Latest / INSIGHT FOR LIVING: Biblical Wisdom For Everyday Living / “That You May Believe” │ Msg 112

Transcript

“That You May Believe” │ Msg 112 · INSIGHT FOR LIVING: Biblical Wisdom For Everyday Living

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Speaker 1: Who among us has not been asked the question at
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Speaker 1: some point in our Christian life, what book of the
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Speaker 1: Bible should a new Christian start reading? Most often the
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Speaker 1: answer given is the book of John. You know, I
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Speaker 1: couldn't agree more, and here's why. First, John writes in simple,
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Speaker 1: understandable language. Now, his message is not simple-minded, but he
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Speaker 1: writes with a style that's uncomplicated, communicating in easy to
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Speaker 1: grasp terms. That's not only helpful for the experienced Bible
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Speaker 1: student who has walked with the Lord for years, but
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Speaker 1: it's especially useful for the reader taking baby steps in
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Speaker 1: his or her first journey with Christ. Second, John's passion
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Speaker 1: for the gospel grips you. It keeps you wanting more.
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Speaker 1: I love that about John's writings. His candid, first-hand account
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Speaker 1: of the life and ministry of Jesus makes for a
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Speaker 1: real page-turner. But John also creates what invariably becomes a
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Speaker 1: life-changing encounter with Jesus. You feel like you're right there
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Speaker 1: with the Master. And that's why I believe even the
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Speaker 1: most hardened skeptic often finds John's account interesting. of the
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Speaker 1: grace-filled and disarming invitation of Jesus, virtually impossible to resist. Finally,
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Speaker 1: John touches the heart. Over these next several weeks together,
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Speaker 1: we'll discover how, by using rich imagery, Bracing candor and
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Speaker 1: vivid descriptions of life back in the first century, John
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Speaker 1: provides an inspiring, theologically solid and captivating defense of the
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Speaker 1: deity of Jesus. What we will experience together in this
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Speaker 1: series is John's intimate portrayal of Jesus Christ, the Son
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Speaker 1: of God. undergirded by His impassioned aim, that you may
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Speaker 1: continue to believe. We're only going to get our toes
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Speaker 1: wet here today in a series I'm calling Beholding Christ,
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Speaker 1: the Son of God. So, join me with your Bibles
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Speaker 1: open as I read two portions of Scripture. First, from
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Speaker 1: John chapter 20, verses 26 through 31. Then we'll skip
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Speaker 1: to John 21, verses 24 and 25.
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Speaker 2: Okay, you with me?
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Speaker 1: We'll start with John 20, 26 to 31. Please follow
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Speaker 1: along with me as I read from the New Living Translation.
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Speaker 1: Eight days later, the disciples were together again, and this
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Speaker 1: time Thomas was with them. The doors were locked, but suddenly,
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Speaker 1: as before, Jesus was standing among them. Peace be with you,
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Speaker 1: he said. Then he said to Thomas, Put your finger
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Speaker 1: here and look at my hands. Put your hand into
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Speaker 1: the wound in my side. Don't be faithless any longer.
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Speaker 2: Believe.
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Speaker 1: My Lord and my God, Thomas exclaimed. Then Jesus told him,
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Speaker 1: You believe because you have seen me. Blessed are those
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Speaker 1: who believe without seeing me. The disciples saw Jesus do
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Speaker 1: many other miraculous signs in addition to the ones recorded
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Speaker 1: in this book. But these are written so that you
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Speaker 1: may continue to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the
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Speaker 1: Son of God, and that by believing in him, you
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Speaker 1: will have life by the power of his name. And
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Speaker 1: now finally, John 21, verses 24 and 25. This disciple
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Speaker 1: is the one who testifies to these events and has
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Speaker 1: recorded them here. And we know that his account of
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Speaker 1: these things is accurate. Jesus also did many other things
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Speaker 1: if they were all written down I suppose the whole
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Speaker 1: world could not contain the books that would be written.
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Speaker 2: It's the opinion of most Christians that the Gospel of
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Speaker 2: John is one of the most precious and priceless treasures
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Speaker 2: God has ever given us. It is more than an
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Speaker 2: opinion to say that it is a popular book of
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Speaker 2: the Bible. Wilbur Smith is a prolific writer and reader.
