and find his Philip saith unto him, Follow me. Now Philip was of best say to the city of Andrew and Peter. Phillip finest Nathaniel says unto him, We have found him of whom Moses in the law and the prophet.
Right Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph, and Nathaniel said unto him, Can there any good thing come out of Nazareth? Philip saith unto him, Come and see. Jesus saw Nathaniel coming to him, and saith of him, Behold the Israelite indeed, and whom is no guile. Samuel says unto him, Whence knoweth saw me?
Jesus answered and said unto him, Before that Philip called thee, When thou was done in the fig tree, I saw thee.
Daniel answered and said unto him, Rabbi Dollars, son of God, thou art the king of Israel. Jesus answered and said unto him, Because I said unto thee, I saw thee under the fig tree, Believe us, thou and all shall see greater things than these.
He sat under him, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Hereafter ye shall see heaven open, angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man.
The statement in Him was life. Let's compare that with a similar one in chapter 5 in chapter 5, verse 26, whereas the Father hath life in himself, so hath He given to the Son to have life in himself. This one in chapter 5 is what we would call His mediatorial glory.
His messianic Commission.
As the son become a man, the father gives to him, to the Son of Man, to have life in himself.
But what we have in this fourth verse of our first chapter is His essential intrinsic glory as having life in Himself as one of the persons of the Godhead. In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. Here it's not given to Him to have it, but He has it essentially.
As being the son. So there's a difference and the one should not be used to.
To sully the glory of the other. They're both true, are they not? How does that compare with First John 11, the hands of handles of the word of life? I would think so, because it goes on to say in first John 1/2 for the life was manifested. This is not a life that was given to him in his manhood. But.
That life which was essentially ever in Him was manifested.
That's his essential glory, isn't it? The enemy often uses these passages that speak of him in his mediatorial position as man to say, see, like in John 14, the Lord says My father is greater than I see. He's not equal father, and he's talking there in his manhood. And another passage that says no one knows the day nor the hour, only the father, not even the Son says that in.
Gospel and I had a Hindu boy say to me, well, if he doesn't know, how can he be God? I said, well, you're you're you're you're getting into the the, the mystery of his person here. He is both God and man and as man he does not know he's a servant and it's it's not for the servant to know what his master does. So there are these passages that would stumble someone. We were talking this morning about the the natural man does not understand this book and he can.
These these quote, conflicting statements, UN quote. They're not to us conflicting, but they are to the natural mind and says how can he? How can these things be? How can he be God if he doesn't know the gain or the hour or if he has to have life given to him or if his father is greater than he is? How can he be Co equal with the father? Well, notice that's in John 14, but in John 10 he says.
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I and my father are one.
So he always brings out that oneness that he had with the Father, and always has first. And then he talks about the infinite grace of the stoop that he made when he, the rich one, became poor, that we through his poverty might be made rich. So to see him in that mediatorial position that he came, so that life was given to him from the Father.
Is such a wonderful thing to our souls to think that he who is God over all blessed forever.
Became a servant. He was there in the form of God. He emptied himself of that outward form of glory and took upon him what the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men. Infinite stoop that he made in order to come to where we were so that we might know who God is. The only way we could really know God is.
When he manifested himself in a man, that blessed man.
That's how we come in touch with him, and that's the only way that man could really vent his hatred against God is by what he did to that man who that one who was man and became was God and became a man, God Incarnate, what he did to him. Man could not get his hands on God until he became a man, and then he showed.
Invented his hatred and wrath against him.
The wonders of his humiliation.
And the stoop that He made are what fill our hearts when we realize who He is essentially in His person and then what He became in order to reach us. And if we're going to understand, we're going to get it from God. We're going to get it from Revelation. We're not going to get it from reasoning. The verse we had this morning a couple of times.
First, John 520 We know that the Son of God is come. Now he's not a strange form of the verb is come.
It's in perpetuity. He became a man, and he's always that he is come.
We know that and that He has given us an understanding. Herefore we get the understanding. God gives the understanding that we may know Him. That is true.
Goes on magnificently said we are in Him. That is true even in his Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God and eternal life. That's the way we get understanding thinking in this chapter. There are at least a dozen names and titles to this blessed person. We might just go through them just to relate them.
We've already had two of them. The first one was the Word. We felt much on that. Now in the seventh verse, we get Him as light.
And in the 14th verse.
He is the only begotten Son in the 17th verse.
He is Jesus Christ and in the 23rd verse he is Lord.
And in the 29th verses, the Lamb of God.
And in the 34th verse he's the Son of God. The 38th verse he's Master, a rabbi. And the 41St verse he's Messiah of the Christ. The 45th verse is Jesus of Nazareth, and that title was put over Jesus on the cross.
But a name that is Jesus of Nazareth 49th verses the King of Israel, unless these the Son of Man.
That's a dozen names are titles that belong to this person we're talking about. What a wonderful person. What a wonderful revelation. Now if we're going to understand it, we're going to get it by faith. You can't reason these things out. This is God and Son. It's even dangerous to try to contemplate. Understand who He is because no man north of the sun but the Father, Just leave it there and worship and adore. He is all these things.
Perhaps in connection with our brother, Hendrix was saying. In Philippians 2. It's made very clear, isn't it?
To be in the form of God thought it not Robert even to be equal with God, but took upon him the form of a servant and was made in the likeness of men. It was robbery for Adam want to want to be equal with God. That was Satan's suggestion. He shall be as God's knowing good and evil. That was Robert he didn't deserve. He wasn't in that place but with the Lord Jesus. He is was the eternal word, the eternal Son of God, but he took upon him the form of a servant.
