Seeking for the help of the Lord,
I direct your prayerful attention to the Gospel according to John
chapter 1, and we read through our text, verse 14. Verse 14, and the Word was made
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."
And it is specifically the last part, full of grace and truth,
that is, upon my spirit, we have the words again, emphasised in
verse 16 of His fullness, have all we received and grace for
grace. And then in verse 17, for the
law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ. And yes, in our text, the Word
is our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. The Word, the Eternal
Word, the Eternal Son of God, was made 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. In beginning this morning, I
desire to look at five instances leading up to our text, including
our text, of those things which are joined together. The Word
of God often does this, it joins things together. We cannot separate
them, our Lord, with the parables. He often put two things together,
a contrast if you like, in those instances, the parable of the
publican and the pharisee in the temple, not just one, but
them both there, and he contrasts how they both pray. The pharisee
only speaking of his good works, the publican, God be merciful
to me, a sinner. Very often then the truth of
God is set forth with two things that are joined together. And solemnly, when one only is
taken, then it leads to error. We think of what the Lord Jesus
Christ is exalted to give, repentance and remission of sins. Wherever
there is forgiveness, there will be repentance. The two, they
go together. And so it is in the passage here. We begin with two births. In verse 13, we have a spiritual
birth, which is set before us. A people, a people that are the
sons of God, and they are born, born again of the Spirit. In
John chapter 3, our Lord speaks to Nicodemus of the necessity
of the new birth. He must be born again. And Nicodemus, he stumbled at
it, he said, how can it be that a man go back again into the
womb and be born again? The Lord was not speaking in
a natural way, but a spiritual way. We all, when we are born,
we are born in trespasses and sins. We are dead in sins, completely
dead spiritually. We're alive naturally, we can
see, we can hear naturally, we can partake of food naturally,
we can speak one to another naturally, but spiritually we cannot perceive
the things of God. The natural man receiveth not
the things of God, neither can he know them, because they are
spiritually discerned. The natural man is not subject
to the law of God, neither indeed can be, we are not dead. And that is the sentence of God
upon our first parents, when they ate of the forbidden fruit
in the garden of Eden, In the day that thou eatest thereof,
thou shalt surely die. And immediately they died spiritually,
their fellowship, friendship, union with God was broken, and
in due time they were to die physically. And all the presence
of sickness and death and sorrow in this world comes because of
the sentence of God against our first parents' sin. We are under
condemnation. We are sinners. That sentence
has already been exacted out upon us, but we are given life. We are given time. We are given
the times of our lives. And in that time, there is the
gospel preached. There is a work that God does
in countless millions in quickening them into spiritual life. And that is called the new birth. And that is what it is speaking
of here in verse 13, which we're born, not of blood. That is,
it doesn't go through a bloodline, not like a royal family, that
those that end up being the kings or queens of this country, they
are born to be a king or a queen. They are in that line. And so
is not a blood, nor of the will of the flesh. How much it is
that we might think, well, we can make ourselves a Christian
and we can make ourselves to be born again. No, we cannot. It is not the will of our flesh
to do that. We do not have a will to do that
by nature. Our nature is depart from us.
We desire not the knowledge of thy ways. and nor is it of the
will of man. Those of us that know the Lord,
that love the Lord, we are very much like our children and our
grandchildren, to also be saved, to also know the Lord, to also
be born again of the Spirit. But it is not by the will of
man. We cannot make a Christian, however
much we will it and desire it, we cannot do that. But God can. And so that is where we read
in verse 13, but of God, there are those that are born of God,
and it is His will that they be quickened into spiritual life. Now, I want to speak a little
bit more of this later on, so I won't speak more on that yet,
but at this point, I want to do the joining together. So we
have the birth, a spiritual birth of the people of God, bring them
out of nature's darkness and into God's marvelous light, they
are born again. And then we have the second thing
that is joined to it, which is our text. And the word was made
flesh and dwelt among us. That is our Lord and Savior,
Jesus Christ, was born into this world. Our Lord became man, and
the coming into this world is inseparably joined with the new
birth of His people. No Christ, no Emmanuel, no Saviour,
no death, no precious blood shed at Calvary. There could be no
birth, no spiritual birth, no spiritual life. Our Lord is very
clear, I am come that they might have life and that they might
have it more abundantly. So we have the first thing, the
two things joined together, the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ
to this world and all that he did in this world and the spiritual
life of the people of God. The Lord said, because I live,
ye shall live also. Joining together, how vital it
is that we realize that if we are quickened into life, your
life, my life is bound up with the life of our Lord Jesus Christ. and what He has accomplished
at Calvary. Two births, remember that, the
birth of our Lord and the birth of His people, they're joined
together here in verses 13 and 14. The second thing that is joined
together and very closely aligned is the word made flesh and dwelt
among us. You might say, well, surely there
are those things that would happen. Well, John the Baptist, who is
introduced here as setting forth our Lord Jesus Christ, he is
the messenger that was foretold to go before him When he was
born, when he was growing up, he was in the deserts until his
showing unto Israel. He did not dwell among his brethren
at all. They didn't see him. We think
of Moses. He did not dwell among his brethren
before he led them through the wilderness to the promised land.