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Speaker 2: He has in his library multiplied thousands of volumes. And
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Speaker 2: he says in one of his books that the Gospel
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Speaker 2: of John has in circulation today some 550 or more
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Speaker 2: volumes written about it. That in itself makes it a
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Speaker 2: popular book. If you've done much reading in Christian literature,
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Speaker 2: you know that probably only two other books of the
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Speaker 2: Bible are more popular than John. Genesis and Revelation, of course.
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Speaker 2: But if you stop and think, you did not cut
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Speaker 2: your teeth, spiritually speaking, on either Genesis or Revelation. You
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Speaker 2: ate from the diet of John's gospel, more than likely.
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Speaker 2: It wasn't long after you came to know Christ, and
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Speaker 2: maybe it was even before you gave yourself to him,
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Speaker 2: that someone put in your hands the Gospel of John.
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Speaker 2: It is the single book most often translated by those
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Speaker 2: that are in translating work on the mission field. It
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Speaker 2: is the single book used most often by new Christians
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Speaker 2: in Bible study classes. On the surface, it appears to
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Speaker 2: be a simple and almost childlike primer. If you read Greek,
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Speaker 2: you know that the Greek of the book is a
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Speaker 2: basic Greek. It's one of the first books that one
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Speaker 2: can begin to read in taking New Testament Greek. But
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Speaker 2: at the same time, there is a profundity in the
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Speaker 2: currents of this book. It's deep. In fact, Martin Luther
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Speaker 2: made the statement, never in my life have I read
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Speaker 2: a book written in simpler words than this, and yet
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Speaker 2: the words are inexpressible. They're deep. They're profound. This was
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Speaker 2: brought home to me a couple or three weeks ago
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Speaker 2: when I was having lunch with the man that taught
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Speaker 2: me New Testament Greek. He's now ministering in a particular area.
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Speaker 2: and pastoring in this church, he said to me, Chuck,
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Speaker 2: I've just completed the most difficult assignment you can imagine,
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Speaker 2: and it may surprise you to hear me say that.
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Speaker 2: I said, well, what was it, Prof? He said, I
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Speaker 2: just finished teaching the book of John. I am so
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Speaker 2: relieved now that it's over. It was a great experience,
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Speaker 2: but my, what a deep book. What are your plans
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Speaker 2: for the future, Chuck? I said, well, frankly, I'm going
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Speaker 2: to get into the gospel of John as soon as
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Speaker 2: I get back. He said one thing after I said that,
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Speaker 2: I will pray for you, were his remarks. Now that
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Speaker 2: surprises some because you read the book, it seems relatively simple.
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Speaker 2: But as you will discover in our journey through the book,
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Speaker 2: it really isn't. a simple-minded book. There are sections of
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Speaker 2: it where I will have to declare I simply do
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Speaker 2: not know basically what this means. There are other parts
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Speaker 2: of it that come to our rescue when leading someone
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Speaker 2: to Jesus Christ. Still others that bring comfort and consolation
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Speaker 2: when we are putting to rest someone that we have
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Speaker 2: loved throughout their life. On the other hand, it will
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Speaker 2: bring encouragement to those that are low, will bring insight
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Speaker 2: concerning the Holy Spirit as no other gospel will do.
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Speaker 2: So as we get into the book, understand it may
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Speaker 2: seem simple on the surface, but underneath, it's a profound
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Speaker 2: expression of God. One theologian describes it as a charming book.
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Speaker 2: I like that word. There is a magnetic appeal, there
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Speaker 2: is an allurement in the Gospel of John I know
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Speaker 2: of in no other book of the Bible. As a
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Speaker 2: matter of fact, if I were given in a moment's
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Speaker 2: notice that I was to speak in the next few minutes,
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Speaker 2: more than likely I would turn to some section of
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Speaker 2: the Gospel of John. It is here that I find
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Speaker 2: an incredible charm and appeal. Now John says in the
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Speaker 2: 21st chapter. of his gospel, the last verse, that there
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Speaker 2: could have been many other things written about Jesus Christ.
