Turn back to John chapter 1.
I appreciate that reading this
morning, and that's where I want us to spend our time this morning
in the first 11 verses. These verses teach us the Lord
Jesus Christ and His role as the very Word of God. Everything
God had to say, He said through Christ. I'm also going to ask
you while you're turning there to pardon me this morning. not to draw attention to myself,
but to explain a few things. I came down with Lyme disease
several months ago, and it has done a number on my mind. I feel
like I'm 80 or 90 years old instead of the 35 that I really am. But nonetheless, I have prepared
this message in manuscript, which I hardly ever, ever do. And I
apologize for it. Manuscript messages are not the
best means by which to convey the gospel. But I had a lot of
things that I wanted to make sure I said and I put them down
in manuscript. So you just follow along with
me. It may sound like I'm reading
and I am and sometimes I won't be. But may the Lord bless his
word. I'm convinced that He uses people,
and I don't know of a single person in this world that brings
anything to the pulpit that's worth anything. God does his
work through men to show that the glory is all his, and I'm
just delighted for it to be that way. All right, let's, instead
of reading again, I want to pick right up there where he read
earlier in John chapter one. You know, it takes about 775,000
words. to say everything that God had
to say to us in the English Bible. That's a lot of words. He actually
said it all, though, really in one word. He said it in the Lord
Jesus Christ, the living word. There are two main terms that
were used in the original text to describe words. One of those
words focuses on the grammatical form. That is all the things
you learned in English class and Spanish class about the role
that each word plays in the sentence. The other one, however, speaks
of the meaning, speaks of the substance, speaks of the reality
represented by that word that's written or spoken. Now, as long
as our knowledge of God's word is limited to the mere symbols
that we read in the Bible, You can memorize, you know, there's
who's that fellow? I heard him. Jack Van Empie,
you've probably heard of him. When I was in religion, everybody
claimed that he was just great. The man can quote every verse
in the Bible. You know, I never heard a single gospel word out
of his mouth. Could speak every word God ever
revealed and knew nothing about him. Oh, my. If all we know is
the mere symbols that we read on the page or the audible sounds
that we hear from a preacher's lips, our knowledge of the Word
of God will prove to have absolutely no value to us. You might master
Hebrew and Greek, those two ancient languages by which we have what
we have in our Bible today. We may know the definition of
every word in those ancient languages in which God has revealed his
mind to mankind. We may master all those rules
of grammar. Translate the scriptures from
their original texts. We may even learn to pronounce
those words like the disciples did. That's what they tried to
teach us in Bible college, was how we can pronounce the Greek
words right as though it made a difference. But if we do not
know at the end of the day, if we do not know the Word of God,
of whom all these 775,000 words speak. We will only have
the outside shell, just the mere form, the religious sound, but
we will not have any knowledge of the reality of God Almighty
perfectly. Everything God is, everything
God thinks, everything God had to say, He said in one word,
the Lord Jesus Christ. You know that word, you know
all other words and how to interpret them. Oh, my. Without the Lord
Jesus, it's all just a religious noise. It's a form of worship,
just useless religious chatter, unless the living word, the Lord
Jesus, reveals himself in us. And oh, how I pray that he might
be pleased to do that here today. If we know him who is the word,
You know the Lord Jesus Christ, you know everything God has to
say, every last bit of it. Now the sense of our text that
was read earlier relies heavily on the repetition. You saw that
in there, the repetition of the verb to be. Now it's used, and
I'm saying this just to point out a particular item there that
I think will help us, that verb to be is used Frequently in the
early early verses of that chapter in the imperfect tense now don't
I'm not going to give you a grammar lesson today Don't worry about
that. I feel pressed however to emphasize what might be appear
to be a very small point But I feel burdened to do so because
of the gospel message this path that contains and it can be easily
diminished unless you see this the verb was is used here some
seven times in a manner which clearly illustrates and demonstrates
the deity of Christ. The imperfect tense that's used
here is that one which describes it's an action that's already
in process at the time when another action takes place. I'll give
you this illustration of how that works. I was fortunately
already in the process of going to college when I met my wife. That's a good example of the
imperfect. There was something going on
when something else came in and actually something else in this
case was much more important than what was going on. So glad
I met my wife and the Lord brought us together there in all of these
seven instances in our text was the word was is used to show
that the Lord Jesus Christ already was. He was that thing that was
already going on. had been for a long, long time,
ever since all eternity, when all these other things came to
be that we have recorded for us in the Gospels. He was away
before them, long time before any of these things ever happened.
