Now I'm going to call this one
message in two parts. And this is a sermon, but this
is a definite study. And I would be willing for it
to be my swan song in life. Jesus is the Christ. And I wish
if you would, if you have a pencil and paper, pen and paper to take
down some notes on this message. Refer back to it again. I'm not
going to speak a long time. I'm going to be very brief this
morning and again tonight and try to get across one truth.
The truth that's the very foundation of this whole book, this whole
book. As we get older, we need to try
to get a little plainer, a little more simple in our presentation
of the gospel. Not that the gospel is simple.
The gospel is profound. It's a mystery. It's got to be
revealed. But we ought to learn to express ourselves as the days
go by more clearly. And I keep running up on things
that help me to express myself more clearly. And I found this.
This whole book can be explained this way. The Old Testament. Genesis through Malachi. has
one message. One message of three words. This
whole book. Todd can be summed up in these
three words. This whole Old Testament. 39 books says someone is coming. That's exactly what it says.
It says someone is coming. Someone ordained of God. Someone
appointed of God. Someone for men. Someone to redeem. Someone's coming. That's the
whole message of the 39 books. And the four gospels, Matthew,
Mark, Luke, and John, declare this message. Three words. Someone
has come. That's what they're saying. They're
saying he's come. Someone who's prophesied has
come. The someone promised has come. The someone pictured has come.
He has come. It's none other than Jesus Christ.
Jesus of Nazareth. And the epistles declare, this
is the message of the epistles. Someone's coming again. That's
what the epistles are declaring. Someone's coming again. Now that's
what this, the people of God, get this statement now, the people
of God throughout the Old Testament, throughout the Old Testament
were convinced of and believed genuinely two things. They were
convinced of and believed genuinely two things. Number one, they
knew they were sinners. They knew they were sinners.
Let's read a little bit of that. Turn to Psalm 51. Psalm 51. Let's let David speak. Psalm
51, beginning with verse 1. They knew they were sinners.
They knew they were sinners. Job said, I've heard of you by
the hearing of the ear, mine eye seeth thee, wherefore I hate
myself. I repent in sackcloth and ashes.
He said, I put my hand over my mouth. I've spoken once, yet
twice. Things too wonderful for me.
I'll never speak again. The cherubims and seraphims before
God's throne cry, holy, holy, holy Lord God of hosts. And Isaiah, when he saw that
sight and heard those words, said, woe is me. I'm cut off.
I'm undone. I'm a man of unclean lips. I
dwell among a people of unclean lips. Let David speak for all
of them. Psalm 51. Have mercy upon me,
O God. According to thy loving kindness,
according to the multitude of thy tender mercies, blot out
my transgressions. Wash me throughly from mine iniquity. Cleanse me from my sin. Here
this man, after God's own heart, was not reluctant to apply these
three awful words to himself, transgressor, iniquity, and sin. my transgressions, my iniquity,
and my sin. Verse 3, for I acknowledge my
transgressions. My sin is ever before me against
thee, and thee only have I sinned, and done this evil in thy sight,
that thou mightest be justified when thou speakest, and clear
when thou judgest. Behold, I was shapen in iniquity,
in sin my mother conceived me. These people all knew beyond
a shadow of a doubt that they were sinners. And the second
thing that they knew was this. I said the people of God throughout
the Old Testament were positively convinced of and genuinely persuaded
of and firmly believed in two things. They knew they were sinners. And they knew that God was going
to send a Savior. Now they believed that God would
send a Redeemer, God would send a prophet, God would send a Messiah,
and he would be called the Christ. Christ. Now that's what they
believed. They knew they were sinners and they knew God would
send a Savior and he would be called the Christ. They knew
he had not come, they knew he would come. They knew he had
not come, that he would come. Now let's go through some scripture.
