Ever since I started preparing
for this past Sunday's messages, my mind has just been overwhelmed
with the love of God for us. And I have been preparing to
preach to you tonight from the latter portion of John 17. But
as I began preparing a message from that portion of Scripture,
The text for this evening kept echoing in my heart. You don't
need to turn there just yet. 1 John 3, verse 1. Behold what manner of love the
Father hath bestowed on us. Now that statement would be utterly
meaningless if God's love were bestowed on everybody. It would
just be meaningless. If God's love were bestowed on
Judas Iscariot, as has been bestowed on Bob Duff, then God's love
doesn't make any difference, because Judas is in hell. If
God's love were bestowed upon the reprobate and the unbelieving,
those who at last perish under the wrath of God, as God's love
is bestowed upon His elect in His free grace, then the love
of God has nothing to do with our salvation. The love of God
doesn't make any difference in our lives. The love of God is
meaningless. And that simply is not the case.
Therefore, John speaks with wonder, with wonder and with inspiration
as he writes, what manner of love the Father
hath bestowed on us. Now, there are a number of things
in the scriptures to which our attention is directed with words
indicating wonder, amazement, awe. This word, behold, is just
such a word. It is like a signpost. The old books when they were
printing presses were fairly new and folks started inventing
icons to go along with the letters. They used to put pointed fingers
in the margin of a book. That meant this is important.
Stop here and look at this. Pay attention to this. Well,
this is as one of those pointed fingers, this word, behold. It's
used concerning many things in the scriptures, and I wouldn't
attempt to give you all of them, but I want to give you three
of them. Tonight I want us to look at three great wonders,
three great wonders revealed in the book of God. And we'll
begin in John chapter 1 and verse 29, and we'll be working our
way back to our text in 1 John 3. The first wonder upon which I
would have us meditate for just a few minutes is the wonder of
the Lamb of God. The first great wonder revealed
in this book really is just that. It is the wonder of redemption
through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God. He is
that one who was portrayed, pictured, and represented when Adam and
Eve were clothed with skins of an innocent victim in the garden.
Our Lord Jesus was there portrayed as that one who must suffer and
die in the room instead of his people. He was portrayed as that
one through by whose righteousness we must be clothed as we would
stand before God Almighty. God would strip from us the fig
leaf of our self-righteousness, wash us in the blood of his darling
son, and robe us in his perfect righteousness. That's what it
is to be saved by God's grace. It is this picture that Abel
must have had in mind when he worshipped God in Genesis chapter
4. You remember how Abel came to God? Cain brought a sacrifice
of the fruit of the ground, that which he had produced with his
own hands, and came to God as he chose, determined to find,
to demand of God that he find acceptance with God on his terms
rather than God's terms. And for that, Cain was rejected. Abel came to God bringing what
God brought to Adam, a lamb, a kid of the flocks, and was
accepted of God because the Lord had respect to Abel in his offering
because Abel believed God. He believed God, that is, he
believed the revelation God gave concerning himself with regard
to salvation by the sacrifice of a substitute, a lamb, the
Lord Jesus Christ. Now here in our text, the Lamb
of God is named for the first time specifically. John 1, verse
29. Our Lord is constantly referred
to, constantly typified, constantly pointed to as the Lamb. But here
for the first time, He is identified distinctly as the Lamb of God.
John the Baptist, we read the next day, John, John the Baptist,
seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of
God." Stop now. Pay attention. Look at this.
This is important. Nothing more important. Behold
the Lamb of God. How come? Because He is that
Lamb which taketh away the sin of the world. Now watch how John
specifically identifies Him and what takes place after this.
Verse 30. This is He. John said, This is the one I've
been telling you about. Do you see Him now? Behold, the
Lamb of God, this is He of whom I have been speaking, of whom
I said, after me cometh a man which is preferred before me.
