Open your Bibles if you would
to John chapter 8. The name of the message is He
that is of God. He that is of God. John chapter
8. And we'll read from verses 31
all the way down to verse 47. John chapter 8 verses 31 47, then Jesus said to those Jews
which believed on him, if you continue in my word then ye are
my disciples indeed. And this next verse is so wonderful. And ye shall know the truth.
Well, because we've been taught the truth. And what? And the
truth shall make you free. And oh, how free the believer
in Christ is. Oh, how free the believer in
Christ is. They answered him, We be Abraham's
seed, and we were never in bondage to any man. How sayest thou,
ye shall be made free? Jesus answered, Verily, verily,
I say unto you, whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin. They
didn't even see that they were in bondage to sin. And that's
what the Lord's speaking of. He's speaking of spiritual things
that they're in bondage to their sin. But they're thinking, well,
we're Abrahams. We're already free. Well, no,
you're not. Because everybody, as Brother Tim read, is born
into this world dead in trespasses and sins. We're slaves to sin. Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whosoever committed sin is the
servant of sin, and the servant abideth not in the house forever,
but the Son abideth ever. If the Son, therefore, shall
make you free, you shall be free indeed. And we are free indeed. We're free in Christ. I know
that ye are Abraham's seed, but ye seek to kill me, because my
word hath no place in you. I speak that which I have seen
with my father, and you do that which you have seen with your
father.' They answered and said unto him, Abraham is our father.
Jesus saith unto them, if you were Abraham's children, ye would
do the works of Abraham. But now he seek to kill me, a
man that hath told you the truth which I have heard of God, this
did not Abraham. You do the deeds of your father.
Then said they to him, we're not born of fornication. We have
one father, even God. Jesus saith unto them, if God
were your father, you would love me. For I proceeded forth and
came from God. Neither came I of myself, but
he sent me. Why do you not understand my
speech, even because you cannot hear my word? You are of your
father the devil, and the lusts of your father you will do. He
was a murderer from the beginning, and a bold knot in the truth,
because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie,
he speaketh of his own, for he is a liar, and the father of
it. And because I tell you the truth, you believe me not. Which of you convinces me of
sin? And if I say truth, why do you not believe me? And then
this is our text in verse 47. He that is of God, heareth God's
words. He that is of God, heareth God's
words. Ye therefore hear them not, because
ye are not of God. My. Notice that phrase there,
he that is of God. Heareth God's words. We have
in this portion today the continuation of our Lord's Sermon where He
is separating the sheep from the goats. And we see in our
text that He's separating the wheat from the chaff, the church
from the world. And He brings forth here the
fact that the Pharisees as totally incapable, they're totally incapable
of receiving His words. They're totally incapable of
understanding the words that He's speaking. Now this is the
natural state of man. This is our natural state. We
are incapable of hearing the words of God. Now, you hear the
preacher's words, but they have no effect. But if God makes them
effectual, they're having an effect. And that's what our Lord's
bringing forth is that he that is of God heareth God's words.
Now we're all born and dead in trespasses and sins. That's why
I had brother Tim read that portion. And then but God who is rich
in mercy. We're all the natural state of
man. is that we are of the father of the devil. In the works of
the father, they do. And our Lord brings forth that
some believe in Christ to the salvation of their souls, while
others are entrenched and hardened in their unbelief. Again, we're
all born in unbelief. That's our natural state. We're
all born in unbelief. We're born dead in trespasses
and sins. But God makes known to his people
Christ. And they're born again by the
Holy Spirit of God. Born again by the Holy Spirit
of God. And they trust Christ. They run to Him. They trust Him.
They hear the words of the shepherd. How? Through the preaching of
the Gospel. Through the preaching. They're given ears to hear and
eyes to see. When one time they had no ears
to hear and no eyes to see. But God, in His mighty work,
And it's all of God, it's nothing we do, it's all of Him. God in His mighty work regenerates
His sheep, and we hear the voice of the shepherd. And then what
happens? We run to Christ. That's just what the scripture
says, and when it says plainly, it says, you're made willing
in the day of His power. You're made willing in the day
of His power. Oh, and he that is of God, heareth
God's words. Heareth God's words. One preacher
of old brings this forth. He said, it's bad to invent a
god in the imagination as to make one with the hand. So it's
just as bad to have a god of our imagination as it is to make
a piece of wood and stone and fall before. It's the same thing.
