John

In light of the nations’ 250 Birthday, i think many of us are living in an uncertain time regarding how we are to think and feel about our country.

On the one hand, we have just spent nearly a year in the sermon on the mount talking about how our citizenship is in the Kingdom of God.

But we’re still here. So what does the Bible say about how we are to think about this earth.

When God sent the people of Israel into exile in Babylon, His words to them are pertinent to us today as well

Jeremiah 29:5–7 ESV

5 Build houses and live in them; plant gardens and eat their produce. 6 Take wives and have sons and daughters; take wives for your sons, and give your daughters in marriage, that they may bear sons and daughters; multiply there, and do not decrease. 7 But seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare.

The Apostle Paul also talks about our relationship to secular government.

1 Timothy 2:1–4 ESV

1 First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, 2 for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way. 3 This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, 4 who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.

Before we turn our attention to God’s Word for us today…let us pray for our nation.

Introduction: There are so many things that we believe…often without evidence.

We make decisions about what to believe often based on what we hope will happen rather than what will happen.

We put our faith in people who often let us down over and over.

We put of trust in a best guess and often blind faith.

One of the biggests arguments against Christianity has been the idea that we can’t know anything for sure.

That there is no real evidence for God and that even if there as, truth is relative.

But is that true?

Certainly not if you ask the writers of Scripture.

I love this quote by Voddie Baucham: ”I choose to believe the Bible because it is a reliable collection of historical documents written down by eyewitnesses during the lifetime of other eyewitnesses. They reported supernatural events that took place in fulfillment of specific prophecies and claimed that their writing are divine rather than human in origin.”

Today we turn our attention to a New Sermon Series and New Theme.

Last year we looked at the Greater Life. This year we are going to see that we can only have the greater life in Christ because of the Greater Love of Christ.

The Gospel of John is a book about the Love of God in Christ from the perspective not of someone writing long after the events took place, but one of Jesus’ own disciples.

While John is the last of the Gospel’s written, it is the one we have the earliest fragments of dating to the first century.

Transition to the Text: Turn with me in your Bibles to the Gospel of John. While we will spend the next year going verse by verse through this incredible Chronicle of the Life of Christ, today we want to get the 30,000 feet look at what this books is about. Who wrote it and why?

“It is rightly said that each of the Gospels presents Christ with a distinctive emphasis. Matthew emphasizes his kingship, Mark his servanthood, Luke his humanity, and John his divinity.” Kent Hughes.

From the very first verse of Joh, this Gospel is “unique in his powerful presentation of Jesus as the great Creator-God of the universe.” - Kent Hughes

John 1:1 ESV

1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

As we read through the Gospel of John, certain themes jump off the page.

But one of the clearest themes that jumps out at us surrounds “LOVE.”

Perhaps the most famous verse in all the Bible comes from John and talks about love.

John 3:16 ESV

16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.

When we read the Gospel of John we come face to face with the reality that God love His people. That Jesus is not a reluctant savior. In fact this is the culmination of all the OT teaching on God that reminds us that….

Exodus 34:6 ESV

6 “The Lord, the Lord, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness,

Jesus is all of these things in the Gospel of John. In fact, Jesus is revealed in the Gospel to be very emotional in the Gospel.

He loves big.

He is compassionate, especially with the lowly and humble.

He gets angry.

He gets distressed.

He cries.

But here we see and feel on full display a savior who loves us.

It’s no wonder that the only clue to the author of this Gospel is the way he describes himself.

“The Disciple whom Jesus Loved.”

He refers to himself in this way 5 times. Who is he referring to? The title of the book has always been John or the Gospel of According to John. But how do we know?

Process of elimination really. All of the other disciples are named in the Gospel except one: John.

But the really important question to answer is why was the Gospel of John written?

And what’s love got to do with it?

Well….It is that…

Introduce:

Big Idea: The LOVE of Jesus COMPELS us to BELIEVE.

Now you might think from the beginning of the Gospel, John is writing a simple biography of Jesus. The legendary and miraculous live of Jesus. A book that will captivate you and inspire you to be a better person. To follow the example of Jesus.

But that would fall very short of the true purspose of the Gospel because this isn’t just any ol’ book because Jesus isn’t just any other person.

John actually tells us exactly why He wrote the Gospel, but He doesn’t tell us until the end. But there it is clear as day….

Read: John 20:30-31

John 20:30–31 ESV

30 Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; 31 but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.