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And it's illustrated like this, if the king wanted to give an example to a group of workmen how they should work, and he said to his son, now you put on the overalls and you show them the way things should be done, then he listens to the person that's over him. Is he really over him? No, he's still the King's son in all the majesty of his person. But he has taken that place. And the Lord Jesus came in wondrous love and grace and took the form of a servant, took the place here in this world.
Of obedience.
And he could say, I do always those things which please him, but he never left. At the same time his place in the Godhead, it was never robbery for him to be equal with God, He is God. The Word was God, as we have in our chapter. So as our brother was saying, there are passages that speak of him as a servant. And as the servant he was obedient, He was doing his Father's will, but as God.
He made all things. He upholds all things.
All glory centers in Him is going to be the center of the whole scene of glory in the coming day. Well, it's good for us to see these things the way the Scripture sets them before us. And so coming into this world, He was the light of every man. Not that every man accepted the light, but the light shone there. Whether there was darkness. You could have a very powerful light, but if this room was full of smoke, it wouldn't penetrate the darkness. Nothing matter with the light, but the room is so full of smoke that the light.
Penetrate the darkness. That was the condition of this world when that blessed One who is the light came into it. The light shineth in darkness, and the darkness comprehended it not without digressing from the precious things that have been brought before us already in this meeting. It might be helpful, just for the sake of the young people, to point out that what has been brought before us shows the importance of context in the Word of God, because I believe that every.
Doctrine that is propagated is the result of directly or indirectly taking scriptures out of their context and misapplying them. And you can take scripture and justify just about anything you want to believe or even do by taking it out of its context. And I just say this to the young people.
It was helpful to me when I was a little younger to have brought before before us in the assembly the importance of when we read the Word of God and take up any aspect of the person and work of Christ to see where it's found. In other words, what goes before, what comes after, what is the character of the book that it is found in? Because this has often been pointed out in these 4 gospels. The Lord Jesus is presented to us in different ways and if we lose sight of the.
Which the Lord Jesus is presented to us in the Gospel, then we're going to be confused by statements as to His person and work, because the Spirit of God brings before us these different aspects in the different ways. Without sounding repetitious, in Matthew we know the Lord Jesus is brought before us as the Messiah. He's brought before us as the King of the Jews, and as such the Jews rejected their Messiah. We know that in Mark's Gospel he's brought before us as the servant.
To be ministered to but the minister and give his life a ransom for many. In Luke he's brought before us as the perfect dependent man. And then in John's gospel, he's brought before us as the Son of God and young people. It's not difficult to have an outline of these things. Just some outline of what the various gospel writers present, what the different apostles present in their writing, Paul's ministry, and even the Old Testament. Just some.
Paul said to Timothy as a young man. He said that he he exhorted him to hold fast the form of sound words or an outline of truth, so that whenever we take up anything in the Scripture, we take it up in the light of the context of the whole. And this is a great safeguard to us.
And I just say again, every false doctrine that's propagated in Christendom is the result of taking Scripture out of its context and misapplying it. And the enemy is busy to subvert our souls and undermine the precious truth of God. What's going to preserve us to have an outline of Scripture and to take Scripture up in its context? Well, I don't mean to digress, but these things are very practical and necessary. The enemy is busy, as we've been saying to.
Undermine the truth concerning the person and work of Christ. But we need to be well grounded. Continue steadfastly in that which has been given to us. I noticed when Clem was reading that one portion in John One it says.
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Philip makes a mistake. He says in verse 45 Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph.
He was the son of Mary, who's not the son of Joseph unless legally. But I was thinking of in Marks gospel, it starts out the beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. It's like saying Mark is going to present to us the perfect servant, but at the very first verse he says, but don't you forget ever just because he became a servant and took that place. Don't you forget who he is.
He is the Son of God. And in John's Gospel where you have the set of Jesus of Nazareth mentioned that only John records that written over the cross, only John records that Jesus of Nazareth. You would say, well, I would think you'd find that in Mark, but in John's Gospel.
You were presented with Jesus in his deity, in his essential glory as God. But don't you forget he became a man.
He became a servant and he took that low place. So the two approaches from the difference point of view. But it's beautiful to see these touches from the different Gospels. To the rational mind, these are contradictions that cannot be harmonized. Nonsense. The unnatural man does not understand the things of the Spirit of God in John chapter 16.
Just like to point out I mentioned this before but.
The 13th verse. Albeit when He the Spirit of truth is come, He will guide you into all truth. For He shall not speak of Himself, but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall He speak, and He will show you things to come. He shall glorify Me, or He shall receive of Mine, and shall show it unto you. One is often made the comment that you can make a test of any doctrine that has presented.
Whether this line of teaching glorifies Christ or whether it glorifies man, if it's not the truth of God, there'll be something in it that glorifies man, but if it's the truth of God, it will glorify Christ. I say that, for instance, with such a teaching as being saved and lost. Again, you might say, well, there are verses that they use that do seem to think, do seem to show that it's possible for a.
To lose his salvation. But when you make the simple test of it, does this line of teaching glorify man, or does it glorify Christ?
If it's a man will end. But we're saying, well, I the Lord saved me, but unless I do my part, I've got to keep on. And if I don't keep on, I'm going to lose my salvation. So when I get to heaven, I'll say the Lord save me. But I did my part. I kept on and that's why I'm here.
