I've entitled this message, Many
Believed on Him There. And it's my prayer that a duplication
of what took place then will take place here this morning.
Let's read this passage of scripture together, beginning in verse
thirty nine. Therefore, they sought again
to take him But he escaped out of their hand and went away again
beyond Jordan into the place where John at first baptized,
and there he abode. And many resorted unto him, or
came unto him, and said, John did no miracle, But all things
that John spake of this man were true, and many believed on him
there. Verse 39, Therefore they sought
again to take him, but he escaped out of their hand. How many times
did the Lord miraculously escape from those who wanted to take
his life. In Luke, Chapter four, when he
began his public ministry, they became so enraged at what he
said that the scripture says a bunch of them grabbed him and
took him up to the top of a cliff to throw him down and get rid
of him. But he. Escaped. Out of their hand, the scripture
says he passing through the midst of them went his way. You see,
his time was not yet. So he escaped out of their hands
and then we read in verse 40. He escaped out of their hand.
Another murder attempt and he went away again beyond Jordan
into the place where John at first baptized and there he abode. He came to this certain place,
the place where John first baptized, and he stayed there. His itinerant
ministry was over. As a matter of fact, this is
shortly before he's going to die. He no longer went from town
to town preaching the gospel. He stayed in this place and he
wasn't going to leave, really, until he went to Jerusalem to
be crucified. There he abode. And in this place
where he abode, we read that many, in verse 41, resorted unto
him or came to him. That's the word. Many came to
him and said, John did no miracle, but all things that John spake
of this man were true and many believed on him there. So this
thing of him coming to him was more than just a physical coming.
It was a spiritual coming. It issued in their believing
on him. Now, he came to the place where
John first baptized. That's where he came to remain
for the rest of his earthly days until he would go back toward
Jerusalem to be crucified. He remained at this place where
John first baptized. Baptism. What is it? To baptize means
to immerse. The Lord himself was baptized
by John. And he made an issue of John's
baptism. He came back to that place where
John at first baptized. Now turn back to Luke chapter
20 for a moment. The Lord Jesus made an issue
of the baptism of John. Look at Luke chapter 20. Verse one, and it came to pass
that on one of those days, as he taught the people in the temple
and preached the gospel, The chief priests and the scribes
came unto him with the elders and spake unto him, saying, Tell
us, by what authority doest thou these things? Or who is it that
gave thee this authority? Now, what had he done? Well,
he came into the temple where there were a bunch of people
selling sacrificial animals and exchanging money and so on. And
he comes in and turns over their table. He makes a whip and he
drives them out of the temple. Now, the Lord did that. The Lord
did that. He made a whip and drove them
out of the temple. And they come to him and said,
who gave you the authority to do this? What makes you think
you can come in here and do something like that? Who gave you this
authority? And look at the way he answers.
And he answered and said unto them, I'll ask you one thing
and you answer me. The baptism of John. Was it from
heaven? Or of men? Is baptism? Is God in this? Is this inspired
by God? Is it the truth of God? Is it
from heaven? Or is it just something man-made? And you know, that's a question
we ask regarding what we hear, isn't it? Is it from heaven? Is it of God? Or is it of men? Good question. And they reasoned
within themselves, saying, if we shall say from heaven, he'll
say, why didn't you believe in me? But if we say of men, all
the people will stone us, but they'd be persuaded that John
was a prophet. And they answered that they couldn't tell which
it was. And Jesus said unto them, neither tell I you by what authority
I do these things. So we see the emphasis the Lord
put on the baptism of John. It was from heaven. Now these
people didn't have the honesty to tell what they really believed.
They were afraid of the consequences. But the Lord made an issue of
the baptism of John. Now what was the baptism of John?
Turn back to Mark chapter 1. This is where our Lord chose
to remain. The latter part of his days here
on earth was that place where John first baptized. Now look here in Mark chapter
1, verse 4. John did baptize in the wilderness. And preach the baptism of repentance. For the remission of sins. And there went out unto him all
the land of Judea and they of Jerusalem and were all baptized
of him in the River of Jordan, confessing their sins. Now here is the baptism of John.