Turn to Deuteronomy. Deuteronomy chapter 18. This
is Moses speaking in Deuteronomy 18. Now let's lay a foundation
here. I'm saying these people knew
they were sinners, and they looked for a Redeemer. They looked for
a Messiah called the Christ. The Prophet. That Prophet. Now
listen to it. Deuteronomy 18, 15. The Lord
thy God will raise up unto thee a Prophet. Capital P-R-O-P-H-E-T. A Prophet. The name of our Lord
is always capitalized. When you see capital L-O-R-D,
talking about Him. Capital P-R-O-P-H-E-T, talking
about Him. From the midst of thee, of thy
brethren, like unto me, unto him you shall hearken. Now verse
18, verse 17. And the Lord said unto me, Thou
hast well spoken that which they have spoken. They have well spoken
that which they have spoken. I will raise them up a prophet
from among their brethren, like unto thee, and I'll put my words
in his mouth, and he shall speak unto them all that I shall command
him. And it shall come to pass that
whosoever will not hearken to my words, which he shall speak
in my name, I'll require it of him. Now turn to Genesis 22. That's what Moses, Moses is speaking
about that prophet, that Messiah, that Christ. Now in Genesis 22,
you know this story how that God appeared to Abraham and how
many trials this man went through. And this, in his old age, one
of his greatest trials, God came to him and said, now take that
son whom thou lovest, thine only son, up on the mountain, and
offer him as a sacrifice to me. And Abraham journeyed three days,
two or three nights, toward Mount Moriah, where he would offer
his son as a sacrifice. And he turned to the men who
were with him, And he told them to, verse 5 of Genesis 22, he
said to the young men, you stay here with the ass. I and the
lad will go yonder and worship. We'll come back. We'll come back.
Abraham believed God would raise him from the dead if he had to
kill him. And Abraham took the wood of
the burnt offering. He remembers he's an old man,
110 or 20 years old. Isaac was a pretty good-sized
boy. You know, a lot of times we have a picture of Isaac as
a little old bearded fellow about two or three feet long. Isaac
was a pretty good-sized boy, probably a teenager, because
he laid that, he took the wood and laid it on Isaac, on his
back. And he took the fire in his own hand and a knife, and
here they started up the mountain. And they're going up there to
worship. He just told these men, the boy and I are going to worship.
Now you stay here, and we'll be back. And Abraham got the
fire that he carried on the torch, and he's got the knife in his
hand. And this boy, Isaac, his son, is carrying this wood that
they're gonna, with which to burn, to burn offering. And Isaac
said, verse 7, to his father, my father, and he said, here
am I, my son, and he said, behold, you have the fire, and here's
the wood, where is the lamb? Where is the lamb? Where is the
kid for a burnt offering? And Abraham said, now watch this,
and our Lord Jesus later said, Abraham saw my day. He rejoiced
to see my day. He saw it and was glad. Abraham
spoke of me. And Abraham said, my son, God
will provide himself a lamb. God will provide the lamb himself
and he will provide himself the lamb. for a burnt offering. And that
satisfied Isaac, so they went on both of them together. Abraham's
talking about this coming Messiah. Abraham looked for him. Moses
looked for him. Moses called him the prophet,
the prophet that would speak the words of God, that would
reveal God. Abraham called him the lamb, the lamb that would
be offered as a burnt offering. Now listen to Isaiah, Isaiah
7. Let's turn over here. This is
what Isaiah is saying. And remember, I started this
message with saying these Old Testament people knew two things. They were sinners, that their
sins had separated them from God, that there was an enmity
between them and God. There needed to be a reconciliation.
There needed to be a redemption. And they looked for a Redeemer.
They expected the Redeemer. Now, Isaiah 7.14. Isaiah wrote, and this is hundreds
of years before Christ was born, therefore the Lord himself will
give you a sign. Behold a virgin, an unmarried
girl, who hasn't known a man, a virgin, shall conceive. In her womb shall conceive a
child and bear a son and you shall call his name Emmanuel. What does Emmanuel mean? God
with us. God with us. That's what Isaiah
is saying. Now Moses said it's going to
be a prophet. God will raise up a prophet, put his words in
his mouth. Abraham says he's going to be
a lamb, a lamb for a burnt offering, a sin offering, a sacrifice that
God will provide. And Isaiah said he's going to
be a man. He's going to be a man that's born of a woman, but born
of a woman who's not known a man, that he might not partake of
Adam's transgression. All right? Isaiah 9, verse 6.
