Open your Bibles with me to John
chapter 8. For several weeks now, I've been
bringing messages from the Word of God in which our Lord Jesus
himself is the preacher. These have been a special blessing
to me. He's been preaching to me as
I prepare to preach to you. And the sermon today is from
John chapter 8. And I noticed, I've preached
from this message several times, but I notice in this, in these
verses which I read a moment ago, that our Lord uses the word
if several times. Now I'm not interested in making
a play on words at all. But rather in preaching this
message on the subject if, I'm trying to emphasize the particular
power of these verses and the unchangeable truth. If this be
true, this is true. It's unchangeable. The terms
which he sets forth are immutable, unchangeable. If, therefore. If it's not true, then there's
another therefore. And let's start with the first
one in John 8, verse 23. John 8, verse 23, and he said
to them, he's speaking to these religious people now, he's not
talking to his disciples, he's talking to these religious Pharisees
and Judaizers and legalists, and he said, you're from beneath,
I'm from above. You're of this world, I'm not
of this world. I said therefore unto you that
you shall die in your sins. For if you believe not that I
am he, you'll die in your sins. If we do not, or whomever reads
this does not, believe that he is I am. That's one of the most
prominent names of God in the scripture. I am. That's what
he said to Moses when Moses inquired of his name. He said, when I
go to deliver Israel and they ask me who sent you, what is
thy name? The Lord God said to Moses, I
am that I am. And Jesus Christ is saying here,
you're from the earth. You're born of the flesh. I'm
not from the earth. I'm from above. I'm from heaven.
I'm God. And if you do not believe that
I am God, I am the everlasting, unchangeable, I am. Not I was, I will be, I am. It's
always I am. The true God. God over all. God blessed forever. God manifest
in the flesh. Jesus Christ is God. He's the
creator. He's the sustainer. He's the
author and finisher. Isaiah 9 said, under us a child
is born, that's true. But a son is given. And this
son's name, the government's on his shoulders. The reign of
the universe is on his shoulders. And his name is wonderful. Counselor,
the mighty God. He's the everlasting Father.
How can it be the Father? He said, he that has seen me
has seen the Father. I don't know, I just know it's so. He's
the everlasting Father. He's the Prince of Peace. If
you don't believe that, you'll die on your sins. If you don't
believe that, you'll die on your sins. That's immutable. And if
you don't believe that I'm He, what is this He? He's the Messiah. He's the true Messiah. He's the
Christ promised. He's the fulfillment of every
Old Testament promise and prophecy. Every Old Testament scripture.
He is the Passover Lamb. He is the priest forever. He
is the King of Kings. He is the Son of David. He is
the only Savior of sinners. He is the Great High Priest.
He is the only mediator between God and man. And if you don't
believe this, you're dying a sin. You'll die in your sins, you'll
die guilty before God, you'll die in your sins, you'll die
under your sins, and you'll die to an eternal death. To die in
Christ is to live. To die out of Christ is to die
in sin. There's a world of difference
between dying in Christ and out of Christ. Jeremiah gives us the difference.
Over here in Jeremiah 17, this is a powerful scripture. Listen
to this, Jeremiah 17, verse 5. Jeremiah 17, verse 5. Thus saith
the Lord, Cursed be the man that trusteth in man, and maketh flesh
his arm, and whose heart departeth from the Lord. He'll be like
a heath in the desert, like a tumbleweed. He'll not see good when good
cometh. He shall inhabit the parched
places in the wilderness, and a salt land not inhabited. But
blessed is the man that trusteth in the Lord Jesus Christ, whose
hope the Lord Jesus Christ is. He'll be like a tree planted
by the waters, spreads out her roots by the river, shall not
see when the heat cometh. But her leaf shall be green,
shall not be careful in the year of drought, neither shall ye
cease from yielding fruit." Oh, the mercy of God in revealing
to us our Lord and our God. I believe that Jesus Christ is
I Am He, and I don't intend to die in my sins. Because the reverse
is true. If you believe not that I am
he, you die in your sins. If you believe I am he, you die
in grace. All right, let's read on. Then
said they unto him, Well, who are you? Jesus saith unto them,
Even the same I said to you from the beginning. I have many things
to say and to judge of you, but he that sent me is true. And
I speak to the world those things which I have heard of him. They
didn't understand that he spoke to them of the Father. Then said
Jesus unto them, Now when you have lifted up the Son of Man,
when you have tried to crucify him, I be lifted up, I will draw
all men. This he spake of the way that
he should die. Then you know that I am he, and that I do nothing
of myself, but as my Father taught me, I speak these things. And
he that sent me is with me, and the Father hath not left me alone.