It's a false god. It's a false refuge. Whether
it's a god of your imagination or whether it's a god that you
made out of stone or wood, they're both false gods. They're both
false gods. The old form of idolatry has
its gods made with hands. The new form of idolatry has
its gods spun out of the imagination and harbored in the mind. Well,
I think God's like this. Well, it don't matter what you
think. What does the Bible say? Right? What does the Bible say
about God? That's why we study the Word
of God. That's why we believe what we believe based upon the
Word of God, not based upon opinion. And then he goes on to say, the
unknown God is still the true God. The unknown God is still
the true God. Let's look at our verses here
again. Look at verse 47. It says, He that is of God, heareth God's
words. Ye therefore hear him not, because
ye are not of God. Now the Lord's preachers and
faithful witnesses get up each week and declare the biblical
truth about the Lord Jesus Christ. We preach Christ. We preach about
His sinless life. We preach about how He is our
absolute substitute. We preach about His substitutionary
death on the cross, and we preach about His sinless life as our
substitute. We declare the truth about His
resurrection, the fact that He died, and He was raised again
on the third day, all according to the Scriptures. And this is
what the gospel preacher has the honor and the privilege of
proclaiming each time we stand up, each time we gather together,
and you have the privilege to hear. I have the privilege of
learning in the study and gleaning in the study, and then you all
have the privilege of hearing too. Don't count it common that
we're gathered here together. It's an honor and a privilege,
both for the preacher to preach and proclaim, and both for the
hearer as well. Oh my. Oh my, it's wonderful. It's absolutely wonderful. We
gather together and you come here and I gather together with
you to hear the gospel. In God's born-again blood-bought
child, we celebrate and we rejoice over the truth we hear, don't
we? Oh, it blesses our souls. It blesses our souls to hear
about Christ. That's all we want to hear about. You've heard me
say often times, don't tell me what I've got to do. When I listen
to a preacher, I listen to a couple of wonderful sermons this week.
They just preach Christ to me. Praise God. That's all I want
to hear. That's all I want to hear. Just tell me about Christ.
And I know it's so with you too. Just tell me about my Savior.
Just tell me about it. Don't tell me what I've got to
do. Tell me about who's done all the work. And that's the
Lord Jesus Christ. That's why we preach Christ and
Him crucified. And we rejoice, the believers
in Christ rejoice. We hear the Word of God, we hear
the Shepherd's voice, and we rejoice, don't we? We rejoice. Now remember, there was a time
when you didn't rejoice when you heard the Bible. But now,
oh my, these are words of life now, aren't they? They bring
joy and peace and rest when we hear the words of our Savior,
when we hear about the Lord Jesus Christ. And we rejoice in these
truths every day, not just when we're in church on Sunday. No,
he's everything. He's everything to us. He's our
life, beloved. He's our life. We're not just
believers when we're in church. We're believers all the time.
We love the Lord. We love his word. We love his
people. We love his gospel that tells us about what he's done
for us. Oh, it brings the believer great joy, great joy. And our
text proclaims that he that is of God hears the words of Christ.
They hear the shepherd's voice, again, through the preaching
of the gospel. And that's all by the power of the Holy Spirit,
beloved. It's all by His power. Because there was a time when
we didn't hear these words. There was a time when we didn't
even want to hear these words. I know there was for me. Oh my,
but all I want to hear about is my King. My Savior. I'm going to see Him one day,
are you? Yeah, we who are His beloved people, we're going to
behold the one we rejoice in while we're here on earth. We
have loved ones who've gone on before us and who are right now
worshiping and adoring our great Savior. Oh my, one day we'll
be with them. One day we'll be with them by
the grace of God. Oh, by the grace of God, I'll
meet you. Remember that song? By the grace of God, I'll meet
you. And that's true. Only by the grace of God. He's
the only one who's made us to differ. Note in verse 39, it's
brought forth, the Jews bring forth that they are of Abraham.