And here's Isaiah speaking of him again. And Isaiah said in
chapter 9 verse 6, unto us a child is born. A little baby is born. A new infant is born. A child
that never lived before, that never existed before. A little
infant that never lived on this earth before. A body that this
world has never seen before. An infant. A child is born. Now
watch it. Unto us a son is given. The Son
of God is given. Not born, is given. And what's
this? The government, he'll have all
authority. The government shall be on his
shoulder. His name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor. His name is the Mighty God, the
Everlasting Father, and the Prince of Peace. I'm going to talk tonight
about this. Don't be misled into thinking
these fellas didn't know what they were writing. Don't be misled
into thinking that they had a blind, dumb faith. They didn't. They
spoke too clearly. Isaiah said, there's going to
be born of a virgin, an infant. And in that infant's body is
going to be a son, given. whose name will be called Wonderful
Counselor, the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father, the Prince
of Peace. No Jew would ever apply those terms or those names to
just a human being. All right, Isaiah 11 now. Let's
look at another prophecy, Isaiah 11. What I'm saying is this.
These people look for a Messiah. They look for a Redeemer. Isaiah
11. Verse 1 through 4, and there
shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse. Who was Jesse?
David's father. Now the Bible tells us that this
Messiah, this Christ, first will be the seed of woman, be the
seed of Abraham, be of the tribe of Judah, and we'll read that
to you in a moment, a tribe of Judah, the family of Jesse. Household of David now watch
this and this is what they expected and when old Herod wanted to
know of the wives of the of the Pharisees and the religious leaders
Where is the Christ going to be born? What'd he say? They
knew they said in Bethlehem That's where he's gonna be born in Bethlehem
of the house of David all right, and there shall come forth a
rod out of the stem of Jesse and a branch shall grow out of
his roots and And the Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him,
the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might,
the Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord, and shall
make him of quick understanding, in the fear of the Lord, and
he shall not judge after the sight of his eyes, neither reprove
after the hearing of his ears, but with righteousness shall
he judge the poor, and reprove with equity for the meek of the
earth. And he shall smite the earth with the rod of his mouth,
with the breath of his lips shall he slay the wicked, and righteousness
shall be the girdle of his loins, and faithfulness the girdle of
his reins." It's not talking about David, it's talking about
David's son. Long after David had been dead,
these words were written. All right, turn to Job. Job knew
his sins and Job expected his Redeemer. It is said that Job
is the oldest book in the Bible. I do not know, but that's what
is claimed, that Job was written before Moses wrote. In Job 19.23,
listen, all that my words were now written, all that they were
printed in a book, that they were graven with an iron pin
and laid in the rock forever. I know that my Redeemer liveth,
he liveth now, he ever liveth, and that he shall stand at the
latter day, in the last days on this earth. My Redeemer liveth,
eternally liveth, and he's going to stand, how can he stand on
this earth? In human flesh. And though after
my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God. That's my Redeemer, God. All
right, quickly turn to Jeremiah. This is what the Jeremiah 23.
Jeremiah 23. Now these men, everyone writing
under divine inspiration. were bowed down with a sense
of guilt, conscious of their transgressions, iniquities, and
sin, but they expected God to redeem them through a person,
a Redeemer, prophet, the Messiah, the Lamb, the virgin seed, the
counselor, the Redeemer. Now listen to Jeremiah. Jeremiah
23, verse 5 and 6. Behold, the days come, saith
the Lord, that I raise unto David a righteous See this capital
B, B-R-A-N-C, it's talking about Christ, the righteous branch. And a King, a King shall reign
and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth.
In his days, Judah shall be saved. And Israel shall dwell safely.
This is his name whereby he shall be called in capital letters
Jehovah Sidkenu, the Lord our righteousness. That's who he
is. I'll raise up under David. From this house and lineage. This is Old Testament scripture.
Someone's coming. Someone's coming. The woman seed,
the lamb, that prophet. That stem of Jesse, that branch
of the household of David, out of David's loins, a righteous
capital B, branch, and his name shall be called the Lord. That's
his name, the Lord, Jehovah, our righteousness. My daughter Becky was in the
kitchen the other day and two fellas came by the house, Jehovah
witnesses. And they knocked, they wanted
to come in and show their literature and talk. And Becky said, well,
you know, didn't want to be rude and all these things. But she
said, we just don't have any common grounds on which to talk.
They said, well, we're Jehovah's Witnesses. She said, I know.