Now many have tried to figure out why John is so different from the other Gospels and he tells us right there.

Jesus did many other signs.

The Gospel even ends with the same idea:

John 21:25 ESV

25 Now there are also many other things that Jesus did. Were every one of them to be written, I suppose that the world itself could not contain the books that would be written.

In other words, John could have written other things, but, through the inspiriation of the Holy Spirit, the events, timelines, miracles, teaching, His interactions with people, the growing tension between Him and the Jews, and ultimately His death, burial and resurrection, were all specifically chosen….

so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Messiah, the savior, the Son of God

and that by believing, you may have life in His name.

Big Idea: The LOVE of Jesus COMPELS us to BELIEVE.

I’d like to break this idea down into 3 categories that permeate the Gospel.

His IDENTITY,

His WORKS and

His PURPOSE

Which all shed light on His love for us.

1. Jesus’ IDENTITY points us to His LOVE. (John 1-4)

Explanation: Have you ever wondered why an all powerful God who created the heavens and the earth would care about us? Would want to know us?

This is a question that the entire Bible wrestles with…

King David pondered this very idea:

Psalm 8:3–9 ESV

3 When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, 4 what is man that you are mindful of him, and the son of man that you care for him? 5 Yet you have made him a little lower than the heavenly beings and crowned him with glory and honor. 6 You have given him dominion over the works of your hands; you have put all things under his feet, 7 all sheep and oxen, and also the beasts of the field, 8 the birds of the heavens, and the fish of the sea, whatever passes along the paths of the seas. 9 O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth!

Over and over, we are reminded that God loves His people with a deep and powerful love.

John does not slow play Jesus’ identity like the other Gospel writers.

From the very beginning we are told, Jesus is God.

It’s hard to miss the connection John is making with Genesis 1:1

Genesis 1:1 ESV

1 In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.

John 1:1 ESV

1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

But if there was any doubt, John goes on in John 1:14

John 1:14 ESV

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.

But why did He come? The Great Love of God.

John 3:16 ESV

16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.

People always want to argue about why a good and loving God would send anyone to hell. That’s a fair question until you realize that every single person who has ever lived is going to hell by default, it is only the love of God that makes a way for any to escape that fate.

And it really is that simple….believe in Him.

And with this Jesus is the Messiah.

One of the most beautiful encounters in all of the Gospels comes in John 4 when Jesus has a divine appointment with the Samaritan woman at the well. And you might even say this is the heart of the Gospel because she is the first person that He reveals His identity to.

Because it shows that Jesus came not just for the nation of Israel but for everyone.

A samaritan was as far away and seperate as you could get from the Jewish expecation of Messiah. But here He was telling her…that He was her messiah too.

John 4:21–26 ESV

21 Jesus said to her, “Woman, believe me, the hour is coming when neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem will you worship the Father. 22 You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews. 23 But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship him. 24 God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.” 25 The woman said to him, “I know that Messiah is coming (he who is called Christ). When he comes, he will tell us all things.” 26 Jesus said to her, “I who speak to you am he.”

The Love of God will not allow Jesus to be put into a box.

Even here in John we are seeing what the book of Acts will show….and Paul will teach.

Galatians 3:28 ESV

28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.

Application: The Gospel of John is written that you may know who Jesus is. His identity as your savior, your messiah, your God.

I imagine many people go through life, even Christians with an incorrect view of Jesus’ identity.

One we often mess up the Trinity and think of the Father as the wrathful one while Jesus is the more level-headed son.

We divorce the will of God from the will of Jesus instead of seeing that Jesus lived to bring glory to the Father becuase they are One. Make no mistake, Jesus is God. But He is also Human which makes Him our brother.

But wait there’s more.

We may think of Him as a friend but not Lord. We may think of Him as a great teacher but not God. We may think of Him as a miracle worker but not a true savior.

But many think of God has angry with us which makes it hard for us to truly understand the great love He has for us.

The Gospel of John also includes the 7 “I Am” statements that also speak to His identity.