I do always those things that please him. He is speaking as
a mediator now. God sent me, he's a mediator. And as he spake these words,
many believed on him. They said they believed on him.
They professed to believe him. They laid hold of these words
and they said, we believe you're the Christ. We believe you're
who you say you are. We believe you're the Messiah.
Now he said this to them. This is what he said to those
who believe on him. Like I told McClatchy a while ago, you've
got to find out who's speaking to whom he's speaking. Now these
people, have professed to believe him, like you and I have. I say,
I believe he's the Christ. These people say, we believe
you who you say you are. Now listen to what he said to them.
If you continue in my word, then are you my disciples indeed.
And you'll know the truth if you continue in my word. And
the truth will make you free. Continue in my word, in my word,
in my gospel. You can't separate Christ and
his word. A man who loves Christ loves his word. Christ is the
gospel, he's the author, he's the finisher, he's the son, he's
the substance of the word. I'm not talking about religion,
I'm talking about Christ and the word. If you abide in me
and my words abide in you, abide, continue, go on. Don't start
and stop, go on. Live in the faith, believe the
faith, die in the faith. If you continue, then are you
my disciples indeed, not in profession only. But in truth, continuing
in Christ is not a condition of faith, it's the evidence of
faith. You say, well, I'm saved because
I'm going to continue. No, no, you're saved because
he died for you, and you're looking to him, and you'll continue because
of that. Continuing in Christ is not a
condition of faith, it's the evidence of faith. Well, let's
get a scripture for that in 1 John. John talked about, 1 John chapter
2, John talked about some people who said they believed, but quit. Who said they believed, but didn't
continue. Who said they were Christians,
but didn't continue with the Christians. They left them. So
this is what John said about them in 1 John 2 verse 19. They went out from us. Who are
they? People who said they believed
on Christ. people who were numbered with us, people who said they
were our brethren. They went out from us, but they
weren't of us. For if they had been of us, if
they had been truly Christians, truly believers, they would no
doubt have continued with us. No doubt about it. See, continuing
is not a condition, it's an evidence that you love Christ. An evidence
that I have believed is I keep on believing. An evidence that
I have repented, I keep on repenting. An evidence that I love Christ,
I keep on loving, keep on coming to Christ. That's an evidence.
And they went out that it might be made manifest, they were not
all of us. That's just so regrettable, but
it's true. We're not of them that draw back,
Paul said. We're of them who keep on believing
to the saving of the soul. You see, if any man's in Christ,
he's a new creature. I found something years ago that is a blessing, and I want
you to listen to it. True faith in Christ, true love
for Christ, makes a man a new creature. A man's a new creature
who loves Christ. And that true faith will show
in his eyes. It lights up his countenance.
It softens his touch. It mellows his voice. It bows
his head. It bends his knee. It opens his
hand. It curbs his tongue. It humbles
his heart. It orders his steps. It teaches
his mind. It gives him peace of heart and
a forgiving spirit. He's a different man. different, and you'll continue to be different,
and you'll continue to grow in that grace and that knowledge
of Christ. So if you continue in my word,
in my word, he abided in me and my word abides in you, you're
my disciples indeed, not in profession, but in truth, and you'll know
the truth, and the truth will keep you in that freedom. All
right, let's read on. They answered him, We Abraham's
saved. We were never in bondage to any
man. How do you say you shall be free? Jesus answered them,
Verily, verily, I say to you, whoso committed sin is a servant
of sin. And the servant of God is not
in the house forever, the Son of God is forever. Now, if the
Son, the Son of God, if the Lord Jesus Christ, if the Son makes
you free, you're free indeed. These men, religious men, boasted
their freedom because they were descendants of Abraham. But our
Lord sets the record straight. He said, Whosoever commits sin,
abides in sin, he's a servant of sin. He's a home-born slave. All who are born of Adam are
born in sin. And that's true of every person
born of Adam. They're born slaves to sin. But the Son makes you
free. How does the Son make us free?
Well, turn to Galatians 5, verse 1. Let's look first at Galatians
3. How does the Son make us free?
In Galatians chapter 3, verse 10, it says this. This is what we are by nature.
As many as of the works of the law are under the curse, Galatians
3.10. For it is written, Cursed is every one that continueth
not in all things written in the book of the law to do them.