I'm a believer. I'm a Christian. They said, we
are too, you know. She said, yes, but we believe
that Jesus Christ is God. We believe he's God. And you
know what the man said? He said, he isn't. And turned
around and walked off. Jesus Christ is God, she said. He said, he is not. And walked
off. Well, let me tell you something.
He is. And that he is the Christ. The Lord, our righteousness.
That's what we say. If you want to talk to these
fellas, don't you talk on Armageddon and all these things. You get
them on Christ. And they'll say this, he's a son of God. You
say, no, he is the living God in human flesh. Well, he's a
messenger. He's sent of God. No, he's God
himself. He's Jehovah God. Jesus Christ
is Jehovah. They're Jehovah's witnesses,
and they're talking about the Father. They ain't talking about
Christ. And you can't know Jehovah God except through Christ, Jehovah
the Son. He is God. And to the Lord our
righteousness. All right, turn to Micah. Turn
over to the book of Micah. We'll give you a little while
to find it, because it's going to take me a little while to find it.
All right, the book of Micah. Micah, chapter 5, verse 2. Now
listen to this, Micah 5, 2. And thou Bethlehem, Ephrathah,
though you be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of
thee, out of thee shall he come forth unto me, that is to be
ruler in Israel, whose goings forth have been from of old,
from everlasting." Who are we talking about? We're talking
about from the days of eternity. That's what he's talking about,
from the, whose going forth have been from of old, from eternity,
from the days of eternity. That's Christ. And that's what
those religious fellas said to Herod and the wise men. They
said, where's the Christ to be born? Bethlehem. That's what
it says right there. Bethlehem the Christ the Messiah
and that's the reason you say Jesus Christ was born in Bethlehem,
but he fled to Egypt he fled to Egypt and then he fled he
went down to Nazareth and That's what the Jews said that that
the Christ is not coming out of Nazareth. He's coming out
of Bethlehem Well, he was born in Bethlehem now Zechariah just
over Zechariah's I don't over a little bit in the Old Testament
there Zechariah 3 These people knew they were sinners,
but they looked for a Redeemer, the Prophet, the Messiah, the
Christ. Now, Zechariah 3.8. Hear now, O Joshua, the high
priest, thou and thy fellows that sit before thee. For there
are men wondered at. For behold, I'll bring forth
my servant, the Branch. See the capital letters? The
Branch. God, the Christ, the Branch. All right, turn over
to Zechariah 6. Zechariah 6, verse 12 and 13.
Zechariah 6, and speak unto him, saying, Thus speaketh the Lord
of hosts, saying, Behold the man, the man whose name is the
branch, whose name is the branch, he shall grow up out of his place,
he shall build the temple of the Lord, Even he shall build
the temple of the Lord, the church of the Lord. He shall bear the
glory, shall sit and rule upon his throne. He'll be a priest
upon his throne. A priest doesn't reign on a throne.
Christ does, because he's prophet, priest, and king. He, the priest,
will sit on his throne. And the council of peace shall
be between them both. All right, Zechariah 9. Let's
look at another one. Zechariah 9, verse 9. And remember
when our Lord rode in Jerusalem on the donkey, and he quoted
a scripture. Zechariah 9, verse 9. Rejoice
greatly, O daughters of Zion! Shout, O daughters of Jerusalem!
Behold, thy King cometh unto thee! He's just and having salvation! Who ever heard of a king riding
on a donkey? Lowly! A king, lowly? Here he
is Purchase in his kingdom dying that he may be Lord humiliated
that he may bear the sins of his people But he's coming lowly
riding upon an ass upon the coat the foal of an ass. That's your
king What's he saying? Well all these people saying
he's coming the Christ the Messiah that prophet the branch the Redeemer
the Lord our righteousness the Virgin Son He's coming The king
is coming, the priest, after the order of Melchizedek. Now
turn to 1 Peter 1. And this is what Peter's talking
about over here, 1 Peter chapter 1, verse 9 through 12. Now listen, verse Peter 1, and
you'll get some understanding here if you listen. He said in 1 Peter 1, 9, Peter's
talking to these people throughout Pontius Galatia, Cappadocia,
and so forth, and he says, Receiving the end of your faith the salvation
of your soul now first Peter 1 10 of which salvation the prophets
these men were talking about Moses Isaiah Joe Jeremiah Micah
Zechariah the prophets have inquired and searched diligently Who prophesied
of the grace that should come unto you? Searching what or what
manner of time the Spirit of Christ is which was in them the
spirit of Christ was in these prophets did signify when he
testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ and the glory that
should follow that's what these men are talking about the sufferings
of Christ and the glory that should follow that's what they're
talking about now verse 12 unto these men it was revealed to
Abraham and Moses and Isaiah and Jeremiah and Job and Micah
unto these men it was revealed that not to themselves Because
they didn't see him in the flesh, he didn't come in their days,
not to themselves, but to us, those who would follow. They
did minister these things, which are now reported unto you by
them that have preached the gospel to you with the Holy Ghost sent
down from heaven, which things the angels desire to look into.