They're speaking of the flesh, beloved. They're speaking of
the flesh. Note that it says in verse 39, they answered and
said unto him, Abraham is our father. Jesus saith unto them,
if you were Abraham's children, you would do the works of Abraham.
So they're saying, well, we're the children of Abraham. We're the seed of Abraham. They're speaking of the flesh.
That's like us saying, well, I'm of Adam. That's what that is. Because
we're all of Adam, aren't we? We're all of Adam. But these
words here are full of self-righteousness. These words that those Pharisees
are speaking, they're full of self-righteousness. What they're
saying is, we're the seed of Abraham, not like them Gentiles. That statement from them is dripping
with self-righteousness, beloved. It's nothing but natural man
exalting himself. That's what's going on there.
They were contrasting themselves from the heathen. And they believed
the heathen were in bondage. And they believed they were free.
That's what they believed. And they believed they were free
just because they were Abraham's seed. Look at verse 37. The Lord's
speaking of Abraham's seed in the flesh, or they're speaking
of Abraham's seed in the flesh, but that's, look at this, he
says in verse 37, I know that ye are Abraham's seed, that's
speaking of the seed in the flesh, but ye seek to kill me because
my word hath no place in you. So the Lord right there is speaking
of the seed that they are of the seed of Abraham. Now the
Lord's going to bring forth that the true children of Abraham,
the true children of Abraham, those who are said in verse 47
to hear the words of God, because they are God's children, do the
works of Abraham. Well, the works of Abraham is
faith and obedience, faith in Christ. He just trusted Christ. Oh my, look at our Lord brings
forth What our Lord brings forth there in verse 37, look at that,
it says, I know that ye are Abraham's seed, but ye seek to kill me,
because my word hath no place in you. I'm reminded, reading
that, I'm reminded of the folks over in Matthew chapter 7. Where
the Lord said, Lord, he said, many will come to me and say,
Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? Have we not cast
out devils in thy name? Have we not done many wonderful
works? The Lord, and then I will profess
that being the Lord unto them, I never knew you. I never knew
you. Depart from me, ye that work
iniquity. Now let's consider verses 39 and 40 now of John
chapter 8. They answered and said unto him,
Abraham is our father. Jesus saith unto them, if you
were Abraham's children, ye would do the works of Abraham. So they
were talking about the sea, about their natural, their natural
birth, but the Lord here is talking about the children of Abraham
by faith. Because he says, if you were
Abraham's children, you would do the works of Abraham. You'd
believe. You'd believe on Christ. He says,
but now you seek to kill me, a man who had told you the truth,
which I have heard of God. This did not Abraham. There are a great number of religious
professors, beloved, who have a form of godliness, but know
nothing and manifest nothing of its power. They squawk when
you bring up the fact that God's people are saved sinners. And
there'll be, I've met many people this way. I tell them, you know,
I'm a saved sinner. And they're like, well, you know,
because they don't want to admit that they're sinners. They think
that when the Lord saved them, some of them anyways, I actually
met one person who told me he'd never sinned after the Lord saved
them. And I said, you're not saved.
And he said, well, I've never sinned since the Lord saved me.
I said, well, you're lying to me right now. I said, are you
married? And he said, yeah. I said, have
you ever got angry with your wife? He said, no. You're a sinner. You're a sinner. Self-righteousness is a killer. Never ever, beloved, never ever
forget the rock you were hewn from. Never ever forget where
you were when the Lord saved you. Never forget the pit that
we were in and the Lord took us out of. Never ever forget
that. Never. Never. Oh, my. It is only by God's grace
and mercy that we were taken out of that situation, that we
were given ears to hear the Savior's voice. It's only the mercy and
grace of God. That song was so fitness. It's
only the mercy and grace of God. Only. Only is mercy and grace. So they were the seed of Abraham
in the flesh, but they were not the children of Abraham. They
were not those who were born of the Holy Spirit of God. Turn if you would to Romans chapter
4. Natural birth from Christian parents does not bring one into
the family of God. No, we're all born dead in trespasses
and sins. Baptism doesn't bring you into
the family of God. Baptism can't save anybody. It's
an outward profession of an inward conversion. Church membership can't save
anyone. Can't save anyone. Only Christ
can save us, and Christ alone. Only He can make us to differ.
