What a salvation is this! Man! Let's turn back to John 8. John 8, I want to begin reading
the last verse in the text. Verse 32. And ye shall know the truth,
and the truth shall make you free. What a glorious verse. You shall know the truth, and
the truth shall make you free. Do you know what believers are?
Believers are seekers of truth. That's what we want. We want
the truth. Don't tickle my ears. Don't tell
me how good I am. Don't tell me what all you need
me for. Just tell me the truth. Just tell me the truth. So where
do believers go searching for it? Well, I heard that there
was a short man with a long beard on a mountain in the Himalayas,
and we're going to go find him. No, we go to God's Word. We go
to God's Word. Let God be true and every man
a liar. Every single man a liar. I want
to know the truth. I personally do. I want to know
the truth. And the reason is because the
truth shall make you free. It will make you free. The title
tonight is, What is the truth? What is the truth? Verse 20 is
where we started. It says, These words spake Jesus
in the treasury as he taught in the temple, and no man laid
hands on him, for his hour was not yet come. Our Lord is not
talking to drug addicts. You know, He didn't go down to
the gutter in the city. He's not in prison talking to
prisoners. He is in the temple. He's in
the treasury. That's where they had 13 chests
where people would bring their gifts and their offerings. It
was a very public place. And he's telling people who are
obeying God's commandment. This is what God said to do.
Bring your gifts. And they are. They're obeying
God's commandment. What that means is they're religious
people. They're not rebels, they're in the temple. Verse 20 says,
These words spake Jesus in the treasury, as he taught in the
temple. And no man laid hands on him,
for his hour was not yet come. Then said Jesus again unto them,
I go my way, and you shall seek me, and shall die in your sins. Whither I go, you cannot come.
He's talking about his death that he's going to accomplish.
His death. He's going to die. He's going
to be buried. He's going to be raised again.
And he's going to sit down on his throne in glory. And he said,
where I'm going, you cannot come. Who shall ascend into the hill
of the Lord or who shall stand in his holy place? Who's worthy
of that? who's worthy of that John 3 verse 13 John 3 verse
13 it says and no man hath ascended up to heaven but he that came
down from heaven even the Son of Man which is in heaven no
man has ascended up into heaven but one and if any man ever does
ascend up into heaven, it's only going to be inside that one. That's the only way any sinner
is going to make it into glory. He said, where I'm going, you
cannot come. Not in your own ability. So back
over in John 8 verse 22, then said the Jews, will he kill
himself? Because he saith, Whither I go,
you cannot come? Will he kill himself? That's
exactly what he's going to do. That is exactly what he's going
to do. Greater love hath no man than
this, that a man lay down his life willingly for his friend. He said, No man takes my life
from me. I'm going to lay it down. What's
he going to do? Kill himself? That's exactly
what he's going to do. And now he's about to explain
to them why where he's going they cannot come. But before
we read it, let's turn over to Exodus chapter 3. Exodus 3 verse 11, And Moses
said unto God, Who am I, that I should go unto Pharaoh, and
that I should bring forth the children of Israel out of Egypt?
And he said, Certainly I will be with thee, and this shall
be a token unto thee, that I have sent thee, when thou hast brought
forth the people out of Egypt, you shall serve God upon this
mountain.' And Moses said unto God, Behold, when I come unto
the children of Israel, and shall say unto them, The God of your
fathers hath sent me unto you. And they shall say to me, What
is his name? What shall I say unto them? And
God said unto Moses, I am that I am. And he said, Thus shalt
thou say unto the children of Israel, I am hath sent me unto
you. I am. Who is he? When I go and
I tell them, the God of your fathers has sent me to you, and
they say, Well, who is he? What do I say? He said, You tell
them, I am. I am. Those are the two, those are
some of the two greatest words, but God are two more. I am. You know a lot of questions can
be answered with those two words. I'm really struggling with this.