The Lord Jesus already was, and he had continuously been from
eternity. Everything God's elect stand
in need of before he ever came into the world. Now, because
The action of the verb was indicates the eternal existence of the
Lord Jesus then in this passage. Before everything else was that
came to pass in time, then we could justifiably read this text
in that manner. Next time you read it, you may
do that. You may read that as already was. It gives you a little
more insight into the passage. In the beginning, the word already
was. John wanted to make sure and
the Holy Spirit made sure that people who read this gospel understood. that he didn't begin when he
came. He had already been for a long,
long time. In the beginning, the Word already
was, and the Word already was with. He was one with God, united
together with God, and the Word already was God Himself. This one already was in the beginning
with God. All things came to be, all things
became, through him, and without him not one thing came to be,
not one thing became which has become. In him already was life,
and the life, that is, that life that was in him already was the
light of men. And the light shines in the darkness,
and the darkness literally that says the darkness could not lay
hold of it, could not subdue it. As dark as this world is. Anytime you turn on the light,
what's darkness do? Flees. It flees. Everywhere Lord
Jesus is. I don't know if you have loved
ones like I do. Loved ones that you just pray
for all the time and you pray that the Lord will just turn
the light on for them and cause the darkness to flee. I have
no fear. I have no fear in His ability
to turn the lights on for the deepest, darkest, most sinful
soul in this world. He turned them on for me, and
I wasn't looking. I wasn't looking. I thought I'd
found it. I thought I'd found Christ. He
turned the light on for me, and I was in a whole new world, a
whole new world. Verse 6, there came a man. A man arose on the scene, having
been sent by God, whose name was John. This man came for a
witness, nor that he bear witness concerning the light, nor that
all. Be aware of that. This is not
a universalist gospel. This is a gospel for God's elect.
It's gospel for God's elect. He's not saying that he came,
that every man be saved. But when he says that all, you
must remember back when these folks were writing, there was
only two kinds of people. There were Jews and there were
Gentiles. We were in the Gentile group. And so when he says all,
he's not talking about all men inclusive. Every individual he's
talking about, not just the Jews, but other guys as well. Thank
God he was, he wouldn't have gotten us. Yeah, but all men,
not just Jews, all men, Jews and Gentiles alike believed through
him. Verse eight, he was not that
light. Those were spoken of in verses
three and four, but he was sent, John was sent in order that he
witnessed concerning the light. He already was the true light
before He ever came into the world. He was already the true
light coming into the world who enlightens every. And there again
is that same idea. Not that He enlightens every
man. Oh no, God doesn't enlighten every man, but He enlightens
every kind of man. What kind of person are you?
Then there's hope for you. Every kind of person. God enlightens those whom He
pleases from every kind of person. Verse 10, he already was in the
world. Well, he made it. I guess he was. He already was
in the world and the world came to be, was created through him
and the world knew him not. He came to his own. That is,
he came to his own. In this particular verse, he's
talking about the things he made. He came to his own created things.
And his own people, that is his own created people, received
him not. But as many as received Him,
here's how they did. To them He gave power, that is,
ability, freedom, authority, to become the children of God,
to the ones believing, being persuaded, having confidence,
being convinced of who He is, believing in His name. Who not
of bloods. Bloods here, I'm sure again,
was another word that the Holy Spirit inspired to make sure
that the Jewish here is understood. It's not because of your being
able to trace yourself back to Abraham, Isaac, or Jacob. Not
of bloods. Not of bloods. Can't be passed down from parent
to offspring. And if there's any young people
in the house today who are thinking that because my mom and daddy
saved, my mom and daddy are faithful in this church, that that will
have some implications for me. It cannot. It cannot. Oh, no. No, it's not of blood. It's not
who your parents were. Not what lineage you came from.
Nor of the will of the flesh. Nor of the will of the flesh.