It's called the baptism of repentance for the remission of sins, and
we actually read that these people Before they were baptized, they
would confess their sins, and that doesn't mean they got in
front of everybody and publicly confessed their sins. I heard
a story recently of Scott Richardson. It tickled me. There was somebody
that came into his church where he pastored and said, I think
that we all ought to confess our sins to each other. I think
we ought to get up publicly and confess our sins and come clean.
And Scott said, oh, He said, start then. Go on. This doesn't mean that
we're supposed to get up and publicly confess our sins to
other people. For one, you don't have enough
time. I mean, it would last forever. And for another thing, that's
just insincere. That's foolishness. He's not
saying that you're supposed to get up and confess your sins
before baptism. What he's saying is baptism is
the actual act of confession. When I'm baptized, I'm confessing
that my sin is such that the only thing that will save me
is the life, the death, the burial, and the resurrection of Christ.
That's what I confess in baptism. Now, he preached the baptism
of repentance for the remission of sins. Now, does that mean
that you have to repent before your sins can be remitted? You
need to repent of all your sins before your sins can be remitted.
Now, let's talk for a minute. What does repentance mean? Now,
you may find this interesting, but the phrase, repent of your
sins, you know how many times it's found in the Bible? Not once. Not even once. I used to hear
preachers talk about repentance. I thought, what does it mean?
What does it mean to repent? Well, I hope this will be helpful
to you. He preached the baptism of repentance
regarding the remission of sins. Now, or for the remission of
sins. And that word for, in our text,
he preached the baptism of repentance for the remission of sins. Five
times that same word is translated concerning. He preached the baptism
of repentance concerning the remission of sins. Now, repentance
means a change of mind. A change of mind. Now, it will
result in a change of manners, too. Don't think it won't. It'll
result in a change of manners. If somebody repents before God,
they're going to be different every time. But what the word
means by definition, repentance concerning the remission of sins,
I changed my mind concerning how sins are remitted and concerning
why sins are remitted. See, here's what the natural
man thinks. We think that the remission of sins comes at the
end. If I straighten out my life,
if I repent of all my sins, if I start doing good, if I turn
things around and start acting the way I ought to act, then
I'll have the remission of sins. God will forgive me of my sins.
Now, salvation doesn't end with the remission of sins. You change
your mind about that. You say, I don't believe that
anymore. I see that's foolishness. Salvation begins with the remission
of sins. Salvation begins with God remitting
your sins for Christ's sake. You change your mind. You don't
believe that foolishness of remission of sins comes because of something
you do. You believe that your sins are remitted for Christ's
sake. and only for Christ's sake. Do
you believe that? Ephesians 4.32 says, Be ye kind,
tenderhearted, forgiving one another even as God for Christ's
sake. Not because you do anything,
but even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you. There's
a repentance regarding the remission of sins. You now believe that
the remission of sins comes from what baptism signifies. The death,
the burial, and the resurrection of Christ. That's why my sins
are remitted. Not because I've done anything,
but because of what Christ did for me. He lived for me. When
he lived, I lived. When he died, I died. When he
was raised from the dead, I was raised from the dead. And I repent
of anything contrary to that. That's what repentance is. Now
back to our text in John chapter 10, our Lord came to this place
where John first baptized, where this message was preached. And
the scripture says there he abode. He did not leave there. Verse 41. And many resorted to him. This place where he abode, many
came to him and said, John did no miracle, but all the things
that John spake of this man were true, and many believed on him
there. Now, in this place where he abode,
many people came to him. Now, in order to come to him,
this is very important, in order to come to him, you had to come
to the place where he was. If you came anywhere else other
than here, you wouldn't be able to come to Him. You had to come
to Him to the place where He was, where He abode, where He
was. And that means more than a physical
coming to Him, because this resulted in their believing. Look what
verse 42 says, and many believed on Him there. These people who
came to Him there, where He abode, many believed on Him there. Now, coming to Christ, many resorted
to him and they came to him. Coming to Christ is the act of
spiritual life. Let that sink in. It's not just