What's the answer? I am. I am. That's what our God has been
saying since the beginning. Let's go back over to John 8. verse 23, and He said unto them, Ye are
from beneath, I am from above. Ye are of this world, I am not
of this world. What's the truth? First of all,
if we're looking for the truth, we are not going to find it on
this earth. It's not on this earth. Everything on this earth
is false. Everything on this earth is temporary.
Everything on this earth fades. We're not going to find it in
any man on this earth. Truth can only come from above. That's it. It can only come from
God. Truth does not originate with
man. All man is, is a lie. That's
it. All man is, is a lie. Truth comes from God. Go with
me over to Job 11. A lot of times people will say,
well I was reading this book and this man says this. But I
was reading that book and that man says that. Well, there's
a problem right there. Truth doesn't start with a man.
It didn't come from a man. Job 11, look at verse 7. Canst thou by searching find
out God? Canst thou find out the Almighty
unto perfection? It is as high as heaven, what
canst thou do? Deeper than hell, what canst
thou know? The measure thereof is longer
than the earth and broader than the sea. Who can find out or
who can know anything about God? We want to know the truth about
God. We're going to go searching for the truth about God. Who
can know anything about God except God reveal it? That's the first
place. That's where we start. God has
got to reveal it. If we want to know the truth,
God has got to reveal it. That's the first thing. Go with
me over to Romans 11. Romans 11, look at verse 33. Oh, the depth of the riches,
both of the wisdom and knowledge of God. How unsearchable are
His judgments and His ways past finding out. For who hath known
the mind of the Lord? Or who hath been His counselor?
or who hath first given to him, and it shall be recompensed unto
him again. For of him and through him and
to him are all things to whom be glory forever. Amen. If we want to know the truth
about God, God is going to have to reveal it to us. It's unsearchable. That's the first thing. If we
want to know the truth, I've got to acknowledge I am from
beneath. He is from above. His ways are
past finding out. And if I'm going to know anything
about God, anything about the truth, He has got to reveal it
to me. Back over in John 8, verse 23 says, And he said unto them,
You are from beneath, I am from above. You are of this world,
I am not of this world. I said therefore unto you that
you shall die in your sins, for if you believe not that I am. You see he is in italics. That means it was added by the
translators. And it means I am he. But I'd rather read it I
am. You shall die in your sins. Here's
the truth. This is the truth. You know,
people show up to what they call worship and everybody tells them
good things and things of morality and just good old fashioned.
Let's just, you know, I had a football coach and he just told me, you
know, let's go out and get it. That's great. But here's the
truth. Here's the truth. A sinner will
die in his sins. Die in his sins. And where Christ
goes, that sinner cannot come. Because he believes not that
I am. That's the reason. That's the
truth. And we've got to remember he's
telling this to religious people. He's telling this to religious
people. If you don't believe that I am, I am what? God. God. The same God that met with Moses.
You know who was in that burning bush whenever Moses walked up
to that burning bush? In that burning bush, a voice
came out of it and said, take the shoes off of your feet. You're
standing on holy ground. You know who that was? Jesus
Christ. It was Jesus Christ. Mount Sinai. Somebody came down to Mount Sinai,
and as soon as he stepped foot on the mountain, the whole place
exploded with fire. You know who that was? Jesus
Christ. That's who it was. If you don't
believe that I am, you'll die in your sins. God has got to
speak the truth to us. It's our only hope. He's got
to speak the truth to us, or we're going to die in our sins.
How does He speak the truth to us? If it has got to be revealed,
if that's where we start, how does He speak the truth to us?
