Todd's Road Grace Church would
like to invite you to listen to a sermon by our pastor, Todd
Nybert. We are located at 4137 Todd's
Road, two miles outside of Manowar Boulevard. Sunday services are
at 10.30 a.m. and 6 p.m. Bible study is at
9.45 a.m. Wednesday services are at 7 p.m. Nursery is provided for all services.
For more information, visit our website at toddsroadgracechurch.com. Now here's our pastor, Todd Nybert. I'm speaking from John chapter
20. I want to read verses 30 and 31. And before I read those
verses, I'd like to give you the title of this message, Believing
What? Believing What? John in this passage of scripture
is giving us his reason for writing. Let's hear what he says, beginning
in verse 30 of John chapter 20. And many other signs truly did
Jesus in the presence of his disciples, which are not written
in this book. But these are written for this
purpose. These are written that you might
believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing,
you might have life through his name. Now, I don't believe I could
bring a more important message than the message I'm going to
attempt to bring this morning. And I pray that I don't get in
the way of this message and muddy the waters, but I might be enabled
to preach what God's word actually says. Now, in verse 30, John
says, and many other signs truly did Jesus in the presence of
his disciples which are not written in this book. The last verse
of the Gospel of John says, and there are also many other things
which Jesus did, the which if they should be written, everyone,
I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the
books that should be written. There are many things the Lord
did that are not recorded in scripture. Now, there are things
that are recorded in the scripture. Notice it says in verse 30, and
many other signs truly did Jesus in the presence of his disciples,
which are not written in this book. Now these signs were given
to verify who he was. This man controlled the weather. He could say to the wind, cease,
and to the waves, be still. And the weather obeyed his voice. Who is the only one that can
do this? God. No mere man could do this. He is the one who brought matter
into existence that was not there before when he fed the 5,000. Who's the only one who can bring
matter into existence and demonstrate creative power? God. He is the one who could heal
the sick. And I don't mean enable them
to have a gradual recovery. Someone could be a quadriplegic
and he could tell them to rise up and they would rise up and
leap immediately. That's the way he healed. He's
the one who raised the dead. Who is the only one who can raise
the dead? God is. No mere man could do that. He
raised a man once that had already gone through four days of decay,
and his body had began to stink, and he raised him from the dead. Now, these signs Jesus did in
the presence of his disciples. When unbelievers asked him to
show them a sign, he refused. You see, he wasn't trying to
gain credibility with them. He knew who he was. He wasn't
trying to impress them. He felt no need. He came to save
his people, and he didn't come to impress people and to gain
a following. When unbelievers asked for him to demonstrate
a sign, he refused to do it. But these things are written.
Many other signs truly did Jesus in the presence of his disciples,
which are not written in this book, but these are written.
Now, I am so thankful for the written testimony, the written
Word of God. If we don't have the Bible, all
we have is my opinion or your opinion, which is worthless. Thank God for that which is written. And John gives his reason for
writing, and he's talking about the gospel of John, but this
can be said of every scripture. All scripture is given by inspiration
of God, to the law and to the testimony. If they speak not
according to this word, it's because there's no light in them. These things are written. Somebody
says, well, did so-and-so believe that? Does it matter? Did this
famous preacher of the past believe that? That's not even an issue. Is it written? Thus saith the
scripture, is the only issue. And these things are written,
John tells us, that you might believe. Now understand this,
the Bible's not written to other people, it's written to you. The Bible doesn't tell other
people what to do. It tells you what to do. Well, somebody says, I hope so
and so hears this message. Well, I hope you hear this message.
I hope I hear this message. The Bible isn't written to other
people. It's written to you. These things are written that
you might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God. Now to believe is to acknowledge
something to be true. These are written that you might
believe, but it's more than that. It's not merely to acknowledge
something to be true, it's to truly be persuaded that it's
true. It's to love the truth that is
spoken. It's to place confidence in.
It's to rely upon. That's what it means to believe.
