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There Came a Man Sent From God (Part 2) · CCC West Covina

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The Gospel of John the 1st chapter the sixth verse says
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that there was a man there came a man sent from God whose name
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was John. We've looked at the man, Now
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we're looking at how this man was was sent from God many
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because how he was sent draws parallels to how you and I are
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sent by God. We told you that he was sent
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number one personally. Luke chapter 3 verse #2 says
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that the word of the Lord came to John.
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God actually spoke to John. How long God had been speaking
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to John in the wilderness we do not know, but specifically when
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the word of the Lord came to John, it moved him into his
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ministry. So he was personally called by
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God. Everyone in the room who is a
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follower of the Lord Jesus Christ was called by God.
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We were called through His word. Faith cometh by hearing and
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hearing about a word concerning the Christ.
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Romans 10, 17 Paul would say to those in Corinth and 1st
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Corinthians one verse #2 that they are Saints.
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By calling, God calls us into His Kingdom through the power of
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the Spirit of God and through the scriptures that are spoken
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to us. And God calls us to be his
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children. He calls us to be citizens of
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His Kingdom and to represent His glory.
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So John was sent from God first of all personally because he was
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personally called by God. Second, he was sent from God
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privately because Luke 3 verse #2 says the word of the Lord
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came to John in the wilderness. He was in total obscurity all by
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himself, and how long he was there we do not know.
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Most assume that he probably went into the wilderness
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sometime around the age of 20, because that's when he would
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have entered the priesthood anyway, and he was in line for
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the priesthood. But we don't know exactly when
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that occurred. But even even a year in the
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wilderness, if you've ever been to the Judean wilderness, it's a
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dry, dead, hot place. But let's say he was there for
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10 years and all he did was read the Old Testament manuscripts,
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listen to the voice of God. But personally, he was called by
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God and privately he communed with God that there was
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something about obscurity, total obscurity that breeds, that
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breeds, transforming maturity there.
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There's something about being alone with God all by yourself,
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listening to his voice as he speaks to you through his Word,
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and then responding to him. And we told you last week that
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that silence and solitude were the were the most practiced
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spiritual disciplines by our Lord.
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The Bible says these words in the book of Lamentations.
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Lamentations chapter chapter 3. Verse 25.
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The Lord is good to those who wait for him, to the person who
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seeks him. It is good that he waits
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silently for the salvation of the Lord.
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Verse 28. Let him sit alone and be silent
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since he has laid it on him. Let him put his mouth in the
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dust, for perhaps there is hope. Solitude is a a rest of the life
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where silence is a rest for the lips.
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And so many times we spend so much time talking that we spend
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very little time listening. Well, John's all alone in the
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wilderness. There's nobody to talk to except
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God, and I'm sure that his communion with God was sweet and
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special. And you have to ask the
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question, what what is my communion with God like in the
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privacy of my my home, in the silence of the early morning or
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the late evening? Well, we are so busy, you know,
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our, our cell phones keep us occupied.
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Every time there's a buzz or every time there's a vibration
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or every time there's a sound, we jump to our phone.
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We're like Pavlov's dog. Every time it goes off, we just,
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we just foam at the mouth to see, is there a text?
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Is there a notification? Is there something for me?
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The the challenge would be to, to go home and, and, and place
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your phone in the closet, shut the door and just leave it
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there. But see, we can't do that or we
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won't do that because we are so occupied or preoccupied with the
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busyness of life. We have to know what's going on
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in the world. We have to know what's going on
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in our community. We have to know what's going on
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in, in every area of life. We, we just have to know as if
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we're that important, but we think we are.
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And so we have to know. We have to know if somebody
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calls, if somebody texts, why? When I was growing up, we didn't
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have any of that stuff. You had to be home to receive a
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phone call. You had to go to mailbox to get
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a letter. Those days have long, long gone.
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But what I'm trying to say is that we get so preoccupied with
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the busyness of life that there's no time for silence and
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solitude. And so John, he was forced into
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the wilderness. He was there all alone, and
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there he grew. Luke 180 tells us that he grew
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strong spiritually. Could it be that in today's
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society, in today's church, we are as weak as we are
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spiritually because we don't spend time alone with God?
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John did, and he grew spiritually.
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There came a man sent from God, personally called by God,
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privately commune with God and #3 that's where we left off last
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week, prophetically chosen by God.