But if it's the truth of God, it gives all the glory to Christ. So He saved me. But he not only saved me, but He's promised that what He has begun is going to complete. They shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand.
There are those that teach that baptism is necessary for salvation, but what is that but saying that something of man has to be added to what Christ has done? You can't baptize yourself.
So unless somebody takes you and says certain words over you and puts you under the water, you can't be in heaven because that was necessary to make you fit for heaven according to that false line of teaching. Now, baptism is a wonderful privilege in a place that we take recognizing that we are dead and risen with Christ. But the important thing is to see that everything.
That glorifies Christ is the truth of God.
But when you bring in something that is a man, you may find some scriptures that are hard to answer, but you'll see behind that there is something to give glory to man, whereas the truth of God always honors and exalts and glorifies Christ.
In these verses we get a lot about light and vision 5 tells us that which makes everything manifest is the light, and I think it's so beautiful this fourth verse. Notice there's not 1-2 syllable word in the verse. They're all monosyllable words.
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John can be so.
Very simple in the words he uses and yet express such profound truth in him was life, and the light was the light of men. Isn't this wonderful? Not merely what he said, what he was.
Is passing through this world automatically made manifest everything he was close to. The light shone, but it shows to the awful darkness that man was in. He was not that he could not say it was willful darkness.
He was willingly ignorant, man was, and so.
You can shine all the lights you want on a blind man. You can't see because he's blinded. And the God of this world has blinded the minds of them that believe not, some said he says. I don't believe God.
He's blinded by Satan, and as much as you want to reason, it won't make sense to him because he does not believe.
What is so marvelous here that speaks of John, that he was as man sent from God to bear witness of the light? Who has ever heard of such a thing in common life? Sometimes say, if I go out on the street, and to everybody I met on the street, say, Look, the sun's shining, the sun's shining.
Everybody say what's wrong with that guy? He's crazy. Everybody can see that the sun is shining.
And yet, when the Lord Jesus, the glorious Son of God, the light of the world, came into this world, nobody, not even the religious people who had the word of God in their hands, could.
Could recognize who this person was. So God had to send a man before him to say this is the true light that cometh into the world. Isn't that sure how dark man is naturally speaking? And our hearts by nature were there, Dear brethren, thank God.
For the grace that has worked and opened our eyes to look, to see.
That true light that there is in our Lord Jesus. And they chose to remain in darkness too, didn't they? Because the Lord Jesus said in the 3rd chapter, Speaking of the light coming, He said, and men love darkness rather than light because their deeds are evil. He did expose what their hearts were like. Just like in the 8th chapter when they brought the woman to the Lord Jesus who had been caught in the very act of adultery. What did it do? Well when?
Brought her into the presence of the Lord Jesus and exposed not only her sin, That's true, but it exposed their own hearts. They came in self righteousness, feeling that they were not above this woman. But they were so convicted in their conscience, in the presence of the light, the true light, that it says they went out from the eldest onto the youngest. And so it exposed man's heart. And that's why they don't want the Lord Jesus today. Why have men?
Pages of God's Word. Why don't they want the light of God's Word at the schools? Well, because the light convicts. It's like a mirror. It shows men exactly what the true condition of his heart is like. But they don't want that. They're choosing like these in the Lord, the days of the Lord Jesus. They're choosing to live in the darkness rather than the light. But we who have come into the light, if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship one with another.
What a contrast for us.
Light expose our hearts. Thank God it did, but it also exposed the heart of God and the Lord Jesus and the blood of Jesus Christ has taken care of every sin so that we can walk in comfortably in his presence, justified, sanctified and so on we enjoy his presence, we enjoy the light but this world didn't want the light. They refused the light he was the light of the world as he said later on, but they didn't want him and they.
At the end of it all took him outside that city that had religion without Christ and they nailed into a cross. I say they refused the light and they've been stumbling in darkness ever since.
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It says this chapter says the light shineth in darkness and the darkness comprehended it not.
And again, which coming into the world lighteth every man? So conscience God gave to man in the fall, the conscience, and the conscience in man always, shall I say, recognizes the light. He may shy away because he doesn't like it. And that's why it says in 2nd Corinthians 4, by manifestation of the truth, commanding ourselves to every man's conscience in the sight of God.
Someone has said the best illustration of conscience is your eye.
You might have 2020 vision, but if you're in a dark room, you don't see anything. But if you're doing something you want, don't want anybody to see, you just don't want the light to go on. Nothing the matter with your eyes, but you just don't want the light to go on and the coming into this world of the Lord Jesus.
Revealed what man was and that's why he was conscious. You find with the scribes and Pharisees, they became conscious that they were in the presence of the one who was light and they stayed away. They shield away because the light shone. But the conscience always is the length that God has given that no man can say. I've never seen light. The shining of the light touches the conscience. He may run away from it like.
Was asked to come to the gospel meeting and she said no thank you, it makes me feel too wicked. She was like the Sinner who is in a room doing something in the dark and he says please don't turn on the light because it'll make me uncomfortable. So the light shone in darkness, but the darkness comprehended it not. And yet man did feel that he was in the presence of the light when the Lord Jesus was around and they hated him without a cause.
Purpose for the light to shine is that all men through Him might believe, expose what we are, and as it's been said, to bring out the heart of God so that we can be blessed. And the light, yes, that's God's purpose in it. What a thing it is to have power given to become the sons of God.
What an answer to our destitute, hopeless, ruined condition.