Go with me to Hebrews 1. Hebrews 1 verse 1 says, God who
at sundry times and in diverse manners spake in time past unto
the fathers by the prophets hath in these last days spoken unto
us by His Son. Christ is the only
messenger of truth. If a man preaches the truth,
you know, we're going to go hear a man preach the truth, and if
he preaches the truth, he is only delivering the message of
Christ. If he's going to preach the truth,
that's all he's doing, is delivering the message of Christ. Christ
is the only messenger of truth. Well, back over in John 8, if
we're going to know the truth, it's going to be revealed by
God, and it's only going to be revealed through the message
of Christ. Verse 25 says, Then said they unto him, Who art thou? Now these were the religious
leaders asking him this. These were the ones who knew
the law and the prophets. How blind men are. Bless our hearts, all of our
hearts. This man, Jesus of Nazareth,
he fulfilled everything that was prophesied about the Messiah,
everything. He fulfilled it all, but they
were blind to it, and they said, Who are you? Verse 25, Then said
they unto him, Who art thou? And Jesus said unto them, Even
the same that I said unto you from the beginning. Our Lord
never hid the truth. This is something that just really
occurred to me. It stood out to me. We know that
this truth is a mystery. We know that our Lord spoke in
parables. We know that man by nature is dead in his trespasses
and sins. And we know that he is blind
and he's got to be given eyes to see. He's got to be given
ears to hear. But our Lord never hid the truth. Never. He told the truth. He declared
it from day one. He never hid it. Look at verse
12. John 8 verse 12. He said, Then
spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light. Oh, I wish we could just see
the light. I am the light. I wish we knew the way. I am
the way. I want eternal life. I am the
life. I just want to find the truth.
That's all. I just want to find the truth. I am the truth. I am. The scripture tells me
to rest on the Sabbath. I'm supposed to rest on the Sabbath.
I am the Sabbath. The scripture tells me to come
before the altar. I am the altar. What does all
that mean? I am. I am. He is. What's the truth? Here's the answer. He is. Go
with me over to Hebrews 11. Hebrews 11 verse 6, But without
faith it is impossible to please Him, for he that cometh to God
must believe that He is. Must believe that He is. He is
what? The same that He said from the
beginning. The same that he said from the beginning. Back over
to John 8 verse 26. He said, I have many things to
say and to judge of you. You shall know the truth. Here's
the first thing to know about the truth. The truth hurts. The
truth hurts. It really does. You know, somebody
tell you the truth and the truth hurts. When a sinner sees the truth,
the first thing that it does is it literally stabs them in
the heart. The truth hurts. It breaks them. It cuts them. It hurts. Look over with me at John 5,
verse 42. John 5, verse 42. Our Lord said,
But I know you that you have not the love of God in you. That's
not true. Oh, but it is. This flesh is enmity against
God. Verse 43, I am come in my father's
name and you receive me not. If another shall come in his
own name, him you will receive. How can you believe which receive
honor one of another and seek not the honor that cometh from
God only? Do not think that I will accuse
you to the Father. There is one that accuseth you,
even Moses, in whom you trust. For had you believed Moses, you
would have believed me, for he wrote of me. But if you believe
not his writings, how shall you believe my words? my words. Back over to John 8
verse 26 says, I have many things to say and to judge of you, but
he that sent me is true and I speak to the world those things which
I have heard of him. They understood not that he spake
to them of the Father. He's saying the words I speak
are true because they're coming directly from the Father. They're
coming directly from God. These are the words of God, the
only words that are true. Verse 28 says, Then said Jesus
unto them, When you have lifted up the Son of Man, then shall
you know that I am, and that I do nothing of myself, but as
my Father hath taught me, I speak these things. He's saying, I'm
telling you the truth as plain as day. And you cannot hear it
because you don't have ears to hear. But when you see me lifted
up, when you crucify me, when you
see Christ crucified, you're going to know that I am. You're going to know. When you
see that, you're going to know. Why? Just because He died? No, a lot of people died. A lot
of people were crucified. There were two men crucified
with him at the same time. A lot of people died. But he's saying, whenever you
see me go into that grave, you're going to know that I am because
you're going to see me walk back out. That's the difference. I'm gonna walk back out, and
you're gonna know that I am, because it's not possible for
death to hold me. I am. Verse 29 says, And he that
sent me is with me. The Father hath not left me alone,
for I do always those things that please Him. Scripture says
God was in Christ, reconciling the world to Himself. He said,
I and my Father are one. He hasn't left me alone. Verse
30, as he spake these words, many believed on him. Him. The title is, what is the truth?