Look at this in Romans chapter 4, we'll read verses 1 to 12.
What shall we then say that Abraham, our father, is pertaining to
the flesh of the found? For if Abraham were justified
by works, he were of the glory. Brother Tim brought that up. If we could say we did anything
in our salvation, natural man will brag about it. Well, brag
about it. That's natural. It's natural. My. For if Abraham were justified
for works, he hath work of the glory, but not before God. He
couldn't glory before God, could he? No. He'd be stealing glory
from God. Salvation is the work of God
and God alone. He gets all the glory. He gets
all the honor. And he gets all the praise, beloved,
because he did all the work. He did it all. For what sayeth
the Scriptures? Abraham what? Believed God, and
it was counted unto him for righteousness. What were those Jews doing? They
didn't believe Christ, did they? They didn't believe Him. He says,
you're not the children of Abraham. No. Abraham believed God. And who was standing right there
in front of them? God incarnate in the flesh. The Word of God. The Word made flesh. The One
who was with God and was God. And they had no clue. For what
saith the Scriptures, Abraham believed God, and what? And it
was counted to him for righteousness. He didn't do anything. He just
believed. And that faith was given to him, we know, because
that faith is given to us. It's a gift of God, not of works,
lest any man should boast. It's given. Now to him that worketh
is the reward not reckoned of grace, but of debt. But to him
that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly,
his faith is counted for righteousness. Even as David also described
the blessedness of the man unto whom God imputeth righteousness
without works. That is a spectacular verse right
there. God imputeth righteousness without
works. That meaning not our works. Christ
brought out that perfect righteousness for us, didn't he? And our sins
were imputed to Him, and His perfect spotless righteousness
is imputed to us, beloved, without works. He did it all. He did it all. Salvation is by
grace alone, through faith alone, and through Christ alone. There's
no other way. No other way. Saying, blessed
are those whose iniquities are forgiven and whose sins are covered.
This is a wonderful verse for the believer in Christ. All our
iniquities are forgiven. Past, present and future. All
our sins are covered, beloved. Covered by the precious blood
of Christ. We've been made clean. Washed clean by Christ. Cometh
this blessedness upon the circumcision only or upon the uncircumcision
only? For we say that faith was reckoned to Abraham for righteousness.
How then, or how was it then reckoned? When he was in circumcision
or in uncircumcision? Not in circumcision, but in uncircumcision. And he received the sign of circumcision,
the seal of righteousness of the faith, which he had yet been
uncircumcised, that he might be the father of all them that
believe. Now see where Christ is saying,
if you were the children of Abraham, you'd believe me. It says right
here, of all them that believe, though they be not circumcised,
that righteousness might be imputed unto them also. And every believer
has the righteousness of Christ imputed to us, beloved. and the
father of circumcision to them who are not of the circumcision
only, but who also walk in the steps of that faith of our father
Abraham, which he had been yet uncircumcised. And then tie in Romans chapter
9. Romans chapter 9 verses 6 to 8. And we will see the distinction
is specifically brought forth. Not as though the word of God
hath taken none effect, for they are not all Israel which are
of Israel, neither because they are the seed of Abraham are they
all children, but in Isaac shall thy seed be called. That is,
they which are the children of the flesh, these are not the
children of God. but the children of promise are
counted for the seed. Children of Abraham refers to
a spiritual relationship. The seed of Abraham is only a
fleshy tie, but the children of Abraham speaks of a spiritual
relationship. A spiritual relationship. Scripture
says, it is the spirit that quickeneth the flesh profit nothing. The
words that I speak unto you, they are spirit and they are
life. Note in verse 47, let's go back
to our text in John chapter 8, and notice in verse 47, He that
is of God, He that is of God. Beloved, these words come from
the lips of the Master, the lips of the Lord Jesus Christ. God
incarnate in the flesh, the truth incarnate. And he was speaking to these
unbelieving Jews, and he was making clear the distinction
between his chosen blood-bought people and the unbelieving reprobates. Note in verse 41, the Pharisees
are taken back by the words of Christ. They recoil back at him
with these words. You do the deeds of your father.