Jesus identifies himself as “the bread of life,” claiming that those who come to him will never hunger or thirst (John 6:35)

Jesus declares he is “the light of the world,” promising that those who follow him will not walk in darkness but possess the light of life (John 8:12)

Jesus presents himself as “the door,” through which anyone who enters will be saved and find pasture (John 10:9)

Jesus claims to be “the good shepherd” who lays down his life for his sheep (John 10:11)

Jesus asserts he is “the resurrection and the life,” promising that believers in him will live even though they die (John 11:25)

Jesus states he is “the way, and the truth, and the life,” emphasizing that no one comes to the Father except through him (John 14:6)

Jesus identifies himself as “the true vine,” with God the Father as the vinedresser (John 15:1)

These declarations progressively unveil Jesus’ role as sustenance, illumination, access to salvation, protective leadership, victory over death, the exclusive path to God, and the source of spiritual fruitfulness. Together, they form the theological heart of John’s Gospel, presenting Jesus as the fulfillment of Israel’s hopes and the answer to humanity’s deepest needs.

And in the end, we get the confession from the doubter, Thomas.

After getting His evidence….

John 20:27–29 ESV

27 Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here, and see my hands; and put out your hand, and place it in my side. Do not disbelieve, but believe.” 28 Thomas answered him, “My Lord and my God!” 29 Jesus said to him, “Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”

No condemnation for lack of belief. Just love that compels Thomas to believe.

And we are there to because we are those who believe having not seen.

But we have seen what Jesus had done.

All this to say, all of these we see that Jesus’ identity points us to His love.

2. Jesus’ WORKS points us to His LOVE. (John 5-11)

Explanation: You’ve probably heard the phrase, “Actions speak louder than words.” And this is something that Christians have always struggled with.

We want to share the Gospel and get people saved. We stand firmly on the Word of God as having the ability to change people’s lives. And that is true, but Jesus gives us an example of both words and actions.

Jesus let’s His actions give confirmation to His Words. His identity.

Now Jesus works include His signs and His Words. There are 7 signs mentioned in the Gospel of John starting with the wedding in Cana and ending with the raising of Lazarus from the dead.

Each sign is a demonstration of His love and compassion for a broken and hurting world.

The first sign occurs back in chapter 2 and really affirms His love for His mother at an important event like a wedding. Jesus turned water into wine.

The second one is in chapter 4 where Jesus heals an official’s son.

The third is the healing of a man lame who is laying by the pool hoping to be healed.

The fourth is the feeding of the 5,000.

The fifth is walking on water.

The sixth is the healing of blind a blind man.

And finally the raising of lazarus from the dead.

These are not random miracles that border on the super natural but meant to show compassion on a broken work and to stretch the faith of His disciples.

These miracles also served to affirm His identity that has already been declared in the first part of the Gospel.

Jesus’ works also include His Words.

We have several lengthly sermons in the Gospel of John including the longest one which is called the “Upper Room Discourse.”

These sermons a deeply theological and deal with the nature of the Gospel (John 3); how He can be equal with The father (John 5); John 6 connects Him with bread of life which came down from heaven to feed the people of God. It is a beautiful exposition of Exodus 16 connectin Himself to the manna God provided for the Israelites through their wilderness wanderings.

In 7-9 Jesus connects Himself with the feast of tabernacles and offers living water and light for the His people and the World.

Chapter 10 is the famous Good Shepherd Sermon and demonstrates His undying love for His sheep and His desire to bring even the sheep from beyond the nation of Israel into His fold.

The Upper Room Discourse spans John 13–17 and records events from the evening before Jesus’ crucifixion when he celebrated Passover with his disciples in an upper room.1

The discourse divides into four main sections: the foot-washing and betrayal announcement (13:1–30); teaching on Jesus’ departure and return (13:31–14:31); further instruction including the vine and branches allegory, the world’s opposition, and the Holy Spirit’s role (15–16); and Jesus’ prayer in light of his impending death (chapter 17).2

When Jesus washes the disciples’ feet, this is both an act of service and as an example for how they should serve one another in humility. Jesus then gives a new commandment: they must love one another as he has loved them, and this mutual love will mark them as his disciples to the world. (John 13:34–35)

The discourse contains two of John’s “I am” statements—Jesus as “the way, and the truth, and the life” and as “the true vine”—along with major teaching on the promised Holy Spirit.1 Jesus promises the disciples that the Father will send “another Helper,” the Spirit of truth, who will dwell with them and be in them. (John 14:15–24).

The Words and Works work together to point to the truth of what Jesus was saying.

God really did love the World and sent Jesus to show the World that He is God in the Flesh and that He has not abandoned His people to die in their sin.

Illustration:

Application:

3.Jesus’ PURPOSE points us to His LOVE. (John 12-21)

Explanation: John devotes almost half of His Gospel to describing a single week of Jesus’s earthly ministry.