Here's the answer. The truth is a person. The truth is a person. Salvation
is a person. If we want to know the truth,
we've got to know a person. A sinner can understand total
depravity, and he can understand unconditional election, and he
can understand limited atonement, irresistible grace, and perseverance
of the saints, and still not know the truth, even though all
those things are true. They are all true. Believing correct doctrine and
believing systematic theology is not believing the truth. If we're going to believe the
truth, we have got to believe a person. It's a person. What do you guys
preach down there? We preach a person. We preach
a person. Verse 30 says, As he spake these
words, many believed on him. Paul wrote, Oh, that I may know
Him. I need to know Him. To believe Him is to believe
His words. We believe this not because of
any doctrine that we've been ingrained in. We believe it because
it's His words. These are the words of Christ.
We believe His words. His words are spirit. His words
are life because His words are truth. It's the truth. Verse 31 says, Then said Jesus
to those Jews which believe on him, If you continue in my word,
then are you my disciples indeed. He gives an if-then. If-then. And we understand what
he means through everything that he said. If you believe, then
you're my disciples indeed. Faith is not of yourself. It's
a gift of God. Is he saying you're going to
have to work for your salvation? No, he is not. Faith is not of yourself. It's
a gift. Hebrews 11 says faith is the
evidence. Continuing in this word and his
word is not a condition of faith, it's an evidence. How do I know I believe God?
God keeps me in His Word. He keeps me loving His Word and
living on His Word and finding comfort through His Word and
seeing Christ in His Word. If He causes us to continue,
then, He said, we're His disciples indeed. Lord, keep us. Keep us. That's our only hope. Keep us. Thy word is truth. If God causes a sinner to believe
his word and believe the truth, then he's not going to be able
to not believe the truth. Verse 32 says, And you shall
know the truth. You shall know the truth. If
God has revealed Christ to us, if we know him. If we know his
purpose, if we know his work, If we know that He is, if we know He is the same that
He said He was from the beginning, if we know the One who conquered
death and rose victoriously and is seated on His throne, if we
know that He is the great I Am, then we know the truth. We know
the truth. We know Him. And if we know the
truth, the truth is going to make us free. Knowing the truth
is going to make us free. Free from what? The curse. The curse. Ever since sin entered
the world, God said, cursed. Cursed is the ground. Cursed
are you. Cursed is everything. But if we know the truth, he's
going to make us free from the condemnation of sin, free from
religion, free from tradition, free from bondage. He's going
to set us free from trying to justify ourselves before God.
That's hard work. You know it? It can't be done. It's a job
that can't be done. He's going to set us free from
all our labors. He's going to set us free from
the facade we've been trying to live up to. He said, come
unto me, all you that labor and are heavy laden, and I'm going
to give you rest. I'm just going to give you rest.
God knows who we are. He sees all. He sees our sin. That's why he sent us the truth. That's why he sent Christ to
set us free. Christ said, I came to preach
the gospel to the poor, to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim
liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to
them that are bound. That's a good message. That is
a good message. Our Lord walked up to a man named
Lazarus, and that man had been dead four days. He was bound to death, bound
to sin, bound in his grave clothes. And the truth himself walked
up to that man and said, Lazarus, come forth. And you know what
Lazarus did? He came forth. The scripture
says, bound hand and foot with grave clothes. And then Lazarus
heard the voice of truth. This is what he said. Loose him
and let him go. That's my favorite part. Deliver him from the pit. I found
a ransom. Set him free. His debts are paid. If you know the truth, he will
set you free. That's why Christ came. Set us
free. Thank God for sending us the
truth, right? Thank God for sending us Christ.
Lord, speak to us. Speak your word to our hearts
and comfort us and confirm us with the truth. Alright, let's
stand together.