We will begin in the sixth chapter
of the Gospel of John, and here, reading verse 37 through verse
40. They're very familiar to you,
but we'll read them as the Lord speaks about the safety and the
perseverance of the saints of God. So, John 6, verse 37 through
verse 40. All that the Father giveth me
shall come to me, and him that come to me I will in no wise
cast out. Understand that's very emphatic
in the Greek. I will no, not in any cause will
I cast out. For I came down from heaven not
to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me. And this is the Father's will
which hath sent me, that of all which he hath given me, I should
lose nothing, but should raise it up again at the last day. And this is the will of him that
sent me, that everyone that seeth the Son, and believeth on him,
may have everlasting life, and I will raise him up at the last
day. Verse 39 again, that I should
lose nothing, but should raise it up again at the last day. Now in chapter 17, we're going
to read verse 9 through verse 12. This is the prayer of our
Lord, ending the upper room discourse here. I pray for them. Listen to this. I pray not for
the world, but for them which thou hast given me, for they
are thine. and all mine are thine, and thine
are mine, and I'm glorified in them. And now I am no more in
the world, but these are in the world, and I come to thee, Holy
Father, Keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given
me, that they may be one as we are. While I was with them in
the world, I kept them in thy name. Those that thou gave me,
I have kept, and none of them is lost. but the Son a perdition
that the Scripture might be fulfilled. Over in chapter 18, verse 8 and
9. This is at the arrest of our
Lord when they came to take Him away. And in verse 8 and in verse
9, Jesus answered. I have told you that I am he. If therefore ye seek me, let
these go their way, that the saying might be fulfilled which
he spake, Of them which thou gavest me have I lost none. Now, those are texts from John
and most of them from our Lord and Savior. And so before we
get fully into this third study on the subject of the perseverance
of the saint, there is a valid point that is to be made and
entered into our study that is certainly relevant to the subject
that is at hand, and that question or that aspect is this. What, if anything, did our Lord
have to say on these matters? Did our Lord address the subject
that we are studying now? Have we any comments or any word
or any teaching from the Christ when he speaks in support of
the doctrine that we are now considering? Did our Lord enter
in? Did he say anything about it?
What did our Lord Himself teach about these things? Well, the
answer is, if one reads the Gospels very carefully, and particularly
in the Gospel of John, the record of the public ministry of our
Lord and of our Christ, of His discourses among the public and
to His disciples in private, and the Apostle, he will discover,
I think, that the Lord taught all five of what we call the
doctrines of grace or the sovereignty of God. He taught them before
Peter or Paul or John wrote about them in the scripture. He taught
them before there was an Augustine or a Calvin. or a gill or a spursion. And the Lord set forth these
truths for our spiritual edification and our learning, such as the
sovereignty of God Did our Lord teach God's sovereignty? Yes,
He did, and that often. In Matthew, for example, chapter
11, verse 25 through verse 27, I thank Thee, O Lord, O Father,
that Thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent. No
man knows these things except to whom the Son will reveal it. But also we notice something
else. That is that our Lord taught all five of the doctrines of
grace during his earthly ministry. And not in a closet, and not
to just a few, but public and privately, our Lord declared
these things. Number one, The Lord taught the
doctrine of depravity. And when he did, he did strongly
emphasize it from the standpoint of inability. Our Lord spoke
about the inability in John 6 and verse 44. No man can come unto
me except the Father which hath sent me draw him. That's very
clear from our Lord. And then again, in John chapter
6 and verse 65, no man can come unto me except it were given
unto him of my Father. We do not come apart from the
purpose and the will and the work of God. Again, in John chapter
5 and verse 40, the Lord said to some, you will not come unto
me. That is, they had neither the
desire nor the will nor the ability to come unto Him. They could
not, apart from an internal work of God and the Holy Spirit. Secondly, our Lord spoke of the
elect. He did not shy away from the
elect. Matthew 24, Matthew 24 and 24
and verse 31 Mark 13 and verse 27 are some of the places of
those the father had given unto him John 15 and 16 I Have chosen