Look at this now. For He was before me. This man
is one who came before me. He was before me. But wait a
minute, John was born before the Lord Jesus was. He must be confused. No. He's
talking about a man who is the eternal God. He was before me,
and I knew Him not. I didn't know who He was. But
that He should be made manifest to Israel, therefore am I come
baptizing with water. And John bare record saying,
I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and it abode
upon Him. And I knew Him not. But He that
sent me, the Lord God who sent me to baptize with water, the
same said to me. upon whom thou shalt see the
Spirit descending and remaining on him the same as he which baptizeth
with the Holy Ghost." In other words, John said, I didn't know
that my first cousin was the Messiah, the Son of God. I only
knew this, God who sent me. said, the one that comes to you
and you see the Spirit of God descending like a dove, lighting
upon him and staying on him, he is that one who shall baptize
with the Holy Ghost. He is the Messiah. He's the one
of whom Joel spoke in Joel chapter 2. He's the one. This is him. Read on now. Verse 34, And I
saw and by record that this is the Son of God. Here's the Lamb
of God. He is before me. He's a man,
but He's the eternal God. He is God the Son. Again, the
next day, after John stood and two of his disciples, and looking
upon Jesus as He walked, He saith, He said to His disciples, Behold,
the Lamb of God. Now watch this. Oh, may God make
this true of you. And the two disciples heard him
speak, and they followed Jesus. Well, wait a minute, John. Don't you want to follow Him?
No, we want to follow Him. They followed Jesus. Behold the
Lamb of God which taketh away the sin of the world. I'm calling
for you. I want myself. to behold the
Lamb of God as the sin-atoning sacrifice, that One whom God
Himself has accepted, who bore our sins and bore them away in
His own body on the cursed tree. The Lord Jesus is presented to
us in this book as a Lamb. He is led as a Lamb to the slaughter.
As a sheep before her shearers is done, so opened He not His
mouth. He is a Lamb, but He is the Lamb
of God. That is, He is the Lamb that
proceeds from God. He is the Lamb required by God. He is the Lamb provided by God
Himself. He is the Lamb that God accepts,
the only one. He is that Lamb, you see, who
is Himself God. He who would make atonement for
sin must be of infinite worth. God Almighty must have satisfaction,
and He can have it only by one who is His own equal. Now, our
Lord Jesus Christ, being the Lamb of God has taken away the
sin of the world. Now what on earth does that mean? Does it mean that he's taken
away the sins of all men and all women who ever lived in the
world? If so, then hell is not true. There is no such place. There's
no reason for it. And we know that the scriptures
speak plainly of eternal damnation. No, he does not take away. He
has not taken away. He did not try to take away the
sins of all people in the world. Well, what does it mean then?
It means that he has taken away the sins of his people scattered
throughout all the world in all the ages of time by his one sacrifice
when iniquity was laid on him. Oh, God, help you now to behold
the Lamb. Some of you are yet without Christ,
lost under the wrath of God. Guilt presses heavily on you.
The wrath of God is upon you and would crush you to hell. Perhaps some I have no awareness
of. You may have hid all these years in a refuge of lies, but
the guilt of sin still presses you down. I call on you now. I call on you now for your soul's
sake, for the glory of God, right where you sit, to behold the
Lamb of God. just as Israel in the days of
old looked upon the brazen serpent and lived. The Lord Jesus says,
I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto
me. He says, Moses lifted up the
serpent, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whosoever
believeth on Him should not perish, but have everlasting life. That
will tell you what it meant to look to Him. And I'll tell you
what it is to behold Him. You read it just a little bit
ago, Bobby. Look unto me and be ye saved, all the ends of
the earth. For I am God, beside me there is none else. What does
it mean to look to Him? What does it mean to behold Him?
What does it mean to believe on Him? To believe on Christ. Right where you sit, right where
you sit, is to look out of yourself to Him for everything. Well, Pastor, that's not so profound.