Then said they to him, We are not born of fornication. We have
one Father, even God. They have no idea, beloved, who
is speaking to them. They have no clue who is speaking
to them. They have no idea that the one
who is standing right before them is the Messiah. The one
whom the prophets wrote about. They are blind to who He is.
Deaf to His words. And this, again, is a picture
of us in our natural state. In our natural state. And think
of this, though. These are religious men. These
are men who supposedly study the Bible. Beloved, are not the
words true? They're the blind leading the
blind. They're the blind leading the blind. Look at verse 42,
Jesus say unto them, if God were your father, you would love me,
for I proceeded forth and came from God. Neither came I of myself,
but he sent me. Our Lord was on a mission, beloved,
sent by God. Sent by God the Father. If God was their father by adoption,
by grace, by mercy, and by regeneration, if they'd been born again by
the Spirit, then they would love him. then they would love Him,
just as we who are born again by the Holy Spirit of God love
Christ, love His words. But He sent from God, beloved,
we see here, but He sent me. He sent by God. He sent by God. Now bring this home for each
one of us who are believers. He is sent by God, the believer
can say, to redeem me from my sins. And He came willingly. And He went to the cross willingly. Sent by God to save His people,
Scripture says, from their sins. We can't save ourselves. No one
in this room can save yourself. No one. But I preach one who
can save you. Oh my, the Lord Jesus Christ and Him alone. He
is the only Savior of sinners. The only Savior of sinners. And
He went to Calvary's cross and shed His precious blood for the
remission of the sins of His people. Note the question in
verse 33 and take note too that our Lord is not asking us for
information because He's God. He's God. He's God. He's not asking this for information.
He already knows the answer. He says, why do you not understand
my speech? Even because you cannot hear
my word. He said to these self-righteous
religious Pharisees, why do you not understand my speech? Even because you cannot hear
my word. Now they heard audibly him speaking,
didn't they? They heard him audibly speaking.
They heard his voice. And sometimes they didn't misunderstand
what he was saying. They just didn't believe. I remember talking to Brother
Norm Wells, dear, dear brother, and he said, you know what? People just don't believe what
the word says. They just don't believe what
the word says. When our Lord said, I and the Father are one,
they accused Him of blasphemy, didn't they? They accused Him
of blasphemy. They would have stoned Him to
death if God had not restrained them. But it's obvious they understood. But it's obvious too that they
didn't believe it. They didn't believe His words. They didn't
believe what they heard. These Jews heard the Master's
words. but they could not hear nor understand
the spiritual sense and meaning of his message. They were blind
and deaf by nature, by their religious tradition and by prejudice,
as are all men. Therefore they rejected him and
his gospel of redemption. Now let's consider what our Lord
brings forth in the next few verses. Look at verse 44. Ye
are of your father the devil, And the lusts of your father
will you do. He was a murderer from the beginning. And abode
not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh
a lie, he speaketh of his own, for he is a liar and the father
of it." This, beloved, is a key point
our Lord had been leading up to. He has denied their claims
of being the children of Abraham. They're the seed, but they're
not the children. Because the children, the spiritual children
of Abraham love Christ. They love Him. And He's demonstrated
that God was certainly not their Father. He is by creation, but
not by... They have no love for the one
the Father sent. And our Lord brings forth before
them in very plain language who their father really is, the devil.
As their character has been formed not under divine influence, but
under satanic influence. As the moral likeness of Satan,
one commentator said, is stamped upon all men. Let's read that
portion that Brother Tim read. We'll just read the first three
verses, Ephesians chapter 2. Look at this. Ephesians chapter
2. We'll read the first three verses
again. This is our state. This is the
natural state of hopelessness that man comes into the world,
dead in trespasses and sins. Dead in trespasses and sins.
Ephesians chapter 2 verse 1, And you, he's writing to Ephesian
believers, he hath quickened who were dead in trespasses and
sins. So he's telling them, past tense, what their state was.
