Please turn to John chapter 18
if you want to follow along I want to begin reading in verse
33 This is where our Lord Jesus was brought
before Pilate Verse 33 John 18, then Pilate
entered into the judgment hall again and called Jesus and said
unto him, Art thou the king of the Jews? Jesus answered, Sayest
thou this thing of thyself, or did others tell it thee of me? Pilate answered, Am I a Jew?
Thine own nation and the chief priests have delivered thee unto
me. What hast thou done? Jesus answered, My kingdom is
not of this world. If my kingdom were of this world,
then would my servants fight, that I should not be delivered
to the Jews. But now is my kingdom not from
hence. Pilate therefore said unto him,
Art thou a king then? Jesus answered, Thou sayest that
I am a king. To this end was I born, and for
this cause came I into the world, that I should bear witness unto
the truth. Everyone that is of the truth
heareth my voice. Pilate saith unto him, what is
truth? And when he had said this, he
went out again, unto the Jews, and saith unto them, I find in
him no fault at all." And I'm just going to stop right there. What I want to speak to today
is everyone that is of the truth. Everyone of the truth. Now, in
this world we have, especially in this season of this year,
There are a lot of people who love to hear their own voice.
There's a lot of talking going on out there, both secular and
religious. But it makes you wonder sometimes
how much listening is going on. And of that listening that is
going on, how much of that listening is actually someone listening
to the truth of God? And I'm afraid I'd have to say
from my own empiric evidence, not much. Not much. What this world seems to be concerned
with, speaking about, and listening to, is actually the exact opposite
of the truth of Christ. Walter, you said this more on
the radio. There's a lot of boasting going
on out there. They're boasting about their free will. They're
boasting about what they've done. They're boasting that they have
an ATM inside. They'll boast about anything,
but the only thing we have to boast in is our Lord Jesus Christ
and Him crucified. Now, some will use scripture,
and there are some around us who actually disdain almost all
scripture. But even with the use of scripture,
there's a void where the truth should be proclaimed. What we have all around us are
people with itching ears. And they heap to themselves teachers
having itching ears. And I used to feel kind of bad
about that because I have a problem with preachers getting up and
lying about God. I really do. I don't like it. At all. I don't like it when
they exalt man and they try to bring down Christ. And I'd feel sorry for the people
that had listened to him. But then there was a preacher
on television, well actually he was on my computer, that I
listened to and he actually made a point and it's a very valid
point. They love to have it that way. There's plenty of other
places to go, but that's where they want to go. That's where
they want to be. So they've got the itching ears and their preachers
have the itching ears and they're scratching each other. That's the way of the religious
world that we're in today. That's not what Jesus Christ
is talking about here. It's not the way of Jesus. Verse 36 starts off. I can't
go by this without just a little bit. He said, my kingdom is not
of this world. Jesus answered Pilate. If my
kingdom were of this world, then would my servants fight, that
I should not be delivered to the Jews. But now is my kingdom
not from hence. Three times he used the phrase,
my kingdom. One time, my servants. Guess
what? Jesus, at this time when he was
speaking to Pilate, he had a kingdom and he had servants. He used
the possessive pronoun, my. The same exact word he uses when
he talks about my sheep, which are not of this fold. My sheep
that will come in, my sheep that I will bring, my sheep, this
is my kingdom. Three times, like I said, he
says, my kingdom. He's got a kingdom now. I'm not going to fight about
it. That's just what this scripture
says. That's about all this scripture says. I'm not going to get into
it, what it doesn't say, other than the fact of Jesus did not
say, I don't have a kingdom. Jesus did not say, he didn't
even say, I don't have a kingdom yet. He said, my kingdom is not
of this world. That's what he tells us about
it. It's not from hence. It's not of the world. It's not
from the world His kingdom is from the father There are those who want to interpret
it that I don't have a kingdom now or I don't have a kingdom
yet That's not what this scripture says not even close But I'm trying
not to interpret but to preach and He said, our Lord said, he has
a kingdom, and it's not of this world. I will add this. He didn't say
it'll never be in this world. Lots of people want to add all
kind of things to the scripture, but there's no sense in it. The
scripture's tough enough with what he says. And what that means is, the deeper
meaning is, that Christ's kingdom is not of this world. Because if it was of this world,
my servants would fight. And I'm going to tell you something.
If it was of this world, his servants would fight, and they'd
have won. Why? Because they got him as king.
