I have. I've been praying about where
to go. From here after we we completed,
which I say completed, you don't complete study on the God that
we worship. I brought a few messages on that
and and that series, which was actually a series that I tried
to preach last year down in Mexico to the preachers. And so I've
been praying about where to where to go from here in this first
message. And I feel that the gospel of
John is where I'd like to begin. So turn with me there to John
chapter one, verse one. John 1.1. Before we begin, let's have a
word of prayer. Our Father, it's so good to be
able to call upon You this morning and to know that in Your infinite
mercy and grace, You've allowed us the privilege to be in a place
where Christ is honored has by your mercy and compassion been
honored, Lord, all these many years. Thank you that, Lord,
you've allowed the candlestick of your grace to be here until
today. Lord, we've got one more day
that we might be able to hear. We realize that we have no promise,
no promise of tomorrow, No promise of the next breath. But Lord,
thank you. Thank you that you've raised
up a church in Katy, West Virginia, and allowed the glory of God
in Christ to be preached. Lord, help us today. Help us
to worship. Help us to seek. Help us to hear. Help us to understand. We thank
you. Bless Your Word to our hearts
for Christ's sake. Amen. Let's read verses 1 to 5. In the beginning was the Word,
and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was
in the beginning with God. All things were made by Him. And without Him was not anything
made that was made. In Him was life. And the life
was the light of men. And the light shineth in darkness. And the darkness comprehended
it not." The Spirit of God moved upon The Scripture sets forth as the
beloved disciple. That's a marvelous Scripture
to me that the Lord loved. I mean, you know, He loves His
people. He's loved them with an everlasting
love. You read that passage, the one
that leaned upon His breast, That was John. That's who the
Spirit of God moved on to pen this. And John the Apostle, an eyewitness
of the glory of God, wrote these words down. And here we are, met together
today to hear. The cure of the glorious mystery. That's a wonderful way. I heard someone use that word
one time concerning the gospel, the mystery of the gospel. We
don't meet today saying we understand this. How many times have we
read just these first five verses right there? How many times have
we heard those words quoted or referred to? And still, the mystery
of the Gospel, the glorious mystery of Christ, here preserved in holy Scripture,
holy writ, is the person, the character, the office of our
Savior. He who the Scripture sets forth
ever liveth. This one that John the Apostle
wrote of is right now interceding before God's throne as our mediator,
our great high priest, pleading His merit, just His presence. sitting seated in the heavenlies. The Father said unto him, Sit
at my right hand until I make all your enemies your footstool. What a glorious mystery this
is. We are here today to just consider
something of the mystery, and I am so thankful that I would
be able to be here, just privileged by the grace of God, not because
of anything that I've done, but because it pleased Him to allow
me the glorious privilege to be here. As we approach these Scriptures,
let us do so reverently, prayerfully, and ask Let's ask again. Ask in your heart right now.
Lord, speak to my heart. I don't understand. If you understand
anything, it's because as the Lord told Peter, flesh and blood
didn't reveal that to you, but my Father which is in heaven.
Blessed art thou, Simon Bar-Jonah. You've been blessed of God. In
the beginning, in the beginning. Now there's
a word that, a phrase that exceeds our ability to be able to understand. In the beginning. God is eternal. There's never been a time that
He was not. But that phrase there, in the
beginning, obviously insinuates a start. It was a start. And about the only way that we
are going to be able to enter into a start of anything concerning
the eternal God is going to be the start of time, of creation. The Scripture says, Genesis 1-1,
in the beginning God created. Well, now you know that He was
before the creation. The eternal God, the Lord Jesus
Christ that the Scripture says in Colossians 117 is before all
things. And by Him all things consist. So God never started, but time
started. God was pleased Start in creation. In the beginning, the eternal
God began to do something. He created all that we see and
know and behold concerning this glorious universe. In the beginning
was the Word. The Word has eternally existed. The Son, the Glorious. And I understand, I mean, I hear
the word, the second person of the Godhead. I mean, I've heard
that phrase and I mean, I guess I understand what we're trying
to say, but not second as far as Glory. Position. The Son. The Son of God. He has always existed as the
Word. In the beginning was the Word. God who never changes. In the beginning, the Word existed. He who spells out deity. He who utters all that God has
to say. Almighty God has always spoken
through the Word. What about when the Lord Jesus
Christ at his baptism came out of the water and a voice
was heard out of heaven? And we know that the Father spoke. How did He speak? He is spoken by Son. You say,
how can that be? This is the glory of the mystery
of God. God, no man has seen the Father
at any time. The only begotten Son, He hath
declared Him. God is spoken by Son. How can that be? We're not here
to understand it. We're not here to explain it.