It means more than acknowledging the truthfulness of a proposition.
placing all your salvation, all your trust, all your reliance
upon the truth of that. Paul said in 2 Timothy 1.12,
I know whom I have believed, and I am persuaded that he is
able to keep that which I've committed to him against that
day. Now, what is this thing of committing?
Well, I can look at an airplane and understand aerodynamics and
understand how the plane is lifted off the ground when a certain
wind speed hits the wings at a certain angle, and I can understand
all of that. But I don't commit to that until
I get into the plane. When I get into the plane, I'm
completely dependent upon that plane getting me to the desired
destination. I'm not trying to flap my wings
and help it. I am waiting for the plane to get me there. I'm
totally dependent upon that plane to get me there. Now let's say
on that airplane, there's an Olympic athlete and a newborn
babe. They are both equally dependent
on the plane to get them to the desired destination. The Olympic
athlete isn't more likely to get there. The infant isn't less
likely to get there. They'll both get there if the
plane gets there. Now, I've committed myself to
this. If the Lord brings me into heaven,
I'll be there. That's my only hope. I'm not
looking anywhere else. I've burned my bridges. My only
hope of getting to heaven is if Christ brings me there. He
said, I am the way, the truth, and the life. No man cometh to
the Father but by me. Now, the only way I'll be in
heaven is if he brings me there. If I'm in Him, just like that
person in the plane, if I'm in Him and He brings me there, that's
the one singular reason. Now, let's read this again, verse
31. But these things are written
that you might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God. Now I see a conspicuous absence
in this statement concerning what we are to believe, and that
absence is everything but the person of Christ. He has written
these things that we might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the
Son of God. Now, I want you to listen to
this very carefully. Faith has an object, Jesus Christ
himself, nothing else. Somebody says, I believe I'm
a Christian. That's not faith. I believe that Christ died for
my sins. That's not faith. Faith isn't believing Christ
died for your sins. Faith is not believing you're
a Christian. Faith is not believing you're saved. Faith isn't believing
that you've been born again. Faith isn't believing that you're
one of the elect. Faith is believing that Jesus is the Christ, the
Son of God. Well, is that all? Yes. Yes. Well, what about, stop. This is it, that you believe
that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and believe Him,
you might have life through His name. Now, I believe I am relying
on this one the scripture speaks of, Jesus of Nazareth, the carpenter,
being the Christ, the Son of God. All of my hopes of salvation
are predicated upon who He is. Period. Once this is seen, everything
else will fall into place. Jesus Christ, the one born in
the town of Nazareth, the one born in a cow stable, the one
who lived 33 years upon this earth, Jesus of Nazareth, the
carpenter, the son of Mary, Jesus of Nazareth is the Christ, the
son of God. Now what is meant by Christ being
the son of God? And this is a very important
question. Isn't every believer a son of God? Yeah. Yeah, the
scripture says that. To as many as received them,
to them gave he the right to become the sons of God. Beloved,
what manner of love the Father has bestowed upon us that we
should be called the sons of God. Every believer is a son
or a daughter of God, but there is only one holy one of God,
the Lord Jesus Christ. There's only one, only begotten
son, the Lord Jesus Christ. We read in John 1 18, no man
has seen God at any time, the only begotten son, not one of
the begotten sons, the only begotten son, which is in the bosom of
the father, he hath declared him. Now five times Christ Jesus
is called the only begotten Son of God. That indicates that He is the
sole representative of the being and the character of the invisible
God. He only is the brightness of
God's glory and the express image of his person. Now this begetting,
the only begotten Son of God, this begetting is not an event
time there was not a time when he was begotten but this is a
fact irrespective of time the Christ did not become the Son
of God he necessarily and eternally is the Son of God the only begotten
Son he a person listen carefully he A person possesses every attribute
of pure Godhead. Colossians chapter 2 verse 9
says, In him dwelleth all the fullness of the Godhead in a
body. Everything that God is, all the
fullness of his power and his wisdom and his sovereignty and
his Every attribute, whatever independence, immutability, infinity,
everything, all the fullness of the Godhead that the universe
is in his palm, all the fullness of the Godhead dwells in the
body of the Lord Jesus Christ. He said in John chapter 14, verse
one, let not your heart be troubled. You believe in God, believe also
in me. Now, what does he mean by that,
believe in God and believe in me too as well? No, all you believe
regarding God, that's me. You believe that God created
the universe, believe that I created the universe. You believe that
God is absolutely sovereign and in control of all things? You
believe the same thing regarding me. Do you believe that God is
holy? I am the holy one. Do you believe
that God is absolutely just? I am that just one the scripture
speaks of. Do you believe that God is gracious? I delight in showing mercy and
being gracious. All that God is, I am because
I am God the Son. That's what he's saying. When
the Pharisees said, you're speaking blasphemy. When he called himself
the Son of God because he said, you're making yourself equal
with God. Right on. He is equal with God because
he is God. Unto us a Son is born, unto us,
no, unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given. That
Son was never born, He's the Eternal Son. Unto us a Child
is born, unto us a Son is given, and the government should be
upon His shoulder. That means He's controlling everything.