This is the point. He is a king. When he was talking
to Pilate, he was king. Before he came into this world,
he was king. Right now He is King and He's
coming back and He's going to be revealed as the King of Kings
and the Lord of Lords. And I'll tell you this, Jesus
Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever. Now if you've got a problem with
Him being King, you've got a problem with Him being Lord, that's your
problem. The Scriptures have no problem
with it at all. Just don't add to the scripture.
That's all we ask. His kingdom is not a worldly
kingdom. His kingdom does not rise out
of the world. Now, if you want to, go look
in other places. There's more things about the kingdom said.
But that's all he's saying here. He's letting Pilate know he's
got a kingdom, whether Pilate believes him or not. Pilate answered,
saith unto him, Art thou there a king? Art thou a king then? Jesus answered him. But you notice,
Pilate asked it as a question. He framed it as a question. Jesus
Christ answered with a statement. Thou sayest it. Thou sayest it. I'm a king. You said it, brother. That's why you won't put it.
You said it. Whether you know it or not, whether you believe
it or not, he's king. Amen. And that goes for Pilate
and for everyone else. Whether they know it or not,
whether they like it or not, whether they want it or not,
this man is king of kings and lord of lords. He is the king Then he states this To this end
was I born and for this cause came I into the world that I
should bear witness unto the truth Everyone that is of the
truth heareth my voice To this end was I born and for
this cause came I into the world Everything God does is on purpose
Everything Christ did was on purpose Now we all know from
Ephesians where Paul writes It's all done according to the will
and the purpose of the father who sent him It's the purpose of God that
Jesus Christ came into this world It was according to the will
of God that Jesus Christ come into this world. And it was the
will of God that Jesus Christ accomplished in this world. There was a purpose for the incarnation
of God manifest in the flesh. And the purpose expressed here
to Pilate and to us, as it's recorded, to this end was I born. To this end I was born. This is everything this Bible
had been leading up to up to this point. It was leading to
this place at this time to speak to Pilate to tell him I was a
king. I am a king. I am. There is a purpose for Jesus
appearing both before the high priest and Pilate. That purpose that he reveals
here He says that I should bear witness unto the truth Now it's stated in this place
and another place a lot of times The truth is more important than
most people ever realize It is It is the gospel It's a
fact. It's right Mason. It's a fact
There is a truth, if you want to put it this way, with a capital
T. A lot of people don't believe that. That was Pilate's reaction
down here. A lot of people do not believe
in the truth. A lot of people don't believe
there is the truth. But Jesus Christ said, for this
cause came I into the world that I should bear witness to the
truth. Word of purpose that I should
bear witness to the truth Jesus Christ did bear witness to the
truth That word means to testify give evidence or to bear record John chapter 1 and verse 14 states
this I And the Word was made flesh and
dwelt among us. And we beheld His glory, what
specific glory? The glory as of the only begotten
of the Father. What? Full of grace and truth. Word that was God, that was with
God, that created all things, was manifest in the flesh, full
of grace and truth. Why did he write it that way? Because you cannot separate the
truth from grace. And you can't separate grace
from the truth. Our Lord is gracious and our
Lord is full of truth. If you've been given grace, you'll
be given the truth. And if you know the truth, it's
because you've been given grace. There is no separation of the
two. Can't be. Can't be because God
has promised it this way Grace and truth the word was made flesh,
and he dwelt among us and we beheld his glory Truth is tied
attached to grace in Christ Jesus Understand this is what I'm saying
no grace no truth and no truth, no grace. I can't be any more
simple than that. There is no separating Jesus
from the truth. John 14 and verse 6. I'm at the wrong place. There it is. John 14 and verse
6, Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life. No man cometh unto the Father,
what? But by me. You can't separate Jesus from
the truth. He is the truth. He's not only full of grace and
truth. He is the truth. Isn't that wonderful? Amazing! Then he makes this statement.
And it's another one of these flat statements. Christ didn't
ask many questions. He did ask a few people questions.
He asked some people questions that they didn't want to answer.
This is a flat statement. Everyone that is what of the
truth heareth my voice. Now that's as much a fact as
that he is full of grace and truth. That's as much a fact as that
he is God manifest in the flesh. He said it, it's true whether
we get it or not. And how many? Everyone. Are you sure? Everyone. If you look it up, it's that
little word positive, all. In this case, all that is of
the truth hear my voice. So how many are we talking about?