But verse 13 says Christ hath redeemed us from that curse,
being made a curse for us. He's redeemed us, set us free.
We're free from sin because he made sin for us. We're free from
the curse because he's made a curse for us. See that? Christ has
set us free, redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made
a curse for us. For it's written in Deuteronomy,
cursed is everyone that hangeth on a tree. Now look at chapter
5, verse 1. Therefore, stand fast in the
liberty and freedom wherewith Christ hath made you free. And
don't be entangled again with the yoke of bondage. We're free
from sin. Christ has made sin for us. We're
free from the curse. He was made a curse for us. We're
free from the captivity of Satan. He said he came to set the captive
free. He's our ransom. We're free from
the law. We're not under the curse, dominion,
or rule of the law. We're under Christ. We're married
to a new husband. We're free from condemnation.
Romans 8, I said on television this morning, people talk about
judgments. They have the judgment of nations
and the judgment of Israel and the judgment of the church and
the judgment of Christians and the judgment for reward. Let
me tell you something. David said, Lord, don't bring
me into judgment with thee. Don't bring me into judgment
with thee. For in thy sight nobody is going to be justified. You
don't want to stand before God ever under any circumstances
for any reason to be judged. In yourself he can find no good. There's nothing in us, even saved
people, that responds to the perfect holiness of God. He can't
do anything but find fault. Lord, if I should mark a nick
with it, who could stand? Nobody. Nobody. And you don't want to be judged
for your good deeds or bad deeds. You don't want to be judged for
any reason. You don't stand before God for any reason in the world.
You sure don't want to be in that rewards bunch. They're going
to say, Lord, we did this, that, and the other. He says, I never
knew you. Lord, don't enter into judgment
with them. Here's our standing, free from
condemnation, free from the law, free from judgment, free from
all of those If any man be in Christ, there is therefore now
no condemnation, no judgment. Who can lay anything to the charge
of God's elect? Who can condemn us? We have no
sin. Now, do I believe we'll be at the judgment? Yes, possibly. But not as a participator, only
as a spectator. That's the only reason. I don't even want to see it,
but it's all right. If he puts me there, I'll observe
it. But I'm not going to be under
judgment. There is no judgment to anyone in Christ. Is that
clear what I'm saying? If the Son makes you free, free,
free, free, you're free indeed, you're free indeed. You're free
from the curse, the condemnation, the judgment, the dominion, the
captivity, the rules, everything. You're free! If the Son makes you free. Now, these fellows here claim
they were free because they were Jews. They were free because
Abraham was their daddy. And they were free because they
kept the law. And they were free because they did this, that,
and the other. And he said, if you've got any sin in you anywhere,
you're not free. Anywhere. Anywhere. From your
toe to your toupee, you're captive. If there's any sin anywhere, But if the Son frees you from
the curse, frees you from your sin, frees you from every charge,
no charge, you're free indeed. I don't intend to see any believer
at the judgment, not being judged for any reason. All right, verse
37. I know, I know you're Abraham's seed. I know that. I know that. and the tribe of Judah and the
tribe of Levi. But you seek to kill me because
my word has 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, Abraham is our father. He said,
if he was, if Abraham were your father, you would do the works
of Abraham. What about the works of Abraham?
There are many. Let me give you just a few of
them. The Jews talked about the seven,
eight, or nine trials of Abraham. He left his home and his family,
called of God. He dwelt in tents as a stranger
in the land, never owned a foot of land with Isaac and Jacob.
He gave the best land a lot. He refused to be made rich by
the earthly kings. He sent away Hagar and his beloved
son Ishmael. He went to the mountain to sacrifice
Isaac. Need do the works of Abraham?
That's a tall order, isn't it? Maybe in type, but I'd sure find
it difficult to retrace his steps. But I believe what the Lord refers
to here, if he refers to any works in particular, is one,
the work of faith. Abraham believed God. I can do
that. That's the works of Abraham.
Abraham believed God. This is the foundation of Abraham's
confidence. This is the motive of Abraham's
leaving, doing, sacrificing, sending, whatever. This is the
reason for all that Abraham was, did, and is. He believed God. And everything else followed.
That's just it. That's the works of Abraham.
No matter where you read about Abraham, it says he believed
God. He believed that God Almighty could do what he promised and
would do what he promised. Now, I can do that by his grace.
I can do that. I believe God. I may murmur along
the way, but I believe him. I believe him. I believe him. Turn to Galatians 3 one more
time. Let me show you something over here. That's the works of
Abraham to believe God, and that's when we were children of Abraham.
