Go with me if you would now to
John chapter one. John chapter one. This morning from this chapter,
we looked at the fact that God chose a particular people to
save. God had a particular elect people
that He chose to save. And we also looked at what a
child of God, a believer, a follower of Christ, what a child of God
will come to and will see. Come and see. Whenever God quickens that child,
to salvation. He has a particular people that
he chose to save. And we saw what that child will
come to and see when the Lord calls him and quickens him to
that salvation. We could say it this way, who
would be born again? And what they would be born unto? What they would come to see and
know. What I want us to look at tonight
is the process, God's process of bringing that new birth to
His chosen people, that process of regeneration, that process
of quickening, that process of sending life that was purposed
to the one it was purposed to. In the first 14 verses of this
chapter, our God has spelled out the order of His work, the means that He has ordained,
the process that He has chosen to quicken and to call His people
to Himself. He does the quickening. He does
the calling and I am so glad for that. I'm so, that relieves
me so much. He will quicken, He will call. He has a chosen people who will
be called. None will be lost. They will
be called to come. They will be called to see. And
this is how he does it. This is the process, the means
that he has chosen. I want us to look at that process
tonight, that order. There are four main components
in the start to finish work of regeneration. Salvation, if you
want to say it that way, that quickening of life. Four main
components. I'm going to go ahead and tell
you what they are, and then we'll see them in these verses. Number
one, the work starts with God. That's number one. He is number one. That's where
the whole thing starts. Number two, the work moves through
the preaching of the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. Through
the preaching of the cross of Christ. That's how it comes to
God's people. That's how it reaches them individually,
specifically. It's why we do this. Why am I
standing here? It's why we do this. It's through
the preaching of the message of Christ that God has chosen
to send this work to His people. Number three, all right, number
one, it starts with God. Number two, the work moves through
the preaching of the gospel. Number three, the work produces
life. The work of God's Holy Spirit creates a new spiritual creation
of life in a child of God, where no life was, where just deadness
was. The goodness of God causes a
child to cross paths with, it starts with God. God moves a
sinner into the path of his message. And through that, the spirit
creates life in the child of God. And then number four, The
child of God responds to the work. This is how it happens. The child lives, the child moves. The child has his being. That
is the means that God has ordained. That's God's means. That's how
God has chosen to work in and work on his people. So let's
read these 14 verses here. And then we'll divide them into
four sections that reveal this order of our Lord's work. John 1 verse 1, it says, 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. There was a man sent
from God whose name was John. The same came for a witness to
bear witness of the light. that all men through him might
believe. He was not that light, but was
sent to bear witness of that light. That was the true light,
which lighted every man that cometh into the world. He was
in the world and the world was made by him and the world knew
him not. He came unto his own and his
own received him not. But as many as received Him,
to them gave He power to become the sons of God, even to them
that believe on His name, which were born, not of blood, nor
of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. 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. Did you happen to notice those
four events? Physical creation is a picture
of spiritual salvation. Physical creation. is a picture
of spiritual salvation. In both cases, the work started
with God. In both cases. Verse one says,
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. Now watch
verse four. It says, in Him was life. In Him was life. That's where
all life came from and comes from. In Him. He's the source. He is the source. He doesn't just have life. He
is life. In John 14, he said, I am the
way. I am the truth. I am the life. To be in him is to be in life. It's to be in life. Verse four
says, in him was life and the life was the light of man. Down in verse nine, it says,
That was the true light which lighteth every man that cometh
into the world. In him was life, the light was
the light of men. And he was the true light which
lighteth every man that cometh into the world. The physical
life that God has given to every man and woman and thing, every
animal, everything, the physical life that is in the world. That's a picture of the spiritual
life that all of God's particular people, the people that verse
13 is about to talk about that we looked at in our Bible study,
that physical life is a picture of the spiritual life that has
been given to all of God's people in Christ. Every person physically
living on this earth is a picture of God's spiritual work in salvation. Every person. I know that there
are many vital organs in the body. Many vital organs to physical
life. There's some organs that we just
can't do without. We're gonna pick one. The heart. All right? In order for a person
to remain alive, that heart has to beat. In order for a person to remain
alive, that heart has to beat and it has to keep beating. How does it do that? Really, how does it do that?