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Speaker 2: As a matter of fact, the way he says it
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Speaker 2: in this 21st chapter, in the 25th verse, is that
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Speaker 2: If all of the books had been written that could
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Speaker 2: have been written to give us in detail the life
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Speaker 2: of Jesus, the world couldn't contain the volumes. Now this
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Speaker 2: brings a question to the mind of any serious student
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Speaker 2: of the Scriptures. Why do we have four Gospels? If
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Speaker 2: it is true that not anyone would ever exhaust the
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Speaker 2: person of Jesus, Why would God have given four men
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Speaker 2: the green light to write a book about his son?
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Speaker 2: I've taught Bible classes in the Gospel of John on
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Speaker 2: a number of occasions and that comes to the surface
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Speaker 2: right away in the minds of both non-Christians and new Christians.
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Speaker 2: Why do we have four biographies of Jesus when one
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Speaker 2: could have done the job as well as four? Or 14?
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Speaker 2: The answer to it is a technical answer that really
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Speaker 2: needs some thought to think it through. We do not
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Speaker 2: have four gospels. We have one gospel from four different
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Speaker 2: vantage points. We don't have four biographies. We have one biography.
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Speaker 2: given to us in the mind's eye of four witnesses,
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Speaker 2: men who knew the Lord Jesus from different standpoints. Let's
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Speaker 2: illustrate it a couple of ways. We have in our
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Speaker 2: day two ways of taking pictures of someone, two systems
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Speaker 2: of photography. First, there is the moving picture, which gives
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Speaker 2: you every muscular movement in slow motion or rapid motion
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Speaker 2: that you would want. And if the reel is long
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Speaker 2: enough and the celluloid strip is long enough, you can
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Speaker 2: carry a person from the beginning of his day to
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Speaker 2: the end of it without making a break in the
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Speaker 2: motion picture. The other method is a snapshot, 35 millimeter
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Speaker 2: snapshot where you can take a still motion of an individual,
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Speaker 2: and several of them if you like, but you miss
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Speaker 2: some things in between. The benefit of the snapshot over
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Speaker 2: the moving picture is that you can study with great
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Speaker 2: care each individual picture. If you'll let me use that
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Speaker 2: illustration as the Gospels, I would say we have four
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Speaker 2: albums of Jesus Christ put together by individuals who wanted
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Speaker 2: to convey in their album of snapshots a certain theme
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Speaker 2: concerning the Christ. You have the picture in mind? Matthew
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Speaker 2: had one theme and so he took the snapshots from
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Speaker 2: his memory and experience to carry out that theme in
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Speaker 2: the album of Jesus Christ. Mark had yet another Luke,
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Speaker 2: still another. And John, 30 years after those other three
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Speaker 2: men had written, he had a fourth. We don't have
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Speaker 2: four biographies. We have one from four noteworthy standpoints. Let's
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Speaker 2: illustrate it another way. Let's say that down the block
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Speaker 2: from where you live, an accident occurs on the corner
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Speaker 2: not far from your home. And that there were four
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Speaker 2: people who saw that accident. There's a grandmother sitting on
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Speaker 2: the front porch knitting. And she looks up and she
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Speaker 2: sees the accident. There's a little 11, 12-year-old boy playing
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Speaker 2: basketball out in his driveway. And he stops and he
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Speaker 2: sees the accident. There's a man who has to run
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Speaker 2: to get out of the way, and he almost is
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Speaker 2: in the accident, but he gets another view of it.
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Speaker 2: There's a repairman high up on the pole who gets
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Speaker 2: another view. If you were to give these four people
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Speaker 2: a sheet of paper and say, give us what you saw,
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Speaker 2: you would have the accident according to the grandmother, the
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Speaker 2: basketball player, the man, And the repairman. Would you have
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Speaker 2: four accidents? It might sound like you do after reading
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Speaker 2: the account, but you don't. You have one accident from
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Speaker 2: different perspectives. That's what we have in the Gospels. Now
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Speaker 2: listen carefully. You that have been through the material know
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Speaker 2: by now the themes. Others of you will be hearing
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Speaker 2: it for the very first time. Why do we have
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Speaker 2: Matthew's account? Well, remember, Matthew was a converted Jew. He
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Speaker 2: worked as an official for Rome, tied in with the
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Speaker 2: Jews as a tax collector. Then he got saved. And
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Speaker 2: once he was born again, we could use those terms today,
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Speaker 2: Matthew purposed in his heart, under the Spirit of God's guidance,
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Speaker 2: to write a biography of Jesus from the viewpoint of
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Speaker 2: the Jew, concerned mainly with his regal rights to the throne.