To get out of the guilt of the Atom race.
Sins put away and become sons of God.
Even to them that believe on his name.
God hasn't made it difficult for us to be saved and never sin, split away and have a conscience of peace.
You wonder why more men don't believe.
Don't believe because their wills at work, as the Lord said, as Pharisees, the agent John, He would not come in order that you might have life. And how often would I have gathered you as a hen gathered a fruit under her wings, and you would not The same energy of will was manifested in the rejection of the true king, as was manifested when they chose a king. He said we will have a king.
And so when the Lord Jesus, the true King, came, they said we will not have help.
Same energy of will. What His presence here manifested was the state that each one was in. I want to read that ninth verse in the new translation. It reads differently. Note the difference. The true light was that which coming into the world lightens every man Note.
Or is light to every man not in lightens?
But sheds its light upon, makes manifest the true state of every man, as Gordon was saying. And in the 3rd chapter it says in verse 20, Everyone that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deed should be reproved, should be shown as they are. But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that is, deeds may be made manifest that they are.
God, so the light one here made that difference manifest, didn't it? Those that were children of light came to the light. Those that were children of darkness refused it. I sometimes thought of it in connection with our piano at home. We have a piano in our front room and it has a black shiny finish and it shows every bit of dust. That seems to be a magnet for every bit of dust in the house. But in the morning, you, you come.
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Living room, you'd never know that the piano was covered with dust. But in the afternoon, when the sun shines in because the front window is on the West side of the house, why there's no trouble to see that the piano is covered with dust? And sometimes my wife will pull the shades a little bit so that it doesn't look quite as bad. It doesn't mean that in the morning the piano wasn't just as dusty, it was just as dusty as it is in the afternoon. But what has made the difference?
The light shines and reveals the true condition of the piano, and that says, we've been saying what took place Lord Jesus came to as the light, and it revealed what was in man's heart. It didn't make man's heart any worse. Man had a fallen nature, rotten to, through and through, that could produce no fruit for God. That was true from the moment he fell in the Garden of Eden. But the light showed exactly what it was, to what full extent the heart of man really was.
I think at 12 to understand that verse in first John 1 and 7 is really bringing that truth before us. Perhaps I should read it first John 1:00 and 7:00 But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanse of us from all sin. That doesn't mean a condition of a real believer. It's talking in the verses before of one who is.
An unbeliever who's in darkness.
Who hates the light? The fifth verse. Just that in the message that we have heard of him, we declare unto you that God is light, and in Him is no darkness at all. The unsaved man is in the darkness. He doesn't know his true condition. But isn't it blessed, brethren, that when we have been cleansed by the blood of Christ, then we have been brought into the light? And so when it says, if we walk in the light, it's a contrast of the position of an unbeliever. He's not.
Light at all but a true believer. He walks in the light. And what has fitted him for the light?
The blood of Jesus Christ, his Son, cleanse of us from all sin. So the brighter the light, the more it proves that we're fit for the light. Because what does the light of God's holy presence show for one who has been cleansed in the blood? It shows that all his sins are gone.
They're gone forever because the blood of Jesus Christ, God's Son, cleanse with us from all sin. I think it's important to see that that verse is not a conditional one for a believer. It's not that sometimes we're in the light and sometimes we're not. We're always in the light. Someone asked Mr. Darby, but what if a Christian turns his back on the light? Well, he said the light will shine on his back, but he's in the light. That's where he's been brought, and he's fitted for the light through the blood.
But if he is not fitted for the light, then he doesn't want to come into it at all, because the unbeliever doesn't want the exposure of his true condition. Because he's not fit for the light. He doesn't know the wonderful grace of God that can cleanse him perfectly and fit him for the light.
So let's remember that that seventh verse is the position of the believer. We're in the like we mean, I always walk according to the light, but that's where we are brought. We are we're children of darkness, but now we are light in the Lord. We may not walk as children of light, but positionally.
In the light, we're fitted for the light through the precious blood of Christ. It's unfortunate that.
In our King James they've rendered the word children as sons like in verse 12. As many as received him to them gave thee power to become. It ought to read the children of God. I think it's true that the only time he John in his writings.
In John's gospel and epistles uses the word Son is referring to the Son of God. When he's referring to the Saints, he uses children of God. Paul uses both sons of God and children of God. One is the thought of adoption. The sons of God, children of God are being born into the family. But John consistently.
Talks about us as children of God.
Not sons doesn't mean we're not sons. We are. But when he talks about the sun, he's talking about the Lord Jesus.
And that's characteristic of John's writings, isn't it?
And it says there in that verse, the 13th verse, not of blood. That doesn't mean that it doesn't refer to the blood of Christ. It's just simply as the fact we often use the expression of blood relation or something like that. So there was the fact that my father was a believer doesn't make me a believer. I'm in a blood relation to my father, but that didn't make me a child of God. I wasn't born again because I was brought into a Christian family. It had to be a personal thing.
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And so.
As many as received him to them gave thee power to become the children of God, even to them that believe on his name, which were born not because of certain family, not because of my own will, but because God in his sovereign grace, purpose, blessing for me. For we see that brought out in John, The sovereignty of God is very specially brought out in John. Because of our own wills, we would never, never have come to Christ.
God had to do something in order to make us come. No man can come unto me except the Father which has sent me draw him.
You can preach the gospel to someone, but you cannot will that they be born again. That's impossible. It's not the will of men. It's not even your your own will. You can't will it for yourself.