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You've got your Bible turn. Turn to Luke's Gospel, the 3rd
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chapter, the fourth verse, as it is written in the book of the
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words of Isaiah the prophet. The voice of one crying in the
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wilderness make ready the way of the Lord, make his paths
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straight. Every ravine will be filled, and
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every mountain and hill will be brought low.
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The crooked will become straight, and the rough Rd.
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smooth, and all flesh will see the salvation of God.
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That's from Isaiah 40 verse #3 Matthew, Luke, and John record
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that Mark. Mark quotes Malachi 3 verse #1
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which says this, Behold, I am going to send to my messenger,
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says the Lord. That's John the Baptist, and he
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will clear the way before me, and the Lord whom you seek will
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suddenly come to his temple. And the messenger of the
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covenant in whom you delight, behold, he is coming.
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The messenger of the covenant in whom you delight is, is Jesus
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the Messiah, But it's going to send his messenger, and that
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messenger will clear the way for him.
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Now think about this. You're John the Baptist, you're
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in the wilderness, you have Old Testament and manuscripts, and
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you're able to read about yourself.
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You're able to read about the messenger that's going to pave
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the way for the Messiah. And John knows that.
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He's the guy. He reads about it in Isaiah.
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He reads about it in Malachi. Can you?
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Can you imagine the exhilaration he must have felt reading those
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texts, The excitement that must have pervaded his heart and mind
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as he would read those things to realize that he was coming to
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prepare the way for the Messiah? They were specifically chosen by
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God to be that man. Other words, His coming was
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expected. His coming was anticipated.
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The problem was that it'd been 700 years since Isaiah wrote
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chapter 40, verse #3 been a long time.
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And John is reading this and realizing this and coming to
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understand that it's been 700 years and now, now he here he
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is. Malachi was written 400 years
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and the Lord hadn't spoken. And the people had waited a long
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time for the Messiah to come, ever since the the arrival of of
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Abraham in the promised land way back in Genesis chapter 12, that
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his seed would bless the nations of the world.
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Even reading the book of Genesis, that the the seed of
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the woman would crush the serpent's head.
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All this prophecy for hundreds of years, thousands of years.
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Now John is realizing that the time has come.
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He's the guy. He he's the chosen prophet.
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God could have chosen anybody else.
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John was the guy and prophetically he was chosen by
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God and you know, there, there was no preparation for him to,
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to to be culturally relevant because he wasn't in the
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culture. He was in the wilderness.
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There was no preparation for him to be socially savvy because he
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was in the wilderness. He didn't know the lingo of the
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people. He was privately in communion
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with his God. He didn't know the the modern
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language of the day and the the the cliches that people would
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use. Didn't know any of that stuff.
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Because when God calls you to represent him, he doesn't call
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you to have something in common with your culture.
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He calls you to be counterculture.
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Why? Because you're a prophet of God.
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You're going to speak things that the culture is not used to
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hearing. You're going to say things that
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the culture doesn't want to necessarily hear because you're
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going to preach an undiluted message of the truth.
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And here is John recognizing that he is the fulfillment of
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prophecy. He was prophetically chosen by
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God. Now, I want you to listen very
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carefully to what I'm going to tell you.
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You were prophetically chosen by God as well.
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Think about that, John specifically, and to some degree
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you specifically as well, because the Lord knows you by
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name, but you have been generally chosen by God.
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Why? Notice what it says in verse 6
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of Luke 3 that all flesh would see the salvation of the Lord,
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not just Jews, but Gentiles as well.
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The going that's people like you and me see.
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But there, there there is, there was a chosen or choosing.
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Excuse me of your life and mine turn with me to First Peter
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chapter 2. Let me show you this.
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And this is really rich when you begin to understand what Peter
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is saying. First Peter 2 verse #9 but you
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are a chosen race. Peter is speaking to those those
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Jews who've been scattered abroad.
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In fact, go back to chapter one verse #1 it says Peter and the
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Apostle of Jesus Christ to those who reside as aliens scattered
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throughout Pontius, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, Bithynia, who
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are chosen according to the foreknowledge of God the Father
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by the sanctifying work of the Spirit, to obey Jesus Christ and
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be sprinkled with His blood. That's who he's writing to.
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He tells them that they are a chosen people, a chosen nation.
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Look what it says in verse number six of first Peter
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chapter 2, for this is contained in Scripture as Peter quotes
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from the prophet Isaiah. Behold, I lay in Zion, a choice
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stone, a chosen stone. Who's the chosen stone?
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The Messiah. He takes that from Isaiah
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chapter 42 verse #1 which says, Behold my servant, whom I
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uphold, my chosen one, in whom my soul delights.
