Reason to Believe
THE SEASON AND THE REASON • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
0 ratings
· 3 viewsNotes
Transcript
Good Morning,
Over past several weeks we have been in our Christmas series entitled a Season and the Reason…
We have talked about the reason for Hope, Reason to Trust, the reason for Joy, The reason to Worship —
This morning message is entitled a — “Reason to Believe”
The word to Believe really means to Trust —or to— put our confidence or weight upon ——something or someone..
Today..
Things are changing and advancing at a rapid speed..
We have seen in the last 12 months just how AI - (Artificial intelligence) is changing the world.... — and in the next decade we are going to see a lot more automation of services…
The question can we trust what is coming..
For example - a study was done.
At the University of Arizona Health Sciences ..and they found that about 52% of people would choose a human doctor rather than AI for diagnosis or treatment. 47 % said they would trust an AI Diagnostics..
It is interesting that it is almost split down the middle..
How many Would you trust — An Self Driven Car ?
In another study,
Roughly six-in-ten adults (63%) say they would prefer to drive themselves..while (37%) say they wouldn’t mind
being driven by self driving car....
Another Technology on the Horizon are self piloted aeroplanes … FedEx and other cargo companies are already exploring these options..
Belief has to do with trust and confidence .. It what we are willing place our weight upon..
When it comes to our belief in God — the Bible doesn't subscribe to blind faith…It is not faith in faith…it not wishful thiinking..but rather faith that is anchored in something secure....
R.A Tory once said that.
Faith is not belief without evidence. It is belief on the very best of evidence...
Hebrews
1 Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.
In other words Faith has substance and it has evidence..
T/S This morning we are going to look at the advent story from the gospel of John..John.. Is making an argument for belief … Why we can trust the Advent..
T/s We have been given a reason to Believe..john gives us three reasons to believe..
1. We Have been included in God’s Amazing Plan.
1. We Have been included in God’s Amazing Plan.
There is story of man who bought plans for a birdhouse.
Instead of sending him the plans for a birdhouse, they sent him plans for a sailboat.
He tried to put it together, but it just couldn't get the parts to fit.. After much effort he have up..
So he wrote and sent the parts back to the company...
They responded with a letter of apology and added : "If you think it was difficult for you, imagine the man who got your plans and is now trying to…sail a birdhouse."
John in his gospel wants us to know that God had a plan…
…John starts in a different place than other Gospel writers..
Matthew begins with the genealogy of Jesus..… …that connects to the royal line of David..
Mark begins with preaching of the John the baptist -
Luke begins with the prediction of the Birth of Jesus..…
but John start with Creation……
…He writes in..
1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
2 He was in the beginning with God.
3 All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made.
John goes all the way back to Genesis — —..
John says In the beginning - Before Creation…THERE WAS THE WORD of God……
The verb “was” comes up several time in this section of scripture —
The word “was” is written in the imperfect tense - and it means - “already was” - or “ to exist…
IN the beginning (EXISTED) the WORD..
John says that the WORD EXISTED FROM THE START..
NOW.
In the Greek culture — they valued wisdom and knowledge.— the term “logos/ ” meant the primary principle.. They would argue for hours on end about the meaning of logos… they saw it as reason or logic…
John used “logos” in the sense that.— -“God expressed Himself.”
In the beginning God expressed himself..
But
It is more than the Idea of God… …
The word was a person.. Not a force…
John tells us that the WORD “was - with God”… snd the word was God..he was with God..
To be with means to in the same company or to be face to face with God..
THIS Implies the Jesus and God were together before the world was made..
They existed together in eternity past..
He was with God from the begining of time…
And
The Word was God himself…
JOHN shouts IT OUT..
.says.
… Jesus is fully God..there nothing in his nature or attributes that make him less than God..
All things that were made... by him and through him — and for him… …— and there nothing that exists without Him..
Everything created (or that is) came through God in Christ..
John gives us insight into the mystery of the trinity — The trinity are three persons —
God the father, the son and the Holy Spirit — 3 persons but One in essence —
John tells us that —
Jesus as the WORD of God was the active agent in creation…
He was performing the Perfect will of God…in perfect Harmony God the Father, and God the Holy Spirit … …
..
Why does this matter?