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Speaker 2: The Messiah, the Son of God, has come to this
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Speaker 2: earth and he is the Jews' Messiah. It's a Jewish book,
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Speaker 2: written to Jews, for Jews, by a Jew. And so
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Speaker 2: you're not surprised as soon as you open the first
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Speaker 2: few pages of Matthew to find a lengthy genealogy.
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Speaker 3: A Gentile could care less about it, but a Jew
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Speaker 3: looking for the Messiah looks toward Abraham, and that's where
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Speaker 3: Matthew begins his report.
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Speaker 2: He traces Jesus all the way back to Abraham, not
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Speaker 2: to Adam, not just to Joseph, but to the father
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Speaker 2: of the Jews because his theme in the album is
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Speaker 2: the Messiah has come. It is a gospel written by
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Speaker 2: Matthew for the sake of supporting the messianic claims of
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Speaker 2: Jesus Christ. Now Mark is different. Mark is so different.
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Speaker 2: Mark was a missionary. He was a young man when
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Speaker 2: he went to the field, and being practical by nature,
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Speaker 2: he saw the rigors of the trip ahead of him,
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Speaker 2: and he went back home. Furthermore, he looked at life
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Speaker 2: from a very active, practical point of view. He wrote
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Speaker 2: to the Romans. The Romans were not necessarily deep thinkers.
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Speaker 2: The Greeks were, but not the Romans. The Romans were
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Speaker 2: interested in movement, activity, what's going on. So Mark doesn't
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Speaker 2: even bother to give you a genealogy. He left it
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Speaker 2: out of his album on purpose. Who cares about the
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Speaker 2: genealogy of a servant who's working his way, as it were,
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Speaker 2: through life? The favorite verse in Mark is, he did
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Speaker 2: not come to be served, but he came to serve
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Speaker 2: and to give his life a ransom for many. It's
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Speaker 2: a verse on servanthood. The attitude of a slave. All
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Speaker 2: the way through Mark's gospel, there is that repeated word immediately, immediately, immediately.
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Speaker 2: He's moving in action from one snapshot to the next,
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Speaker 2: showing you a servant. Now Luke, he's different than the
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Speaker 2: other two. Luke is a physician who was no doubt
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Speaker 2: born and raised in Macedonia. He's a Gentile, not a Jew.
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Speaker 2: He writes not to the Jew, as Matthew did, nor
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Speaker 2: to the Romans, as Mark did. Luke wrote a book
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Speaker 2: for the Greek. And Luke, being a physician, looked at
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Speaker 2: Jesus from the viewpoint of a man. His favorite phrase
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Speaker 2: for Christ is the Son of Man. He gives us
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Speaker 2: details about the boyhood, the birth of Jesus nobody else gives. Why? Why?
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Speaker 2: He looked at Jesus from a physician's vantage point. Still
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Speaker 2: under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, Luke drove his
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Speaker 2: thoughts right back to Adam because if you're going to
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Speaker 2: show that Jesus is the Son of Man, he needs
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Speaker 2: to be linked to the first man, Adam. And that's
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Speaker 2: what Luke does. His genealogy is with intricate definition tracing
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Speaker 2: it from Adam through the royal line of Judah right
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Speaker 2: up to the birth. And that's the passage we turn
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Speaker 2: to every Christmas to get the story of Jesus' birth
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Speaker 2: and boyhood. Nobody else gives it like Luke gives it.
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Speaker 2: John looked at these three gospels quite likely and under
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Speaker 2: the guidance of the Holy Spirit realized their picture is
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Speaker 2: still incomplete. We have a true account of Jesus as
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Speaker 2: the king, as a servant, son of man, and as
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Speaker 2: human as only a physician could picture him. But there
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Speaker 2: needs to be a presentation of the son of God.
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Speaker 2: And that's John's input. Why do we have John's gospel?
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Speaker 2: We have his gospel so that we might see that
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Speaker 2: Jesus Christ came from God, was God on earth, went
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Speaker 2: back to God as very God. Jesus Christ is seen
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Speaker 2: in the Gospel of John as the Son of God.