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The Messiah was the chosen. 1 When was the Messiah chosen?
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Did God look down the corridors of time and see the man Jesus
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and chose him to be the Messiah? No, He was chosen in the
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eternity past, just like you were.
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In fact, your name was written in the Lamb's Book of Life.
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Revelation 13/8, Revelation 17, Eight before the foundation of
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the world. So prophetically, you were
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chosen by God. Your name might not be in
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Scripture, but it's written in the Lamb's Book of Life.
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So before time began, those of you who know Christ as Lord and
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Savior, your name was written already in the Lamb's book of
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life. The Bible says these words John
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1516 You did not choose me, but I chose you.
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Say wait a minute, I, I chose Jesus.
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And yeah, your choice is subject to his sovereign choice.
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You did not choose me, I chose you.
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Listen to Acts 1348. It says as many who had been
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appointed to eternal life believed as many as had been
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appointed. When were they appointed?
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When they were chosen? In the eternity past.
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Eternity past? They believed.
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Paul would say in First Thessalonians one verse #4
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knowing brethren, his choice of you.
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Wow, His choice of you turn to 2nd Thessalonians chapter 2.
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Second Thessalonians chapter 2 verse #13 But we should always
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give thanks to God for you brethren, beloved by the Lord,
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because God has chosen you from the beginning.
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God has chosen you from all eternity from before time began.
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Paul says. We're giving thanks for God's
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choice of you. We look at John the Baptist.
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We realize that this man prophetically was chosen by God
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to be the forerunner to the Messiah.
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But don't forget that you and I were chosen in the eternity past
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because our names are written down in the Lamb's book of life.
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And when you and I gave our life to Christ, that's when.
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That's when that's when eternity intersected with time and we
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gave our life to the Lord Jesus Christ.
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And there are certain characteristics of that of that
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choosing that you need to understand because they were
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characteristic of John as well. Knowing that God chose you from
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eternity to past pummels all pride, destroys your pride,
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because God chose you. You didn't choose him not by
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works of righteousness which we have done, but by the washing of
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regeneration and renewing of the Spirit of God.
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Listen to what Paul says in First Corinthians chapter one
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verse #26 for consider your calling, brethren, that there
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were not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not
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many noble. But God has chosen the foolish
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things of the world to shame the wise, and God has.
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Chosen the weak things of the world to shame the things which
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are strong, and the base things of the world and the despised.
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God has chosen the things that are not, so that he may nullify
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the things that are so that no man may boast before God.
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But by His doing you are in Christ Jesus who became to us
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wisdom from God and righteousness and sanctification
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and redemption, so that just as it is written, let him who
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boasts boast in the Lord. God has chosen the weak things,
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the despised things, the the base things of this world, the
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foolish things of this world, so no one will boast in and of
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themselves. God says I chose you.
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You didn't choose me. Your choice was based on my
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predetermined foreknowledge. I chose you, and therefore it
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pummels all pride. What did John the Baptist say?
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He must increase. I must decrease.
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That was John. He could have said, hey, I'm the
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forerunner. I'm the guy prophesied.
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I'm the chosen one to prepare the way for the Messiah.
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But he didn't. He said I'm not even worthy to
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loosen the straps on a sandals. Because when you see when you're
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chosen by God, you recognize that it pummels all pride #2 it
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promotes only God. It promotes only God.
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Philippians one verse #29 Paul says these words, for to you it
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has been granted for Christ's sake to believe in His name.
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You are saved for Christ's sake, for His glory.
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Three times in Ephesians 1, Paul says to the praise of his glory,
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you were predestined by God, you were regenerated by God, you
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were sealed by God to the praise of his glory.
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And therefore to recognize that you've been chosen by God not
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only pummels your pride, but promotes only God and #3
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produces joy, produces joy over in first Peter chapter 1, Peter
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says this, blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus
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Christ. So, according to His great mercy
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has caused us to be born again to a living hope, to the
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resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to obtain an
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inheritance which is imperishable and undefiled, and
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will not fade away reserved in heaven.
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For you who are protected by the power of God through faith for a
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salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.
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In this you greatly rejoice. You greatly rejoice.
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God did that. Remember Luke chapter 10 verse
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#20 when the apostles came back and they saw people healed, they
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saw people give their life to Christ.
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They, they saw all kinds of miracles and they were ecstatic,
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ecstatic about the ministry. And, and, and Christ says to
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them, listen, I, I don't want you to be so excited about your
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ministry that you forget your destiny.