you you have not chosen me now we need to get that you have
not chosen me and but I have chosen you. He said under that
inner circle, John 15 and 19, I have chosen you out of the
world. So our Lord taught the doctrine
of election. Again, we line up. And then thirdly,
the Lord spoke of his particular and of his efficacious death
that he would die. In Matthew 20 and verse 28, to
give his life a ransom for many. And at the supper he said, Matthew
26 and 28, this cup is my blood of the New Testament, shed for
many. for the remission of sin. It was covenant blood. It was
shed for many and would save them from their sin. Fourthly,
our Lord taught the doctrine which we call irresistible grace. We read it, John 6 and verse
37. All that the Father gives me
shall come unto me. They will come. Being given,
they will come. They will come because they are
given unto me. Again, in John chapter 10 and
verse 16. Other sheep I have, which are
not of this foal, them also I must bring, and there shall be one
foal and one shepherd. Other sheep I have, they will
hear my voice. In John 10, 27, my sheep hear
my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. Now there are
three things that are said about this from the Lord. Number one,
they hear. Number two, they come. Number
three, they follow. They will hear, they come, and
they follow me. And then fifthly, coming to our
subject today, The Lord taught perseverance. And again, much
of what he had to say on the subject appears in the gospel
of John. John included a lot of that in
his gospel. So come with me, if you will,
to those passages that we read today. And first of all, to the
marvelous 17th chapter of the gospel of John. And this is a
fitting end to the extended upper room discourses that our Lord
delivered. Beginning in chapter 13 to the
end of chapter 17, our Lord is in the upper room and is discoursing
to his disciple in private and the apostle. That's 13 through
17 again, wherein the Lord instructs. And in doing so, he is preparing
his little flock, as he affectionately called them, for his departure
out of the world. Soon he will be with them no
more. That is, in the flesh and personally
and physically in the world and with them. He would exit out
of this world by and through the death of the cross. In chapter
18, he is taken before the Jewish court and there condemned as
a blasphemer. Then he is carried before Pilate. There he is charged with insurrection,
and they persuade Pilate to crucify him. And that cowardly, wicked
man did for the sake of political expediency. And the Lord of life
laid down his life upon the cross. But here in John chapter 17,
I think we can say, as was said of Saul in Acts chapter 9, behold,
he prayeth. And here we catch the Lord in
prayer. Thomas Manton wrote a whole book
on the 17th chapter of the Gospel of John, and he made this observation
As he wrote, quote, the Holy Ghost seems to put a mark of
respect upon this prayer above all others which the Lord conceived
in the days of his flesh, unquote. Now, sometimes we are only told
that the Lord prays. We are told that the Lord prayed
without giving any words or anything that our Lord said in his prayer. Matthew 14, 23, Mark 6 and 46,
Luke 9, and verse 28, the Lord pray. And even when the words
are given, they are much shorter than this prayer in John chapter
17, for length, as in Matthew 11 25 through 27 that I alluded
to, John 11 41 through 42 at the grave of Lazarus. Matten
also called this prayer, quote, a standing monument of Christ's
affection for the church, end quote. And it is easy to see
that the prayer of the Lord in John chapter 17 consists of three
parts, and the divisions are very easy to spot. His prayer has three aspects
to it. First of all, in verses 1 through
5, he prays concerning himself. himself himself that he would
be glorified and having authority over all flesh to give eternal
life to as many as the father had given him for he said the
hour is now come I finished the work glorified God on earth and
then would himself be glorified with a glory which he had with
the father before the world and ever began. And then the second
part of the Lord's Prayer is in verse 6 to verse 19, and here
he prays particularly and exquisitely for his apostle. And some include believers at
that age and that time. Those who believed on him, with
that exception concerning Judas Iscariot, that we'll deal with
down in verse 12. Now, it might indicate that the
present part of his prayer Concerns the apostles and many more who
went back and walked with him No more John 6 and 66 as well
as in verse 20 of those who will yet Believe on me through their
word we have that in verse 6 through verse 19 and see their blessings. And we're going to kind of scan
this prayer of our Lord as Christ engages the Father in behalf