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Speaker 2: Now admittedly, John does not include everything about Jesus. As
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Speaker 2: a matter of fact, he is the most different of
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Speaker 2: the four. Probably because 30 years had passed since they
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Speaker 2: had written of him and he wished to give certain
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Speaker 2: things about Jesus the others had purposely left out of
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Speaker 2: their album so that his might be a complete account
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Speaker 2: of Christ, the Son of God. So with those two
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Speaker 2: questions answered, why do we have four Gospels and now
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Speaker 2: why do we have John's Gospel, let's go to another
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Speaker 2: set of questions. Let's make an examination of John's motive,
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Speaker 2: His message and his method. Look at John 20, verse 30.
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Speaker 2: Being left-handed, I love to begin at the end of
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Speaker 2: something and work backwards. And so that's what we're doing
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Speaker 2: this morning. We start at the last verse and work forward.
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Speaker 2: That's a unique way to exposit a book. Now, beginning
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Speaker 2: next Sunday, we'll start at the beginning and work the
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Speaker 2: other way. But let's just establish where we are as
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Speaker 2: far as the motive and message and method. Now in
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Speaker 2: John 20, verse 30, John testifies many other signs therefore
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Speaker 2: Jesus performed in the presence of the disciples, which are
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Speaker 2: not written in the book. I like that. John says,
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Speaker 2: let me be very frank. I have purposely left out
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Speaker 2: many of the signs Jesus performed. I haven't overlooked them.
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Speaker 2: I've bypassed them on purpose. I made a list of
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Speaker 2: some of the things John omits. There's no genealogy. You
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Speaker 2: don't trace the genealogy of God. He has no beginning.
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Speaker 2: There's no account of Jesus' birth or boyhood. There is
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Speaker 2: nothing about his temptation. There is not one parable in
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Speaker 2: the entire book There isn't even an account of the
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Speaker 2: great transfiguration. No mention of the great commission. Not a
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Speaker 2: hint concerning the ascension. John drills our thoughts to the
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Speaker 2: Son of God who became man, lived on this earth,
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Speaker 2: and proved by his life, death, and resurrection, very God.
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Speaker 2: That is my message. I am God on earth. Now,
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Speaker 2: he left out certain things in carrying that out. Well then,
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Speaker 2: what was his motive for writing? Look at verse 31.
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Speaker 2: These have been written. Let me be pedantic just a
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Speaker 2: moment and have you notice that the word these modifies
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Speaker 2: the word signs. Many other signs were not written. But
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Speaker 2: these signs... have been written, what signs? The miracles of
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Speaker 2: the book of John. I have selected certain miracles, called
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Speaker 2: signs in this passage, that you may believe. Four words
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Speaker 2: describe the motive of John. That you may believe. Matthew wrote, saying,
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Speaker 2: this is the Messiah, the King. Worship him. Mark wrote,
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Speaker 2: this is the servant who worked among men and served man.
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Speaker 2: Follow him. Luke wrote, this is a man among men
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Speaker 2: without sin, but very much perfect humanity. Emulate him John says,
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Speaker 2: this was God. Believe in him. In fact, John says,
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Speaker 2: I wrote the book that you might believe. John declares
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Speaker 2: as no other gospel writer his motive for writing. And
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Speaker 2: he hits it square in the face. I'm not writing
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Speaker 2: to inform only. I'm not writing to entertain ever. I'm
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Speaker 2: writing to To create belief in the heart of the reader.
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Speaker 2: The word translated believe is a Greek word used 98
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Speaker 2: times in the Gospel of John. Did you hear that?
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Speaker 2: That's an incredible fact. He puts it in every chapter.
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Speaker 2: He multiplies it time and again through the book because
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Speaker 2: he wants that thought of belief to carry through. Merrill Tenney,
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Speaker 2: writing his book on John, entitles it The Gospel of Belief.
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Speaker 2: It's a splendid title for a book about the gospel
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Speaker 2: of John. What does it mean to believe? If that's
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Speaker 2: his motive, we ought to understand it. Why does he say,
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Speaker 2: I want you to believe? What does that mean? Does
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Speaker 2: it mean to believe the historical personage of Christ? Does
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Speaker 2: it mean to entertain feelings of warmth and tenderness for
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Speaker 2: the one who suffered? No, it doesn't mean simply that.