No, it's not. No, it's not. It's impossible,
but it's not profound. You won't do it, but it's not
profound. Oh, but if you can, right where you sit, look to
Him, the Lamb of God, for all your righteousness, for all your
redemption, for all your acceptance with God Almighty, Jesus Christ,
the Lamb of God, took away your sins 2,000 years ago. But the
message is the same for you who are born of God, to you who already
are heirs of eternal life. Whatever your soul's need is,
whatever your soul's trouble, whatever your present condition
is, your need right now is to behold the Lamb of God. Look
to Him and worship. Look to Him and worship. Look
to the Lamb of God and behold Him with amazing wonder. Behold
the Lamb of God sacrificed in my room instead and pause my
soul in wonder that He should die for me. Look to the Lamb
of God and be broken for your sin, broken for your hardness,
broken over your Lack of love and care for Him. Broken because
you're not broken for Him. Look to Him and live forever. Look to the Lamb of God. Behold
Him and find inspiration and motivation for all things as
you live in this world for His glory. Behold the Lamb of God. Ever look upon Him. Behold Him
in the book. And I promise you as you behold
Him in the book, this book will live for you. Behold Him in the
pages of Scripture. This book is all about Him. Behold
Him and follow Him. Believers are described, turn
over there if you will, Revelation 14, let me show you this. Believers
are described as folks who follow the Lamb. They follow Him. Follow His Word. Follow His example. Follow His will. They follow
Him. They pursue Him. They're constantly seeking Him. Revelation 14, verse 4. These
are they which were not defiled with women, for they are virgins. What a strange way to speak about
men. Oh, no. Because we all went a-whoring
after the lust of our flesh, went a-whoring after other gods.
But the Lamb of God took away our sins, washed us in His blood,
and made us pure and spotless before Him. And now we stand
before Him as chaste virgins. These are they which follow the
Lamb whithersoever He goeth. These were redeemed from among
men, being firstfruits unto God and to the Lamb. The first great
wonder then revealed in this book is the wonder of the Lamb. Oh, how I thank God for the Lamb. The Lamb slain at Calvary 2,000
years ago. The Lamb of God slain from the
foundation of the world. and for the book of life of the
Lamb, in which our names have been inscribed by the finger
of God from eternity." Now, let me show you something about this
Lamb. Turn back to Lamentations chapter 1. Here's the second
wonder revealed in this book as the constant theme of this
book. It is the sufferings, sorrow,
and death of the Lord Jesus Christ as the Lamb of God. Hear what he says as he speaks
in Lamentations 1 verse 12. Is it nothing to you, all ye
that pass by? Behold and see. Behold and see. He said to his disciples, John's
disciples said, Master, where dwellest thou? He said, Come,
and you'll see. Here he says, Behold, and you'll see. Behold,
and see if there be any sorrow like unto my sorrow, which is
done unto me, wherewith the Lord hath afflicted me in the day
of his fierce anger. God give me wisdom and grace,
and God give you wisdom and grace ever to behold the sorrow He
endured for you and for me. Not that you might pity Him,
but that you might worship Him. Not that you might feel sorry
for Him, but that you might worship Him. Not that you might look
on Him and wish it hadn't happened, but rejoice that it did. Behold
and see if there be any sorrow like unto my sorrow. The Son
of God, hanging on the cursed tree, suffered all the ignominy
and terror of God's holy, unmitigated wrath. In his body, in his heart,
in his very soul, the Lamb of God endured the hail of God's
wrath for us. Sometimes things are expressed
better in poetry. Samuel Spinnett wrote, yonder
amazing sight I see, the incarnate Son of God expiring on the accursed
tree and weltering in his blood. Behold a purple torrent run down
from his hands and head. The crimson tide puts out the
sun. His groans awake the dead. The
trembling earth, the darkened sky proclaim this truth aloud
and with the amazed centurion cry, this man is the Son of God. So great, so vast a sacrifice. May well my hope revive if God's
own Son thus bleeds and dies. this sinner sure may live. Oh, that these cords of love
divine might draw me, Lord, to thee. Thou hast my heart, it