The will of the flesh speaks to who we are. There is nothing. I would be remiss if I did not
hit that note as hard as I can hit it. There is nothing in us. I don't care who you are. You
may have preached the gospel for 50 years. You may have gone
to church ever since you were born into this world, never missed
a Sunday. You may have read the Bible a
hundred times over and memorized it. Oh my. No, it's not of bloods
nor of the will of the flesh. There's nothing in our flesh.
It might be religious flesh. It might be flesh that's theological
flesh. No, not of the will of the flesh,
nor by the will of a man. Now, what's that talk? Nor by
the will of man. What's that talking about? I think he's talking
about religious leaders. Nor by the will of a man. A man. You know, there's some men that
I've met in the gospel that I hold very highly in my heart, in my
mind. I respect them greatly. I respect my pastor. I respect
Brother Henry. First voice I ever heard. Preached
the gospel with Brother Henry on a tape. I was an African.
Dad sent me a tape. I heard the gospel and the Lord
wouldn't let me get away from that. I have high respect for
these people. However, however, there's not a one of them. Not
your priest, not your pope, not your preacher. Not a one of them
can do anything for you in this matter of salvation. Not a one.
No, not by the will of a man. but of God." I like that verse. And then it says how? We're born. Born. It's a fresh start. Something has to start all over
again. Something we can't bring anything to. Now, let's take
a closer look then at a few of these things. In the beginning,
the Word already was. Before the material universe
ever came to be, It's recorded to establish that the Lord Jesus
Christ is the great creator, God Almighty, in every sense
that the Father and the Holy Spirit are God Almighty. His
human body, however, was not eternal. It had a beginning.
In the womb of his mother Mary, where the eternal word of God
was literally made flesh, he had a beginning. However, his
personal divine essence never knew a beginning. Never had one. That's how Christ could say centuries
before he was ever born into this world. When Moses asked
for his name, he told him, I am. You can just call me I am. I
am that I am. And he said, Thou shalt thou
say unto the children of Israel, I am sent me unto you. Now, you
remember also what he says of himself in Malachi chapter three,
verse six, he says, Hear the Lord Jesus, God's eternal son,
gives these glorious words of comfort. I am the Lord. I change
not. Therefore, you sons of Jacob
are not consumed. Now, here's the substitutionary
death of Christ at the precise moment in the stream of time
brought brought about by an eternal and irrevocable redemption for
all God's elect who existed before he died, all who lived after
it, And even those who have not yet been born, it was done in
time and covers all of time. Then said the Jews unto him,
while you're not yet fifty years old and you've seen Abraham.
Jesus said to them, before Abraham was, I am. That's our Savior. That's the one spoken of in this
passage. This revelation was also given to John a second time.
Let me just briefly give that verse. John speaks it again in
1 John chapter 1, verse 1 through 4. Let me read it to you. What
was from the beginning, what we have heard, what we've seen
with our eyes. I find it interesting he didn't
say who. The Holy Spirit inspired it as what. Not that the Lord
Jesus is not personal. He is a who. But he's a who that
we don't know nothing about. He's a who we can't figure out.
So he says what. What we've seen with our eyes,
what we beheld, what we gazed at, what our hands touched, handled
concerning the living word, the word of life, and this life,
and the life, this life, the Lord Jesus Christ was manifested,
made clearly evident, and we have seen, we bear witness, and
we proclaim to you the eternal life, which already was with
the Father in eternity past, and was manifested to us in time.
We've seen and heard and we proclaim also to you in order that you
have also have fellowship with us. And indeed, our fellowship
is with the Father and with his Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. You know, John never got over
that. He never got over the glory of sitting there listening to
God Almighty speaking to him in person, seeing him actually
looking and gazing upon God Almighty in the flesh right before his
very eyes. He touched him. He's the one
who leaned back on his chest at the supper. He wrote numerous
times about the glorious Savior who had no beginning and will
have no end. Let me show you another verse, another couple
of verses that he wrote. He couldn't get away. The Holy
Spirit kept him right there. In 1 John 2, verses 13 and 14,
twice he calls the Lord Jesus Christ the one from the beginning.