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Speaker 2: The original word conveys two thoughts regarding belief. First, it
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Speaker 2: means to acknowledge the truth as truth. Now get that
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Speaker 2: first and then we'll go to the next. When I
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Speaker 2: say I believe the book of John, having just read it,
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Speaker 2: it means I believe it is the truth. I accept
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Speaker 2: it as truth from God to me Second, it means
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Speaker 2: that I accept the person of the book personally into
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Speaker 2: my life. Not only do I acknowledge God has told
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Speaker 2: the truth as John wrote it, but I acknowledge I
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Speaker 2: personally accept the truth into my life I receive Jesus Christ.
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Speaker 2: I believe in him. Now I want to say something
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Speaker 2: off the cuff, not related to the Gospel of John directly.
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Speaker 2: In the last year or two, our church has experienced
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Speaker 2: a phenomenal growth pattern. It leaves the page of the graph.
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Speaker 2: Every time we build another graph, it's off the page again.
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Speaker 2: It's an exciting thing. It's at times exhilarating and ecstatic
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Speaker 2: to be a part of a growing assembly. But let
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Speaker 2: me hasten to add, with the growth pattern comes a
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Speaker 2: number of people who are caught up in a movement,
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Speaker 2: as it were, who will even bring a Bible and
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Speaker 2: write down thoughts about a Bible passage from week to week,
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Speaker 2: but never having given themselves personally to the message of
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Speaker 2: Jesus Christ. Now that fits some of you who are
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Speaker 2: in this service today. I'm not referring to joining this church.
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Speaker 2: It is not related to that in the lead. I'm
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Speaker 2: not referring to what kind of life you live as
29:45
Speaker 2: a as an American citizen as a father or mother
29:49
Speaker 2: or a child in a home I'm talking about your
29:53
Speaker 2: relationship by faith belief to Jesus Christ I want all
30:01
Speaker 2: of you to know this, that if you have never
30:04
Speaker 2: given your heart to Jesus Christ by faith, believing that
30:09
Speaker 2: his death and resurrection were for you personally, you're lost.
30:17
Speaker 2: And an eternity of years spent in this church will
30:21
Speaker 2: make you no closer to heaven. You need to submit
30:25
Speaker 2: your heart and your will to Jesus Christ Accept the
30:29
Speaker 2: gift of eternal life by faith. Frankly, that's one of
30:34
Speaker 2: the reasons I was led to teach the Gospel of John.
30:39
Speaker 2: Because some of you are on the fence of observation,
30:43
Speaker 2: watching this and at times involved in what's going on,
30:47
Speaker 2: but you've never gotten off on the right side. You're
30:52
Speaker 2: straddling a fence, looking at it, Entertaining warm thoughts about it,
30:58
Speaker 2: but you've never said to Jesus Christ, you are my Lord,
31:02
Speaker 2: my Savior, I accept you this moment into my life.
31:07
Speaker 2: Thank you, Father, for the gift of eternal life. You're
31:12
Speaker 2: frankly the target of this book. John wrote that you
31:18
Speaker 2: might believe. Now the message is right in the same verse.
31:24
Speaker 2: Verse 31. These have been written that you might believe
31:31
Speaker 2: that Jesus, there's the subject of the book, is the Christ,
31:39
Speaker 2: the Son of God. There's the message of the book.
31:47
Speaker 2: He's not merely a man, not merely a servant, Not
31:52
Speaker 2: merely the Jews king, the authentic Messiah. He is the
31:58
Speaker 2: Son of God. I want you to stop a moment.
32:04
Speaker 2: We've had a pretty intense diet for the last few
32:06
Speaker 2: minutes of teaching. Let's stop and review something that you
32:11
Speaker 2: may remember. You recall when Jesus was surrounded by a
32:16
Speaker 2: band of his disciples. He asked them questions. a personal
32:22
Speaker 2: question about something that meant a great deal to him.