shall be thine, thine it shall ever be. Behold and see if there
be any sorrow likened to my sorrow." where he points to as the source
of his sorrow. Wherewith the Lord God hath afflicted
me in the day of his fierce anger. In the day of his fierce anger,
God afflicted him. He cried awake, O sword, against
one that is my fellow, smite and slay the shepherd. God, in
fierce anger, unmitigated wrath, because he made his son to be
sin for us, was made to be angry with his son and full of fury
against his son. And he plunged his sword into
the soul of his son and there found satisfaction. What was
the cause of our Lord's sorrow? Why did He suffer such? Because
God Almighty has made Him to be sin for us, who knew no sin,
that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him. How could God Almighty, Just and true. God who is love. God who is good. Bobby, his very
name, God, means good. Good. Good. How could a good God kill his
own son in the horror of his hellish anger? How? Because he
had to. His son was made to be sin, and
his holy eyes will not look upon sin. Justice demanded the soul
that sinneth it shall die, and die he must when he was made
to be sin. The Lord God gave him exactly what the law said he
must have when he was made sin. And he must die or God's law
will fall to the ground. He must die or justice fall to
the ground. He must die or God abdicate His
throne as God. He must die because it was made
to be said. And as the result, because He
has fully satisfied God's holy, infinite justice on our behalf,
suffering all the unmitigated horror of God's wrath as our
substance, dying yonder as the Lamb of God now, we've made the
righteousness of God in Him. How? Same way He was made to
be said. To what extent? Just to the extent
He was made to be said. Well, what's the result? God's
going to deal with us on the basis of absolute righteousness
and being just and holy and true and good. He takes us into His
arms and receives us graciously as being the very righteousness
of God in His darling Son. Now, look at 1 John 3 verse 1. and behold the wonder of God's
love revealed in this land. It is in consideration of all
these things, as the first chapter of John and the second chapter
of John clearly demonstrate, that the Apostle John here calls
upon us in this third chapter of 1 John to behold with deep
gratitude and joy, with exalting confidence and praise, the love
of God for His elect in Christ. Behold what manner of love the
Father hath bestowed on us, that we should be called the sons
of God. John would have us to behold
the wonder of this love bestowed on us. I like the way he expresses it,
because I just like the language of Scripture. But the love of
God is not something that's out there, sort of abstract out there,
some kind of an emotion, some kind of a passion, some kind
of a thing that you can't get hold of, you can't really understand,
you can't really define, but if somehow you'll decide you
can get it, you can have it. The love of God is not there
for your taking, the love of God is there for His giving.
And there's a huge difference. He bestowed His love on us. He didn't offer it to us, He
bestowed it. He didn't present it to us, He bestowed it. He
didn't make us a good proposition, He bestowed His love on us. That is, in sovereign free grace,
when He granted us life and faith in Christ, He conferred and put
on us the knowledge of His infinite love. And now the love of God
is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which He gives
to us. We rejoice to know that God is love. We rejoice to know
that love is an attribute of His holy being without which
He would not be God. We know that God is love because
His love is revealed and made known by the Lamb and His sacrifice
by His own dear Son. But love is known by deeds, not
words, by deeds. You don't show somebody you love
them by saying it. That doesn't hurt to say it,
say it real often. But you're going to show them
you love them by what you do. And God's love for us is known by
His deeds. Let me remind you of a few. In everlasting love, He chose
us and set His heart upon us and said, I'll be their God and
they shall be my people. The Lord God in infinite love
sent his own darling son into this world to die in our room
instead. Greater love hath no man than
this, our Lord said, that a man should lay down his life for
his friends. That would be marvelous. But God commendeth his love toward
us, and that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.