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If you want to get excited, get excited about this, that your
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names are written down in heaven.
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That's where the joy is, because ministry fluctuates, it comes
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and goes. There's positives and negatives,
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ups and downs, but heaven, heaven is yours and that's your
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destiny. That's your joy.
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John the Baptist knew that his joy was in presenting Christ,
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knowing that even in chains he was going to heaven.
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He knew that he would testify and witness only for the Christ
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because he came to promote only his God #4 knowing that you're
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chosen only promises, privileges.
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Ephesians chapter one verse #3 Blessed be the God and Father of
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our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual
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blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, just as He chose us
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in Him before the foundation of the world.
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Knowing that you're chosen by God promises privileges,
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produces joy, promotes God, pummels pride, propels holiness.
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Colossians 3 verse #12 So as those who have been chosen of
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God, holy and beloved, put on a heart of compassion, kindness,
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humility, gentleness and patience, bearing with one
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another and forgiving each other.
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Whoever has a complaint against anyone.
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Just as the Lord forgave you, so also should you.
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As chosen by God. You are to be holy, you are to
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be blameless, and when you recognize that God has chosen
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you for his Kingdom, it propels holiness.
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John was a a Nazarite or took a Nazarite vow because he wanted
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to be separate and holy from the world.
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And he recognized that the prophetic choice of God upon his
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life propelled him to live a life separate from those all
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around him because he wanted to be holy, uniquely distinct from
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the world. Knowing that you're chosen by
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God provides security. Philippians one verse #6 being
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confident of this very thing that he who began a good work in
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you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ over in
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First Thessalonians 523 and 24 faithfully see you calls you who
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also will complete it, knowing that you've been chosen by God
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only only provokes or provide security.
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And lastly, it provokes evangelism because Peter says
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that you're a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation,
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a people for God's own possession, so that you may
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proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness
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into his marvelous lights. John was prophetically chosen by
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God. Don't think for one moment that
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you were not, because so were you.
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You were chosen in eternity past.
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God's elective love came down upon you and chose you not
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because of anything that you did.
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Didn't choose you because you were smart, you were wise, or
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you were a good athlete and you would just make a good
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representative of him. Look at the apostles.
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They were a bunch of nobodies, but they turned the world upside
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down because they recognized that God had chosen them for
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that ministry, chosen them to be a part of His Kingdom.
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Same is true for you and me. Those, those of us who know the
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Lord, we, we've been chosen by Him from eternity past in the
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mind of God. We were prophetically chosen by
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God #4 John was providentially cared for by God, personally
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called by God, privately communed with his God.
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He was the one who prophetically was chosen by God, but was
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providentially cared for by God. This is so exciting.
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Turn to Luke chapter 1. Luke chapter 1.
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Remember in Galatians 4 it said this in the fullness of time.
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Verse #4 Connections 4. In the fullness of time, God
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sent forth his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, that
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he might redeem those who were under the law.
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In the fullness of time in in the perfect time, in the
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Providence of God, there was a perfect time to send his son,
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born of a woman. It was a perfect time
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economically. It was a perfect time socially.
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It was a perfect time spiritually.
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It was a perfect time politically.
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It was just the perfect time to send his son.
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Well, if that's the case, then it would have been the perfect
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time to send the forerunner. So in the Providence of God, he
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perfectly chose John to come six months before the Messiah.
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Listen to what it says in Luke one verse #5 in the days of
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Herod the King, that you might want to stop right there,
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because in those days it was a dark day.
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It was a depressing day. Herod was a murderer.
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He murdered his sons. He murdered his wife.
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He murdered all the babies 2 years and younger.
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When he realized that there was another king born in Israel, he
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was a murderous man. And so it was a very dark time
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in Israel and God had not spoken in over 400 years.
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A prophet had not come and it was quiet in the land of Israel,
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so it says. In the days of Herod, king of
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Judea, there was a priest named Zacharias.
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Oh, by the way, his name means God remembers.
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You might not want to forget that of the division of Abijah,
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which of course is very important to the narrative.
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As you will see, he had a wife from the daughters of Aaron.
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In other words, his wife was in the land of the priesthood as
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well. Her name was Elizabeth.