That one that's not like us. He was a long time before we
ever got here. In Revelation chapter 1 and verse 8, John records
the Lord's words in regard to his eternal being when he says,
I'm the Alpha and the Omega. The one who, again, that verb
is the same, the one who already was. You can start anywhere you
want to in past history, and he already was. He already was
God Almighty. Already was the one coming, the
Almighty. The glory of Christ. Being the
eternal word of God means that nothing occurred. Here's my here's
my hope. Nothing that occurred before
the foundation of the world. Nothing that has occurred since
the foundation of the world and nothing that will happen before
the end of the world can possibly alter to any degree the purpose
of him who is God's unchangeable word. from the beginning. He's the eternal son of God and
the word already was with God. That little word with carries
so much meaning there. With in every sense of what it
means to be three persons and one being. One Godhead. He already
was in that. He didn't start somewhere down
the road after he got here. He didn't prove himself worthy
to be a member. After he got here, it wasn't
the cross that made him one of the three. He already was already
was God Almighty. The word with is used in these
passages to speak of the eternal and inseparable union that Christ
has always enjoyed with the father. There's no sense in which the
Lord Jesus Christ ever was, is now or ever will be in any way
inferior to either the father or the spirit. He's just like
them. same God of God. Therefore, the
name son is not given to Christ, not given to Christ as a result
of his incarnation. He's always been God, the father
son. He was God, the father son before he ever came. The designation
son, as it applies to Christ, then speaks primarily of a sameness
of nature. In this case, it can truly be
said like father, like son. They share the same divine essence.
They're exactly God Almighty. True, the Scriptures clearly
set forth with very infinite accuracy that that is exactly
the case, that God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy
Spirit are all the same God, three persons in one divine essence. Now, the Scriptures do set forth A
subordination when you think of their roles that they play,
their relationships. Christ prayed to the Father.
I don't remember reading the Father praying to the Son. The
Son prays to the Father. There is an obvious difference
in their roles and relationships, but there's no difference in
terms of their deity. Each one shares the same divine
essence. The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, each one
is as fully divine and absolutely holy, equally eternal as each
of the others are. Now, here's the conclusion of
all true theology in this matter. There isn't a single attribute
of the divine nature of the triune God that is diminished in any
one of his persons. And that particularly is important
when it comes to the God-man. There's not a single aspect of
deity that is missing or diminished or in some way lessened in the
Lord Jesus Christ. He's God Almighty. Wouldn't you
rather be saved by God Almighty than the puny weak Jesus that
people are preaching around this country today? It makes me sick
and it makes me sad for them. Makes me sad for them. They have
a Jesus that they have to hold up. But Jesus said they have
to help either by free will or by some knowledge or something
else. I'm so glad I'm saved by Jesus
Christ, God Almighty. Save this sinner. I have no fear. I have no fear in his ability
to save me. So whenever Christ is called
the Son of God in the Bible, it speaks then of the role and
relationship that Christ enjoys with the Father, not a lesser
God. But when the scriptures speak of the Son of God, they
speak of the Lord Jesus Christ, who has absolute power, full
divine authority to save sinners in the same way that Christ's
power to save is through his essential union with the Father.
That's how we're saved. Everything we receive in salvation
is the result of Christ's union with us. He doesn't do something
to us. He does something in us. He doesn't
do something from him to us. He does something by joining
himself together with us. That's the essence of salvation. Salvation is the result, then,
of union. Union with Christ. I think that's
probably the worst thing I remember growing up in religion, was that
everybody was looking for some feeling. They were looking for
some experience. They were looking for some physical
evidence, some outward manifestation that I could look to and hold
to and say, I must be saved. This happened to me. Oh, no. Salvation is union with Christ.
You're looking. You're looking at a sinner, but
you're looking at a sinner who was one with the Lord Jesus this
morning. Can't tell by looking, can you? Can't tell by listening,
can you? But it's so. It's so. He makes
it that way. Salvation isn't a what. What
did you do to be saved? I hope you didn't do anything.
I hope God saved you and you trusted Him as a result of it.
I hope you didn't do anything. That whole idea of getting saved.
It sounds like getting sick or something. It sounds like catching
a disease. I got saved. Well, I hope you get over it.