There are two choice when it comes to creation— Either creation was accident of nature……—It just happened…and the process of evolution kicked in..)
Or the other choice is that is was part of the God’s plan.. …God created the Universe — He is the Designer and orchastator of all things.— …
What John says is that we have reason to belief…Because Creation was Personal.. .. In the beginning was the Pre-existance of Christ..
John says we see can Know who God really is … the disciples themselves took along time to understand Jesus and his mission..
This was a question constantly on the disciples minds.
On one occassion.. Philip— He struggling with belief.. HE SAID SHOW ME THE FATHER AND ILL BELIEVE..
…John 14.9
9 Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you so long, and you still do not know me, Philip? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’?
JESUS WAS THE EXPERION OF TJE father..the logos..
Paul expressed it like this.. in Col 1.15
15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation.
Hebrews 1:3 (ESV)
3 He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power..
In Christ we see God the Father..…This is a wonderful thing… We don’t see the Father as Power… higher Power.. we see and experience God as a person..……
We see in Jesus the God who loves… and God cares about stuff.. and details of lives…
God who lived among people - who cared about those who were hurting — the sick the poor.. —who stopped to help the woman with the issue of blood…
who defended a woman about be stoned to death.
. who spoke to Samaritan at the w — hung out with tax collectors..— We see …God sympathize with our weaknesses….
It is Christ we see a God created and is holding it all together...
This give us hope .
When things seem to be falling apart we can confident God -WE can belief
T/s We have been given a reason to BELIEVE Because
We Have been included in God’s Amazing Plan of Salvation…
2. We have the Access to the Light of Life..
2. We have the Access to the Light of Life..
Have you ever wondered..
How we ever lived with Out Wi-Fi?
-Today we use the internet for everything— from grocery shopping, banking, travel..
But in order to get the benefits of using the internet- we have to be connect to Wifi..
we need — password..
There is story of a son was helping his dad connect to wiffi- asked for his dad for his password..— his dad replied
MickeyMinnieGoofyDonaldPlutoHueyLouieDeweyDUBLIN.
The son asked why his dad used such a long password?
The Dad responded ..Because I needed a password that contained - 8 characters and at least one Capital.
A password give us access —
One of the main themes of the Gospel of John is that we been given access to the gift of Salvation - John 3.16. God so loved..
That is access..
lets read..
John 1:4–8 (ESV)
4 In him was life, and the life was the light of men.
5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.
6 There was a man sent from God, whose name was John.
7 He came as a witness, to bear witness about the light, that all might believe through him.
8 He was not the light, but came to bear witness about the light.
John tells us that we live in the world in an environment of darkness../ …
But the good news is light is greater than Darkness… light dispels darkness..… On the darkest night… stars shine the Brightness
Jesus himself is the the source of light and life..……
In Him there “was light” means that his light has alway existed… because he aways was..
— speak to his immutability — God never changes in his nature.. in
Music —an A chord — was A yesterday… it is an A Chord today and in the future be A chord..
A music note will never change in its value…
That is immutability… God never changes..
One God’s unchanging attributes is that He is Light …
He is the source of life - He gave life to everything he created and everything receives its life from him..
In him was life, and the life was the light of men
life is both spiritual and eternal life… He is the giver and sustainer of life…
When we come to Christ — we partake in His vitality.. —
In him we live move and our being..
His life Speaks of health - exuberance - vitality -energy
Christ brings Vibrance and light into our world…
The new covenant comes with ‘batteries included.’ …That is the indwelling of the H.S..
John then mentions John the baptist who was prominent figure a the time and— there must have been thought that might he would start a revolution… John said..
He was not the light!!
Rather He was on a mission — John was sent by God for the purpose to point others to the light.. give witness to Jesus… So that they might believe
.”
God has light has been shining since creation .
John says follow the trail trace the light...
The light of the Christ shone in the primal darkness at creation, and continued amidst the darkness of fallen mankind… …
It shone with brilliance at the Birth of Jesus — and it shines on in the era of the Resurrection..
His light shone through the book acts — and for the past 2000 years..—
His life was the light of all people…
But here is the problem..
But there is a conflict THAT exists in this world… This battle between light and darkness……
He was in the world - world did not recognize Him -
9 The true light, which gives light to everyone, was coming into the world.
10 He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him.
11 He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him.
The problem is that we can ignore light.. There have always been doubters..