of his people, of those given him. First the band of apostles,
then believers of that time, and believers then until the
end of time. So let's look at verse 6, John
17. I have manifested thy name unto
the men which thou gavest me out of the world. Thine they
were, thou gavest me, and they have kept thy word. Now down to verse 8. 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. Then verse 9, watch
this, I pray for them, I pray not for the world, but for them
which thou hast given me, for they are thine. Now here, our
high priest is in intercessory prayer for his own. Again, verse
9, I pray for them. I pray not for the world. Verse
15, I pray not for you to take them out of the world, but I,
on the other hand, pray that you keep them from the evil. Our Lord intercedes in our behavior. And then look at verse 20 of
the same chapter. Not for these alone I pray, and
at least twice he says, I come to thee. In verse 11 and in verse
13. I come to thee, that is, in prayer
and supplication and intercession. Now, we notice two things concerning
them. Number one, how the Lord commends
them before the Father. They were given to me, they were
given unto Christ out of the world, verse 6, verse 9, and
verse 11. They have kept thy word, verse
6. They have received them, verse
8. They have known that Christ came from the Father, verse 8,
believing that God sent him. They are not of the world, that
in verse 16. Now secondly, he is committing
them now to the care of the Father for keeping as he is soon to
go out of the world. He goes back to the Father and
in Verse 11 and verse 12, they are about the heart of this present
study, and so let's read them again, if we might. John 17,
11 and 12. Now I am no more in the world,
but these are in the world, and I come to them. Holy Father,
keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given me, that
they may be one as we are. While I was with them in the
world, I kept them in thy name, that those thou gavest me I have
kept, and none of them is lost but the son of perdition that
the scripture might be fulfilled. Now, The Lord means, even as
he told the eleven, that after his death and his resurrection,
he would no longer be personally and bodily present with them
in the flesh, in the world any longer. He would no longer be
there as he had been, walking about from place to place, teaching
them, teaching others, Working miracles doing good works healing
and such like but by death and by suffering He would enter into
his glory even as the prophets taught that he would that he
would suffer and die and Enter into his glory. He was going
away and he taught them that chapter 13 14 15 and 16 and and rather thoroughly. But he
said this unto them, I'm going away. It is expedient for you
that I go away, but I will not leave you comfortless or literally
orphans. I will not leave you as orphans. I go to prepare a place for you.
John 14 and verse 2, I will pray the Father to give unto you another
comforter, and he will abide with you forever. And he will
teach you all things, and he will call to your remembrance
all things which I have said. And he will take the words of
the Father and will show them unto you. Now, as the Lord was
to leave them by death and go out of the world, as to his bodily
presence, he did two things to ensure their safety and their
perseverance. And both of them he prayed for. A, he would act as an intercessor
in their behalf, as an advocate for their good. He said to them,
I will pray the Father. Some interpret that, I will request. Others, I will ask for the Holy
Spirit to act to them as another comforter. I will send you another
comforter. Now, the word another is the
word Alos that we meet with sometime in the scripture and it means
one of the same kind. one like unto me, one just like
I am, another comforter just like me. A comforter, an intercessor,
an advocate. It means one called in alongside
that he might aid in the way. And he said to them in John 14
and verse 26, the comforter, which is the Holy Spirit, whom
the Father will send in my name. And again, in John 15, 26, when
the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father,
even the Spirit of truth, which proceeds from the Father. Now
how valuable is the Holy Spirit in the salvation and the sanctification
and the perseverance of the elect. And when the Lord goes back to
the Father, they were not to be left comfortless, They were
not to be left like orphans without a guide. They were not to be
forsaken. In John 14 and verse 18, Jesus
told his apostles clearly, I will not leave you. And the King James,
as I said, has it comfortless and it has orphans out in the
margin. For it is from the word and old
word that literally is orphanus, I believe. That is, I won't leave
you parentless. I won't leave you fatherless.