You were dead in trespasses and sins. Where in times past ye walked
according to the course of the world, according to the prince
of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the
children of disobedience, among whom also we all had our conversations
in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires
of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature the children
of wrath, even as others." Now let's go back to John chapter
8 with that in mind. John chapter 8, look at verse
45. He says, and because I tell you
the truth, you believe me not. You believe me not. Beloved of God, it's the truth, and the God of
all truth, which man hates. They hate He who is truth incarnate,
the Lord Jesus Christ. Man in their natural state hate
God. Now some will say, well, I never
hated God. Well, you may not have said that,
but your actions prove it. And if we're honest with ourselves,
that's what it does. In our natural state, we were
at enmity with God. And that's the state of all men.
All men. And there can be no greater evidence
of man's hatred for the truth, and their hatred and rejection
of those who tell them the truth, in the preaching of the gospel
of salvation in Christ alone. They hated our Lord without a
cause, and their haters' people, their servants, without a cause."
Look at John chapter 5. Turn there for a minute to John
chapter 5. John chapter 5. John chapter 5. We'll read verses
42 to 47. Look at this, he says, But I
know you that ye have not the love of God in you. I am come
in my Father's name, and ye shall receive me not. If another shall
come in his own name, him ye will receive. How can ye believe which receive
honor one from 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 accuses 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? How shall you believe my words? Oh, they hated him without a
cause, beloved. Let's go back to John chapter
8. Look at verse 46. John chapter 8, verse 46. Which
of you convinces me of sin? And if I say the truth, why do
you believe me not? Or why do you not believe me?
Our Lord is the sinless, spotless Lamb of God, beloved. Without
blemish and without spot. He is absolutely sinless in His
life and He was absolutely sinless in His death, beloved. And He
brings forth that none can bring a claim against Him as being
a sinner. That's what He's saying here.
He says, which of you convinces me of sin? And if I say the truth,
why do you not believe me? Now they, in the past, they had
called him a wine-bibber and a gluttoner, they had charged
him with blasphemy and sedition, but he declared that not one
of them could bring forth any proof of immorality or sin in
his life, nor corruption in his doctrine, because he is the sinless
One Beloved, he is God incarnate in the flesh, he is the Lamb
of God. The perfect, spotless Lamb without
blemish. The sinless One. God incarnate
in the flesh. And since not one sin could be
bought against Him, in life or in doctrine, it was unreasonable
for them to not believe Him. He brings forth the question,
if I say the truth, why do you not believe me? Turn, if you would, to John 14.
John 14. And then we'll look at John 19. John 14. Our Lord proclaimed
that the prince of this world, being Satan, cometh to Christ
and hath nothing in him. Now, he could come to us. There's
lots in us, isn't there? Because we're sinners. And even
though we who are saved are born again, blood washed, we're still
sinners. We still struggle. But look at this proclamation
here in John 14, verse 30. Look at this. Hereafter I will
not talk much with you. For the prince of this world,
that being Satan, cometh and hath what? Nothing in me. Nothing. Nothing. He's perfect beloved.
He's sinless. He's absolutely spotless. And
then go over to John 19.6. John 19.6. The scripture declares
that Pilate could find no fault in Him. No fault in Him. And keep in mind what the Lord
says there in John 8.46. Which of you convinces me of
sin? And if I say the truth, why do you not believe? Look
at this in John 19.6, When the chief priest therefore and officers
saw him, and cried out, saying, Crucify him, crucify him, Pilate
saith unto them, Take ye him, and crucify him, for I find no
fault in him. None. Nothing. Now turn, if you would,
to Hebrews 4.15. And the Scriptures declare the
absolute sinlessness of Christ, beloved. The absolute sinlessness
of Christ. Again, we always have to go to
Scripture. And we always bring Scripture
to anything that we're going to look at. Our Lord is declared
to be absolutely sinless. Look at this in Hebrews 4, verse
15. For we have not an high priest
which cannot be touched with the feelings of our infirmities,
but was in all points tempted as we are yet without sin. Perfect. So we know now when
the Lord says, which of you convinces me of sin? Satan couldn't even
say there's anything in him. He's perfect. He's spotless,
beloved. He's the sinless Lamb of God. And the scriptures plainly declare
that right there. He was in all points tempted
like as we are, yet without sin. Yet without sin. Let's go back
to our text in John chapter 8. And note the latter part of verse
46. And if I say the truth, Why do
you not believe me? And then we'll read verse 47.
