If you will be turning to 1 John
chapter 1, this is one of my favorite passages, and I'll be reading the first
four verses. That which was from the that
which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we
have seen with our eyes, which we have heard, which we have
looked upon and our hands have handled of the word of life. For the life was manifested and
we have seen it and bear witness and show unto you that eternal
life which was with the Father and was manifested unto us. That which we have seen and heard
declare we unto you that ye also may have fellowship with us. And truly our fellowship is with
the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ. And these things
write we unto you that your joy may be full. That's my desire. I want to comfort
God's people. And the only thing that will
comfort God's people is the Lord Jesus Christ and His Word. That's why we come. We come to
gather in His name and hear of Him. And He said we're two or
three that have met in His name There he would be also. That. What is that? Who is that? The Apostle John and the other
disciples were with our Lord Jesus Christ for three years. He provided all their needs. They walked with him and talked
with him and he made them his very own. It's because he chose
them. He chose them before the foundation
of the world. They touched him and they handled
him. They worshipped him. He was their
life. They saw all of his miracles
and heard all his words. The Lord Jesus Christ was their
rock and salvation. Christ revealed to them his eternal
Godhead and power, and they saw his glory and majesty. Peter wrote, for we have not
followed cunningly devised fables when we made unto you the power
and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eyewitnesses of his majesty. The Lord Jesus Christ is king
of kings and Lord of lords. He is not a wannabe king if men
let him. The apostles bore witness of
all they had seen and heard. They preached Christ and him
crucified, hoping and desiring that others would believe and
have fellowship with them. True fellowship is with God,
the Father, and God, His Son. The message of the gospel gives
great joy to God's people. In 1 John 1, it starts out with
that. That. What is that? Who is that? In Webster's, it says, that means
to identify or describe a specific
person or thing seen by the speaker. That's what I'm trying to do
here tonight is to describe God, who is sufficient for this. Describe
the Lord Jesus Christ. In our text, that describes God
the Son. The gospel is not a what, but
it is that. That man, that holy thing, Christ
in you, the hope of glory. Revelation chapter 1. So how
does one describe God who is undescribable? God the Father, God the Son,
God the Holy Spirit. These three are one. God is a
spirit. We're flesh. How can flesh understand
spirit? We can't see spirit. In Revelation chapter 1 verses
1 and 2 it says, the revelation of Jesus Christ which God gave
unto him to show unto his servants things which must shortly come
to pass and he sent and signified it by his angel unto his servant
John. who bear record of the word of
God and of the testimony of Jesus Christ and of all things that
he saw. All the gospels, the four gospels,
were written by men who were with our Lord Jesus Christ. And
they wrote of all that he did and all that he said And if all
the books were written telling about the Lord Jesus
Christ, the world could not contain it. The world could not contain
it. In verse 13 of Revelation chapter
1, it goes on to describe the Lord Jesus Christ. And in the
midst of the seven candlesticks, one like unto the Son of Man,
clothed with a garment down to the foot, and gird about the
paps with a golden girdle, and his head and his hairs were white
like wool, as white as snow, and his eyes as a flame of fire,
and his feet like undefined brass, as if they burned in a furnace,
and his voice as the sound of many waters. And he said, And
he had in his right hand seven stars, and out of his mouth went
a sharp two-edged sword. And his countenance was as the
sun shineth in his strength. And when I saw him, I fell at
his feet as dead. And he laid his right hand upon
me, saying unto me, fear not, I am the first and the last. Revelation 1 describes our Lord
Jesus Christ, but He's still indescribable. Did you get all
that? Do you understand what Revelation
1 said? Can you picture that in your
mind? It's impossible. It must be revealed. Our words cannot describe Him,
but God's words. is perfect converting the soul. Hold your place there in Revelation
1. In our text it says that which
was. In Revelation 1 verse 4, John
to the seven churches which are in Asia, grace be unto you and
peace from him which is and which was. and which is to come, and
the seven spirits which are before his throne. In verse 8, it says,
I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord,
which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty. In verse 11, saying, I am Alpha
and Omega, the first and the last, and what thou seest write
in a book and send it unto the seven churches which are in Asia. Paul wrote this in a book. He
wrote it in a letter and became a part of God's holy word. And it's been sent out all through
the world. It's been sent to Rocky Mount,
Spring Lake, Kingsport, Ewing, New Jersey, Madisonville,
Kentucky, Dingus, West Virginia, Lewis, Arkansas, seven churches,
and there are many more. That which was from the beginning,
in the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. God
has no beginning or ending. He is the same yesterday, today,
and forever. In John 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. Verse 14, and the word was made
flesh and dwelt among us and we beheld his glory and the glory as of the
only begotten of the father full of grace and truth. The beginning of our Lord He's life everlasting. Who can
understand that? Who can describe that? Before
anything was, God. In Proverbs chapter 8, it says
this, the Lord possessed me in the beginning of His way before
His works of old. I was set up from everlasting,
from the beginning, forever the earth was. When he prepared the
heavens, I was there. When he appointed the foundations
of the earth, then I was by him, as one brought up with him. And
I was daily his delight, rejoicing always before him. This passage
from Proverbs 8 mainly speaks of the Lord Jesus Christ, but
it could be be speaking of God's people, God's elect, those who
were chosen in Christ before the foundation of the world.
