In The Beginning...Jesus
Notes
Transcript
Introduction
Introduction
The other Gospel writers begin with Bethlehem. John begins with ‘the bosom of the Father’.
Luke dates his narrative by Roman emperors and Jewish high-priests. John dates his ‘in the beginning’.
With those words, he carries us into the depths of eternity, before time or creatures were. Both the Book of Genesis and the Gospel of John start from ‘the beginning’.
Genesis starts with ‘the beginning’ and works downward, telling us what followed. John starts with ‘the beginning’ and works upward, telling us what preceded ‘the beginning’.
Before the beginning, Christ the Word, our God and Saviour, already was.
Micah 5:2 (KJV 1900)
2 But thou, Beth-lehem Ephratah, Though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, Yet 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.
John’s Gospel opens with three simple words that are full of instruction, ‘In the beginning’.
John here teaches us to look upon the Son of God, both as the Essential Word and as the Revealed Word.
In the beginning, before ever the earth was made, Christ stood forth as the Word in and by whom the Lord God would make himself known in the salvation of sinners.
He was not only the Word from the beginning, but ‘in the beginning’.
‘In the beginning’ he stood forth as our covenant Surety.
‘In the beginning’ he was accepted as ‘the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world’.
‘In the beginning’ we were chosen, accepted, blessed, and redeemed in him.
3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ:
4 According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love:
5 Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will,
6 To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved.
7 In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace;
Jesus said...
John 12:32 (KJV 1900)
32 ...if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me.
14 And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up:
15 That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life.
This morning, for a little while, that’s it…I just want to lift up Jesus this morning! Look and live is the message!
I want you to notice this morning that Jesus Christ is:
The Word so we can believe
The Word so we can believe
1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
2 The same was in the beginning with God.
3 All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.
14 And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.
There is one word used repeatedly throughout these 21 chapters. That one word is the key to all things spiritual, the key to spiritual life, spiritual knowledge, and spiritual understanding.
The word is ‘believe’.
John uses it approximately 99 times in this gospel. His intention is that ‘we might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing, we might have life through his name’.
Much as our words reveal to others our hearts and minds, so Jesus Christ is God’s “Word” to reveal His heart and mind to us.
John 14:9 (KJV 1900)
9 ...he that hath seen me hath seen the Father...
A word is comprised of letters, is it not? and Jesus Christ is the “Alpha and Omega” according to Revelation 1:8 - that is, He is the first letter and last letter of the Greek alphabet…In America, we would say He is everything from A to Z!
God reveals his power and will through his word. There is no greater revelation of the character and nature of the Father than through the person of Jesus.
• Jesus reveals God’s mind.
• Jesus expresses God’s will.
• Jesus displays God’s perfections.
• Jesus exposes God’s heart.
Jesus is the Word so we can believe!
Jesus Christ is the eternal Word (vv. 1–2). He existed in the beginning, not because He had a beginning as a creature, but because He is eternal. He is God and He was with God.
He said in John 8:58, “Before Abraham was, I am”…When Moses asked who he should tell Pharoah when asked who sent him, the Lord told him to tell him that “I AM” had sent him…
Jesus Christ is the creative Word (v. 3). God created the worlds through His word: “And God said, ‘Let there be …’ ” / “For He spake, and it was done; He commanded, and it stood fast” (Ps. 33:9).
God created all things through Jesus Christ,
In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins: Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature: For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him: And he is before all things, and by him all things consist. And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence. For it pleased the Father that in him should all fulness dwell;
This means that Jesus is not a created being. He is eternal God.
Jesus Christ is the incarnate Word (v. 14). He was not a phantom or a spirit when He ministered on earth, nor was His body a mere illusion.
John and the other disciples each had a personal experience that convinced them of the reality of the body of Jesus...
1 That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands have handled, of the Word of life;
2 (For the life was manifested, and we have seen it, and bear witness, and shew unto you that eternal life, which was with the Father, and was manifested unto us;)
Yes, Jesus Christ is the Word so we can believe; He’s also:
The Light so we can see
The Light so we can see
4 In him was life; and the life was the light of men.
5 And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not.
12 Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.
Jesus came to a world in spiritual darkness and opened the curtains of grace revealing the truth of God to men wandering in darkness. Jesus came to illuminate the pathway of men toward God.
God is light (1 John 1:5) while Satan is “the power of darkness” (Luke 22:53).
People love either the light or the darkness, and this love controls their actions.
For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.
This light will accomplish one of two things. It will either cause men to repent of their sins and run to the opened arms of the Lord, or it will cause them to reject the light and continue on their course of darkness.
One will lead to salvation, the other will lead to damnation!
36 He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him.
Just as the first Creation began with “Let there be light!” so the New Creation begins with the entrance of light into the heart of the believer.
But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost: In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them. For we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord; and ourselves your servants for Jesus’ sake. For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.
Jesus is the Word so we can believe, the Light so we can see, and He is also:
The Lamb so we can live
The Lamb so we can live
4 In him was life; and the life was the light of men.
29 The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.
Life is a key theme in John’s Gospel; it is used thirty-six times.
What are the essentials for human life? There are four:
1. Light—Without the sun, there would be darkness and death. The same truth holds true without Christ. He is the Light of the world.
2. Air—Without air, we would suffocate. The Holy Spirit is our breath of life.
3. Water—Water is needed to quench our thirst. Christ is the Living Water.
4. Food—Without food, we would be hungry, empty, and eventually die. Christ is the Bread of Life.
The Lord Jesus Christ not only possessed life, He is the source of life for every man.
It is one thing to exist. This is all that many do. It is another matter to know the purpose of life and have a purpose in your life.
The Lord Jesus Christ is the one person who can make life worth living and in whose company, death is only a prelude to a fuller life.
Jesus came to give us life—to reconcile us with God, changing both our present condition and our future destination.
How do you receive spiritual life? By placing your faith and trust in Jesus Christ.
25 Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live:
He will reconcile you with his Father. You will no longer be separated from God and cut off as an enemy but welcomed as a son or daughter. Your future is life forever in the glorious kingdom of God.
Jesus Christ takes God’s judgment on your sin, and his victory over death and the grave become yours.
Conclusion
Conclusion
Do you know what a Christian is?
• A Christian is someone who was dead in sin but now has received life.
• A Christian is someone who was cut off from God but has now been reconciled.
• A Christian is someone who was a spiritual corpse but now has the life of God flowing through him or her.
• A Christian is someone who was dead to God but has now been made alive by and for him.
Why did Jesus come to earth? Jesus came to call people from death to life—to a living, vibrant relationship with God—through faith in him. Those who believe he makes alive and gathers into a living community that bears the fruit of his life flowing through them. Together we demonstrate and declare his life.
Without Him there is no life!
Will you do what you need to do today and come to Jesus?