It's, it's a, it's a work of God, isn't it?
Not of blood, your parents can't will it for you, nor of the will of the flesh.
Nor of the will of man, but of God, sovereign work of God. When we have the gospel presented to us, we believe that, and the Spirit of God uses the word of God. We're born again by the water of the Word, born of water and of the Spirit. And Peter says being born again not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible by the word of God, which liveth and abideth forever.
So the Spirit of God uses the word of God to work on his soul. When that soul receives that word by faith, there's life, and you can't say which comes first, it's a mystery. But life and faith come together in the soul and then they're born again by the word of God. Romans chapter 3 says.
There is none that seeketh after God.
Thought not one person seeks after God. Speaking of the natural man, there's none that seeketh after God. What man needs is life.
The life comes as a sovereign work, as Chuck was saying, a sovereign work of the Spirit of God upon a dead soul that is dead in trespasses and sins. And when that comes, when life comes.
Faith comes that there may be not intelligence necessarily, but.
The truth of the Gospel, death, burial and resurrection of Christ might come 50 years later to bring peace to a troubled soul, but it might come seconds after new birth. You said it well. When life comes, faith comes. I'll say it. When faith comes, life comes.
Which comes first, we cannot say. In fact, Mr. Kelly says you could certainly say that faith comes before life, but you couldn't say life comes before faith. I know there's a lot of brethren that would like that statement, but that's what he said. And the two come together. It's a sovereign work of God when the soul believes, but there must be faith.
And that's what God produces.
Faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God, and new birth comes by the word of God. We get faith and we get life by the word of God. Both come together and that's where we should leave it and not have any theological discussions as to it because it's beyond us to understand. It's been sad too that repentance is all faith and not a preparation for faith.
Repentance. The word simply means a change of mind.
And so supposing somebody shouted in the door and said your buildings on fire. If I didn't believe what he said, I just sit here quietly, not care. But if I really believe what he says, I immediately prayer prepare to do something because there's danger. And so that repentance is of faith, I say again. And so when the gospel is preached and people are warned of coming judgment, God begins the work by making the man conscious that word is.
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Through you're exposed to judgment then as it says, repentance toward God and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ Immediately I believe that man's message. I think of well, what's the Safeway out of this room. I'm thinking of a way I'll escape now from the trouble that's going to buildings on fire. And so it's good to remember this, as you were saying, and I think it's important to see these things. It's all a work of God.
He is he then, a God granted to the Gentiles. Repentance, repentance unto life.
Repentance is of faith, then faith finds a way of escape in the Lord Jesus. But it's all a work of God that God does in a dead soul first imparting life. And that's why it's important too, to use the Word of God when we speak to souls, because when we preach the gospel, it's not my explanation or my illustration of someone who was almost drowned in a swimming accident.
Or my explanation of some scripture that's going to save a soul.
Now the Lord may use that, but we need to take those things and apply them to the Word of God. That's why I like when gospel is presented, when many scriptures are quoted, because it's those scriptures again. I quote the verse that Chuck has quoted. We're born again, not a corruptible seed, but incorruptible by the Word of God that liveth and abideth forever. It's the sword of the Spirit, and it's that which God uses, takes and uses in the power of the Spirit to impart.
Life and to convict and so on and so whether you're speaking to an individual, whether it's a brother who has the privilege of speaking the gospel publicly use the word of God. Yes they so speak that many believed we need to speak in that way. We need to speak with conviction and from the heart and show that we're enjoying these things in our own souls and God may use that but ultimately in the final analysis I.
It's not my explanation of the Scripture that's going to say the soul, but it's the Word of God itself in all its power. And isn't it a comfort, brethren, to think that when we present the gospel, blessing doesn't depend on our ability to present the Word of God, but it does depend on the Word of God in all its living power?
Well, if we use the Scripture, then God can use it, but it's not our sword, it's the sword of the Spirit. And when used in communion by the Spirit, you can have that power. But connected verse in John 5. But the verse that was quoted relative to faith coming by hearing and hearing by the word of God, the hour is coming, and now is when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God, and they that hear shall live. So this is directly connected with hearing coming by the.
God by faith, the dead there are dead in trespasses and sins, are they not? And the hour there is the hour of his grace. And the word of God has been going forward. The Lord Jesus in resurrection, He gave a special Commission to his own. They were to go into all the world and preach the gospel to every man. And so the dead have been hearing there's a gospel meeting scheduled for this room. If the Lord leaves us here later this evening and as the word of God goes forth.
There's someone in the room who's dead and trespasses and sin. They're hearing the word of God. And if they're here if if they are, then God can use that word to bring them to himself. But I just say again, in particular to the young people when you have opportunity at school or at the office to.
Speak to a soul about their about salvation or any of these things. Use the word of God. Don't try to go into some long explanation about things or argue some point with somebody that doesn't that doesn't bring salvation. Use the word of God and let the word of God speak to the soul.
Remember, I was confronted at my work in that very thing by AJW.
And the issue with blood transfusions and it's interesting how God turned that around and I've been before him and I wanted something that he would give to me so that I could speak to this individual. Because you just keep at it and add it and add it, you know. So I asked the Lord and he gave me the verse in first John. So anyway, I came in one day and he said to me, he said.
You know, blood transfusions are no medical value whatsoever. You know, they cause problems. This was a time in Canada when they had that tainted blood thing that was going on.