We're talking about everyone that is of the truth. I mean, is this clear? Do we
need to debate? There ain't no debate in the
words of Christ. There's only bowing to them. There's only trying to understand
them. Oh, what about those that draw
back, Mason? That's somebody else. The right of Hebrews is clear.
Now the just shall live by faith, but if any man draw back, my
soul shall have no pleasure in him. And stop there. But we. Who's this we here? I'm going to tell you. This we
is those that are of the truth. We are not of them who draw back
unto perdition, but of them that believe to the saving of the
soul. Everyone that is of the truth
heareth my voice That's a guarantee from the son of God Now the question we'll have to
get to is what does it mean to be of the truth? Because it is in this phrase
spoken by our Lord It is a qualifier There are those who are of the
truth, and evidently there are those who are not of the truth. It's a qualifier, a description,
if you will. And this description comes right
after he told Pilate part of the purpose that he came. That
he should bear witness to the truth. Right after that he says,
Everyone that is of the truth heareth my voice. His purpose coming into this
world leads to everyone of the truth hearing his word. That's
part of his purpose of being here. He came to bear witness
to the truth. The question is to everyone.
Is it to everyone? Well, yes, but in different ways. I'm not going to go back to it,
but you can look at Matthew and look at other places. He told them
he spoke in parables so that some would not understand. Now,
I'm going to tell you something. Religious societies hate that
phrase. I've heard people on record albums lie and switch it the other way. I heard a fella say that Jesus
spoke in parables so that all could understand. That's the
exact opposite of what he said. That's a lie about the truth. This world's full of them. This
world's full of them. Everything our Lord Jesus Christ
said is the truth God cannot lie and Jesus Christ is God However our Lord made himself
clear that some are to know the things of his kingdom and some
are not That's what he said it's plain and here he says everyone
that is of the truth heareth my voice and The first part I
actually want to look at is my voice, very quickly, because
there's two places I want to go. This one here is the first
time you hear His voice. It's in John 5, beginning in
verse 24. Verily, verily, I say unto you,
he that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, everlasting life, and shall not
come into condemnation, but is passed from death unto life. He that heareth my word. For verily, verily, I say unto
you, this is verse 25, the hour is coming and now is, when the
dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God, and they that
hear shall live. Now this is the first time, right
here in verse 25, where the dead will hear the voice of the Son
of God. That's the first time any man born on this earth hears
the voice of the Son of God. The Son quickens whom He will,
just as the Father quickens whom He will. And just as it says
in Ezekiel, when he says, I come upon thee when you were polluted
in your own blood, and I said unto you, live. That takes the power of the voice
of the Son of God. That's what it takes to start. But I read in verse 24, he that
heareth my word and believeth on him hath everlasting life.
You hear his voice once, but it's not the last time you hear
him. That's what he's talking here
in John 18. But he's already said this in
John 14. You don't want to forget it. You can't just concentrate
on one piece of scripture and forget everything else. Because
everything else that's still in the Bible. I dearly love that
Acts, well, Ephesians 2 and 8's in there. No matter what I think,
no matter what I do, Ephesians 2.8 is in the Bible. By grace
are you saved through faith in that not of yourselves, it's
the gift of God. Well this is just as true. The dead have to
hear the voice of the Son of God in order to live. And after they live, guess what?
They hear and they believe. They believe Him and they believe
the truth. And he'll fix it so that they
hear it. He's promised it. We hear his word and believe
on him because we have heard his voice. We have been given
everlasting life because we have heard his voice. And we have
heard his voice Because He has spoken to us individually, specifically,
personally, and in His own good time, according to His own good
pleasure. And they that hear shall live. Because the Son gives life, He
quickens whom He will. Have you heard His voice? Do
you live? Because he continues to speak
to those that he has given life. In his word, through his preaching,
through any number of ways nowadays. Paul's got a little computer
tablet over there that's got the Bible on it. I got one in
the car. I don't bring it in because I
don't think it'll work when I want it to. Or I need it to. I like books. I like books. But I also have backup. All right. All right. How do we know we're
of the truth? First John, please, if you would. First John chapter 3. Verse 14, well verse 13, I gotta
read this. Marvel not my brethren if the
world hate you. Don't marvel, it hated our Lord
for it hated you. Verse 14, we know that we have
passed from death unto life because we love the brethren. He that
loveth not his brother abideth in death. Now, drop down to verse
18, I'm not gonna read all the rest of it for the sake of time.
