John chapter 1. I would like for us to begin
studying some books. Some entire books. There's two
reasons. Number one, that's how the Lord
wrote them. He wrote them in books. And the
second reason is when we go verse by verse, all the way through
a book, and we preach and we learn the
whole counsel of God, we don't skip anything. He has a lot to say to us, and
we don't want to skip anything. So, I'd like for us to go through
some books. I've been thinking about John.
going through the book of John. And I don't know if we'll do
it on Sunday nights, maybe Wednesday nights. I've been thinking about
Romans. We don't have a Bible study yet
on Sunday morning, but I think Romans would be an excellent
Bible study before the morning message. Possibly Exodus. We'll just see how the Lord leads
us. I have gone through books before. Sometimes you get into it and
the Lord doesn't lead us to go through that book. Maybe it's
another place, but we'll see how the Lord leads us. Tonight,
we're going to begin this study in John. This is a study tonight. Each book in this Bible, all
66 of them, there are 66 books in this Bible, and each individual
book has a theme. A theme to the book. The theme
of the whole book is Jesus Christ. That's the theme of the whole
book. Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy, all of
them talk about Jesus Christ. That's it. Every one of them. But each individual book inside
the book has its own theme relating to our Lord Jesus Christ. Every one of them. Now there
are four Gospels. I don't know what the heading
of your Bible says, but mine says, The Gospel According to
Saint John. That's what it says. The Gospel.
There are four Gospels. We have Matthew, Mark, Luke,
and John. And I want you to listen to this.
This is a dictionary definition of the Gospels. Okay, Gospel. The word means good news. That's what the Gospel is. It's
good news. The Gospel is the life and words of Jesus Christ. Who He is. What He did. That's
the Gospel. The account of His life and words
is found in four books, which are called the four Gospels.
But in all four, the same person is made known to us. And in the
main, the same story is told. But each writer sees the life
he is describing from his own point of view." Now, I want to
say this, this is a dictionary definition. No Scripture is of any private
interpretation. Every word in this book was sent
by God. And different men penned it.
But as they penned it, they felt something. They had a reason
for what they wrote. Something came over them and
they had something to say. God said it. They wrote it. And so, I'll agree with what
he says here. Each writer sees the life he
is describing from his own point of view. Okay, now listen to
this. This is good. Matthew writes to show his countrymen,
the Jews. Matthew's writing to the Jews,
his countrymen. How the life of Jesus fulfilled all that was
written in the Law and the Prophets concerning the Christ. That's
Matthew's theme. Jews. This is the Christ. He fulfilled all the law and
the prophets. Everything the Old Testament
said, this is how you'll know He's the Messiah. This is how
you'll know He's the Christ. He's going to do this. He's going
to do this. He's going to do this. He's going to do this.
Matthew writes, He did it. He did it. He did it. This is
the Christ. He describes to us the life and
work of the king and the judge of Israel. The characteristics
of his portrait are authority and tenderness. Mark writes for
the Romans. Matthew wrote for the Jews. Mark
writes for the Romans and gives a living picture of the man of
God. Mighty in word and deed. Energy
and humility are the characteristics of his portrait. Luke, writing
for the Greeks, you got the Jews, you got the Greeks, brings before
us our great high priest. Instant in prayer to God, and
of perfect sympathy with men, and shows how he is the savior
of all nations. dwells mainly on the mystery
of the Incarnation, and reveals the glory of the Only Begotten
of the Father in a life of absolute obedience. The theme of the Gospel
of John is the deity of Jesus Christ. And what that means is
the Lord Jesus Christ This baby that was born, this child that
grew, this man that walked is God. The God that people have in their
imaginations, the God that people think of, the God that they think
they're worshiping, Jesus Christ is the highest God. That is the theme of this book,
the book of John. And John says that in chapter
1, verse 1. He spills the beans. First verse,
he tells the whole theme of the book. It says, "...in the beginning
was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God."
That's pretty plain, isn't it? Pretty plain and simple. That's
the theme of the whole book. If the Lord will reveal that
to us, then He's going to give us an understanding of this whole
book. So let's look at this. Verse
1 says, In the beginning was the Word. Now that sounds exactly
like Genesis 1-1. In the beginning, God. Right? We cannot fathom how far
back that goes. We cannot fathom. Whatever is
the farthest point that you could possibly imagine, It's infinity. This man, Jesus
Christ, has no beginning. It means He's eternal. He's eternal. Jesus Christ is eternal. It says
in verse 1, "...in the beginning was the Word." That is such an
interesting way for the Lord to describe Himself, isn't it?