That was courted almost like ammunition for him. But anyway, I said, OK, fine, let's say medically that there's no benefit to them whatsoever. Let me tell you something, my friend. There's one blood transfusion. You can't do without it. And he said, oh, I said, yeah, the blood of Jesus Christ, God Son, cleanses us from all sin. Us interesting the setting, because they're in the office. The supers were there, the drivers were there, the secretaries were there, everybody's there and they're all listening.
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You know, for this, so there's the verse the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanses us from all sin. While Needless to say that ended it and no more issues came up after that. And by the way, he was very angry when that was presented in years later. He said to me after he left, he said, you know, Wilson, he says there isn't a man in this company. He said, I despise as much as you. I said, well, I feel sorry for you, I really do. But I said I don't take back what I've said because it's the word of God.
And unless you believe what the word of God says, that you're going to die in your sins.
Well, I remember too, Brother Ed, right there in Pleasantville where you live when the 10th meetings were being held. And I remember 2 Mormons one night they came into the gospel meeting and as soon as the meeting was over and the brother stepped down from the platform was just a young brother. And he stepped down and these two men immediately button holed him ready for an argument. And as they opened their mouth to speak, an argument, this young brother.
He looked at them and he's and well, they I should sit back up a moment. They said they began their argument by saying the greatest man that ever was born into this world was Joseph Smith and they were ready to argue this, but what did the brother do? He looked at them and he said of those born among women, there have not risen a greater than John the Baptist. They closed their books and they walked out of the tent and that quoting a verse of Scripture like that had more power. He might have stood there for hours and argued.
To make them see a certain point of view, but the quotation of a word, the word of God had more power and conviction than all the arguments he could have presented. First Peter 123 being born again, not a corruptible seed, but of incorruptible.
By the word of God, which liveth and abideth forever. James James chapter one verse 18 of his own will begat he us with the word of truth that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures. I think it's so beautiful as the city of his first 12 and just like to say for the benefit of anybody who.
May be here without the Lord Jesus.
Had a lot of people sometimes say how do you receive Christ?
Very simple here in this verse. Doesn't say you have to pray. Doesn't say anything more than this brief phrase at the end of verse 12.
Believe on His name. That's the way you receive Christ.
Believe on his name.
So that was the message, wasn't it, in the jail in Philippi, when the Philippian jailer asked what must I do to be saved?
Did he receive want some long sermon as to what to do to be saved? No, I like what it says there. And they said Paul and Silas said to him it seemed like they were of one mouth in it. They said believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved. Nothing magnifies the grace of God. I don't believe more than what we have in verses 12 and 13.
Verse the end of verse 12 even to them that believe on his name, which were.
Already born of born not of blood, nor the will of flesh, nor the will of man, but of God.
They were born again and then they believed. I'm not ashamed of the Gospel of Christ, for that's the death, burial and resurrection of Christ. For it is the power of God unto salvation to everyone that believeth. And the Word was made flesh, or the Word became flesh.
Tremendous statement of truth.
The Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only Begotten of the Father. Full of grace and truth, we beheld a glory that had no beginning.
The only begotten of the Father, the glory of an eternal relationship, as what John speaks of. Here we beheld his glory. It was something that only faith could see.
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The natural eye could not see this glory at all. All the natural eye could see was a man. Is not this Jesus of Nazareth?
Carpenter, Son who? Who? Who is he who maketh he himself? John says, We beheld his glory. The glory is of the only begotten of the Father.
Could something be said please on the only begotten? The thought in that is there's only John uses that expression.
There are two express No, there's two times it's used in the other gospels but not referring to the Lord Jesus.
But it's the only John uses it, applying it to the Lord Jesus, and it refers to His nature, His essential being, as of the same substance as the Father, the only begotten of the Father. It has nothing to do with time. It has nothing to do with His ever entering into this relationship. It's the expression of an eternal relationship. He was there.
The Father's bosom from all eternity in that relationship, as of an only begotten with the Father.
One with the Father in essence, in substance, in essential glory, in person, is ontological glory as the only begotten Son of the Father, of the same nature as the Father himself. I think that's the force of only begotten.
Simple way I try to remember it is that.
You said it's his relationship to God eternally.
When it's first begotten, it's his relationship to other things.
So first begotten is different.
Only begotten eternally.
As the only begotten Son, He is alone.
He has no brethren as the first begotten from the dead. He has many brethren. One applies to Him in His manhood as the first begotten of the dead, the only begotten Son in the bosom of the Father. That's His essential glory in the Godhead.
And we don't take part in that. Is it the confusing of those two things that has caused so much trouble? You take it from Hebrews chapter one or six that this refers to the Lords coming in a future day. The 1St Hebrews 1 and verse 6. And again, when he bringeth in the first begotten into the world, he sat, and let all the angels of God worship him. The angels are created beings too.
So it is in a future day that they're going to worship him.
That's a different expression than only begotten, isn't it? Yes, yes, entirely. Well, you said the expression first begotten was only spoken after He had become into this world. That's why I called attention to this verse. It might be thought that that was His incarnation, but it really refers to His coming in glory in a coming day. Is that it? Must be getting close, going to delight in bringing His first begotten Son into the world.
All the glorious that's going to accrue to him.
Displayed we're far that creation be there with him. The angels are part of it. I suppose the last verse of our chapter brings it before us. Just read the last verse of our chapter. He saith unto him, Verily, verily, I say, and you hear he shall see the heaven open. And the Angel of God asks Cindy. And descending upon the Son of Man, Word was made flesh and dwelt among us.
And verse 16.