I hope you get over it. This isn't a deal that we enter
in. to with the Lord Jesus, it's the King's divine decree. Every
time he says he does so by decree. When he determines to do for
his elect here on earth in time, what he has always decreed to
do since all eternity, he comes to us in that moment that he
chose, in the venue that he determined, in the manner which he has always
decreed, and he joins himself. to us in eternal salvation. That's how God saves sinners.
Our understanding of divine truth, our absolute trust in the Lord
Jesus, our determination to follow him has nothing to do with anything
in us. Your response means nothing.
Your response is the result of his word. It's all the result
of him becoming one with us, of his own gracious accord, In
spite of our sin, in spite of our rebellion, and in spite of
our religion. Let me read you a few verses
in that regard. Paul writes to the Romans and
says, now if we be dead, that is literally if we died with
Christ. I have no memory of that. Happened
before I came into existence. But my Bible teaches me that
time means nothing to God. And when He died, I was right
there with Him. My sins were the ones that caused
him to die. Oh, if we died with Christ in
union with Christ, but Mark, that's before we were ever born.
You can't, you can't have an activity before you're born.
My Bible says I can't because word says I did through the work
of the Lord Jesus. Oh, if you died with Christ,
we believe we will also live in union with him. If I was in,
if I was one with him on the cross, I believe I'll be one
with him when I die. He wrote the Galatians the same thing.
He says, I've been crucified together with, that's union with
Christ. I was crucified in union with
Christ and I live no longer. God already slew me in union
with my substitute. I died with Christ, but Christ
lives in me. Christ lives in union with me.
And the life I now live in the flesh, I live by the faith of
the Son of God, the faith which looks to Christ only, nothing
in me and nothing I do, the faith of which the Son of God is the
sole glorious object, that One who loved me and gave Himself
for me. I had the same thing to say to
the Ephesians. Even when we were dead in sins,
He quickened us in how to do that together with Christ, in
union with Christ. Colossians got the same message
as well. If then you were resurrected, you were spiritually raised from
the dead through union with Christ, then seek those things above
where Christ is sitting at the right hand of God. Mind then
the things above. What are the things above? Golden
streets and pearl walls? No, the things above is my Savior.
My salvation, my life, everything I enjoy in the spiritual realm
is above. Think on those things. Mind the
things which are not on the earth, but those things which are above.
For, he says, you died. He literally told the Colossians,
you died. How'd you die? You died in Christ. And your life has been hidden
with Christ, together with Christ, in union with Christ. in God. All who are with Christ in God
have always been with Him, are always with Him, and always will
be with Him. Inseparable union. Not inseparable
union because of how hard you pray, how firmly you hold to
the truth, how much fervor and vigor you cling to Christ. No.
No. Always in Christ, because He
joined Himself to me. He ain't letting me go. My Bible
teaches me as ornery as I am, and as foolish as I am, and as
stupid as I am. I'm stuck to Him. I'm stuck to
Him. That's where I want to stay.
That's union with Christ. That's salvation. Now, there are three works I want
to share with you, then, in light of this truth. Three works. that only the Word of God can
perform. First of all, salvation is an act of creation. Look with
me at a couple of verses in John chapter one. John chapter one,
let's read verses 12 and 13. Salvation is an act of creation. Talks about those who were born. Born, not of blood, nor of the
will of the flesh, nor the will of a man, but of God. Salvation is a new creation. Where'd that baby come from?
I've got my youngest one back there this morning, so take her
to see. My youngest grandson. Where'd he come from? How'd that
come out to come to be? How'd that beautiful little rascal
get into this world? He was born. One minute there
was nothing. And the next minute there were
a couple of cells. And from that it turned into
that. That's pretty amazing. But not nearly so amazing as
where'd these believers come from? Where'd they come from? How are they this way? How do
they think like this? How do they know what they know?
