Anyway, I'd like you to turn
back in your Bibles with me to John 17. I just wanted to spend
some time looking at verse 8 of this remarkable declaration
of what it is for the children of God to be given saving faith
in the Lord Jesus Christ. He says, He says in verse 6,
I've manifested thy name. And then verse 7, they have known.
In verse 8 he says, because or for I have given unto them the
words which thou gavest me. And they have received them and
have known surely that I came out from thee And they have believed
that thou didst send me. So in those first two verses
of this particular prayer, before he speaks more specifically about
the apostles, There are five descriptions of faith, isn't
it? God has been made manifest to
them by the work of the triune God, and they have kept thy word. Verse 7, they have known that
all things whatsoever thou hast given me are of thee. In verse
8 he says, I have given them the words, and then there are
three great descriptions of what it is to have saving faith. They
have received them. and have known surely that I
came out from thee, and they have believed that thou didst
send me." We know from Ephesians 2 that faith is the gift of God,
and John 6 says this is the work of God, that you believe on the
Lord Jesus Christ. It is in Colossians 2 declared
to be the operation of God. faith in the operation of God. He says in 1 Peter, he says,
for as much as you know that you are not redeemed with corruptible
things as silver and gold from your vein, your empty conversation,
your empty walk in this world received by tradition from your
fathers, but with the precious blood of Christ as of a lamb
without blemish and without spot. Who verily was foreordained before
the foundation of the world, what was manifest in these last
times to you. And listen to this next phrase,
it's remarkable, isn't it? Who by him do believe in God? Why do you believe? do believe in God, that raised
him up from the dead and gave him glory, that your faith and
hope might be in God." In Ephesians, Paul prays for the church and he says, he talks about And
he said, when he hears of their faith, verse 15, in the Lord
Jesus and love unto all the saints, cease not to give thanks for
you, making mention of you in my prayers that the God of our
Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the
spirit of wisdom and revelation, which is exactly what the Lord's
been talking about in John 17, isn't it? Revelation. in the knowledge of Him, that
the eyes of your understanding, being enlightened, having been
enlightened by God Almighty, and it cannot possibly be undone,
that you may know what is the hope of His calling and what
the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and what is Verse 19, to usward, that particular
group that the Lord is speaking about, who believe, how do they
believe? According to the working of his
mighty power. precious thing. The Lord says
he's manifested his name and these people have kept his word.
They have known this is eternal life says the Lord Jesus Christ
in verse 3 of this same chapter that they might know thee the
only true God and Jesus Christ whom thou has sent. They might
know you personally. You cannot believe It's necessary for God to reveal. Revelation is absolutely essential
to knowledge. He's got to manifest the name
of God Almighty to us. And if he's manifested the name
of God Almighty, you love every action. Faith keeps the Word delivered
by the Lord Jesus Christ. Faith is knowing that Word, a
declaration of Him in an intimate and love relationship. People
want to say, don't they, we want to be kind all the time, and
we want to be charitable, and all the time we are, in some
way or another, wanting the road to heaven to be as broad as it
possibly can be. And God says it's narrow. God says it's restricted. God says the gospel is particular.
We are declaring the name of God. We are declaring the person
of the Lord Jesus Christ. And here he is declaring before
us simply what he's done. They will keep his word, they
will know. And then he says, I have given
them the words. Don't you love that? All of the words that the Lord
Jesus Christ spoke were words that were given to him by the
Father. We have a glorious unity in the purpose and the very activities
of the triune God of giving them the words. He says in John 15,
15, henceforth, I call you not servants, for the servant knoweth
not what his Lord doeth, but I have called you friends for
all things that I have heard of my Father. I have made known
unto you. The Lord Jesus Christ is the
Word of God and he treats the Word of God with the greatest
dignity, doesn't he? I've given them the words. How do we know that he has been
made manifest? by hearing, and hearing by the
Word of God. And what is his work in the hearts
of his people? Where that operation of God,
that faith which is the operation of God, they have received them. We must receive them. We must receive the Lord Jesus
Christ as he's declared to be. To receive them means to welcome
them. to embrace them. It literally means to take a
hold of them and hold them to yourself, take to oneself. Our
God is the great giver and throughout the gospel accounts, wherever
he gives, what happens? There is a receiving all the
time. If you haven't received, he hasn't
given. And if he has given, then you
have received. We receive them, we receive them
with joy. Don't you love the word of God?
I just love the scriptures. I love the fact that there is
just an elegance and a depth and a wonder to them. You can
take a passage of scripture, like I've studied John 17 for
years and years and years, and I've read it and loved it. I've
quoted most of it over and over and over again. Then I come and
study it, and all of a sudden it just grows and grows. which is why, where this word
comes, there is a receiving of it. And that receiving is not
a, we received Christ because we have life. We received Christ
because he has made him manifest to us. We received Christ because
we have kept his word, because he's given us his word. We received
Christ because we have known. We receive him as he declares
himself to be. If he gives you his word, you
will receive it as it is in truth the word of God. I love how Paul
describes the ministry that all of God's servants have in this
world. He says in 1 Thessalonians 1
verse 5, For our gospel came not unto you in word only, but
also in power, and in the Holy Ghost, and in much assurance. That word assurance here is not
the assurance about what they are, it's the assurance that
this is the word of God. This is God speaking. These aren't
my words. He says, for this cause, in verse
13 of chapter two, for this cause we also, we thank God without
ceasing because when you receive the word of God, which you heard
of us, you received it not as the word of men, but as it is
in truth, the word of God. And listen to what he goes on
to say. This is so wonderful, isn't it? Which effectually worketh
also in you that believe. This is a living word and an
active word and it's a spiritual word. We receive. We receive his word as good news,
even if it convicts me and rebukes me. It's still good. It's come
from our God. I love it when the word of God
corrects us and I pray that we would embrace his words of rebuke. We embrace his words, we embrace
his promises. We embrace his way of saving
sinners. We embrace him in all of his
glorious attributes. And we embrace him because he
gives. I've given them the words and
they have received them. In saving faith, there's a reception
receiving he says of his fullness have all we received grace for