Atheists and agnostics -
— imagine that our world be much better with out Religion or Christianity..
Can you imagine if we could deleted impact of Christianity on history?
What would be left? There would be the absence of light?
Can you imagine what happen if you took out the Gospel..
Scratch out Reformation
The Great Awakenings
The Higher learning and Christian Colleges
Take out the morals
If the sun would go out, no life could survive on most of earth's surface within a few weeks.
The apostle Paul says
Romans 1:19–20 (ESV)
19 For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. 20 For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse.
T/s We have been given a reason to Embrace life Because..
We Have been included in God’s Amazing Plan.
We have the Access to the Light of Life
3. We have Received the Fulness of Grace
3. We have Received the Fulness of Grace
One of the great images of Salvation is the picture of Adoption .
Family structure is high priority in Scripture —
6 God settles the solitary in a home; he leads out the prisoners to prosperity, but the rebellious dwell in a parched land.
Adoption in ancient Greece was a common practice…… they were mainly to protect the estate (porperty) of a family…for example they didn’t have a son—
‘They would either adopt them while they were alive or pass on that adoption
— It was only granted to sons.
John says that.…
12 But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God,
13 who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.
14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.
The Light of the Gospel is the Revelation that All who receive him have been given the rights adoption t....
Adoption means that you have all the rights and privileges of that family..
Adoption was permanent
Adoption meant that your identity changed… you literally became a new person…
This brings meaning to to the incarnation.…
The Reason the word left heaven was for adoption..
The word became flesh and dwelt among us.. …
John tells us that in Christ God made his dwelling among us — The God of the Universe took on Flesh and made his temporary residence as a man..
He came from Heaven and pitched his tent among us..
John says that we have “seen his glory”
The disciples and witnessed the Glory of God first hand the — the brightness and splendor —
They saw the spendor of God in the life and teachings of Jesus… the saw it …in his miracles.
raising of lazarus..
in the Healing of the blind man…
They saw light of the glory of God in His countenance on the cross..
They saw glory in wounds and sufferings, .
They saw his glory in the resurrection and his ascension…
Why does the incarnation matter?
God is not up in Heaven — detached from the Human condition… …
God knows what we are facing
He doesn't just know the headlines he knows the details.
John Wants us to know Jesus not only as God of the manger but the God who loves you and I unconditionally as his own..
…John Concludes that with out any doubt in his mind that they had been with……Jesus …- The son of God — who was the (embodient of grace and truth) full of grace and truth…
John 1:15–17 (ESV)
15 (John bore witness about him, and cried out, “This was he of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me ranks before me, because he was before me.’ ”)
16 For from his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace.
John says not only that did the witness Jesus — but we partook of Christ — they Received…From His fullness grace upon grace…
The word fulness means
completeness. — the state of having every necessary to complete the whole or normal part or component or step…
There is nothing lacking in Grace… ad if you need grace.…
God gives more Grace… grace upon grace..…
In Johns closing statement he is fully aware of the Jewish mindset..
17 For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.
18 No one has ever seen God; the only God, who is at the Father’s side, he has made him known.
Moses was important in that God used him give the OT Law —
But it did stop with Moses — but Jesus came under Law to fulfill all the law.
4 But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law,
5 to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons.
In Jesus we see the fulness of the Law.. He completed the Law — through the ultimate sacrifice… He checked boxes every requirement..…
He brought the fulness of Grace and peace..
John makes point that in the Advent….. man didn’t approach God … Rather God came down to us…
God made himself known..
Conclusion ——
This time of the year we thing about giving and receiving gifts..
Tim Keller points out that there are some Gifts that are really hard to receive.. For example Can you imagine receiving exercise Equipment — Or a book on how to over come— selfishness…
The gifts by implication mean that maybe I need get fit.. and may have an issue with being selfish……
Keller makes point that. swallowing your pride.
There has never been a gift offered that makes you swallow your pride to the depths that the gift of Jesus Christ requires us to do.
Christmas means that we are so lost, so unable to save ourselves, that nothing less than the death of the Son of God himself could save us.
That means you are not somebody who can pull yourself together and live a moral and good life.
The advent speaks of our need and his provision..