I won't leave you deserted. I won't leave you bereaved. I
won't leave you without a comforter, apparently one to guide and one
to help you. And the Lord secured the blessed
Holy Spirit for his church by his death. And in Acts chapter
2 and 32 and 33, the apostle Peter on the day of Pentecost
told those present and saw those things, that Jesus being raised
from the dead and exalted to the right hand of God the Father,
quote, having received of the Father the promise of the Holy
Spirit, he has shed forth this which ye now see and hear, Now
the coming of the Spirit was confirming proof that the atonement
of Christ was both pleasing and acceptable unto the Father God. It is the dowry of Christ unto
his bride, the blessed Holy Spirit. He has put the spiritual welfare
of his people in the hands of the Holy Spirit during this long
age. But I said two things. And B,
the second thing the Lord did to ensure the perseverance of
those given unto him, we read in John 17, 11, and 12. He commends them unto God the
Father in his prayer with this, Holy Father, Keep through thine
own name those whom you have given me. And the thought runs
on over into verse 12. Keep them. They were yours. You
gave them to me while I was in the world. I kept them in your
name. None of them is lost. This might
cause us to call to mind another passage from John chapter 6 and
verse 39. This is the Father's will that
of all he has given me, I should lose nothing. John 6, 39, I should
lose nothing. John 17 and 12, none of them
is lost. None of them that you gave unto me. So the
question is this, when the Lord prays a double decoration, A,
I have kept them in thy name and B, none of them is lost. Does he mean that he has kept
them spiritually or that he has kept them physically or that
he has kept them corporally, that is alive and sound in the
world? Or does he include both of those
in his prayer. For as Matan wrote, none were
lost either by death or by defection. None of them defected away with
the sepulchrant of Jesus, which we'll explain, and none of them
died or was killed or mortared. for the sake of the gospel. It
is certain that he kept them spiritually, and that from the
several ways that he commends them under the Father, as we
read earlier, verse six through verse nine. They were well grounded
in the doctrines of the Lord that he had taught them. But
also, we notice that there was no injury, there was no loss
of life. None of them had died, either
at the hands of a murderer, or of sickness or of disease and
Christ in his teaching are for the sake of Christ and his teaching. You remember it was dangerous
in that day to be a servant and an adherent of Christ and his
doctrine. And on this aspect, that he had
kept them from injury and from death, consider a passage found
in the 18th chapter of the Gospel of John, verse 1 through verse
9, when Judas guided the officers from the chief priests and the
Pharisee and brought them to where the Lord was. How that
when he said, Whom seek ye? And they said, Jesus of Nazareth. And the Lord said, I am he. And
if you remember, they all fell down backward upon the ground
at the very word of the Lord when he said, I am. But in chapter 18, let's read
verse 7 through verse 9 again. Then asked he them again, Whom
seek ye? They said, Jesus of Nazareth. Jesus answered, I've told you
that I am he. If therefore you seek me, let
these go their way. That the saying might be fulfilled,
which he spake, of them which thou gavest me, have I lost none. Now plainly, he had an eye here. to sparing them from suffering
and death that awaited him. And take me, he said, I am the
one that you seek and let these, that is, those disciples and
apostles that were with him go on their way. And John the author,
it is in verse nine, that gives us another of his famous explanation. that in this would be fulfilled
the saying of the Lord, I have lost none, and is a part of his
keeping them. Now consider, it would not be
a surprise, would it, if the enemies of Jesus had visited
some wrath upon the followers of our Lord, such as beating
them, or putting them in prison, or even putting them to death
by stoning them, to wipe out what they considered a cult,
not only to get the leader, but to get those that were instrumental
in it. And some commentators were of
the opinion that they were not yet prepared for their baptism
of fire, and so the Lord spared them and delayed it by this request
that he made. The Lord put himself at the disposal
of those whom his word had just thrown down upon the ground,
but he demands that his disciples be set free. When we consider
that this came to pass, we likely would agree with J.C. Ryle, who
wrote this, quote, that miraculous power accompanied these words,
unquote, let these go their way. or to prevent them from inflicting
any harm upon the disciple was in itself a mighty exercise of
the divine power. But also, as John wrote, it was
a part of the Lord's charge and it was a part of the Lord's great
commission that was given unto him by the Father to keep all
and to lose nothing, but to bring them all into the presence of
heaven. and he was engaged in that matter
as the surety of the covenant and the surety of his people. But now let's go back to John
17 and verse 12 and taking up a matter of long-standing contention
between people in Christendom, and that is the case and the
situation of the one that the Lord calls the Son of Perdition
and the words of the Lord. None of them is lost but the
Son of Perdition. The Son of Perdition, which,
by the way, are the same exact words that Paul uses in 2 Thessalonians
2, And verse 3, to describe one that might be the Antichrist,