God coming to earth, God the Christ, God the Messiah. I turn
back to our text in Acts chapter 2. Now, will you go back there
with me? Stay with me, please. This is so vital. And here in
this sermon, Peter has stood before these people, Jews from
everywhere. And he said, what has taken place
is that the Messiah has come. That Christ has come. All these
2,000 years since Moses and clear back 4,000 years since Abel.
They've been talking about the prophet, the Messiah, the Redeemer,
the Christ, the King, of the shallow, from Judah. He said
he's come. He's come. And he's Jesus of
Nazareth. That's who he is. And he's a
man approved of God among you by wonders and miracles. You
yourselves know, but you, through the determinate counsel and foreknowledge
of God, with wicked hands, nail him to a cross. That's what you
did. But David said, not of himself,
but of the Christ, you'll not leave my soul in hell, you'll
not leave my body in the grave, you'll not suffer me to seek
corruption, but you'll raise me up and seat me on your right
hand. And David, he said, David's dead in his grave, and you know
it. But this Jesus hath God raised up. We told you he rose from
the grave. And the fellows lied about it
down at the temple, and those soldiers lied about it, and those
witnesses lied about it. We told you God raised Him from
the dead. And He said, verse 36, look at
Acts 2, verse 30, Therefore I let every one of you know assuredly
that God hath made this same Jesus whom you crucify to be
Lord and Christ. That's who He is. That's who he is. Jesus is the
Christ. Jesus is the Christ. And this is what old man Simeon
declared. Turn with me to Luke 2. This
is what old man Simeon declared in Luke chapter 2. Now fit this
in with me with all that I read in the Old Testament. Remember
that this took place before the New Testament was written. These
men were still under Old Testament prophets. John the Baptist was
the last of the Old Testament prophets. Verse 25 of Luke chapter
2, you with me? Behold, there was a man in Jerusalem
whose name was Simeon. Same man was just and devout.
He waited for what? He was waiting for the consolation
of Israel. He was waiting for the Messiah. He was waiting for
the Redeemer. And the Holy Ghost was upon him, and it was revealed
unto him by the Holy Ghost that he should not see death before
he had seen the Lord's Christ, the Christ, the Messiah. And he came with the Spirit into
the temple, and when the parents brought in the child Jesus to
do for him after the custom of the law, Simeon took him up in
his arms and blessed God, and he said, Now, Lord, let your
servant depart in peace according to your word. Because mine eyes
have seen thy salvation. Here he is, he's the Christ.
This is what John inquired of when he sent those two disciples
to the Lord Jesus. He said, are you he that should
come or do we look for another? He's not just talking about are
you a special messenger, are you the prophet for the hour,
are you all that this has been talking about, are you the one
that should come? Turn to John 1 just a minute,
let me show you something in John 1. When John the Baptist
was out there preaching, and everybody was going out to hear
him, in John 1 verse 19, listen to this. And this is the record
of John when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to
ask him, who are you? They knew he was somebody special.
They said, who are you? He confessed. He didn't deny
it. He said, I am not the Christ. And they said, well, what then,
are you a louse? He said, I'm not. They said,
are you that prophet? He said, no, I'm not that prophet. See, all these men knew about
that prophet. Turn to John 1, or John 3. John
3, just a minute, verse 38. Listen to this. Verse 28. Now John said this, verse 27,
he said, a man Can receive nothing except to be given him from heaven
and you yourselves bear witness that I said I am not the Christ
I'm set before him I'm not the Christ. He that hath the bride
is the bridegroom The friend of the bridegroom that standeth
and heareth him rejoiceth greatly because of the bridegroom's voice.