Firstly, he dwelt for 40 years in Pharaoh's household. He dwelt
for 40 years in the backside of the desert, before his showing
unto Israel. It is two separate things, the
fact that there is a being born, and then being shown. Someone
might have a baby, and the baby is born, is alive, but they hide
it, like Moses was hidden. He is not shown, he is not known. And so we have these things joined
together. The Word was made flesh. Our
Lord Jesus Christ came into this world. He was born, made of a
woman, made under the law to redeem them that were under the
law. But He dwelt among us. And That, of course, was cast
at him sometimes. They said, is not this Jesus,
the son of Joseph, the carpenter's son? Are not his brethren here? He dwelt with them. Our Lord
says no man is accepted in his own country. A prophet is not
accepted in his own country. Our Lord did dwell among us. He truly walked this earth. Why
is it so important that that should be so? Because it is His
righteousness, His perfect life and obedience that is to be imputed
or put to the account of His people, of believers. It is vital that He lived a life
that we could not live. He died a death that we could
not die. and that he dwelt among us, it
is a witness. Those that witnessed his death,
you might say they were to be witnesses of his death. But there
must be also witnesses of his life, that he did live a perfect
life. Never man spake as this man spake,
witnesses spanning the 33 years of his life, that he really did
exist. He really did dwell among them.
He was a real man. He was not just a spirit man. He was not just an apparition
just appearing and appearing to be something that he wasn't.
No, he was truly made flesh and dwelt among us. And so those
two things are very important, just as much as a witness of
his death and resurrection is a witness of his perfect life. We are to consider the Lord Jesus
Christ, that he endured the contradiction of sinners against himself, lest
we be wearied and faint in our minds. May we remember this as
we also have to walk this world and with all of our problems
difficulties and contradictions of men against ourselves. Remember
the Lord Jesus Christ, He dwelt among us. He said, how long shall
I suffer you? How long shall I be with you? He beheld all their sins, all
that they did. He didn't dwell in some ivory
palace somewhere, in some golden palace. He didn't dwell separate. No, He was right. amongst those
for whom he came to redeem. The third thing, where there
is a joining together, is his glory and the Father's glory. We have, of course, that beautiful
truth of the Trinity, the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. The Father
is God, The Son is God, the Holy Ghost is God. They're all persons. When He, the Spirit of Truth,
is come, He will guide you into all truth. It is the Spirit that
quickeneth. It is the Holy Spirit of God
is spoken of a person. Grieve not the Holy Spirit of
God, whereby ye are sealed until day of redemption. and the Son
and the Father. If you have seen the Father,
if you see me, you've seen the Father also, our Lord said. I
and my Father are one. They are truly God, each one,
and yet distinct persons in the Godhead. Now what is joined together
here is the glory, the glory of the Son and the glory of the
Father. Our text says, the Word was made
flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, that is
the glory of the Word, the Lord Jesus Christ, the glory as of
the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. To the
glory of the Son and the Father are one. Father, our Lord says,
glorify thy Son, that thy Son may glorify Thee. And those that reproached our
Lord, the Lord said that they reproached the Father also. If ye receive my word, ye will
receive the Father's word. He that receiveth me, receiveth
him that sent me. And the Lord has come to glorify
the Father, to glorify His name. And so these things are joined
together. How vital it is in redemption
that the one sent to redeem has full authority from heaven, and
the work of the one that is redeeming, all that he does is actually
glorifying the one that sent him. Not going against him, not
going contrary, not taking the glory to himself, but giving
the glory to God. And so this then is the third
thing that is joined together, His glory, the Father's glory. The fourth thing is God's glory
to behold and grace and truth. We beheld His glory the glory
as of the only begotten of the Father, so there is the glory
of God that is to be beheld, and that is joined together with
grace and truth, full of grace and truth. If you want to see
the glory of God and the Father, you will see it in grace and
truth. That is how it is manifested. That is how it is shown. And
may we remember that. I want to look at that again
further later on. But then the words of our text,
or the words specifically, upon my spirit, full of grace and
truth. Two things joined together, not
just grace, not just truth, but grace and truth. Grace is the free, unmerited
favor of God and truth. Islet asked, what is truth? God tells us that, and our Lord
tells us in John 17, thy word is truth, that is God the Father,
His word is truth. And then our Lord tells us in
John 14, verse six, I am the way, the truth, and the life. The Lord Jesus Christ is the
truth. And then we are told by our Lord
as well, when he the spirit of truth is come. So the whole Trinity,
Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, That is the truth. In Ephesians
4, we read, as the truth is in Jesus. And that comes down to
a very clear statement, the truth is in Jesus. The Lord said to
those that believed on him, in John 8 verse 31, he said to them,
if you continue in my word, Ye shall know the truth, and the