And of His fullness have all we received.
In Grace upon Grace, verse 17. For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ.
We live in a very special.
Time, do we not?
When we know the one who came to make grace known to us, grace is such a remarkable truth that it's something that's difficult to grasp.
That God would give the glory to Christ.
In everything in connection with Grace.
Because grace always turns us away from ourselves. The law turns us to ourselves, that we might be something in the eyes of God, but it would only turn into failure and ruin. But the grace of God.
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Grace and truth came.
And he dwelt here.
And he made known to man.
Did that gone?
In Too Rich.
To sell, we're too poor to buy. So to be brought into this grace is to turn us away from ourselves to realize.
That God comes forth in grace and gives us all in Christ.
What a privilege it is to live in this day when we know the administration of grace. Grace is the undeserved favor of God to, isn't it? Someone said, why don't you preach more about love instead of about grace? Or you might love a person because they're lovable. But grace is something that's entirely undeserved. And that's why these gospel emphasizes the grace of God. The grace of God that bring us salvation hath appeared to all men.
Full of grace and truth, that's what we needed. We couldn't keep the law. We couldn't measure up to God's holy requirements. And if God was going to bless us, it had to be on that principle or there would be no blessing because we deserved only His judgment. And so it's full of grace and truth. God hasn't in any way compromised anything of his truth to reach out in such a way. He has blessed us because.
The Lord Jesus for all the penalty of those sins. And now God can come out in the riches of his grace.
I remember reading in paper one time and a man around Christmas time and he was a judge and there were a number of traffic violations brought up before him. And he said, well, I'm going to show the Christmas spirit today and I'm going to let these people go. They won't have to pay their fines today because I'm going to show the Christmas spirit.
But he didn't put his hand in his pocket and pay those fines. He passed them over and they still, those people were still guilty, but he just passed them over. God doesn't pass over sin. Every one of my sins was laid upon the head of the blessed Lord Jesus and he bore them all. If that judge had put his hand in his pocket and said I'm going to pay every one of these men's fines myself out of my own pocket.
Then it would have upheld the justice of the court.
And God must uphold the justice of God's throne, but he also is a God of all grace. And so through the work of redemption, grace and truth come together. Truth of God requiring a punishment for sin, and the grace of God that sends the Lord Jesus to pay the full debt in full in order that we might partake of this grace that was in his heart.
Stand before him, holy and without blame, in love.
Because of the sacrifice of the Lord Jesus at Calvary, we learned from Romans 3 that God.
Can be just.
In justifying him that believeth in Jesus. What a marvelous truth that God could be just in bringing a Sinner into all this blessing because of the sacrifice of His beloved Son.
A Calvary God being just in justifying him. Whoever it is that believeth in Jesus, that judge showed forgiveness in an unrighteous way.
God can't do that. He always has to act in righteousness, doesn't He?
Grace is reigning through righteousness. He cannot compromise His Holiness and His righteousness. He can't be less than who He is.
Analogy to the Lord Jesus Christ being made flesh. The Word being made flesh. It says in Colossians chapter 2 verse 9. And him dwelleth all the fullness of the Godhead bodily.
Relative to our receiving grace on grace, and ye are complete in Him. Grace having come teaches us to deny on godliness and worthy loss, and to live soberly and righteously. And godliness present order of things, waiting for the blessed hope and the glory appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ.
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So He is. In Him was the fullness of Godhead, and we are complete in Him, having received grace upon grace.
God is light and God is love. I've often thought grace is the manifestation of the truth that God is love. Light is the manifestation of the truth is the manifestation that God is like. And so those things were perfectly meshed in the in.
Balanced in the life of the Lord Jesus never did he go to 1 extreme we go in our lives we sometimes are we want to be faithful to the truth and we forget about love or we want to be very loving when we forget about truth but in every instance it's beautiful to go through especially this gospel of John and trace those.
Two moral characteristics in the life of the Lord Jesus, as He met individually one after another.
Perfect balance of those two things, grace and truth, full of grace and truth. It's pictured to us perhaps in the Old Testament with the blind flower, isn't it? It's a picture to us of His perfection in every aspect.
But I was thinking of this little expression in our verse, and we beheld His glory. Brethren, that's a tremendous statement for us to stop and to meditate upon. As John said later on in his epistle that their eyes had looked upon and their hands had handled of the word of life. They saw the Lord Jesus here, but they saw Him by faith as more than just a good man, because there were many when the Lord Jesus was here.
Who were willing to recognize that he was a Goodman. They were even willing to recognize that he was a prophet. But there were those who to whom was given faith to see beyond, shall I say, just his flesh as a man, it says there is no beauty that we should desire him. That is when the Lord Jesus walked here. I don't believe there was anything that would make him outstanding. Sometimes an artist conception of the Lord Jesus paints him with a Halo around his head or something.
I don't believe there was anything like that because those who saw His glory and beauty saw it by faith. Our brother Hajo was Speaking of the Tabernacle and how those badger skins were put over it. But when you got right inside and looked up, what did you see? The badger skins know the curtains of glory and beauty and all those wonderful things that spoke in a various aspects of the person of the Lord Jesus Christ. And so John said, we beheld His glory.
Peter said we were eyewitnesses of His Majesty, but what about us brethren? This was true of the Lord Jesus and those that were here when He walked amongst men. But just turned to 2nd Corinthians for something for us where we are now in Second Corinthians chapter 3 and verse 18.