He called Himself, God called Himself the Word. Words are used
to communicate. Words are used to express yourself. In the beginning was the expression
of God. Just listen to this. This is
Hebrews 1, verses 1 and 2. It 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. And the word His is in italics.
You can take it out. The translators added that. He
hath in these last days spoken unto us by Son. It's His language. It's His communication. "...whom He hath appointed heir
of all things, by whom also He made the worlds." The Lord Jesus Christ is the
voice, the spokesman of God. And the Lord Jesus Christ is
the One who spoke the world and everything in it into existence. And here's the point I want to
stress out of that. A lot of people will believe
that this world was spoken into existence. But what they do not
believe is that it was Jesus Christ who spoke it. Jesus Christ
spoke this world into existence. Everything in it was created
by the Word. In Revelation 1-8, the Lord Jesus
Christ said, I am Alpha and Omega. What He's saying is, I am Alpha
through Omega. Those are letters. The Lord Jesus Christ is God's
alphabet. John 1, look at verse 18. It says, "...No man hath seen
God at any time. The only begotten Son, which
is in the bosom of the Father, He hath declared Him." So Jesus Christ is this Word. He is the Word of God. In the
beginning was the Word. That's saying, in the beginning
was Jesus Christ. The first one. Before anything. And it says, the Word was with
God. What that means is, they're separate
people. The Word, Christ, was with God. God is three people. God the Father, God the Son,
and God the Spirit. Three people. And Christ was
with God. This Trinity is three persons. And a long time ago, I used to
think it was God the Father, God the Son, and God the Spirit. But it's God the Father, God
the Son and God the Spirit. He is the Son of God. In verse 18 it said, No man hath
seen God at any time. I used to wonder about that because
I thought, well, the Lord walked this earth. What do you mean
no man has seen God at any time? No man hath seen the Trinity
at any time. God is the Spirit. God the Father
and God the Spirit. So, the Word was with God, but
then it goes on to say the Word was God. These three are one. They're one. They agree in one. God is Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ
is God. Verse 2 says, "...the same Jesus
Christ was in the beginning with God." Now I want to show you
this. Go to John chapter 17. Look at verse 5. The Lord Jesus
Christ says, And now, O Father, glorify Thou me with Thine own
self, with the glory which I had with Thee before the world was. When I was with You before any
of this started, glorify me with that same glory. So this is proof
that Jesus Christ has no beginning. God created everything, walked with
man, came down to the habitable parts of the earth, revealed
Himself, spoke to Samuel, spoke to Abraham, spoke to men, and
in time, chose to become born of a virgin. And He humbled Himself
and grew in stature and in wisdom, And then He died, and then He
rose, and now He's back with the Father again. But He has
no beginning. No beginning. He has no end. No end. And if we're in Him,
we have no end. That's hard to understand. Alright, back to John 1, it says
in verse 3 that the Word, Jesus Christ, gets the credit for creating
every single thing that exists. Verse 3 says, "...all things
were made by Him, and without Him was not anything made that
was made." Now here's a side note. The Lord God is a male. Just in case anybody has any
doubts, he's a male. It says, all things were made
by Him. And without Him was not anything
made that was made. I heard a preacher close a wedding
ceremony by saying, we pray these things unto God, whoever he or
she may be. Well, all things were made by
Him. Colossians 1 says this, Time in just a minute. Colossians
1 verses 15 through 17 says that the Lord Jesus Christ is the
image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature.
For by Him were all things created. Things that are in heaven. Every
single thing in heaven was created by Jesus Christ. And that are
in earth, every single thing on this earth was created by
Jesus Christ. visible and invisible, whether
they be thrones, meaning if somebody made it to a throne, Jesus Christ
put them there, or dominions, or principalities, or powers,
all things were created by Him, and for Him, and He is before
all things, and by Him all things consist." All things keep going. And this world keeps turning
because the Lord Jesus Christ keeps it turning. Ephesians 3 verse 9 says this, 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."