truth shall make you free. These things, they go together. Grace is joined with truth. To receive the truth of the Father
and the Son and the Holy Spirit is the gracious act of God. It is the kindness, free, unmerited
favor of God to give to a poor sinner the truth. Well, I want
to then look at three main points. Firstly, the source of grace
and truth. There is a source of that that
is set before us here. And then secondly, the beholding
of grace and truth. We beheld his glory. grace and truth, and then lastly
the grand end to which grace and truth are shown, and thinking
especially of Psalm 84, he shall give grace and glory, those two
things going together. But firstly the source of grace
and truth, That source is in God, is in our Lord and Saviour
Jesus Christ. And maybe always look to where
the source is. Where does this verse come from? Anyone that is truly seeking
the truth and seeking to know what things really are, don't
seek it from man. You trace it back to man. Why is just poor sinful man? You need to trace it above man,
above those that are just the same as you. The Apostle Paul
says, Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ. May we never be left to follow
men. Through the history of mankind
and since our Lord came and the gospel sent forth, there's been
so many cults and also even linked to our own denomination, where
men follow men. They worship the minister, they
worship the preacher, They follow Him to the exclusion of everything
else, besotted with them. Don't do that. We are to seek
after the Source by the Holy Spirit even. The third person
in the Trinity does not speak of Himself. He does not glorify
Himself. Contrary to what? the charismatic
churches would say that there's a demonstration of the spirit
as seen. No, wherever the spirit is, like
when he first fell, there was the speaking in identifiable
tongues, but what they were speaking was the wonderful works of God. What the spirit had revealed
to them and shown to them, that is what they speak. And all taught
of the Spirit will speak of the truth that the Spirit has revealed
to them. And why they will speak of it
is because of the grace of God. But the source is on God. When we come to the Holy Word
of God, We have a source that traces right back, not to some
date in history, but to the very beginning of the world. What
would we want other than a book that testified that it is the
Word of God, that says it is the Word of God, and that goes
right back to the beginning of the world, in the beginning God. That is how the Bible starts. That is how the Word of God starts. And it's a great blessing to
receive it from Genesis to Revelation as the Word of God. It shows us the source. It shows
us the beginning of time. It shows us the source of the
beginning of history. It shows us all the beginnings,
those first three chapters in Genesis, the beginnings of the
world, the beginnings of man and woman, the beginnings of
marriage, the beginnings of the law, mayest eat of all the trees
of the fruit of the garden, but not the tree of knowledge of
good and evil, the beginnings of sin, the beginnings of death,
the beginnings of that sentence against sin. We have the beginnings of marriage. You have so many beginnings. The Sabbath day, one day in seven
principle, the beginnings of the animals, the animal kingdom
is all set forth. It is a book of beginnings. And then when we come to the
New Testament, the source of salvation, in the Lord Jesus
Christ, his redemption, that which has already been foretold
right through the Old Testament. If you and I are looking for
the free, unmerited favour of God, we are to look for it from
God himself, in the channel and way that God brings in. if we desire to know what the
truth is. And today, many will say there
is no absolute truth. It's only in the way that you
and I perceive it. But if you and I, and even if
those people that deny an absolute truth were to be walking across
the road, and suddenly a car was careering at high speed towards
them, They wouldn't stop and say, well, I'm not sure whether
that's truth or I don't really believe it is coming. They wouldn't
think about it. They'd jump out of the way and
get off the road. They would realize that that
actually what they were beholding was real. It was the truth. And
yet in the matters of the soul and things concerning eternity,
man says, oh, you can believe this and I can believe that and
we'll both get to heaven at last. And there are many ideas, but
they're not based on anything. They're not based upon the word
of God. Thy word is truth. And how vital it is that we know
what we believe, because it is based on something outside of
ourselves, is based upon the word of God. The source of grace
and truth must be realized and if you and i are falling short
and saying well it's just based upon what this scientist says
or what this philosopher says or what this man they are sinners
like you and i they still must die they're still under the sentence
of death what gives them an authority that they should know the truth
the truth is that that is perceived by God, as perceived by God,
not by us. We can often think that something
is the truth, and it's only because of our perception of it. If you look at something happening
from a certain angle, you might see two cars, two people, and
you think for sure they've hit each other. but it's only the
angle that you're looking at it. You go from a different angle
and they're quite a way apart. You can have pictures of people
that seem to be holding up the moon or holding up the sun. And
what they've done is to get the photographer in such a way that
the person holds up their hand and behind them is the moon.