This is my joy This my joy therefore is fulfilled. He must increase,
I must decrease. He that cometh from above is
above all. He that is of the earth, earth
is speaketh of the earth. But he that cometh from heaven
is above all. That's the Christ. And then this is what the woman
at the well said. Look at John 4. This is all the way through
the Bible. John 4 verse 25. When our Lord
talked to that woman, And he said, God's a spirit, and they
that worship him, worship him in spirit and truth. She said,
verse 25, listen to this, my friends. She said, I know that
Messiah cometh, which is called the Christ. Here is a common
woman. She wasn't very active in the
missionary circle. I'm sure she'd had five husbands
and was living with a man who was not her husband. I know she
wasn't too active in the Bible classes and the missionary society.
I'm sure of that. And yet, this woman, I'm just
saying everybody knew this, that the Christ, the Messiah, this
woman says, I know, even I know the Christ is coming, the Messiah,
and he'll tell us everything. Look at verse 26. And Jesus said
to her, I that speak unto thee am he. And that's what I'm trying
to preach. That's what Peter preached to
Pentecost. Jesus is the Christ. Can you see that? This was a dispute in John 7.
Turn over John 7 a minute. Well, wait a minute. Turn to
John 1 again. Listen to Philip. This is what Philip said in John
1 45. Listen. Philip found Nathanael and said
to him, We found him. We found him. Of whom Moses in
the law and the prophets did write. He's Jesus of Nazareth.
We found him. Turn to John 7. Here's a dispute
over here. In John 7, when our Lord stood
on the last day of the feast, that great day of the feast,
and said, If any man thirsts, let him come to me. Look at verse
40. John 7, 40. Many of the people,
therefore, when they heard these sayings, said, Of a truth, this
is the prophet. Others said, This is the Christ. Some said, Shall Christ come
out of Galilee? Shall he come out of Galilee? Hath not the
scripture said that the Christ cometh of the seed of David of
the town of Bethlehem where David was? Sure they knew those things.
There was a division among the people because of him. Little
do they know he came out of Bethlehem. This is the inquiry in John 10.
Turn over there just a minute. I tell you, we could have an
endless sermon on this subject. Because this is where it is,
this is where salvation is settled, this is where the dispute of
life is settled, this is where all the blessings are, to find
out who is Jesus Christ. He said, what think ye of Christ,
whose son is he? In John 10, listen, verse 24,
Then the Jews came round about him, and they said to him, How
long do you make us doubt? If you be the Christ, tell us. And he said, he said, I told
you, and you didn't believe me. The works that I do in my father's
name, they tell you, they bear witness. But you don't believe
because you're not of my sheep. My sheep hear my voice and I
know them, they follow me and I give them eternal life. Now
we'll bring this to a close. Turn to John 20, verse 31. John
20, 31. And my friends, if this were
only preached I know people run up there and holler and believe,
believe on Jesus, and folks are believing whatever they want
to about Jesus. To some Jesus is this, and to
some he's that, and to some he's something else. The foundation
of salvation is to believe that he is the Christ, that he is
the Christ, the Son of the living God. Blessed art thou, Simon
Bar-Jonah. Flesh and blood didn't reveal
that to you. And on this rock I'll build my church. on this
rock. What rock? I'm going to show
you. Verse John 20, 31. John 20, 31. These are written,
every bit of it's written, that you may believe that Jesus is
the Christ. You see it? The Son of God, and
that believing you may have life through his name. He's your righteousness. He's your sanctification. He's
your wisdom. He's your redemption. He's all
things. He is the Christ. And these things
are written to that goal and that end, that you may believe,
and believing have life through his name. Turn to John 8, 23. John 8, 23. Now listen to this carefully. And I don't know how much truth's
in this, but I'm told that the old Kaiser of Germany, long,
long, long time ago, old Kaiser Bill, they called him. His servant
was a friend of a minister who reported this, that he was sitting
one day reading this scripture, and he was so overcome by it,
he broke into tears. In John 8, verse 23, listen. And he said, you are from beneath,
I'm from above. This is Jesus of Nazareth speaking.