By Jesus Christ. Hannah and I came to the services
tonight a different way. We like to try these different
ways and learn the streets. And we came down Center Street. I was going to turn on Broad
Street, but it's no left-hand turn, so I went to the next street.
And I had to backtrack. Anyway, we went around Church
Circle. And we came down Watauga, and
there is church after church after church. There's so many
churches on Watauga. This town is so full of churches.
I would love to know how many of them actually believe that
the baby in the manger is the One who created everything. The Word of God, Jesus Christ,
created everything. He created me. I am His creation. I belong to Him. I am not my
own to do with as I please. I'm not my own to make my own
decisions and go out into the world and make my own way. I
belong to somebody. I'm His property. He can do with
me as He pleases. He can raise me up. He can tear
me down. He can save me. He can damn me. I belong to Him. He is omnipotent. And that word means He is the
all-ruling, absolute and universal sovereign. Doesn't a potter have power over
its clay? To do with as it pleases? You
put a lump of clay on the spinning wheel, and it starts spinning,
and you get your hands wet, and you put it on that clay, and
can't you move your fingers and your muscles like you want to?
You can shape it into whatever you want to. You can fold it
up if you want to. He is the potter. We are the
clay. Verse 4 says, In Him was life,
and the life was the light of men. Everything that has life
was given its life by the Lord Jesus Christ. Every single thing. It's the same with spiritual
life. Turn over to John chapter 8. John 8, look at verse 12. Then spake Jesus again unto them,
saying, I am the light of the world. He that followeth Me shall
not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life. That's everlasting life. The only source of eternal life,
the only way to inherit eternal life, the only way to make it
into heaven is Jesus Christ. That's it. That's the only way. There is one way. One way. He's the giver of spiritual life
and He's the giver of physical life. Alright, now let's see
this. Acts chapter 17. Turn with me
to Acts 17. Verse 26 says, The Lord Jesus
Christ hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell
on all the face of the earth, and hath determined the times
before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation." That means
God made every human being on this planet. He appointed the
day they would be born. He appointed the day they would
die. Their lives are in their hands. Verse 27 says, that they
should seek the Lord, if happily they might feel after Him and
find Him, though He be not far from every one of us. For in
Him we live and move and have our being, as certain also of
your own poets have said, for we are also His offspring. He's
made of one blood all nations of men to dwell on the face of
the earth. He's the giver of all life. And the point is, is
all life should bow to Him. All life should praise Him and
thank Him for giving life. Alright, now our text, John 1
verse 4 says, In Him was life, and the life was the light of
men. Any light that a man or a woman
has, Any rational thinking that a man or woman has, it comes
from the Lord Jesus Christ. He has placed moral enlightenment, morality,
in every single person. A moral conscience in every single
man or woman Go to Romans 2. Romans 2, look at verse 14. It says, "...when the Gentiles
which have not the law do by nature the things contained in
the law, these having not the law are a law unto themselves,
which show the work of the law written in their hearts, their
conscience also bearing witness and their thoughts, the meanwhile
accusing or else excusing one another." Everybody knows when they do
something bad. Everybody. Because the law of God is written
on the heart. Written on the heart of man.
The heart and the conscience condemn us. Look at Romans 1
verse 18. It says, The wrath of God is
revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness
of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness, because that
which may be known of God is manifest in them, for God hath
showed it unto them. For the invisible things of Him
from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood
by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead,
so that they are without excuse. Because that when they knew God,
they glorified Him not as God, and neither were thankful, but
became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened."
What that means is, by nature, men and women are dead in their
trespasses and sins. But, they're all going to have
to stand before God. They're all going to have to
give an account before God because of this light. Because a light
came. They're without excuse. Alright,
back to our text. John 1 verse 4 says, In Him was
life, and the life was the light of men, and the light shineth
in darkness, and the darkness comprehended it not. When the Lord God created man,
He said it was good. Man was good. Man walked with
God in the garden. Man walked with the Light, in
the Light. Man walked with Jesus Christ.