getting your doctrine straight. It's not coming to a right position
on what the scripture teaches concerning certain subjects,
although that's very important. I wouldn't take away from the
importance of that. But the act of spiritual life isn't being
right. It's not straightening. The act
of spiritual life is coming to the Lord Jesus Christ. You remember
what our Lord said in John chapter five, verse 40. He said, you
will not come to me that you might have life. Coming to Christ is the act of
spiritual life. You see, coming to Christ is
the evidence of divine election. Remember that verse of Scripture
in John chapter 6, verse 37? Our Lord said, All that the Father
giveth me is divine election. God gave Christ to people before
time began. How I love the holy truth of
God's electing mercy. that the Father giveth me shall
come to me. Coming to Christ is the evidence
of divine election. Look back in John chapter 6 for
a moment. Coming to Christ is what people do who are drawn
by God and what people who do who are taught by God. Look in
verse 44. John chapter 6. No man can come
to me except the Father which has sent me draw him. And I'll raise him up at the
last day. Now, what happens when God draws you? You come to Christ,
don't you? Look in verse 45. It is written in the prophets,
and they shall be all taught of God. Every man, therefore,
that hath heard and hath learned of the Father cometh unto me. Coming to Christ is what those
who are drawn by God and taught by God do. And this, in reality,
is the message of true evangelism. We open this service reading
Revelation chapter 22, verse 17. And the Spirit and the bride
say, Come. Not go and do, not go away. The
Spirit and the Bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say,
Come. And whosoever is athirst, let
him come. And whosoever will, let him take
the water of life freely. Now this thing of coming to Christ,
now you listen to this real carefully. This is not something you did
when you were first saved, although it is. It's something you do
all the time. To whom, 1 Peter 2. To whom? Not to what? To whom? Coming. As unto a living stone. This is the continual motion
of the soul. You come to Christ, you come
to Christ the same way you came to Him the first time. When I
first came to Christ, I know this much about it. When I first
came to Christ, I came as an empty-handed sinner needing His
mercy with nothing to commend me. Have I graduated past that? I'm not not on your life. You
come to Christ the same way you came the very first time to whom
coming. This is the continual motion
of the soul of the believer to Christ to whom coming as into
a living stone. Now. If I come to him, remember, coming
to Christ is the action of spiritual life. It's the evidence of divine
election. It's what all who are taught
by God do. It's the continual action of
a believing soul always coming to Christ. If I come to him,
I must come to him in the place where he abides. Scripture says he abode there.
To get to him, you'd have to go to that place. Now, in order
to come to Christ, the true spiritual coming, I'm going to have to
come to the place where he abides, where he is. Now, here's here's
a very important and a very interesting question. Where is he? Where is Jesus Christ, the Lord,
for me to come to him? I'm going to have to come to
where he is. Where is he? Well, the Bible answers that
question, and I'm speaking right now, where is Jesus Christ? Where
is he? Well, the scripture says he is
seated at the right hand of God. sitting on a throne. What's He doing on that throne?
Ruling and reigning as the King of kings and the Lord of lords. That's where He is. He's seated
at the right hand of God on a throne ruling and reigning. And for me to come to Him, I'm
going to have to come to Him where He is, seated on the throne. You see, if I really come to
the Lord Jesus Christ, if I truly in my heart come to Him, and
this is a spiritual coming, you know it's not a physical coming,
it's a spiritual coming, something done in the heart. If I truly
come to the Lord Jesus Christ, I'm going to come to Him exactly
the way that leper did. That leper came to Him saying,
He knew He was the Lord, didn't He? Lord, if You will, You can
make me clean. I don't have any control in this.
I can't make myself clean. There's nothing I can do to get
You to make me clean. I have absolutely no control. Everything is in Your sovereign
hands, if You will. You can make me clean. You see,
if you come to Christ, you come to Him as the absolute sovereign
of the universe. Let me tell you something that
I despise. Won't you accept Jesus Christ
as your personal Savior? I despise that. He's the Lord's
personal Savior. He's the Lord of glory. And you
come to Him as such, the absolute Sovereign of the universe. You
know you're in His hands and He can do with you whatever He's
pleased to do. If He sends you to hell, is He right? Is He just? And He can save you in a way
that magnifies His justice. You know you're in His hands.