He that is of God heareth God's words, ye therefore hear them
not, because ye are not of God. Again, we'll read it again. The
latter part of verse 46. And if I say the truth, why do
you not believe me? He that is of God, verse 47,
heareth God's words, ye therefore hear them not, because ye are
not of God. So our Lord here brings forth
these marvelous words here in verse 47. He that is of God,
heareth God's words. Ye therefore hear them not, because
ye are not of God's. My, let us remember that this
is true of God's elect. In our natural unregenerate state,
we had the same wicked heart of unbelief as the vessels of
wrath. We had the same heart of unbelief
as any vessel of wrath that is sent to eternal torment. That
was our natural state. But our Lord Jesus, God incarnated
in the flesh and by the power of the Holy Spirit of God, He
has delivered us. He has delivered us from the
prison house, the prison house of unbelief and the prison house
of sin. How have we been delivered? We've
been delivered from the slave lock of sin. We really have been
beloved. We've heard His voice through
the preaching of His Word. And those who have heard the
life-giving voice of the Lord Jesus Christ cannot be deceived
by the voice of strangers or the voices of false preachers.
This wonderful verse brings forth that we have heard His voice.
We have heard His voice. We have heard the words of God.
Why? Because we're His. And we're His by choice. He chose
us in eternity in Christ. We're His by purchase. God Himself,
the Lord Jesus Christ, has purchased our eternal souls. And one day
we'll be in the presence of our great God. It says here, he that
is of God. These words speak of those who
belong to God by eternal election. The scriptures declare, all that
the Father giveth me shall come to me, and him that cometh to
me I will in no wise cast out. It also says in 2 Timothy 2.9,
nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure, having this
seal, the Lord knoweth them that are his. He knows who his people
are. We don't. That's why we preach
the gospel to everyone. But God knows, God knows who
his people are. And let everyone that nameth
the name of the Christ depart from iniquity. Oh my. And then in John 17, nine, in
the high priestly prayer, our Lord prayed this. I pray for
them, I pray not for the world, but for them which thou hast
given me, for they are thine. Those are the very ones that
are spoken of here. He that is of God, hear God's words. Those
are the very ones spoken of. Look at these words again. He
that is of God speaks of those who have been born again of God.
Born again by the Holy Spirit of God. Because our Lord said,
what did he say? You must be born again. You must be born
again. We're indwelt by the Spirit of
truth, aren't we? In these words, he that is of
God speaks to the family of God. Speaks to the family of God.
Those who will receive God's word with affection, and reverence,
and obedience. Turn, if you would, to John chapter
10. John chapter 10. Just a couple chapters over.
John chapter 10. Look at this. Jesus answered
in verse 25. Jesus answered them, I told you
and you believed not. The works that I do in my Father's
name they bear witness of me. So the works that Christ did
bore witness of who he was, beloved. Oh my, the dead were raised,
the blind could see, the deaf could hear. They bore witness
of who he was. But ye believe not, because ye
are not of my sheep. As I said unto you, my sheep
hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. And I give
unto them. Notice that. I give unto them. What does he give us? Eternal
life. It's a gift, beloved. And I give
unto them eternal life. And what? And here's another
one of them shall words. I love this. And they shall never
perish. That's God saying. and they shall
never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand."
Oh my. Our Lord proclaimed this truth
in John 18.37 when he said this, 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 I came into this world, that I should bear witness unto
the truth. Every one that is of the truth heareth my voice.
Same thing that he's telling the Pharisees here in John 8,
47, beloved. He that is of God. So the reason the Jews did not
believe him was because they were not God's chosen people.