You are of this world, I'm not of this world. And I said, therefore,
unto you, that you'll die in your sins. If you believe not,
that I am he if you believe not that I am I am that I am you
gonna die in your sins whatever else you believe if you believe
not that I am he and they said who are you who are you and he
said even the same that I said unto you from the beginning that's
who I am that's who I am if you don't believe that you gonna
die in your sins that I am. Moses said to God, whom shall
I say sent me? Tell them I am. And Christ said,
if you don't believe that I am, you'll die in your sins. And
they said, well, who are you? He said, the same as I told you
in the beginning. I'm still him. I'm still he. I am. OK, I'm going
to quit with this. 1 John 4. 1 John 4. And this is, oh, beloved, how
important. 1 John 4. Listen to this. First John 4. Now let me read
this in the amplified. This is where it is. You can
jot that down. Now listen to this in the amplified. When you
listen, look up and listen. Don't try to follow it with King
James. This is a better translation. You can read it in a moment.
Beloved, put not faith in every spirit, that is, every preacher,
but prove and test the spirits, test the preachers who preach
by whatever they claim, whatever spirit. by which they're preaching. You test them to discover whether
they proceed from God. For many false prophets have
gone out into the world. By this, by this you shall know
and recognize the true spirit of God. Every spirit that acknowledges
and confesses the fact that Jesus Christ the Messiah, Jesus, Christ,
the Messiah, actually has become a man, and has come in the flesh,
is of God. As God is its source, and every
spirit that does not acknowledge and confess that Jesus Christ,
the Messiah, has come in the flesh, is not of God, and is
the spirit of antichrist. That's what it's saying. That's
serious, isn't it? That's the reason I claim to
have the spirit of God this morning. I'm saying, clearly and plainly,
that that someone, Prophet, Lamb, Virgin Son, Redeemer, David's
Son, Jesse's Stem, The Branch, The Lord Our Righteousness, The
Mighty God, The Everlasting Father, is none other than Jesus Christ,
Jesus of Nazareth, and stood on this earth. And these things
are written that you might believe He's the Christ, and believing
you might have life through His name. I claim the Spirit of God. First John 5, 20, one other verse.
And we'll read this in Amplified, too. 1 John 5, 20. And we have seen and know positively
that the Son of God has actually come to this world and has given
us understanding and insight progressively to recognize and
come to know better and more clearly Him who is true, and
we're in Him who is true, in His Son, Jesus Christ, the Messiah. This is the true God. This is
life eternal. That's what that says. And you just test your profession
right there on that basis, right there. You just test your profession,
your claim, everything, your religion, whatever. If Jesus
Christ is not the Messiah, we look for another. And we're all
idolaters, and we're all under the wrath of God. But He is the
Messiah. He's all that He claimed to be.
He's all that the Word says He is. He's God. And He's our foundation,
our rock, our refuge, our hope, our salvation. He's our prophet,
priest, and king. He's our Redeemer. He's all that
we need. In Him we are complete. And we're
now sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. Now tonight,
I'm going to start off with this statement. Don't be misled into
thinking that these Old Testament believers did not know what God
was promising them. They did know. They did know. They knew a whole lot more than
we think they knew. Their prophecies were so clear. Our Father, we thank you for
the word. We know this is thy word. The
secret things belong to thee and the revealed things unto
us. We know it's mysterious, complicated. We cannot in the
flesh comprehend anything. But if we have the indwelling
spirit, spirit of understanding, spirit of revelation, illumination,
that we can see these things that are written, deliver us,
O Lord, from thinking that we're smart or that we have wisdom.
Our wisdom is Christ. We know nothing as we ought to
know it. We see through a glass dimly. We prophesy and preach
in part. We know in part, but one day
that which is perfect shall come and we shall know as we have
been known. Holy Spirit be our teacher. We pray that we may
be led in the plain paths of Christ. Give us faith, increase
our faith, strengthen our faith, keep us in the faith of Jesus
Christ our Lord for Jesus is the Christ and it's in his name
we pray, his name we worship, in his name we hope. For His
name is a name which is above every name, and it's His name
that we proclaim. Amen.