If you were the children of Abraham, you'd do the work of Abraham,
which is to believe God. Look at Galatians 3, verse 6. Stay with me now. Even as Abraham
believed God, it was counted to him for righteousness. Know
ye therefore that they which are fated, they are the children
of Abraham. That's it. Believe God. All right,
look at verse 11. No man is justified by the law. It's evident that just shall
live by faith. Verse 26. You are the children of God by
faith in Christ Jesus. And as many
of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ.
And there's neither Jew nor Greek, bond nor free, male nor female.
You're one in Christ. And if you're in Christ, your
Abraham's children and your heirs according to promise. Christ
is saying to these unbelieving Jews, if you were Abraham's children,
you'd do the works of Abraham if you believed God. And everything
else that Abraham did was the result of the fact that he believed
God. Now right at verse 40, he gives you this. Now you seek
to kill me, kill me, a man that hath told you the which I've
heard of God. Abraham didn't do this. You do
the deeds of your father. Now listen carefully to this.
You do the deeds of your father. Then said they to him, We be
not born of sin in sin fornication. We have one father. God is our
father. Jesus said to them, If God were
your father, you'd love me. I suppose if you go out on the
job tomorrow, or down to the school or any other place of
human activity with all the religious folks in this most religious
town, and you tell them that God is not the father of all
men, that you do not believe that Almighty God is the father
of all men, they are going to count you to be a fool and a
heretic. But this is the very issue that
these Jewish leaders raised with our Lord. They said, God is our
Father. We don't believe you, we don't
believe your gospel, we don't believe your grace, we don't
believe your words, but God is our Father. And he said, if God were your
Father, which he's not, if you had been born of God, which they
hadn't, for in regeneration love to Christ is the first fruit. Love to Christ. If any man love
not the Lord Jesus Christ, let him be anathema when the Lord
comes, cursed. That's the first thing God sheds
abroad in the heart of a regenerate sinner, is love for Christ. That's
true. Look at 1 John 5. Listen to this. 1 John 5, verse 1. Whosoever believeth that Jesus
is the Christ is born of God." God's his father. You see, if
a person's born of you, he's your father. Whosoever believes
that Jesus is the Christ is born of God. And everyone that loves
him, that begat, whoever loves the Father, loves him that's
begotten of him. Who's begotten of him? Christ,
the only begotten Son of God. If a man begotten of God loves
God, he loves Christ. There's no way around that. And
you'd love him because of two reasons. Look here at this verse
now. Stay with this verse. Verse 42, John 8. If God were
your Father, and you can say this to anybody, you'd love Christ. You'd believe Christ. You'd follow
Christ. Because that's the first gift of the Spirit is love for
Christ. He that's born of God loveth Him that begat and him
that's begotten of him. For, here's the reason you love
me, I proceeded forth and came from God. That's the eternal
generation of Christ. That's his Godhead. He's the
only begotten of the Father. He came from the Father. I and
my Father are one. You love him because he and the
Father are one. I proceeded forth from the Father. This is not just coming to earth.
The next part of the verse is he's coming to the earth. Neither
came I to the earth of myself, he sent me down here. I proceeded
forth from the Father, only begotten of the Father, full of grace
and truth. And I was sent down here by him.
So if you, God's your Father, you love me as God and mediator. You love me as God and mediator. You see why I love this? If,
terms, the immutability, unchangeableness of these terms, they're just
so. If God's your Father, you love
me, Christ said. You love me. No question about
it. Love him as God, love him as
mediator. Why don't you understand my speech?
Because you can't hear my word. They have ears but they don't
hear, eyes but they don't see. You have your father the devil,
lust of your father you'll do. He was a murderer from the beginning.
He bowed not in the truth because no truth in him. He speaks a
lie, speaking of his own. He's a liar and the father of
liars. Because I tell you the truth, you believe me not. Now
watch this. Christ said, Which of you convinces
me of sin? Which of you can find any fault,
sin, or deceit in me? Nobody ever did. Pilate said, I find no fault
in this man. All the way through the scripture.
You don't need to turn to him. Let me just read you a few quick
passages about Which of you convinces me of
seeing the perfection of his life, the holiness of his life?