His name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, the Mighty God, the
Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace. He said to Thomas,
he that has seen me has seen the Father. He is the second
person of the Trinity, the Son of God. In the beginning was
the Word, and the Word was with God, a distinct person, and the
Word was God. The same was in the beginning
with God. Now he made many pre-incarnate
appearances in the Old Testament. I have no doubt that it was he
who was the voice of God walking in the cool the evening when
our first parents fell. I have no doubt that he is Melchizedek,
the one who met Abraham on the returning of the slaughter of
the kings. And Abraham paid him tithes to show the absolute superiority
of Christ Jesus, the priest after Melchizedek, the order of Melchizedek,
to Abraham. I love his appearance to Moses
in the burning bush. In Exodus chapter 3, Moses saw
a bush that burned with fire and it was not consumed. And
the angel of the Lord, speaking of the Lord Jesus Christ, spake
to him from that bush. And that bush is such a beautiful
picture of what he is. That bush did not need the energy
of the wood to keep burning. It kept burning. It didn't need
the energy of the wood. Christ Jesus has no needs. He is God independent. He has
nothing that he needs to keep his existence going. He's the
independent God. and the wood of that bush could
not be consumed. That's the perfect humanity of
the Lord Jesus Christ when he walked upon this earth. The wrath
of God could not consume him because of who he was. He actually
consumed the wrath and made it not to be and saved everybody
he died for. I love it when Nebuchadnezzar
has thrown those three Hebrew children into the Fiery furnace,
because they wouldn't bow the knee to his image. And while
he's looking in this fiery furnace, he says to his nobles, did we
not throw three men bound in the fiery furnace? And lo, I
see four men, loose, walking, and the fourth is likened to
the Son of God. Christ Jesus, the Son, was in
there with those men, and they had no hurt because of Him. He is the eternal Son. I love to think at His birth,
the angel said, that holy thing that shall be born in thee shall
be called the Son of God. at his baptism that voice came
from heaven of his father, this is my beloved son in whom I'm
well pleased. I think of Matthew chapter 16,
when the Lord said to Peter, whom say ye that I am? He said,
thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. When he died
and said, it is finished, the scripture says, the rocks rent
and the earth quaked. And what did that Roman centurion
say who was beholding these things? Surely this was the Son of God. Now this one who is the Son of
God, was made flesh in order to be God's Christ. Now him being the Christ is meaningless
if we don't see that he is the God-man, the Son of God. And it says the Son of God, the
Christ, meaningful. The carpenter is the Christ,
the Son of the living God. Great is the mystery of godliness. God was manifest in the flesh.
The carpenter is the Christ. Now what is meant by the Christ?