How do they find absolute assurance in something that the world says
is a bunch of baloney? How does that happen? Where did
they come from? They were created. Believers
don't go to an altar, pray through, and be saved. Believers don't
come from a man counseling them into the kingdom. Believers don't
come just because they made a decision for Christ's utter, utter foolishness. Believers are born. They come
from nowhere, but the grace of God, that's exactly where they
come from. It's all by grace. Now, salvation is an act of creation. Salvation is an act of resurrection. Listen to what he said to the
Ephesians. But God, who is rich in mercy because of his great
love with which he loved us, even while we were dead in trespasses,
quickened us, quickened us. I clearly, I have clear memories. They're getting foggier and I'm
thankful for that. But I have clear memories of thinking I
was saved for a long, long time. I lived, I was raised by a free
will Baptist preacher and early on they got me to walk the aisle
and do that thing that they do and be baptized and go through
all those motions and I remember those things. I remember those
things and then one day I remember under the sound of the gospel
that I heard from this man. I remember being raised from
the dead. And I knew things I'd never known.
And I agreed with things I'd never agreed with before. And
I understood a gospel I'd never heard my whole life. I was born. I can't explain that any other
way. I cannot explain why I stand before you, a saved man, other
than I was just born this way. I was just born this way. And
finally, salvation is an act of enlightenment. John wrote,
he says, he was the true light. He already was the true light
coming into this world who enlightens, enlightens every man, every kind
of man. Paul told the same thing to the
Corinthians. For God, the one commanding,
commanding light to shine out of darkness is he who shined
in our hearts. unto the enlightenment of the
knowledge of the glory of God. Where'd that come from? Can you
produce life? I thought I could. I thought
I could. I thought I could get close.
I studied. I went all things. I still don't know how I did
that. I was basically there to get her. But the Lord sent me. My parents said I need to go
to Bible college. And I went to a Bible college and they taught
me how to study Greek and read Greek and all those things. I
was very smart at one time, believe it or not. I was basically there to get
my beloved. I know that now. But, you know, as much Greek
as I knew back then and as much as I could do with it, I was
in the dark. I couldn't see a thing. And when
the gospel did come to me, I remember when Dad sent me a tape from
Henry. I listened to that tape and I said, that can't be that
way. That just can't be so. But it was. And you know how
I saw that it was. The Lord enlightened me. He turned
lights on that had never been on in this soul. And I understood. I saw clearly that it couldn't
be any other way. When you turn the lights on,
it's just the way it is. It's just the way it is. And
God showed me the way it was. Oh, if salvation is an act of
creation, then what can a man or a woman do? Now, tell me,
what can a man or a woman do to create themselves? Doesn't
even make sense, does it? If salvation is an act of spiritual
resurrection, what can we do? What can we do to give ourselves
eternal life? Oh my. And if salvation is an
act of divine enlightenment, God turning the lights on, how
in the world can sin-darkened sinners like us deliver ourselves
from the darkness of our sins? We cannot. We cannot. My prayer, and I hope your prayer
is, I just want to be found in Him. I want to be found in Him. Well, let me see if I can finish
up here. Now, I had one more verse somewhere,
but I have misplaced it. Let us just wrap up this way. All of us through the course
of our lifetime will learn many words. All of you young people
in school, I'm sure you're learning some foreign language, French
or Spanish or something. You'll learn a lot of words.
You'll learn as you go through life to communicate better and
better. You'll learn bigger words and more words and things, deeper
meanings of those words. And they're helpful. Words are
helpful. We need to communicate with each
other. It's what life is made of. God made it that way. He
gave us all our languages. But there is one word. Oh, may
the Lord make this clear to us all. There is one word. that said everything God ever
had to say. All the wisdom of God, he said
in one word, the Lord Jesus Christ. If you never learn another word
in your life, may God bless you and teach you this word. And
may you find everything you ever lost, everything you ever needed
in the word of God, the Lord Jesus Christ. Let's pray. Lord, thank You for gathering
us together. Thank You for doing this on a regular basis. Lord,
You bring these people together. You bring Your Word to them through
a man. Lord, teachers that teach the Sunday school. And then,
Lord, they go home and they hear godly men and women, children
hear godly men and women talk to them about the Word. Lord,
how I pray, may the Word not just be in our minds, Some things
we know, some doctrines we believe, some verses we can quote. Oh,
Lord, would you be present, living and real, in the hearts of your
people. Teach us, Lord, and we know if
we know that word, we'll know all things. All things. And Lord,
in Him, may we be made wise. For it's in Christ's name we
pray. Amen.