And they get in exactly the right position and they take the photograph,
and it looks like they're holding it up. But it's only just an
illusion. It's because of the angle that
they're looking at it. But we want that which is seen
by God. And God does not see as man sees. God sees every man. He sees from
the beginning of time to the end of time. He sees his plan,
his purpose. He sees our outward and He sees
our inward. He sees our hearts. He sees our
thoughts. He knows all of these things. We cannot hide anything from
God. He knows the truth. And so I
want to emphasize in this first point, the source of truth is
in God. And you and I, if we are to be
just with our souls, faithful, good to our souls and to ourselves. If we care about our bodies,
our souls, our eternal destiny, then we are to look to that source
of grace and truth and make sure that what we receive is from
that source and not some other source, a source that is not
owned of God. and God will not honor at that
last great day. Another aspect and that is joined
to this, not only is there a source of grace and truth, but it is
able to be communicated. You know, in our car park outside
of this chapel, There is a covered over well. It used to be a well
that served the cottages that were here and that were in the
front of the car park but because it got polluted and there was
disease in it years ago it was covered over. So there's water
And no doubt there is still, and we know there is, because
we've had to seal the baptistry here because the water seeps
into it. The water table is very, very
high. So there is a source of water that is in this area. And we think of the water restrictions
and drought, and you think, well, if the water was pure and clean,
then the best thing for us, we can put down a borehole in this
area and we would not have to go down far and we would get
water and be able to pump it up. I was in Australia, worked
in the company working on pumps and in Australia many of our
cells were borehole pumps. the water was deep down, the
source was there, but it needs to be communicated. This is what
the woman at the well of Samaria said to the Lord, who sat on
Jacob's well, and he said, if thou knewest thee give to God,
and who it is that saith unto thee, give me to drink thou task
of him, and he would have given thee living water. And she says,
whence hast thou this living water? The well is deep. You
have not got the ability to get down to that source and get it
up, in effect He's saying, now the Lord was speaking of that
spiritual life and living waters flowing from Him. But we have
in verse 16, and of His fullness have all we received and grace
for grace. God is not only the source of
truth and grace, but He does communicate it, He will. It is a mystery that is not hidden
from everyone. It is revealed and it is revealed
to His people. May we remember that. It is hidden
from the wise and prudent, but is revealed unto babes. It is
a source that by God is made known unto men and communicated
to men. but that man himself cannot attain
to it, cannot get it, unless it is given by God to them. So a source of grace and truth,
and a source that in God's purpose and design is to be communicated
to men, to sinners. So I want to look then secondly,
at the beholding of grace and truth. In our day, in the day
of the gospel, our Lord Jesus Christ is not dwelling among
us. He does not dwell on earth. The
Lord said, it is needful that I go away. If I go not away,
the Holy Spirit will not come unto you. And the apostle says
that even he, that we see him no more. But what is seen is
grace and truth. is the effect of it, is that
which glorifies the Father and the Son that is seen. When Barnabas
went to Antioch where the Christians, the disciples, were first called
Christians, he saw the grace of God and was glad. What did
he see? He saw those that were converted
from idols to serve the Living God. He saw men and women that
had received the truth of God and were walking in according
to that truth, he saw miracles of grace. And so in the first
beholding of grace and truth, we must speak of it as what we
did at the very beginning this morning of the new birth, which
were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor
of the will of man, but of God. Now in God's free favour, by
His grace and kindness to men, He uses the means of preaching,
He uses the means of the Word of God to show unto men the truth. And He does it in a way that
touches their hearts, attends the Word with power. with the
Thessalonians, the word came not unto them in word only, but
in demonstration of the Spirit and of power. And I do want to
really emphasize the great favor and grace of God if the truth
is revealed to us. What will the truth be? One of
the first things in which the truth of God is manifested is
the truth of our sinnership of the fall. Hymn 710 says, nor
are men willing to have the truth told. The sight is too killing
for pride to behold. And we see many that say, well,
we are Christians and we believe in God and we're going to go
to heaven. We believe in the grace of God.