You say, well, the brain fires and it will. How does the brain
do that? Where does it come from? How does it do that? Why is it
they can do a transplant and take it out of someone that has
stopped beating? And it's not beating and not
beating. Then they implant it and connect it. And there it
goes. How does it do that? We see on TV, you've seen heart
transplants, and you can see that it's an amazing thing. That is an amazing, beating rhythm
of life. And it goes for decades and decades
and decades. How does it do that? Are we doing
it? Are we contracting it? Do we walk around physically
keeping life going in us? No. That's God's work in a person,
in every person that walks on this earth, that physical life. That's a physical work in every
man and woman that comes into this world. He is the author
of the heartbeat. He is the giver. He is the doer
of the heartbeat. He is the finisher of the heartbeat.
All physical life starts with and comes from Him. All physical life. The same is
true concerning spiritual life. It starts with Him. It comes
from Him. He's the author of it. He's the
giver of it. He's the doer of it. Verse four
right here says, in Him was life and the life was the light of
man. And the light shineth in darkness,
and the darkness comprehended it not. Sinful man was dead and
could not at all comprehend the life of Christ. He could comprehend
this dead physical life, but he could not at all comprehend
the spiritual life of Christ. Because of man's sin, he became
severed, separated from the life of Christ. but God purposed to
bring his life back to man. He lost it, but God purposed
to bring it back to him and give it back to him. The Lord God
generated man originally, gave life to man in the Garden of
Eden. He breathed into him, man became a living soul. And then
man sinned and man died right there in the Garden of Eden.
But God chose for a particular number of people to be regenerated. Life again. Born again. And this is how He chose to do
it. All right? This is the means. Verse 6. There was a man sent from God
whose name was John. The same came for a witness to
bear witness of the light that all men through him might believe. John was not that light, but
was sent to bear witness of that light. God has chosen to give
his spiritual life to his particular people through the means of a
man witnessing him. in the preaching of the gospel.
This is the means that He has chosen. A picture of that, an
illustration of that, is the fact that God has chosen to give
the gift of physical life. And this is our comparison, this
is our allegory, our illustration, physical life to spiritual life.
God has chosen to give this gift of physical life He's chosen
to carry forward His gift of physical life through the means
of a man. This is how He has chosen to
pass life on again and again, generation after generation,
through using the means of a man. That's how God quickens and generates
physical life. He did not have to do it that
way. He made man originally from the
dust of the ground. The work of His own hands. He
could have just spoken all men into existence just like He spoke
creation into existence. But that's not how He was pleased
to do it. He was pleased to pass along life through the means
of a man. That's exactly how He was pleased
to pass along His spiritual life. through the means of a man, witnessing
Him in the preaching of the gospel. Look with me at 1 Corinthians
chapter 1. 1 Corinthians 1 verse 17. It says, for Christ sent me not
to baptize, but to preach the gospel. Paul said, Christ sent
me to preach the gospel. Not with wisdom of words, lest
the cross of Christ should be made of none effect. What is
the gospel? The cross of Christ. What he accomplished on the cross
for his people. That's the gospel, his finished
work. Verse 18 says, for the preaching of the cross is to
them that perish foolishness, but unto us which are saved,
it is the power of God. Verse 21 says, for after that
in the wisdom of God, the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased
God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe. This is the means that it has
pleased God to use. It is a humbling means. But this
is the means, this is the order of His work that He has established.
Look with me at Romans chapter 10, back just a few pages to
Romans 10. Romans 10 verse 13, it says, For whosoever shall call upon
the name of the Lord shall be saved. That's the end result.
That's number four. Let's backtrack just a little
bit. Verse 14 says, How then shall they call on Him in whom
they have not believed? And how shall they believe in
Him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without
a preacher? And how shall they preach except
they be sent? As it is written, how beautiful
are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace and bring
glad tidings of good things. Verse 17 says, so then faith
cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. So this work
and this means of quickening in salvation, this means of life,
it starts with God, in him is life. And he sends it to his
people through the preaching, through the witnessing of who
Christ is, and what He's done for His people, the preaching
of the cross of the Lord Jesus Christ, that finished work of
Christ, full redemption. That's what happened on the cross,
full redemption, full payment, a full blood payment. So back in John 1, verse 6, it says, There was a man sent from God,
whose name was John. The same came for a witness,
to bear witness of the light that all men through him might
believe. He was not that light, but was
sent to bear witness of that light. That was the true light,
which lighteth every man that cometh into the world. He was
in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew
him not. He came unto His own, and His
own received Him not. But as many as received Him,
to them gave He power to become the sons of God, even to them
that believe on His name." The Lord Jesus Christ, God Himself,
God manifest in the flesh, God come into the world. The world
that He made knew Him not, received Him not. And that's why God sent
a witness. They knew Him not, blind to Him. So God sent a witness, as we
said this morning, in spite of man. In spite of man's hatred,
in spite of man's rejection of God, God in mercy sent a witness
to man. And aren't you so glad God sent
a witness to you? I'm so glad God sent a witness
to me. I thank the Lord for that. Through that witness, the Holy
Ghost, the Holy Spirit of God quickened and he still quickens.