My little children, this is verse 18, let us not love in word,
neither in tongue, but in deed and in truth. Here's the point,
verse 19. And hereby we know that what? We are of the truth. and shall assure our hearts before
him. For if our heart condemns, God
is greater than our heart and knoweth all things. Hereby, because
of this, where it says, we love the brethren, we know we've passed
from death unto life. We love not just in word and
in tongue, but in deed and in truth. That's what it means also
to be of the truth. And John, the man who wrote this,
is the same one who is recording these words of Christ here. Every one that is of the truth,
heareth my voice. Do you love the brethren? Do
you love the brethren? Walter, I remember for a long
time, I never did quite grasp that. God, the Father, has brought
us into His family. This Bible is a book of family. Jesus Christ is not ashamed to
call us brethren. We are heirs of God and joint
heirs of Jesus Christ. If you don't like hanging around
the brethren, if you don't like gathering together to hear the
truth preached, or to gather together just to talk about the
truth, or to be with the people of God, to be with people who
know the same Lord you know, you might want to check. You're
calling an election. Because everyone that is of the
truth heareth my voice. That's what Christ said. This
is how we know we are of the truth. We love the brethren.
And we love the brethren. Why? Because we have heard his
voice. We got nothing to boast in. We
got nothing to boast in. It's all a gift. We hear and believe his word.
Why? Because we have heard his voice. I said that where Christ said
this, everyone that is of the truth heareth my voice. I said that was a qualifying
statement, a description statement, descriptive. He's the one that
qualifies us. He's one that gives the gift
of life the gift of the truth First John 4 and 4 says this
ye are of God little children and have overcome them why because
Greater is he that is in you than he that is in the world Everyone that is of the truth
is everyone that has been brought in to Christ Has been brought
in What's Paul's John say about
the others They are of the world therefore speak they of the world
and The world hears them heareth them We are of God. He that knoweth God, heareth
us. He that is not of God, heareth
not us. And boy, that becomes self-evident
sometimes. You normally don't have to wait
for that. They'll be very happy to tell
you they don't agree with you. They don't agree with Christ
and they don't agree with his truth. Hereby know we the spirit of
truth and the spirit of error. He that knows God hears us. Those are the words of the Apostle
John. They're not mine. If you won't hear the Apostle
John speaking about our Lord Jesus Christ You're not of the
truth. And that's just the only conclusion
I can come to. He that is of the truth hears
my voice. John said we are of God. He that
knoweth God hears us. Why? Because we're talking about
God, the God of the Bible, the Christ of the Bible, not the
one of our own imagination. Jesus Himself said you would
hear His voice. He, Christ, is the message. The preaching of Christ in Him
crucified is the message. The words of Christ proclaimed
and exhorted and expounded are the message of the true preacher.
whether it's an apostle or a pastor teacher. The Holy Spirit bears witness
with our spirit. He teaches us the things of Christ,
the Son of God, because it's not my voice you need to hear.
It's His voice. It's His word. It's His gospel. It's His power. It's His grace. It's His mercy. It's all Him. Pilate asked, what is truth?
And then he left, Walter. Didn't wait for an answer. I
said it a few weeks ago, if you have to ask, you don't know. You don't know. You don't know.
If you have to ask what is truth, you don't know the truth. And
I want to add to that just a little bit. If you're not concerned,
if you're not desirous of, if you're not in love with the truth
of Christ. If you don't want to hear his
word, if you don't want to hear his voice, you don't know him. You don't know him. Because it's
a funny thing, Walter, not only is he the greatest, the most
wonderful thing I know, person I know, God I've heard, he's
the most interesting person. He's the most interesting thing.
It captures my imagination sometimes. It boggles my mind. What he's done, what he's doing,
what he's going to do. I am in awe of God. I am in awe
of Jesus Christ. He came to bear witness to the
truth to this little bunch of people here. to us. To everyone that is of the truth,
He fixes it, He makes it so that you hear His voice, that I hear
His voice. Everyone He calls with His voice
lives, and everyone that He has called to life and given faith
is of the truth and shall hear his voice. And this is how we
know we are of the truth. We love the brethren. Because
to be of the truth is to be in Christ. I am the way, the truth, and
the life. And that has never changed. That will never change. He is the way, the truth, and
the life. Our Father, we're thankful for
this time. Most of all, thankful for your
son. We ask that you give Walter the
words we need to hear, the truth to be preached and proclaimed,
In your son's name we ask, amen.