Listen to this. Matthew 22 verse 16 says this. And they sent to him their disciples
with the Herodians. And they came saying to the Lord
Jesus, Master, we know you're true. We know that you teach. We get you teach the way of God
and truth. We know you care not for any
man's person. You regard it not the person
of any man. We know that. Listen to this. This is in Mark
chapter 1. These are the demons. This is
a man possessed of demons that met Christ. And there was in
the synagogue a man with unclean spirits, and he cried out, saying,
Let us alone, talking to Christ. What have we to do with thee?
Thou Jesus of Nazareth, have you come to destroy us? We know
who you are. You're the Holy One of God. As a testimony of the Pharisees,
as a testimony of the devil. Now listen to this. In Luke chapter
20, verse 21, listen to this. And they ask him, saying, We
know that thou sayest and teachest rightly, neither accepteth the
person of any, but you teach the way of God truly." Then he
says, why don't you believe me? Why don't you believe me? Nicodemus said, we know you come
from God. You couldn't do what you do if
God wasn't with you. Then why don't you believe me? In my generation,
this is general consensus of this day. that Jesus Christ was
a perfectly holy man. Do you find anybody in this day
except an outright idiot or fool that would say Jesus Christ was
not holy? That he didn't come from God? That he didn't tell
the truth? You ever run into anybody that
said that? Then sometimes why don't you say, won't you believe
him? If, that's what he's saying to
these people here in John 8 verse 40. He said, if I say the truth,
why don't you believe me? And you know good and well what
I'm preaching this morning, couldn't be preached in the average pulpit
now, could it? But every one of them say they
believe in Jesus. Why don't they believe him then?
They believe in him, why don't they believe him? That's what
he's asking. If I'm telling the truth, why don't you believe
me? Well, here's the only reason
it can be given. Verse 47, he that is of God, God's his father,
born of God, called of God, elected of God, he'll hear God's word. And you hear them not, one reason,
you're not of God. These ifs are something. You
can take this and preach it every Sunday, if. If I'm telling the
truth, why don't you believe me? If you were born of God,
you would. All right, in closing, verse
48. And they got some air. And that's
what, this is the thing, somebody asked me one time, you get a
lot of criticism in the mail, you get a lot of letters. I write,
I get, we get 30, 40, 50 letters a week, asking for tapes and
talking about the message and writing. We get mail from all
over the country. We get as much from California
as we do from West Virginia and Kentucky. I rarely ever, ever,
ever, ever get a letter of condemnation and question what I'm saying.
You know why? I preach the word and prove it with the word. And
I challenge anybody out there listening to what I've said this
morning, call my hand on it. You can't do it. I did what he
said. I didn't tell you what I think.
I told you what he said. If you believe not that I am
he, you die in your sins. I didn't say that, he said that.
If you were Abraham's children, you do the works of Abraham.
You can't write me a letter on that, he said that. If God were
your father, you'd love me. You can't write to me, you can't
question it. Because I'm not preaching myself or the Baptist
church or the Baptist doctrine or the peculiarities of our...
I'm preaching what Christ said. What Christ said. And this generation
is going to give an account. They're going to give an account.
And they just got mad. They got mad. They said, you're
a devil. You have a devil. You have a
devil. Jesus said, I don't have a devil. I honor the Father. The devils don't honor the Father.
The devils don't honor the Father. The devils don't honor Christ.
The devils don't glorify God. They glorify men, flesh. They praise and laud the flesh. They don't glorify God. The devils
don't teach salvations of the Lord. The devil teaches it's
up to you. Do the best you can, and God's obligated to give you
a place. I'm not a devil. I honor my Father,
and you dishonor me, and I seek not my own glory. Who's looking
for any glory around here? There's one that seeketh in judgment.
But I'm telling you this, if a man keep my sayings, if he'll
keep my sayings, If a person hears my gospel, receives my
gospel, believes it in his heart, loves and embraces the gospel
and abides in me and my words abide in him, he's passed from
death unto life, he'll never die. He'll never die. Never sit there. And they said,
well, now we know you have a devil. Verse 52. Abraham's dead. No,
he's not. No, he's not either. His body's
in the grave, but he's not dead. No, no, no, no. He's not dead. Prophets, they're
not dead. You say, if a man keep your sayings,
he'll never taste of death. You're greater than our father
Abraham, who's dead, and the prophets who are dead, and makest
thou thyself. Well, he said, if I honor myself,
my honor's nothing. I won't amount to anything anyway.
It's my father that honors me, of whom you say he's your God.
But you've not known him. I know him. I know him. You do too. Aren't you glad? You say a message like that,
it just comforts God's people. And you go down through there
and you say, I believe that. He's my Lord. He's my Savior.