But we all with open face, beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, or looking at the glory of the Lord with unveiled face, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord. What is this, brethren? Well, to put it very simply, its present occupation with Christ, because it's true. The Lord Jesus isn't here in this world the way he was when John saw him and Peter saw him.
And those who had their eyes opened by faith saw his glories and beauties as he walked through this world. But brethren, the heavens are open to us now. That's what Hebrews does. It opens up to us, the heavens so that we can look up and see where the Lord Jesus is now. And in Hebrews chapter 2, it says we see Jesus Christ.
With glory and honor, we too, by faith, can look up and be occupied with the man in the glory, with his glories and his beauties and his attributes. And as we were saying this morning, that's what who God would occupy us with. That's the object that God would have before our souls.
And we sometimes sing that little prayer. Brethren, I trust it's a desire of your heart and mind. We sing it, I say, to my own soul so quickly sometimes, and with so little thought, I'll fix our earnest gaze. So, holy Lord, on Thee, that with Thy beauty occupied, we elsewhere none may seek. Brethren, is that really the desire of our hearts? The heavens are open to faith, and we can look up true. We're going to behold His glory in a far without the.
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In a far more wonderful sphere, because just to follow the thought, on we've had the past, John, they beheld the glory of the Lord. Here in the present we behold with unveiled face. But then in the end of John 17, the Lord said in anticipation, I will that they also whom thou has given me, be with me where I am, that they may behold my glory, and so on.
The days coming when the hindrances are going to be removed and we're going to be hold his glory unhindered.
But in the meantime, brethren, we need to look up beyond the horizons of this sad world, beyond the circumstances of life. We need to look up into the open heavens and get a fresh glimpse of a lovely man there. Is that why in the family?
Epistle. The first Epistle of John, and that first few verses it says, that which we have seen and heard, declare unto you, that you also may have fellowship with us, and truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ.
And then it gives us lovely encouragement, brother, and I love to think of it as I walk along through this world and as we walk along and fellowship with the Lord and in community. These things right we unto you that your joy may be full and you know that's what the Lord wants you and me to have full joy. The apostle Paul on the second epistle of the Corinthians in the end of the first chapter, he says not that we have dominion over your faith, but our helpers of your.
He says for by faith you stand and we've been talking today about faith and faith always wants to bring me into the fellowship and the enjoyment of that love as we've been speaking about. But you know also to know of that man as soon as coming to man in the glory and that's our our present hope and any moment we expect to hear that shout.
That would bring us right there and then what remains? Glory.
Glory. And that's why we sing about it, that's why we rejoice in it. And the Lord wants us to encourage 1 anothers joy in these things. Is that right?
When I visit a Christian who's going through a difficult circumstance, physically or otherwise, and that Christian is bubbling over with joy, why is it? Well, you don't have to talk to that Christian very long to find out that their joy is in the Lord. They're occupied with the man and the glory, brethren. It's the old corn of the land that we read about in the Old Testament. It's occupation with the risen Christ.
True, we go back and trace his life and we see that life. It's an example for us.
We find comfort from it because we know that he, as our high priest, is entering into what we pass through because.
He suffered these same things here, sin apart. It's true. We look back to His death on the cross. That's the Passover. The manna brings before us Christ in his life. But brethren, I believe too, we need the old corn of the land. What's going to lift us above the trials? I have no doubt there are brethren here this afternoon whose hearts are burdened.
Trials and difficulties in your life, problems in the assembly. Perhaps you say I don't want to go back next week and face all those difficulties and trials, but what's going to lift you above the trials? I say it's feeding on the old corn of the land it's occupied with Christ in glory.
Like to comment on the little expression in verse 14. I think it's so beautiful.
He dwelt among us.
So tremendous to think here was the eternal God.
Become flesh.
Christianity.
It's so important to realize is not something.
So exalted that it only the most intelligent can reach it. No, he dwelled among us. Here was a man that passed among men, and many did not recognize that he was anything more than a mere man.
And yet he was the eternal God, upholding all things by the word of his power. He sits tired, on the edge of a well. He's thirsty. He knows what hunger is. He knows what sorrow is like no one else. He knows what it means to be.
Alone, here is someone who came right where we are.
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And I think it's so beautiful, the apostles and John, first John chapter one could say we heard him, we seen him with our eyes. We contemplated him and so close he came. They could say our hands have handled him of the word of life. This is where.
Our God has come. He dwelt among us. Isn't this wonderful?
Dear young people, it's not Getting to know the Lord is not something that only brethren that understand a lot about Scripture can know. You can know it right where you are because that's where He came to lift us up. And so right where you are, right where you sit this afternoon.
The problems you may be facing. He came right where we are.
It dwelt among us. He is so beautiful to realize this is our God, the one that passed in armies. He has declared Him. What you're saying, Bob, is the end of verse 18. No man has seen God at any time. The only begotten Son, which is in the Father bosom of the Father, He has declared Him.
Luke begins his beautiful gospel by saying a declaration.
Of those things which are most surely believed among us, that's the gospel of Jesus Christ. And taking up the gospel in Romans, it says he's declared to be the Son of God. With power. We see God in the person of the Lord Jesus. We don't lose anything. We have all the declaration and all the knowledge of God in Jesus that you'll ever have.
I think it is important that our young people understand that Christianity.
Is based on historical fact. The Lord Jesus as God was born into this world as a man. That was historical, backwards, not philosophical. It's not something that takes a great mind to understand. It's things that actually happened in the history of this world. Our God came here.
He dwelt among us.