I'm here to say that this is how our God speaks. He speaks
by the Word. And you see, therein we bow in
our hearts. In the beginning was the Word. He who hath declared Him, no
man hath seen the only begotten Son hath declared. He has told
Him out. If I could figure him out, then
he's not the God of this Bible. And the Word was with God. In the beginning was the Word
and the Word was with God. He doesn't say that the Word
was with the Father, though I know He was. and the Son. I know He
was. It says the Word was with God. Proverbs 8.22, the Lord, the
capital L-O-R-D, Jehovah, possessed me. We've looked at this in our
study in Proverbs. Possessed me in the beginning,
in the beginning of His way, or ever the earth was. Then was
I by him as one brought up with him, and I was daily his delight,
rejoicing always before him." The Word was not a thought in
the Father's mind or purpose. He was the Word Himself. He existed. The Word was with God. before Him. Always possessed by Him. There were times that we read
in Scripture. I'll look at this. I don't want
to get ahead of myself. Verse 14 says of this, and the
Word was made flesh. But there were times when the
Scripture sets forth that Almighty God manifested Himself before
the actual birth, before the actual incarnation that we read
of in the Gospels in Matthew, Mark, Luke, John. When He came to Abraham, there
He was with two angels, and it was the Lord, and Abraham knew
He knew who it was. He looked at him. He saw him. He talked with him. He talked with him concerning
Sodom. There was the Word. That pre-incarnation
manifestation of Himself. Jacob wrestled with the man That was the Lord. Jacob, under the inspiration
of the Spirit of God, says, I've seen God. The Word was with God. And the Scripture says, and the
Word was God. God was the Word. Who can express God but God?
What do we know? What we hear this morning? It
is the Word Himself speaking through what God Almighty has
allowed us to have. Some Scriptures. Holy Scriptures. The Holy Word of God that we
make much of. We would desire to make much
of it. Read the Scriptures. Search the
Scriptures. These Scriptures, based upon
the authority of the voice of the Word Himself when He walked
upon this earth, He said to two on the road to Emmaus, these
are they that testify of Me. with Moses and all of the prophets. He expounded unto them in all
the Scriptures those things concerning Himself. Search the Scriptures. The Word of God, God's written
Word, sets forth that which the living Word, that you can't separate. My sheep hear my voice. Isn't it wonderful this morning
to be able to hear that voice that is not the voice. I am a voice. I understand that. As John said,
I'm just a voice crying in the wilderness. But there's another
voice. And the voice that the believer
hears In that new ear, in that new heart, in that new mind,
you rejoice in it. Right now, for everyone in this
congregation that God Almighty has given a new heart, your heart
rejoices. You rejoice. You rejoice because
you do hear His voice. I know you do. And I know it
based on God's Word. hear my voice. And they follow
me. They believe. They trust Him. Second verse, the same was in
the beginning with God. The Word who has eternally existed
and never began was with God. As I said a while
ago, He wasn't an idea. He wasn't a thought. He was the
person, the glorious Word. That's the way the Son has always
been. The Word. If we would know God, then study the person of the Lord Jesus Christ as He
is revealed in Scripture. What he says, I said last Wednesday
night, if you want to know the right way to do something, the
right attitude to have, the right, what did the Lord say? And take
that word right there. That's the way He did it. That's what we would strive after.