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Her name means God is faithful. You're not going to want to
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forget that either because it plays a huge part in the
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narrative in Luke chapter 1 says in verse 6 they were both
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righteous in the sight of God, walking blamelessly in all the
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commandments and requirements of the Lord, but they had no child
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because Elizabeth was barren and they were both advanced in
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years. Now those verses say so much
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about Zacharias Elizabeth, but more so about God in His
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Providence because providentially, providentially,
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John was cared for, John was protected, John was under the
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sovereign hand of the living God to come at just the right time.
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They had been waiting for the sunrise from on high to shine,
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but nothing had happened for years, hundreds of years.
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But in the fullness of time, God would send forth His Son,
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meaning that He would make sure that in the same fullness of
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time, John the Baptist would be born.
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So you have a very important principle here.
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Remember, it says that they had no child.
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Why is that important? Well, because of the 613
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commandments that the Jews had adopted, number one, was this,
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that as a Jew you must be married.
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That was #1 #2 was this you must have more than one child?
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That was the command in the days of John the Baptist, the days of
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Zacharias and Elizabeth. Why did you have to have more
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than one? Genesis chapter 2.
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Be fruitful and multiply. So they adopt the commandment
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that you must have more than just one child, you must have
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two. In fact, the rabbis taught that
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certain people should be excommunicated from from God, a
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Jew who had no wife and a Jew whose wife had no child.
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So here is Zacharias, a priest, Elizabeth, who's in the land of
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the priesthood and marries the guy who's a priest.
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They have no children. They're barren.
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That was a, a tremendous curse upon a Jewish family.
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We, we can't really relate to that today, but in those days it
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was huge. Why?
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Because they really took to heart Psalm 127, which says that
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children are a gift from the Lord.
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Children are gifts. I wonder if you recognize that
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your child is a gift from the Lord.
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They are. They're gifts.
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Oh, oh, by the way, when when God gives you a gift, how do you
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respond with the gift? Some people respond by not going
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to church for weeks because of the gift God gave them for
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whatever reason, which for the life of me I'll never
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understand. But if God gives you a gift, why
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would you not honor him with the gift?
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But there's all kinds of excuses as to why why we don't go to
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church. It's almost as if we have
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maternity leave from church. Just food for thought.
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Don't mean to meddle, but sometimes that's what I do.
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But we need to think about things biblically more so than
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anything else, right? But here was Zacharias and
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Elizabeth. They had no children, but
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providentially they were cared for.
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Note this there is no situation that God does not have a
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solution for. There is no situation that God
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does not have a solution for. What situation are you in today
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that you wonder whether or not there's a solution?
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Let me be right up front with you.
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The solution is always Christ. Christ that in John 14 one, let
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not your hearts be troubled. If you believe in God, believe
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also in me. Don't be afraid, don't be
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anxious, don't be scared. Why?
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Because of me. You believe in God, believe also
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in me because He was the solution to their situation of
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fear and anxiety. And you have to ask yourself,
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what situation are you in whereby you are looking for a
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solution? Christ is that solution.
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Oh, by the way, there is no affliction that does not have
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God's undivided attention. There is no affliction that does
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not have God's attention. God knew exactly what He was
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doing. He had planned her barrenness.
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Providentially. He wasn't going to give them a
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child until the right time. Providentially, God was in
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charge of her womb. The Bible says that the Lord
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opens and closes the womb. No one has ever gotten pregnant
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by accident. If you get pregnant, it's by
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divine appointment. Twice in the Old Testament, God
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says I'm the one who opens and closes the womb.
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God's in charge of all that. And God closed her womb.
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Did you not think she was in pain?
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Do you not think she was lonely and sad, broken hearted?
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Of course she was. And yet God in his Providence
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was doing something because He didn't want to give them just
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any child. He had to give them a specific
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child, a forerunner to the Messiah.
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He was preparing them. Notice that in a world of
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hypocrisy, in a world of rebellion, which Israel was in,
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in a world where they had defected from their God, there
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were two people, Zacharias and Elizabeth, who the Bible says of
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Luke one were devoutly blameless and righteous before God.
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In their obedience, in their commitment to God, God took them
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through a trial of barrenness. It wasn't like they had sinned.
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They had turned their back on the Lord.
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Not at all. Luke makes it very clear.
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They were true to their God. They were righteous with God.
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They had looked forward to the coming sacrifice.
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But, but even more so than that, there were 18,000 priests in
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Israel during the time of Christ and they were divided up into 24
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different orders. They had to be and that those 24
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orders, Abijah was the 8th order and they would function 2 weeks
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a year, 2 weeks a year. And so it happens, ironically,
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coincidentally or providentially, that Zacharias,
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during that two week interval, was in the temple performing his
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priestly duties when the Angel Gabriel came to him and
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announced that his wife would be pregnant with a child.