This is so important. The Christ is the Greek word
for the Hebrew word Messiah. It means anointed. God's anointed. And in the Old Testament, there
were three different offices under the Old Testament that
were anointed. And there was anointing that
took place with oil. There was the anointing of the
prophet. You remember how Elijah anointed with oil, Elisha would
be the prophet in his stead. There was the anointing of the
priest. Aaron was anointed with oil as the great high priest
and the king was anointed. You remember when Samuel went
to find David and when he finally came after the six brothers were
rejected and now here's David and the scripture says, rise
and anoint him. But this is he, this is God's
chosen king. Now, no man had all three of
these offices. There was no man that was prophet,
priest, and king, but the God man. The Lord Jesus Christ, he's
God's anointed prophet, he's God's anointed priest, and he's
God's anointed king. Now, he's a prophet like no other
prophet, because every other prophet said, thus saith the
Lord. A prophet is someone who brings you the word of God. And
the Old Testament prophets would say, thus saith the Lord. That's
something the Lord Jesus Christ never said. He said, I say unto
you. Not thus saith the Lord. I say unto you. He spake as one
having authority and not as the scribes. Now these are the priests. A priest brings men to God. The Old Testament priests would
offer up sacrifices and come into God's presence on the behalf
of the people the sacrifices were offered for. And they'd
bring the animals of blood, or the blood of animals. Now, could
that animal blood ever take away sin? No. But this priest Lord
Jesus Christ brings his own blood into the very presence of God
that makes everybody he represents perfect. But this man, after
he'd offered one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down at the
right hand of the majesty on high, from henceforth expecting
to his enemies be made his footstool, for by one offering he hath perfected
forever them that are sanctified. This king is not like other kings
because every other king, every position of authority is a borrowed
authority. No man really has any power if
he's put in a position of power because God placed him there
for his purpose. Power belongeth unto the Lord.
And this is the one that power truly belongs to. This king of
kings, the king is the one whose all will is always done. His
will is always done. The king, the true king is the
one who has the power to make sure his will comes to pass.
He has the power to make sure His will comes to pass. Now,
these things are written that you might believe that Jesus
is the Christ, the Son of God, and believing, and believing. Now, that's in the present tense. Faith is always in the present. Not to look to yesterday for
the experience you had and try to find some kind of assurance
out of what took place yesterday. Not to look to tomorrow about
what you think maybe you'll do that'll help you in this thing
of salvation. No, faith is in the present. You look to Jesus as the Christ
right now. You're relying on his word. Everything
that you believe that you, with regard to salvation, you're relying
on him saying it as God's prophet. You're relying on His great sacrifice
as the priest. That makes you holy and unblameable
and unapprovable in God's sight. You're relying on that. You're
relying on Him as King. right now to make sure everything
needed for your salvation is done. You are relying on Him. You see, faith is in Him. These
things are written that you might believe that Jesus is the Christ,
the Son of God, and that believing, you might have life through His
name. Now that's not talking about
the existence we have right now, that's talking about eternal
life. Not eternal existence, eternal
life. Now what's that? That's the life of Christ is
your life. I am the way, the truth, and the life. No man comes
to the Father but by me." Now, the only life that God accepts
is the life of Jesus Christ. And if you believe His life,
that's evidence that His life really is your life. That faith
you have came from his life if you believe. Believing you might
have life and that you might have this life, his life, a life
that makes you perfect and acceptable before God. You have his life
through his name. Now you don't have life because
you believe. You have life through his name and that's what you
believe. Now his name is his attributes. His name is who he is. His name is the person behind
the name. When we talk about the name of
the Lord, whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall
be saved. That means you're calling on his attributes to save you.
Lord, save me as an act of your will. Will, my salvation. Save
me as an act of your justice. Make it to a way where your justice
demands my salvation. Save me by your grace. Save me
by your mercy. Save me by your love. Save me
by your power. Save me by your wisdom. All of
the glorious attributes of God are in the name of the Lord Jesus
Christ. And the reason we have life is
because of His name. Now my dear friends, that is
what someone believes. Maybe a better way to say it
is that is who someone believes. Faith is not what you believe
about yourself. Faith is not what you believe
about somebody else. Faith is what you believe concerning Him. These things are written that
you might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God,
and that believing, you might have life through His name. Now, we have this message on
DVD and CD. If you call the church, email,
or write, we'll send you a copy. This is Todd Niebuhr praying
that God will be pleased to make Himself known to you. To receive
a copy of the sermon you have just heard, send your request
to todd.niebuhr at gmail.com. Or you may write or call the
church at the information provided on the screen.