the man of sin, the son of perdition. In 2 Thessalonians 2 and verse
3, that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition. In John 17 and 12, the Lord is
referring to Judas Iscariot, Perdition, he said, son of perdition. Perdition is a word that is translated
some eight times, I think, in the King James Version, but it
is also translated in other ways. Destruction in Matthew 7 and
13. Waste in Mark 14 and 4. Die in
Acts 25 and 16. damnable heresies in 2 Peter
2 and verse 1, and pernicious ways in 2 Peter 2 and verse 2. Is it a very strong word? And
calling one a son of perdition stands them in the relationship
of a child under their parent. A son, a child, an offspring
of perdition. What the Lord is saying Matthew
23 15 he referred to some as a child of hell being made a
child of hell here's how one expositor described a son of
perdition quote the son of perdition is he a whom perdition falls
as his due and his heritage who is indissolubly related to it
and so bound up with it that he cannot escape it." So then
what about Judas? What about Judas Iscariot? Now we know his end from the
scripture. We know how he betrayed the Lord
for 30 pieces of silver, the price of a slave. We remember
his kiss of betrayal. We remember him going out then
and hanging himself and going to his own place, Acts 1 and
verse 25. Now, Judas had a part of ministry
and apostleship, Acts 125. He carried the purse. He was
the treasurer of the group, John 13, 29. But was Judas ever a
true, genuine believer in the Lord Jesus Christ? Was he ever
a genuine Christian who then fell away? Was he a man in grace
and then fell out of grace? was he was a lost man when he
died, we understand that. Now this might be a very strong
argument for those who teach the doctrine of falling out of
grace. So they imagine, where could
they find a stronger example than Judas Iscariot to prove
falling from grace? But if Judas was a true and a
saved believer who fell away Then it would contradict the
Lord's claims that he had lost none that were given unto him
by the Father. John 6, 39, John 17, and 12. Hear how the Lord described Judas. If we turn back in John's gospel
to chapter 6, all the way to chapter 6 and verse 64 of that
chapter, John 6, But there are some of you that believe not.
For Jesus knew from the beginning who they were that believed not
and who should betray him. In John 6, 70 and 71, Jesus answered,
Have not I chosen you twelve? One of you is a devil. He spoke
of Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon, for he it was that should
betray him, being one of the twelve. Then in John chapter
13, in the upper room, as the Lord is teaching them and they
are observing the supper, John chapter 13 and verse 18. Speak not of you all I know whom
I have chosen But that the scripture may be fulfilled he that eateth
bread with me have lifted up his heel Against me and then
in verse 25 and verse 26 He then lying on Jesus breast said unto
him Lord Who is it? Jesus answered it is he to whom
I shall give us off when I have dipped it and when he had dipped
us off he gave it to Judas Iscariot the son of Simon and notice the
last few words of John chapter 17 and verse 12 if you would
please the last words of that chapter, that the actions of
Judas fulfilled the scripture. John 13, 18, we just read it.
The scripture foretold John being the forerunner of the Christ,
so Judas is foretold as being betrayer of the Holy One of God. Here are some scripture, Psalm
41 and verse 9, Psalm 69, 25, Psalm 109 and verse 8 and then
Matthew 27 9 and Zechariah chapter 11 verse 12 and 13 that are describing
the person of who turned out to be Judas Iscariot, the son
of Simon. The Lord's betrayer was to be
a devil, was to be one of the twelve. And when the Lord gave
Judas the sop, that is, some bread dipped in the soup, the
devil then and there entered into his heart. John 13 and verse
27, the devil took full possession then and there of Judas Iscariot,
making him the instrument of evil and of betrayal. And the Lord looked at Judas
and said unto him, What thou doest go and do it quickly. Judas was not given to Christ
as an elect, was never a true believer, never had grace, therefore,
as John Gill said, is no instance of the apostasy of the saints
of God at all. He did whatsoever the hand and
the counsel of God determined before to be done. Judas was
a part of that. Acts 4 verse 27 and verse 28. Pilate did his part. The Jews
did theirs as did the Gentile. The kings and the rulers and
even Judas which was guide to them that took Jesus. Acts 1
Now the Apostle Peter, after the ascension of the Lord, recalls
that the betrayal, the apostasy, and the death of one had been
predicted in the scripture, and that one turned out to be Judas
Iscariot, though none of them expected or suspected him up
until that point. The disciples themselves did
not expect that. What Judas did, fulfilled the
scripture, was part of the purpose of God in the death and the suffering
of Messiah. And the elect, the believer,
is kept by the power of God while many hypocrites and many false
professors here and there fall away, fall out, and walk no more
with the Lord Jesus Christ. I end with these words. We do
not keep ourselves in the grace of God. If so, we all would fall
away. We all would fall out. We all would fall into sin. Now later, we will have a study
just on the intercession of Christ in heaven as our high priest.
But this morning, his last prayer, or rather the prayer upon earth
in John chapter 17, as he prays for the safekeeping of they that
are his, as he commends them to the father for keeping while
he is away and will no longer be with them in the world.