And that's the way you come to Him. You come to Him as the Sovereign
Lord of all. Where is He? He's seated on a
throne ruling and reigning And if you come to Him, you're going
to come to Him where He is, seated on the throne. Where is He? Listen
to this scripture. Matthew 18, 20 says, Where two
or three are gathered together in my name, there I am. Most of the time,
it doesn't say that, does it? Where two or three are gathered
together in my name, there I am. In their midst. Where is Jesus
Christ? right here. Wherever two or three
are gathered together in His name, there He is in their midst. He is in the public assembly
of His people. He walks among the golden candlesticks
of the churches. Now, if I miss what we're doing
right now, if I don't show up, I'm not showing up to a place
where He is. That's why, quote, coming to
church is so important. He's here. Where do I find him? He's in the public assembly of
his saints. Where is he? Well, he's at the
right hand of the father. He's wherever his people meet
together. He said he said that Matthew 1820, you know, where
two or three are gathered together in my name. There I am in the
midst of them. Where is he? He's in the truth. You see, He is the truth. That's
why He's in the truth. Now, let's go on reading back
to our text in John chapter 10. Look what it says next. Verse 41, And many came unto
Him, and said, John did no miracle, but all things that John spake
of this man were true. He is in the truth preached.
Oh, everything John said about this man. Now, he didn't perform
any miracles. John the Baptist, I mean, I never saw him raised
to death. He never gave Sight to the blind. He never did any
of those things. But let me tell you this about
John. And this is the highest commendation you could ever give
of anybody. He said everything he said regarding this man is
true. Well, what did he say? Well,
we could spend weeks on that, I'm sure. But let's look. Let me read some scriptures in
John chapter 1. Verse 6. There was a man sent from God
whose name was John. The same came for a witness to
bear witness of the light. That all men through him might
believe. Verse 15 of John, chapter one,
John, bear witness of him and cried saying, This was he of
whom I spake. He that cometh after me is preferred
before me, for he was before me. He's always been the same
was in the beginning. With God and of his fullness,
have we all received in grace for grace, grace because of grace
for the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus
Christ. No man has seen God at any time.
The only begotten son, which is in the bosom of the father,
he had declared. And this is what John had to
say. Look in verse. Twenty six, John answered them,
saying, I baptized with water. But there standeth one among
you whom you know not. He it is who, coming after me,
is preferred before me, who is too latched, I am not worthy
to unloose." These things were done in Bethabara, beyond Jordan,
where John was baptizing. The next day, John sees Jesus
coming unto him and says, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh
away the sin of the world. That's what John had to say.
Behold. Oh, may God give us grace to
do this. Behold the Lamb of God. Now, I don't have any doubt that
what John was referring to was Genesis chapter 22. When Abraham
and Isaac are walking up that mountain, and Isaac says to his daddy, here's the fire, here's the wood,
where's the lamb for the burnt offering? And Abraham replied
to his boy, my son, God, will provide himself a lamb for a
burnt offering. Now that means three things.
One, God's the one who does the providing. What can you provide? What can
you give God that He would accept? You got anything? Bring it on!
Come on, bring it on! No, if you have any spiritual
understanding at all, You know you have nothing in and of yourself
that God would accept. Thank God He does the providing. All that He requires, He provides. Isn't that good news? God will provide for Himself
a lamb for a burnt offering. You see, the lamb is not so much
for you, it's for God. For God to do something for me
or you, He first had to do something for Himself. The blood of the
Lamb is to satisfy God, to satisfy His justice. That's what the
blood of the Lamb is for. The blood of the Lamb is for
God. He'll provide for Himself. And God will provide, thirdly,
God will provide Himself as the Lamb. He is the Lamb. the Lamb of God which taketh
away the sin of the world. And He did take away the sin
of the world. Jew, Gentile, He took it away. 1 John chapter
3 verse 5 says He was manifested to take away our sins and in
Him is no sin. Where is He? Now, I must know
where he is in order for me to come to him. He's sitting on
a throne. He's where his people meet, and he is in the truth,
in the truth preached, in the gospel. He is not in error. He is in the truth. Now, there's
a lot of folks who seem to think that God is bigger than the truth. He can work with the truth or
without the truth. My dear friends, God is the truth.