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The Providence of God, Zacharias said.
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You know what? I'm done with the priesthood
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thing. I'm done serving the Lord.
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I'm not going to serve the Lord anymore.
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I'm done. I'm out.
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I've been serving the Lord, and I got nothing in return.
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But notice his steadfastness and his commitment, his faithfulness
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to the Lord. He was serving the Lord.
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He didn't stay home. He went to work knowing that
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this was God's call upon his life.
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And in that moment God did something great.
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Because there is no affliction that does not have God's
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undivided attention, and there is no situation that does not
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have God as a solution. And sure enough, God did
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something unique and special. Ecclesiastes 3 verse #1 Solomon
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says this. There is an appointed time for
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everything under the sun. Everything, everything is by
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divine appointment. And then he says in verse 11, he
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has made everything beautiful in its time, within the realm of
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everything being appointed in its time, a time to be born, a
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time to die. And he gives some illustrations
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about that down through verse #10 there's all kinds of time
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for this and for that. Time to cry, time to laugh, time
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to be happy, a time to mourn, yadda yadda yadda.
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And then he says he has made everything beautiful in its
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time. So wait a minute, my affliction
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is not beautiful. My situation is not beautiful.
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Zacharias and Elizabeth say, well, our barrenness is not
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beautiful, but read on. He has also said eternity in
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their heart yet so that man will not find out the work which God
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has done from the beginning even to the end.
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In other words, that man might learn to trust God.
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You see, you're trusting God in that moment of appointed time,
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and that's what makes the time beautiful, not because of the
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time itself, but because of you trusting God in that appointed
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time. So Isaiah would say it this way.
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Isaiah 49 verse #14 But Zion said Zion is a people.
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Here you can read through the Old Testament.
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Zion can be a property. Zion could be a place.
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Zion could be a proclamation of the gospel.
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Zion is a people. It all depends on the context.
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Here it's Israel, he says, but Zion said the Lord has forsaken
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me and the Lord has forgotten me.
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This is Israel. You ever said that?
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Oh by the way, Zacharias name means God remembers and the
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Bible then tell us that Zacharias Elizabeth got angry or
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bitter to the Lord at all. Not at all.
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No, because they remembered what Elizabeth's name God is
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faithful. They remembered that.
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So it says Zion, my, my people say the Lord has forsaken me,
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the Lord has forgotten. So the Lord says can a woman
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forget a nursing child and have no compassion on the son of her
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womb? Even these may forget, but I
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will not forget. You notice it didn't say a
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father would forget because we do all the time.
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I can't even remember my kids names half the time, let alone
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my grandkids names. My wife does though.
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She knows the birthdays, when they were born, how much they
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weighed, how long they were. I don't know any of that stuff.
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But a woman? Can a woman forget a nursing
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child? Even God says they do.
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They might not forget them when they're young, but as they get
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older, things happen, he says. Beyond.
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I have inscribed you on on the palms of my hands.
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Your walls are continually before me.
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Your calamity, your heartache, your situation, as impossible as
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it may be, your dead ends, your turmoil, it's all on the palm of
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my hand because there is no situation that does not have God
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as a solution and there is no affliction that does not have
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God's undivided attention. Here is Zacharias and Elizabeth
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and God was going to give them the perfect son in his time.
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They just had to wait and trust and believe that God would act
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and God did. And God rewarded the fact that
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they remembered Zacharias that God is faithful.
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Elizabeth and God answered because God prophetically,
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prophetically chose John and providentially cared for all
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that would happen concerning the birth of John.
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By the way, providentially He cares for you as well because He
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knows everything you've been ascribed in the palms of His
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hand and He never forgets, He never forsakes.
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He is your God. Let's pray.
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Lord, God, we thank you for today and all that you've done.
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We realized, Lord, that time is so very, very short that you're
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at work. You're at work in all of our
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lives. And our prayer, Father, is that
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each of us would see Your handiwork in our lives, that we
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trust you and believe in you. If there be 1 here today who
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does not know you, may they, may they come to saving faith in
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Jesus Christ our Lord. May they give their life to the
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living God. For those of us who do, Lord,
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may we trust and believe knowing that you have a solution for our
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situation, that you're completely attentive to our
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affliction in ways we have no idea, but yet you are there.
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For that we are grateful. In Jesus name, Amen.