But the Scriptures proclaim that he that is of God believes the
words of Christ and believes on Christ for salvation. Turn
if you would to 1 Corinthians chapter 15. 1 Corinthians 15, verses 1-8. Moreover, brethren, I declare
unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have
received, and wherein ye stand." Now we stand in Christ, don't
we? We don't stand in ourselves. We stand only in Christ. "...by which also ye are saved,
if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed
in vain." For I delivered unto you first of all that which I
received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the
Scriptures. And that He was buried, and that
He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures. Just like
God said it would happen. Remember He told them? Moses wrote a me. Moses wrote
a me. and that he was buried, and that
he rose again the third day according to the Scriptures, and he was
seen of Cephas, and then of the twelve. After that he was seen
of above five hundred brethren at once, of whom the greater
part remaineth unto this present, but some are fallen asleep. After
that he was seen of James, and then of the apostles, and last
of all he was seen of me also, as one born out of due time.
So let's go back to our text there in John 8.47, it says,
He that is of God, heareth God's words. Ye therefore hear them
not, because ye are not of God. But note that first part, He
that is of God, heareth God's words. These are words spoken
by the Master, beloved. These are words spoken by the
Master. And He's speaking of those who
are by God's choice, by redemption, and by regeneration, the people
of God. The people of God. Those who
hear God's words, believe that Jesus Christ died for our sins,
according to the Scripture. Those who hear God's words believe
that His death accomplished the salvation of His chosen people,
all according to the will of God. And we believe that salvation
is in Christ and Christ alone, plus absolutely nothing we do.
Nothing. It's all Christ. Those who hear
God's words believe that His supreme sacrifice sanctified,
perfected those He represented according to the will of God.
Now we are still sinners until we go home to glory. But remember,
we are clothed in the perfect, spotless righteousness of Christ. Right now. Right now, beloved. And those who hear God's words
believe that His death reconciled His people to God, according
to the eternal purpose of the Father, who sent Him to do His
will. Just like the Scripture said.
Just like what we read today. Those who hear God's words believe
that Jesus Christ was born of a virgin, and that He died upon
Calvary's cross and rose again the third day, all according
to the Scripture. Those who hear God's words believe
that Jesus Christ is the Lord of heaven and earth, and that
He rules and reigns right now. Those who hear God's word believe
that Jesus Christ was raised from the dead for the justification
of His people, to prove that God was absolutely satisfied
with the sacrifice of Christ. And those who hear God's words
believe that Jesus Christ is the resurrected Christ of God,
who is right now seated on a sovereign throne in glory, beloved, is
our great high priest making intercession for those he died
for. And those who hear God's word
believe that God, the Holy Spirit, has regenerated us, that we're
born again of the Holy Spirit of God, and that only He has
revealed the glorious truths of Christ to us. If we have heard the voice of
the Lord Jesus Christ through the preaching of the gospel,
we will rejoice in the death, burial, and resurrection of our
exalted King. If we have heard the voice of
the Lord Jesus Christ, we will rejoice in the blessed truth
that our Lord and Savior has entered into heaven itself, there
to appear in the presence of our great God for us, and that
by God-given faith, we look for His return. We look for His return,
all according to the Scriptures. And those who have heard the
voice of the Lord Jesus Christ rejoice that he has given us
ears to hear and eyes to look upon him. And we rejoice in the
wonderful salvation which we have in our Savior. And we proclaim
to this lost and dying world that salvation is only in Christ
and Christ alone. Glory be to God. Heavenly Father,
we thank you for the time that we've spent looking through thy
word, O Lord. And we who are your blood-bought
people, we rejoice that you've given us ears to hear and eyes
to see thee, O Lord. We marvel that you chose us in
Christ before the foundation of the world. We marvel that
we're regenerated by the power of the Holy Spirit of God. and
we marvel that one day, based upon absolutely nothing in ourselves,
we will see Thee face to face, because You will take us home
to be with Thee forever. Lord, may we ponder and think
about these things. As the old-timers used to say,
may we meditate, O Lord, upon these precious truths which we've
looked at today. May we think upon them through
the week, and may they be cause for us to rejoice in you and
you alone, Lord Jesus. It's in your name we pray to
give you all the glory and honor and praise. Amen.