When we were enemies by wicked works and despised Him, He laid
down His life for us. Hereby perceive we the love of
God because He laid down His life for us. Turn over to 1 John
chapter 4, verse 9. In this was manifested, in this
was shown at broad daylight the love of God toward us. Because
that God sent His only begotten Son into the world that we might
live through Him. There was no other way for us
to live. Now look at verse 10. Herein is love. Herein is love. Let's stop here. Dig deep as
you want to, often as you want to. You'll never exhaust the
treasure chest by just scratching the surface. You'll find diamonds
and rubies and gold. Herein is love! Not that we loved
God. We didn't. We couldn't. We wouldn't. But He loved us. He loved us. He loved us and
sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. And not for ours
only, but also for the sins of His people scattered throughout
all the world. God's love is revealed in His
deed of saving such as we are. He said in Jeremiah 31, verse
3. Come back there and look at it if you will. Jeremiah 31,
verse 3. I have loved thee. with an everlasting
love. Therefore with loving kindness
have I drawn thee. O blessed is the man whom thou
choosest, and calls us to approach unto thee. And God's love, God's
love is seen in his constant preservation of his own. He speaks of having loved us. He who cannot change and cannot
be changed loved me before eternity. And He ain't never going to change
His mind. with everlasting love. And since
He loves man, what shall separate us from the love of God that's
in Christ Jesus the Lord? Nothing. Not in heaven above,
not in earth beneath, not in hell under the earth. Nothing
in you and nothing in man. Love is known by its needs. Now,
turn over to John chapter 11. Let me show you something. The Lord Jesus is at the tomb
of Lazarus. And as he stands at the tomb
of Lazarus, we read, Jesus wept. Isn't it marvelous how God sometimes
gives us a word with no explanation, and all we can do is just kindly
sit back and wonder why. He wasn't weeping for certain.
For certain he wasn't weeping because of Lazarus being in the
grave. His fixing to raise him out of that. That sure wasn't
the case. He wasn't weeping because Lazarus was now in a bad state. That couldn't have been the case.
No, no. Why was he weeping? The Jews misunderstood. They
said, then said the Jews behold how he loved him. Now that's
true, he did. But he wasn't weeping for Lazarus.
He's weeping because of Martha and Mary, their pain, their sorrow. Behold how he loved them. He's touched with what touches
him. touched with the feeling of our
infirmities, moved with compassion upon his own. Oh, what tender care he exercises
over us, the sons of God, in his daily providence. Behold
what manner of love the Father hath bestowed on us, that we
should be called the sons of God. Sons we are through God's election,
who in Jesus Christ believe, by eternal destination, sovereign
grace, we now receive. Every fallen soul by sinning
merits everlasting pain, but thy love without beginning has
restored thy sons again." Now pause, my soul. Adore and wonder. Ask, oh why such love to me? Grace has put me in the number
of the Savior's family. Well, how is it that God causes
us to experience this thing of adoption. How is it that God
bestows this love on us? Brother Larry read back in the
office a little bit ago, if you want to turn to John chapter
1, I'll give you this, and I trust God will seal these words to your heart.
John chapter 1, verse 12. But as many as received Him,
To them gave he power to become the sons of
God, even to them that believe on his name, which were born,
not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will
of man, but of God." How is it that we experience this adoption
of sons? How is it that God in his wondrous
grace brings his chosen adopted sons into the blessed joy of
their sonship? Read those two verses backwards
and you'll find out. First, God drops life, the life
of grace, the life of his own son into our souls. We are born of God. Not of the
will of flesh. nor the will of man, but of God. You see, faith doesn't cause
God to give us life. Faith is the result. God comes
in sovereign grace to the dead sinner and drops grace in the
soul and makes the sinner live. And then, as soon as the sinner
has life dropped into his soul, He receives Christ. He receives
Christ. This ground out here has been
so dry and just hard, hard, hard. I put some water on it the other
day. And you know what happened when the water hit the ground?
It just opened up. It just involuntarily, it just
opened up. Just open up and start sucking
it in. Just start sucking it in. Now,
we're not pieces of dirt, but our hearts are made to be good
grail, to receive the seed sown when God puts the water of His
grace in our hearts. And now we, not involuntarily,
not unconsciously, but rather willingly, delightfully, happily,
we open and cry, Come in, Lord Jesus! I must have You. And we
receive Him. And as soon as you trust Christ,
as soon as the sinner looks away to Christ, as soon as you believe on Him,
He gives you power, the right, the authority to become the sons
of God. I have a right. I'm not overstating this, Lindsay,
I have a right at the throne of God. I have a right. He's
my Father. I have a right to call God my
Father. I have a right and that right
is Christ the Lord, His own blood, His own righteousness. He's given
me power, the authority. What did He give you? He gave
me blood atonement. He gave me a sacrifice. And He's
declared that all for whom the sacrifice was made have access
to God and stand in this grace. Behold what manner of love the
Father hath bestowed on us. that we should be called the
sons of God. Amen.