That is His word. That is His command. All things,
verse 3, were made by Him, and without Him was not anything
made that was made. Since the redemption of God's
elect, according to the Holy Scriptures, has been laid to
Him, as the Scriptures reveal Him to be God's servant, as God's
servant, the Word Himself, made flesh. He who took upon Himself
the form of sinful flesh, yet without sin, meaning that He
was a real man, truly a man. He who has ever stood as the
surety of God's sheep. who in that everlasting covenant
of God's grace has said, I will answer, I will
live, I will die, I will bring, I will intercede, I will save
my people. Therefore, in the creation, all
things were made by Him and they were made according to His absolute
power and will and purpose to do that which had been entrusted
to Him, save God's elect. And He who created all these
things, though I realize that this world appears as though
that it's out of control. And that which Almighty God allows
to happen is by His divine purpose and
will, all things work together for good. All of this turmoil
and all of this, you know, I'm the world's worst. About looking at what's going
on in current events today, and I say, how in the world can anybody
In their right mind, man, here I'd go. Man, you want to know
what I really think? Just give me a second, then I'll
stop and just think. I said, well, Lord, may I be brought to bow
before you who made all things. And without you, nothing was
made that was made. Lord, you who Working all these
things after the counsel of your own will to bring honor to yourself
and your people to you. All things. Ephesians 3, 9 says, And to make
all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the
beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things
by Jesus Christ. You think about, sometimes I'll be musing upon
stuff. And I thought they're all things
created by the Lord Jesus Christ. And who came into this world
and humbled himself, humbled himself. Meek. Came up, had an earthly daddy. Daddy was a carpenter. Daddy
taught him how to read a rule. There's an inch. Right in the
middle is a half. There's quarters. Told him how to make angles.
How to take a piece of wood. How to build a chair. And here
is the Lord Jesus Christ that made all of this. that spoke
it into existence. And it was by Him that all things
were being held together for His eternal purpose as He went
about doing His Father's will. Know ye not that I must be about
my Father's business? You talk about submission. All things made by Him without
Him. Not anything made that was made.
Verse 4, in Him was life. Well, being the Creator of all
things, then life is in His hands. He's the origin. He's the source. He's the fountain of life. Natural
life, spiritual life, eternal life. Life. In Him was life. I mean, we're breathing this
morning by Him. The Scripture says, in Him we
live and move and have our being. I mean, just natural. A squirrel runs up a tree. That life is there by the Lord
Jesus Christ. In Him was life. All life. Any life. A plant in him was life. The Scripture says in John 17,
2, Thou hast given him power over all flesh that he should
give eternal life. Now, there's a difference. There's natural life. spiritual
life. A great, great mystery. The impartation of life in Him
was life. And the amazing thing is that
somewhere along the line is Almighty God is pleased. I was writing a letter this morning
to Brother Kyle Brink. Japan, he was conversing back
and forth. And I was talking about a time
in my physical life when the Lord began to deal with me concerning
the glorious person of the Lord Jesus Christ. You see, before,
man by nature thinks of this One the Scripture refers to as
the Lord Jesus Christ. He's a tool. To a natural man, he's a tool
that somehow man can take and use that tool by exhibiting what
men say is faith, that they say all men have and they don't,
and somehow you can use him as the tool by which God will allow
you to come into heaven if you've exercised. Somewhere along the
line, back in the late seventies, Almighty God began to deal with
me concerning Christ. The gospels concerning Christ. And somewhere in that area, And
I know sometimes people will say, well, I know the day I was
converted, you know, they give me the time. I can't. Somewhere along the line, and
I think that every honest man or woman agrees with this, the
Lord began to deal with you. And I do know that somewhere
we went from darkness to light. I understand that. But I'm telling
you, for me to be able to look back Say, I could tell you quicker. I could tell you quicker and
more accurately the day I was conceived humanly. I can't do that. And I could
to tell you what Almighty God was doing. How do you perceive
the grace of God? How do you know? I mean, somewhere
I'll tell people if you believe Him today. There's the issue. What think ye of Christ today?
But somewhere along the line, the Lord began to deal with me
and some things began to make sense. And life was imparted,
obviously, because I believe Him. In Him was life. And the life, last part of verse
4, was the light of men. Light, right here. And the life
was the light of men. I said it backwards. And the
life that is in Christ was the light of men. Now, I know this. The Lord Jesus Christ said, I
am the way, I'm the truth, I'm the life. So I know that life
is in Him. But to say that the life, that
is Christ, was the light of men is to say that the Lord Jesus
Christ is the light, now hear me well, of all men. He is the light of all men without
exception. I will prove this by Scripture.