Christ is the truth. And he does not work apart from
who he is, does he? He's the truth. So where can
I, if I want to come to God, if I want to come to Christ,
where can I find him? He's on the throne, ruling and
reigning, sitting at the right hand of the Father. He's wherever
his people meet together. He is in the gospel. He is in
the truth preached. That is where he is. And the
Scripture says many resorted to him at that time. Many came
to him. Now, what does it mean to come
to Christ? What's it mean? I mean, he's at the right hand
of the Father and I'm down here. I can't see him. What's it mean
to come to the Lord Jesus Christ? Well, it's a purely spiritual
act done in the heart. What is it? Well, to come to
Christ is to leave one place. and go to another. With the emphasis
being on where you're going and not what you're leaving. That's
what it is to come to Christ. It's to leave one place. I've
left salvation by works. I've left salvation by my own
doings. I've left it. I've repented of that mess. It's
to leave one place and go to another. The Lord Jesus Christ.
With the emphasis being on where you're going and not what you
are leaving. In coming to Christ, there's
a place I leave because I've seen something better. Christ
is better. He's better than the world, isn't
He? Is there anything in this world that can compare with the
Lord Jesus Christ? There ain't no way. He's better. He's better than salvation by
works. He's better than the pleasures of sin. Christ is better. And that's why I come to Him.
He's better. And anybody who sees him comes to it. Coming to Christ is not a long
journey. If I make a long journey out
of it, I haven't come. You see, you get there as soon
as you come. If you're in Christ, you're already in the very presence
of God. There's nowhere else to go. If you make a long journey
of it, that's not coming to Christ. That's something else. That's
coming some other way. You get there as soon as you
come. Now, our text tells us that those who came to Christ
are those who believed on him. Look at John 10. It says in verse. Forty one. And many resorted
unto him, and then verse 42 says, and many believed on him there.
Many believed on him, you see, to come to Christ is to believe
on him. It's the exact same thing. Look at John, Chapter six. Verse 35. And Jesus said unto
them, I am the bread of life. He that cometh to me shall never
hunger, and he that believeth on me shall never thirst. So to come to Christ is to believe
on Christ. It's the exact same thing. Now, let's turn back to Revelation
22, where this service began. Revelation 22. Read verse 17. And the Spirit, God, the Holy
Spirit, and the bride, the church, hears their unified message. Come! Come to the Lord Jesus
Christ. And let him that heareth say,
Come! And let him that's athirst, Come! And whosoever will, let
him take the water of life. Now I want to ask four questions
from this verse of scripture I just read. Who is commanded
to come to Christ? Second, why do they come? Third,
how do they come? And fourth, what is the result
in their coming? Now first, who is commanded,
who is told to come to the Lord Jesus Christ? Well, in our text,
we have an answer. Let him that hears. Seiko, do
you hear? Do you hear? Do you hear this
message? Do you hear that coming to Christ is salvation? Do you hear? Come on in. Come
and welcome whoever hears. Who else? Well, he says, let
him that's a thirst come. Are you thirsty? He doesn't say
how thirsty. Well, I'm afraid I'm not thirsty
enough. You're probably not. But are you thirsty? Thirst is
the pain of absence. You thirst for that which you
can't produce yourself. You know when you're thirsty,
you know you can't satisfy your own thirst. That satisfaction
is going to have to come outside of you. And you know it's going
to have to be brought into you. Whoever is thirsty, let him come. Whosoever will. I love that.
Whosoever will. Let him take the water of life
freely. Whoever wills. But I can't. I didn't ask you whether you
could. I asked you, are you willing? Are you willing to be saved by
Jesus Christ in a way where He gets all the glory and none goes
to you? Are you willing? Are you willing
to be saved by God on His terms? Are you willing? Whosoever will. Let him take the water of life.