Jesus Christ and Adam walked together. And then man fell because
he disregarded and he disobeyed the Light. He gave a commandment,
man disobeyed it, and man fell. And now mankind is in darkness. Man is in darkness. Men hate the light, the Scripture
says, and they love darkness rather than light. What that means is they've become
blind. That's what it means. They're
in darkness. They've become blind. They're
blind to the Word. We can read this Word and have
no idea what it means. No idea. They're blind to the
truth. They're blind to God. They're
blind to the light. They're blind. But here's what
the light did. This good and great God of light,
He sent us fallen, dead, blind sinners the Gospel. That's what
He did. Verse 6 in our text says, There
was a man sent from God whose name was John. God sent a preacher. Preacher of righteousness. Preacher
of the truth. Preacher of light. Now, if we
have all been enlightened and given eyes to see this truth,
it's because the Lord God sent us a preacher. And I'm up here
preaching, I understand that. But I heard this Gospel because
God sent me a preacher. I'm not ashamed of the Gospel.
It's the power of God unto salvation. It pleased God by the foolishness
of preaching to save them that believe. This is the only way
that a sinner can be saved. This is the only way that a blind
man can receive sight. This is the only way that a dead
man can live. It's through the preaching of
this Word. This is it. Verse 7 says, "...the
same came for a witness, to bear witness of the light." When the sun is shining at 12
noon, high noon, all of its strength, here's my question. Are you aware
of the fact that it's shining? The sun is not shining right
now. When the sun is shining, are we aware of the fact that
it's shining? Who are the ones that don't know? Who are the
people who don't know? Who needs to be told that the
sun is shining? The blind. The blind. They don't know. They're blind. Natural man has fallen so far
down, we have to be told, the light is here. That tells you
how blind we are. The light is here. Thanks be
to the Lord God, He sent a witness to bear witness of the light."
That is the only responsibility of a preacher. That's the only
purpose of a preacher. It's to bear witness of the light. If I attend worship in a place
that preaches anything other than Jesus Christ and Him crucified,
anything more than that, anything less than that, if all they have
to offer me is morality, Or if all they have to offer
me is what I'm supposed to do to help Jesus out, and they don't
preach Him as He set Himself forth in the Word, then I'm sitting in a place of
darkness. It's the blind leading the blind.
They must tell me the truth about who I am in this Word. I'm a sinner. They must tell
me the truth about who Jesus Christ is. He's God. They must tell me the truth about
every single thing that He accomplished. They must bear witness of the
lie. They talk about the light, but
they have something they want to add to it. You know, salvation
is of the Lord, but you're going to have to do this or do that.
That's exactly like saying the sun is shining at 12 noon and
there's not a cloud in the sky, but if you want to see, you're
going to need to turn your flashlight on. Christ is all. Our text, verse
6, says, there was a man sent from God whose name was John.
The same came for a witness to bear witness of the light. The Gospel message came. Christ
and Him crucified came. Verse 7 says, that all, and the
word men is in italics, through Him might believe. All men, all
women, Not all, but out of every nation,
tribe, kindred, and tongue. All men through Him might believe.
That song says, this little light of mine, I'm going to let it
shine. No, I'm not. I don't have a light. I don't
have light. All I have is His light. That's all I have. David said,
the Lord is my light and my salvation. The Lord is my light. If He's made His face shine upon
me, then He is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path. Peter said, you should show forth
the praises of Him who hath called you out of darkness into His
marvelous light." Our text says in verse 8, John
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. Let's close by one more time
proving the deity of our Lord. All I hope in this is to glorify
who He is and what He's done in the fact that He came. Go
with me to 1 John 1. 1 John 1. Look at verse 5, it says, This then is the message. I'm standing up and supposed
to be delivering a message. We need a message. Well, this
then is the message. which we have heard of Him, and
declare unto you that God is light, and in Him is no darkness
at all." Now go to Revelation 21. Revelation 21, look at verse 23. It says, "...and the city had
no need of the sun, neither of the moon, to shine in it. For
the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the light
thereof." The Lamb is God. That's what it's saying. God
is light. And in glory, you don't need
the sun. You don't need the moon. The
Lamb is there. The Lamb is our light. All glory goes to Him. In the beginning was the Word.
The Word was with God. The Word was God. The Word is
God. I pray that the Lord would teach
us that. I pray that the Lord would teach a lot of people that.
I really do. Let's stand together and be dismissed
with prayer.