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who
hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places
in Christ, according as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation
of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before
him in love. That which was from beginning,
which we have heard, for whosoever shall call upon the name of the
Lord shall be saved. 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? It pleases God, by the foolishness
of preaching, to save them that believe. How shall they preach,
except they be sent? So then faith cometh by hearing,
and hearing by the word of God. But I say, have they not heard? Yea, barely. Their sound went
into all the earth, and their words unto the ends of the world. 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. Men are without excuse. They've
seen the heavens, they've seen the lightnings, the earthquakes,
the sunshine rising up every morning, the moon coming up in
the evening, And yet, they would rather worship the creature rather
than the creator. That which was from the beginning,
which we have heard, which we have seen, Jesus Christ is the
express image of God the Father. Hebrews chapter 1. 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, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he
made the worlds, who being the brightness of his glory and the
express image of his person, and upholding all things by the
word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat
down on the right hand of the majesty on high." I just love
that. That which was from the beginning,
which we have heard, which we have seen, which we have looked
upon. Isaiah 45 says, look unto me
and be saved all the ends of the earth for I am God and there
is none else. Do you remember the book of Numbers? How the people had murmured against
the Lord and the Lord sent fiery serpents? And they bit the people,
and much people died. Picture of sin, the plague of
sin. The wages of sin is death. And Moses prayed for the people,
and the Lord said unto Moses, make thee a fiery serpent, and
set it upon a pole. And it shall come to pass that
everyone that is bitten, when he looketh upon it, shall live.
And Moses made a serpent of brass and put it upon a pole. And it
came to pass that if a serpent had bitten any man, when he beheld
the serpent of brass, he lived. In John, you don't have to go
here. And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness,
even so must a son of man be lifted up. that whosoever believeth
in him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God
so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son that whosoever
believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting life. That
which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we
have seen, which we have looked upon, which our hands have handled. When we handle something, we
touch it. Remember in Genesis, Jacob was
left alone. And there wrestled a man with
him until the breaking of the day. And when he saw that he
prevailed not against Jacob, he touched the hollow of his
thigh And the hollow of Jacob's thigh was out of joint as he
wrestled with him. And he said, let me go, for the
day is breaking. And Jacob said, I will not let
thee go, except thou bless me. Are we laying hold of Christ?
Is Christ all our hope? Is he our life? Are we seeking to touch God,
to lay hold? Remember a certain woman, which
had an issue of blood 12 years, and had suffered many things
of many physicians, and had spent all that she had, and was nothing
better, but rather grew worse. And when she heard of Jesus,
she came in the press behind him, touched his garments. For
she said, if I may touch but his clothes, I shall behold. And straightway the fountain
of her blood was dried up. She felt in her body that she
was healed of that plague. And Jesus immediately, knowing in himself
that Virtue had gone out of him. He turned about in the press
and said, who touched me? And he looked around to see who
touched him. And the woman, fearing and trembling,
knowing what was done in her, came and fell down before him
and told him all the truth. Truth, Lord. Even the dogs licked
the crumbs from the master's table. And he said, daughter, thy faith
hath made thee whole. Go in peace and be whole of thy
plague. The woman touched the Lord, but
the Lord touched the woman also, for we have not and high priest
which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities,
but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly
unto the throne of grace that we may obtain mercy and find
help in time of need. Aren't we all so needy? Weak
as water. Without him we can do nothing. That which was from the beginning,
which we have heard, which we have seen, which we have looked
upon, which our hands have handled of the word of life. The Lord
Jesus Christ is life. He spoke everything into existence. He upholds all things by the
words of His power. Our Lord said in John 14, I am
the way, the truth, and the life. No man cometh unto the Father
but by me. Our Lord Jesus said, I am the
resurrection and the life. He that believeth in me Though
he were dead, yet shall he live. And whosoever liveth and believeth
in me shall never die. Believest thou this? In verse 2 of 1 John 1, it says,
For the life was manifested, and we have seen it. and bear
witness and show unto you that eternal life which was with the
Father and was manifested unto us. And without controversy, great
is the mystery of godliness. God was manifest in the flesh,
justified in the spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the
Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up to glory. In Genesis chapter 5, Joseph
was made keeper of the storehouse where
all the grain was kept. And his brethren came to get
food to eat. And he treated them roughly.