Here's the fourth mark of somebody who's told to come. The person
who hears. The person who's thirsty, the
person who wants to, here's the fourth, let him take. Let him
take the water of life freely. You see, there's givers and there's
takers. In this thing of salvation, All I am is a taker. I've got
nothing to give. I'm a taker. And I take the water
of life freely. Now, why do I come to Christ?
Well, I know it's because God draws me, but why do I come to
Christ? Let me give you these four powerful reasons why I come
to Christ and why everybody who comes to Christ comes. Here's
the first reason. We come to Christ because we're
commanded to. You're right to come. comes with
this. God commands all men everywhere
to repent. You're commanded to come to the
Lord Jesus Christ. You don't need to worry about,
well, what if I'm not one of the elect? What if Christ didn't die for
me? What if I... No, you don't... God commands all men everywhere. Are you in that group? Are you? God commands all men everywhere
to repent. Whosoever will. I'm willing to be saved by Him.
Let him take the water of life for his needs. First of all,
I come because I am commanded to. Secondly, I come to Christ
because I have a need. I love that song. I need thee,
precious Jesus, for I am full of sin. My soul is dark and guilty. My heart is dead within. I need
the cleansing fountain where I can always believe. the blood
of Christ most precious, the sinner's perfect plea. I need
Jesus Christ. I have a need. Not I had a need,
but I have a need right now. I need His mercy. I need His presence. I need His
grace. I need His grace to give me grace
to believe, to give me grace to repent, to give me grace to
persevere. I need His justifying grace to
make me just before God. I need His redeeming grace to
pay for my sins. I need the Lord Jesus Christ.
Nobody ever needed Him any more than this sinner talking to you.
I know that. Nobody ever did. I need Jesus Christ. And I come
to Him because I have a need of Him. Thirdly, I come to Christ because
I really don't have anywhere else to go. It's not like I have
any other options. Where would I go? Will you also
go away? Peter said, Lord, to whom should
we go? Where would we go? Thou hast the words of life.
And we believe and are sure that thou art that Christ, the Son
of the living God. It's not like we have any other
options. I mean, we don't have to get confused about this. There's
only one place to go. It's not like we reach a fork
in the road. There's no fork in the road. There's only one
place to go. Christ, we have no other options.
Why do I come to Christ? Here's my fourth reason. Because
I want to. I want to. You know, people do
what they want to do, don't they? People do what they want to do.
And I want to. It's true, I'm drawn by Him and
I'm driven to Him and I come because I don't have any choice.
But I want to come to the Lord Jesus Christ. Out of my sorrow, bondage and
sin, Jesus, I come to Thee. I want to come to Him. I cannot
not believe. Now, how do they come? Well,
look at our text again. Let Him take. The water of life. This is Revelation 22, 17. Let him take the water of life
freely. Do you hear that word? Freely. You know something that's
very amazing? If I said you could have Christ
and all of His benefits for $100, everybody in this room could
find a way to come up with $100, wouldn't they? But what if I say freely? There's people that will leave
without having received it. If I said for a dollar, you'd
come up with it. But freely, freely, freely, without a cause
in you, let him take the water of life freely. Now listen to this scripture. I'm going to quote it to you,
1 Timothy chapter 1 verse 15, the most glorious statement mortal
men have ever heard. This is a faithful saving. And it's worthy of all acceptation. Everybody ought to rejoice in
this. It's that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners. of whom I am the chief. I'm a sinner. I'm a sinner. And I'm taking you at your word. If I perish, I will perish trusting
Jesus Christ the Lord. The only hope I have and my dear
friends that will never happen. Let him take the water of life
freely, what is the result of coming to the Lord Jesus Christ?
Everlasting life. Life. Remember his precious promise. I quoted the first part of this
already. All that the Father giveth me shall come to me. Listen
to the next part of this verse. Him that cometh to me, I will in no wise, for no reason
whatsoever, cast out. Now, our text in John chapter
10 says many Many believed on Him there. Now here's a good
time to follow the crowd. Generally speaking, it's a bad
thing to follow the crowd. Don't follow the crowd. The crowd's
wrong. But here's a good time to follow the crowd. Many believed
on Him there. I'm believing on Him. Why not you? Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ
and thou shalt be saved. Amen. Let's pray.