through a witness to spiritual life, every soul that he gives
eyes to see the word of the witness. If a man is a true witness, this
is what he'll witness. Whatever this word says. And
when God sends his spirit, when God's spirit gives eyes to see
this word, The word of the witness, the word of God. Ears to hear
the word of the witness. A heart to believe the word of
the witness. And what is the ultimate word?
Verse 29, we read it this morning, verse 29. The next day John seeth Jesus
coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh
away the sin of the world." This is the Word. Behold the Lamb
of God. Don't look to yourself. Don't
look to me. Don't look to any man. Don't
look to anything. Look to the Lord Jesus Christ. Behold the Lamb of God and the
Lamb of God alone. Behold God's sacrifice for sin. The one God provided, just behold
Him, cast your all on Him. That's the message. And through
that message, the Spirit of God gives life to all of God's people
that hear it. They respond to it. Look at John
3. John 3 verse 3, it says, Jesus
answered and said unto him, verily, verily, I say unto thee, except
a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. Nicodemus
saith unto him, how can a man be born when he is old? Can he
enter the second time into his mother's womb and be born? Jesus
answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, except a man be born
of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom
of God. That which is born of the flesh
is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Marvel
not that I said unto thee, you must be born again. The wind
bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof,
but canst not tell whence it cometh and whither it goeth.
So is every one that is born of the Spirit." Born of the Spirit,
just like man does not physically birth himself. physical birth. No man physically births himself. The same is spiritual. No man
spiritually births himself. That's a work that God's Spirit
does alone. So back in John 1, verse 13 says, Which were born,
not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will
of man, but of God." That was God's work alone. This is the order that God has
chosen in the saving, the quickening, the calling of God's people to
Himself. All life begins in and begins
with God. And God sends forth that life
to his particular people through the preaching of the finished
saving work of the blood of Christ. That record that God has given
in his word. And then with that preached word,
the Holy Spirit takes the things of Christ and reveals them to
God's people. creating a new creation in them,
a spiritual creation in them. And then the end result of that
is, with that God-given life, with the new spiritual eyes,
God's people see Christ. With the new spiritual ears,
God's people hear Christ. With the new spiritual heart,
God's people believe Christ. God's people love Christ. And
out of their new spiritual mouth, God's people confess Christ. Verse 14, right here is that
end result. It says, 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 in truth. In him was life. He sent the
witness of that life to us. Through that witness, He created
life in us. And the result of all of His
work is we beheld His glory. We behold His glory. That's the
response to all of it. That's the only part that involves
us. After all of His work was totally
finished by Him, He started it, He finished it, all we do in
the end is just behold it. We just behold His glory. And that's, you know, man says,
well, I'll give you my testimony. That's a believer's testimony.
That's his testimony. It was all in him. It all started
with him. He sent it to me. He performed
the work in me and he caused me to believe it. He caused me
to bow to it. One verse of scripture perfectly
summarizes everything we've just read. We'll close with this.
All right, go with me to James chapter one. James 1 verse 18, it says, of His own will begat He us with the word of truth that we should be a kind of first
fruits of His creatures. That's the whole thing. That's
the whole thing. He had it. He gave it, He performed
it, we just received it, and we just looked to Him. Like that
story, I love that story of John Jasper. Somebody said, John Jasper,
when you get to glory, when you get to heaven, if you die and
you're standing at the gates of glory, and the question is
asked to you, what right do you have to enter in? He said, they
said, what will be your reply? He said, this will be my reply.
I have no right. I'm not here on my right. I'm
here on the right of another. My Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Everything started with him.
Everything came to me from him. Everything was performed in me
by him. I'm pleading his were not mine. I'm just beholding
him. I'm just beholding him. I pray
God will perform that work in us. I do. May he perform that
work of grace in us. All right, let's all stand together.