Then you say to them, but do you know yourselves as a sinner?
Do you know that we are fallen in our nature. Do you know how
desperately wicked the heart of man is? The Word of God says
the heart is deceitful. Above all things are desperately
wicked who can know it, and they rise up against it. They don't
like to hear that. No, it's a vital, necessary part
of the receiving of the truth. It'd be like one that has got
a very bad illness, a cancer, or something that is within them
that is a fatal illness, and they go to the doctor, and they
want to know what is wrong. And, you know, sometimes the
doctors, they perceive that a person, though they're asking, they don't
want to really know the truth. And sometimes a patient, sometimes
a person has to say, look, I know you don't want to tell me, but
I want to know the truth. You know, when the Lord appeared
to Samuel, spoke to him and told him about Eli's house in the
morning, Samuel, he feared to tell Eli because it was bad tidings. But Eli begged him, he said,
you must, you must tell me the truth. And he did. But you know, Samuel knew and
Eli knew that many in Israel would not like to hear the truth.
And by nature, man does not want to know the truth. He does not
want to know that he has an evil disease of sin. He does not want
to know that he's under the sentence of death. He does not want to
know that God does not accept his good works because his good
works are all stained and marred by sin. And so really we may
say the greatest gift of the grace of God to a sinner is for
that person to acknowledge that they are sinners, to know it,
to feel it, painful though it is, to see in their lives, in
thought and act and deed, in word, everything, They have sinned,
all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. The law
was given that all the world might be brought in guilty before
God. We have in verse 17, the law
was given by Moses, but grace and truth by Jesus Christ. And the first evidence of grace
and truth being given is that that soul is quickened into spiritual
life. They then have ears that hear
the Word of God, ears that hear the Gospel. But first it will
be, as Paul says, the law is a schoolmaster unto Christ. I was alive without the law once,
but when the commandment came, sin revived and I died. But how can a man first hear
the law spiritually. How can he first hear that which
brings him end as a guilty sinner, unless he has life? There are
some that will say, well, the new birth is a process, he must
hear the word of God, he must hear the law of God, and by the
law of God, learn that he's a sinner, and then he will seek the Saviour,
and when he seeks the Saviour, he'll be saved, and that is the
process that he's born again. No, The Word of God says that
when we are in our sin, that God passed by us when we were
in our sin and made us live. The first act is an act of God,
as in the beginning of the world, when the world was without form
and void, the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters,
let there be light, and there was light. The first act of God
in regeneration is to make that one born again. He gives him
life. A baby must have life before
you can feed it. A baby must have life before
it can hear, or see, or know, or feel. And so in a spiritual
sense, it is the great blessing if God has given you to know
the truth and not push it from you and reject it, or pick and
choose. Pick out the nice parts. Pick
out everything that you think is in your power to do, but not
which condemns you as a wretched sinner before God. The greatest
blessing of God, that fullness that is in Christ, The glory
of God, the grace and truth go together. And may we remember
that. If the Lord has shown you the
truth of what you are in his sign, and the truth has been
under condemnation, the sentence of death, it is by grace that
you know that. And that will not leave you under
the condemnation of the law of Moses, because grace and truth
came by Jesus Christ, and that will lead to being saved. It will lead to hope in Christ. It will lead to heaven at last. The beholding of grace and truth
is the gift of God. I do so want to emphasize these
two things together. is a painful thing to see our
sin share, painful thing to see our guilt, painful to be under
the sentence of death. And yet how vital it is that
that be first, that God shows the malady, then the remedy. And if he has shown you the malady,
he will show you the remedy. Nebuchadnezzar says to those
that he had asked to tell him the dream, that he dreamed but
he couldn't remember the dream. He knew he had one, he couldn't
remember it. He said, you tell me the dream, and I will know
that you can tell me the interpretation thereof. You show me a person
that God has shown their sinnership and brought them in as sinners,
and I will show you a person that God has shed his precious
blood for, the Lord Jesus Christ has, and that he means to save. And therefore He has shown these
things to you, brought you in as guilty, to bring you to need
a Saviour, Jesus. His name shall be called Jesus,
for He shall save His people from their sins. And so it is
a vital first step. I really feel if we make an error
in the doctrine of the total depravity of man and the sinnership
of man, everything else will fall down. Everything else that
that church believes, if it does not receive what the malady is
as described in the Word of God, everything else will be wrong. Mankind did not need a slight
adjustment. It did not need an example. It
did not need an incentive. It needed a total, a total new
creation a new birth, it needed the work of God, not the work
of man to save fallen man. And so beholding the grace of
God, we behold irresistible grace. We behold the sovereign grace
of God. By grace you are saved through
faith and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God. and then it will be in our lives
as well. We read in verse 16, of his fullness
have all we received and grace for grace. God gives the grace
to know ourselves as sinners. By grace, he reveals a savior. By grace, he teaches us to pray. Prayer is a grace. And when that
grace is exercised, then through prayer, He gives every other
grace and favour along with that. In the trials that come in our
lives, like the Apostle Paul, the thorn in the flesh, the messenger
of Satan, my grace is sufficient for thee. Where the Lord begins
by grace, it is by grace we must continue in our lives. And it is in that we don't have
to. go right back every time we'd have a token for good to
when the Lord called us by grace when we were given the new birth,
but we can look upon day by day the grace that he gives us. A
child does not have to remember the day of its birth, it can't.