They had treated him roughly. They hated him without a cause.
They would not bow to him. He had a dream that he would
be a lord, a ruler, but they wouldn't
have no part of it. And so they threw him in a pit. and left him there to die. But in the fullness of time, Joseph, he couldn't refrain himself
before all them that stood by him. And he cried, and he made
himself known unto his brethren. He loved his brethren, even though
they didn't love him Even though they treated him roughly, he
still loved them. Is that not a picture of us? Oh, my. Have we heard the cry of the
gospel? Come ye unto me, all ye that
labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my
yoke upon you and learn of me, for I am meek and lowly in heart. and you shall find rest in your
souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden
is light. For the life was manifested,
and we have seen it. Have we seen it, the glory of
God in the face of the Lord Jesus Christ? Second Corinthians 4. But if our gospel be hid, it
is hid to them that are lost. in whom the God of this world
hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light
of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should
shine unto them. For we preach not ourselves,
but Christ Jesus the Lord, and ourselves your servants for Jesus'
sake. 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. For the life was manifested,
and we have seen it. And bear witness and show unto
you that eternal life. That's my desire, that all may
come to a saving knowledge and love of the Lord Jesus Christ. We have so many here, there are
many here who do not believe. And it's only by the grace of
God that we who do believe, do believe. We were just as others,
dead in trespasses and sins. But God, who is rich in mercy,
He called us by his grace through the preaching of the gospel.
Can these dead bones live? The Lord thou knowest. He said
preach to them. Preach the word in season without
an out of season. Faith cometh by hearing. But now the righteousness of
God without the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and
the prophets, even the righteousness of God, which is by faith of
Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe, for there
is no difference. None of us are any different
from one another. We're all guilty before God.
We've all sinned and come short of the glory of God. None good,
no not one, but God. Came into this world to save
sinners, of whom we are chief. Christ died for the ungodly. How can a holy God who hates
sin and will by no means clear the guilty save a sinner? And this is life eternal, that
they might know thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom
thou hast sent. In verse 3 of 1 John 1, it says,
for that which we have seen and heard, declare we unto you that
ye also may have fellowship with us. And truly, our fellowship
is with the Father, and with his Son, Jesus Christ, and these
things rightly unto you, that your joy may be full. You know, I love it when we all
get here early before service and we discuss, we greet one
another, we love one another, and then we hear the message,
and when the message is over, We all don't just rush out and
leave. We stand and we chew the cud
and we discuss what we just heard and rejoice in the message of
the gospel. And that's what I want everyone
in here to rejoice in the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. For
our young people might be able to enter in. You know, that's
what we want. We want our loved ones to know
Christ. So all these things that are
written in God's word for God's people is that your joy may be
full. Turn with me to 1 Peter chapter
1. 1 Peter chapter 1. Blessed be the God and Father
of our Lord Jesus Christ, which, according to his abundant mercy,
hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus
Christ from the dead, to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled,
and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you, who are kept
by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed
in the last time. That rejoices my heart that I'm
kept, left to myself with no telling
where I'd be. Wherein ye greatly rejoice thou
wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if need be,
ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations, that the trial of
your faith, being much more precious than gold that perisheth, though
it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honor
and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ. Oh, for the day
when the Lord will take us home And we'll be able to worship,
truly worship, with a true heart and all sincerity, without sin,
without this world. I long for the day when I can
worship my God. That's my hope. Well, I've got a little extra
time, so I'll just go on. In 1 John 1 verse 5 it says,
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. Henry Mahan wrote, this is the
message, the promise, the gospel which we have heard from Christ
the message that we declare unto you that God is light. He is
light as opposed to the darkness of sin. He is pure and holy. He is righteousness and truth. He is just and exact in His judgments. In Him there is no darkness at
all, no compromise. He requires absolute perfection
and can accept no less and pure holiness. Christ is our righteousness
and sanctification. It is in him that we are accepted
and in him we have fellowship with God.