From Chapter 12 thorugh chapter 20 we go from the triumphal entry to the cross to the tomb and then the resurrection. That’s not a coincidence.

This is a statement about the love of Jesus for His people.

In the Upper Room discourse, Jesus talks about this:

John 15:13 ESV

13 Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.

This is exactly what Jesus was about to do.

He was going to die for the sins of His people so that they would not have to spend eternity in Hell.

One of the greatest acts that Jesus did was dyings for our sins. It was the purpose for which Jesus came to the earth in the first place.

John 17 is the Lord’s prayer and reveals intimate details of His love for the Father and His love for His people.

Sin is bad and His purpose was coming to deal with it.

This wasn’t a weird demonstration of love without power.

Jesus’ death satisfied the wrath of God and opened the doors that all who believe will be saved.

John wants us to be saved. He wants us to believe.

He didn’t write this to manipulate us or control us.

John wrote these things

John 20:31 ESV

31 so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.

There are 2 parts to this:

Believing

and Having life in His name.

Believing leads to something. It has a purpose.

This isn’t an inspirational story to make you feel good and want to be a better person.

This is a rescue mission.

But something that is also often missed in this is that belief should change you. Your belief should affect your words and actions.

If these things are true then it should affect the way you live your life.

Illustration:

Application: John’s Gospel like the other Gospels ends with an empty tomb, a risen and victorious savior and a question….

Response: Are you READY to BELIEVE?

Summation: Today each of us is faced with the same question about whether we will believe or not. John wrote these things that we would consider the truth of the Gospel. He told the story of Jesus but also the experiences of those lived it. Through them and the many others who put their faith in Jesus at that time and throughout history, Jesus has transformed the world.  Whatever, we may believe about the Bible; history testifies that something miraculous happened that empowered a few people to change the course of history. 

In 2000, Peter Jennings attempted to investigate the origins of Christianity by trying to find the real Jesus of history.  His findings were widely publicized in the critically acclaimed ABC documentary, “The Search for Jesus.”  While Jennings, categorically denied the Jesus of the Bible and believed the Gospels were fabricated to authenticate the Church’s superiority, he was at a loss when faced with the resurrection.  He could not deny that people believed from the very beginning that Jesus rose from the dead.  In the end Jennings humbly concluded that something must have happened.  Jennings’s final remarks in the documentary could easily have been spoken by one of the great Christian theologians; Jennings said:

            And even the most skeptical of scholars and historians agree on this; in his brief life Jesus of Nazareth probably met and spoke with not more than a few thousand people; He wrote nothing; he commanded no great army; and he spent most of his time with the poor and the outcast; but he had a vision for a just world which was so vivid and moved Him so powerfully that he was willing to die for it and after his death his vision somehow transformed the world.  Miraculous!Today each of us is faced with the same question that these four people faced so long ago.  And in many ways, we react to the empty tomb in the same ways.  Some get emotional; others are curious about this Jesus fellow; others believe without question; but still more have their doubts.  We may wonder why Jesus would confirm His resurrection to the disciples while leaving us to base our belief merely on faith.  Regardless, of how each of these four people reacted, in the end, their grief, curiosity, belief, and doubt led them to Jesus.  Through them and the many others who put their faith in Jesus at that time and throughout history, Jesus has transformed the world.  Whatever, we may believe about the Bible; history testifies that something miraculous happened that empowered a few people to change the course of history. 

In 2000, Peter Jennings attempted to investigate the origins of Christianity by trying to find the real Jesus of history.  His findings were widely publicized in the critically acclaimed ABC documentary, “The Search for Jesus.”  While Jennings, categorically denied the Jesus of the Bible and believed the Gospels were fabricated to authenticate the Church’s superiority, he was at a loss when faced with the resurrection.  He could not deny that people believed from the very beginning that Jesus rose from the dead.  In the end Jennings humbly concluded that something must have happened.  Jennings’s final remarks in the documentary could easily have been spoken by one of the great Christian theologians; Jennings said:

            And even the most skeptical of scholars and historians agree on this; in his brief life Jesus of Nazareth probably met and spoke with not more than a few thousand people; He wrote nothing; he commanded no great army; and he spent most of his time with the poor and the outcast; but he had a vision for a just world which was so vivid and moved Him so powerfully that he was willing to die for it and after his death his vision somehow transformed the world.  Miraculous!

Closing Illustration:

Let’s pray.