Very few of us can remember much before when we were four years
of age. But we know that we are alive
because we eat, we hear, we see, We have every evidence of being
alive and the work of God in a sinner's heart. His grace is
evident in their lives day by day. In what He reveals to them
of His truth and the grace and help that He gives them day by
day. God's children, their lives are
testimony to the grace and truth of God. And so beholding the
grace and truth of God is in our daily lives, but it is also
in others. We mentioned that of Barnabas,
how he saw those at Antioch, and his heart was glad. God's
grace and his truth should make a real difference in a person's
life, change how they live, how they speak, what they do, It
will be evident so that others see it, and others give glory
to God and glory to the Son, glory to the Father, by what
change is wrought in a man. I am what I am, says the Apostle
Paul, by the grace of God. Different he was before the Damascus
Road conversion and after it. the Lord had made that difference
and he gave glory to God. And we will see it in others,
and may we see it more and more, rejoice our hearts to see the
effect of the grace of God and the truth of God coming from
God himself and resting on poor sinners and seeing the effect
it makes in their lives. I want to then close with the
last point, the grand end to which grace and truth is shown. We must always keep the end in
view. What end does God have in view? He says, this people have I formed
for myself, they shall show forth my praise. The Lord speaks in
John 10 of his people, his sheep, thine they were and thou gavest
them me. The aim is that the Lord redeem
His people, He save His people. His name shall be called Jesus,
for He shall save His people from their sins. That is the
end in view. The end in view is to save His
people from their sins in this life, the effect of them, the
working of sin, the power and dominion of sin, and make them
kings and priests unto God. so that sin does not rule over
them, but they, by the grace of God, rule over sin. Every child of God will feel
every day a constant battle with the sin of his own heart. And it is through the Word and
through God's grace that he delivers them from being overthrown by
sin. Sin does not have the mastery
over them. They have the sword of the Spirit.
which is the Word of God. But at the end, there is a name
of which the Lord prays in John 17. Father, I will that they
whom thou hast given me be with me where I am, that they may
behold my glory. Behold his glory. What is his
glory? His glory is set forth in our
text, full of grace and truth. And there's the great culmination
of it. it shall be the topstone brought
with grace, grace crying unto it. We shall see in heaven, behold
the children, I and the children whom thou hast given me. There
is the glory of the Lord with his children, the firstborn among
many brethren, an innumerable multitude, all in heaven, all
praising the Lamb, sing the song of Moses of triumph over their
enemies, over their adversaries. This is the grand end in view,
and so we read in Psalm 84, he shall give grace and glory. The two go together, grace and
glory. No good thing shall he withhold
from them that walk uprightly. Why do they walk uprightly? They walk according to the truth
of God. They walk depending on grace,
not works. They walk depending upon the
Lord to bring them safe to heaven at last, committing their souls
to him who hath called them, suffered for them, bled on Calvary's
tree, and will bring them and present them safe above. So may the Lord give us to know
this grace and truth flowing from its source, from God himself,
may be known in our hearts and in our lives, be a comfort to
us, a joy to those that look on, and be to us a title to heaven
and a foretaste of that which is to come of the glory of God
above. The Lord add his blessing. Amen.