Look at verse 9. I am not getting here this far,
but look at verse 9. That was the true light which
lighteth every man that cometh into the world. Every man. Now let me tell you what I didn't
say. I did not say that this scripture teaches that there's
a spark of divine life and there's faith in every man. That's not true. But I'll tell
you what this scripture does set forth. That man, every man,
is born with some light. The Scripture says in Romans
2.15, speaking of unbelievers that show the work of the law
written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness. And let me tell you the light
that every man has. Every man has this light. He knows right from wrong. He knows right from wrong. There
is a conscience in every man. When you do that which is wrong,
you know it. Believers, unbelievers, that
is the light of the life of Christ. Every man is born with a conscience. Therefore, no man is excused
from his responsibility to bow to Christ. They are, the Scripture
says, without excuse. Do you see that tree right there?
You're without excuse. Nature bears witness to the glory
of God and His power. Nature reveals it. But I will
tell you this. Nature doesn't reveal the mercy
and grace of God. But that light right there makes
every man without excuse. That light that every man has
is from Christ. Every man, every woman is without
excuse. All men are responsible before
God. They're morally enlightened. Not every man is spiritually
enlightened. I know that. And I'll tell you
this, not every man, every woman is going to be called out of
darkness. I can tell you that for a fact. There's some that the Lord didn't
pray for in John 17. I pray not for the world. I pray
for those that you've given me out of the world. He told Jeremiah,
I said, there's some don't pray for them. I'm not going to hear
you. Paul the Apostle wanted to go
into certain areas, into Asia, and the Spirit of God said, no, I will not allow you to go and
preach the gospel there. Were those places that God withheld
the hearing of the gospel, were they without excuse? No. They
had the light of nature. They had a conscience that bore
witness. A man is without excuse. You
will never stand before God and say, you know, I just didn't
know. I'll tell you the horror of it is having heard the gospel
and refuse it. The Lord said it would be more
tolerable for Sodom and Gomorrah in that day than it will be for
you. In Him was life, and the life
was the light of men, all men. All men have got some light.
It is the light of their conscience. That is what Scripture says. But how do you know where the
Lord has left men to themselves? Verse 5, and here is where we
will close. And the light shineth in darkness, and the darkness
comprehended it not. Do you know that this is the
only instance, this is the only instance where darkness does
not yield to light? When power goes off the house,
and it does, you know I can take a flashlight,
I can feel my way back, I know where they are. And I'll find
a flashlight and when I turn that flashlight on, do you know
the darkness yields to it? I'll get a coal oil lamp and
I'll fire it up. I can see. Darkness always yields to light. Always except right here. Light shineth in darkness. and the darkness comprehended
it not." You talk about coldness, hardness. Oh, how blind. Now, you were
talking a while ago in verse 4, and the life was the light
of men. If light, if light that is in
you, that's what the Scripture says. So obviously it is there. If the light that is in you is
darkness, how great is that darkness? How great is the darkness of
unbelief and rebellion against God? But we have one hope, and I can't
leave that last Scripture. I can't leave like that. I want
to end it like this. My notes I wrote, we have a hope
that God Almighty would show mercy in regenerating grace. I do understand that the light
shineth in darkness and the darkness comprehended it not. I remember
the first time I ever heard anybody tell me anything concerning God's
sovereignty, God's purpose, God's will, as opposed to my will and
stuff. And I thought to myself concerning
the person that was telling me that, you are the most foolish thing
I've ever heard in my life. How foolish you are that you
would actually believe that God would be that way. But listen
to this hope right here, this Scripture. 2 Corinthians 4, 6,
For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, has
shined in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of
the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. More than the
light of conscience, more than the light of nature, God Almighty
who commanded the light. That's power. When God Himself
said, I command you to hear and has shined in our hearts, give
us a heart and give us ears to hear and eyes to see. Like Lydia,
He just opened her heart and she attended to the words that
were spoken of by Paul. I think, praise the Lord for
God's sovereign grace. Grace that is greater than all
of a man's sin. Grace that does not leave a man
to himself. Grace that will not leave a man
in darkness. And God commanded the darkness
to move. May God Almighty bless these
words to our heart as we study this blessed book, the written
account of Him who is God Himself. Made flesh for His honor and
our good. Amen. Let's take a few minutes
break.