32:29
Speaker 2: Did he ask them, what do people think of my teaching? Hey,
32:36
Speaker 2: what did they think of that passage I brought on,
32:39
Speaker 2: the light of the world? Peter, what did they say
32:42
Speaker 2: about that teaching? He never asked that. He never did say,
32:48
Speaker 2: how about that last miracle? Really, John, what'd they say
32:52
Speaker 2: after I did that miracle? Never once. You know what
32:56
Speaker 2: he asked? And he asked it more than once. Whom
32:59
Speaker 2: do men say that I am? Who do they say
33:04
Speaker 2: that I am when they watch the miracles and hear
33:07
Speaker 2: the words? You get the point? The message of John
33:13
Speaker 2: is the message of Jesus. Oh, I want them to
33:16
Speaker 2: see that they're looking at God in the flesh. That
33:21
Speaker 2: no mere man could do these things or say these words.
33:27
Speaker 2: We're not here to witness a person. We're here to
33:30
Speaker 2: testify that he's the son of God. That's the message.
33:34
Speaker 2: I want you to see how John weaves it into
33:36
Speaker 2: the gospel. Let's ski through the book for a moment.
33:40
Speaker 2: Chapter 1, verse 32. John 1. Let's call to the
33:47
Speaker 2: witness stand some seven people from the book itself who
33:52
Speaker 2: came to a settled conviction regarding his identity. John 1,
33:59
Speaker 2: verse 32. And John bore witness. Now, wait a minute.
34:07
Speaker 2: This is not the writer John. This is another John.
34:12
Speaker 2: John the Baptist. Doesn't mean Southern Baptists. John was a baptizer. Now,
34:20
Speaker 2: nothing wrong with Southern Baptists, but they're not in the
34:24
Speaker 2: New Testament, regardless of what you may hear. This is John,
34:28
Speaker 2: the baptizer, the forerunner. John, who went ahead of him,
34:37
Speaker 2: declaring the Messiah is on my heels and I am
34:42
Speaker 2: not worthy having stooped down to tie the thongs of
34:45
Speaker 2: his sandals. That John John was there. He's the one
34:50
Speaker 2: who's looked at the Messiah and said, Behold the Lamb
34:53
Speaker 2: of God who takes away the sin of the world.
34:57
Speaker 2: That's this John. Verse 32. He bore witness, saying, I
35:02
Speaker 2: beheld the Spirit descending as a dove out of heaven,
35:06
Speaker 2: and he remained upon me. And I did not recognize him,
35:12
Speaker 2: but he who sent me to baptize in water said
35:16
Speaker 2: to me, He upon whom you see the Spirit descending
35:23
Speaker 2: and remaining upon him, this is the one who baptizes
35:28
Speaker 2: in the Holy Spirit. And, John adds, I have seen
35:34
Speaker 2: and have borne witness that this is the Son of God.
35:39
Speaker 2: I've got that underlined in my Bible. That's the first witness.
35:44
Speaker 2: John the forerunner said he's the Son of God. Look
35:48
Speaker 2: across the page. Chapter 1 again, verse 47. Jesus saw
35:55
Speaker 2: Nathanael coming and said to him, Behold an Israelite indeed
36:02
Speaker 2: in whom is no guile. Nathanael said to him, How
36:08
Speaker 2: do you know me? Jesus answered and said to him,
36:13
Speaker 2: Before Philip called you, When you were under the fig tree,
36:18
Speaker 2: I saw you. Nathanael answered him, Rabbi, you are the
36:25
Speaker 2: Son of God. I have that underlined. Nathanael on the
36:32
Speaker 2: stand today would testify, he's the Son of God. As
36:38
Speaker 2: John the forerunner would say, the Son of God. Look
36:42
Speaker 2: at chapter 6. Verse 68 and verse 69. Let's hear
36:51
Speaker 2: another testimony. John said, Nathaniel said, Simon Peter says, Lord,
37:01
Speaker 2: to whom shall we go? 668. To whom shall we go?
37:07
Speaker 2: You have the words of eternal life. And we have believed.
37:13
Speaker 2: and have come to know that you are the Holy
37:18
Speaker 2: One of God. I've had underlined. Peter says, if I
37:23
Speaker 2: were to testify this day, my testimony would be the
37:27
Speaker 2: Son of God, the Holy One of God. Look at
37:31
Speaker 2: chapter 10, verse 36. This one is the most significant
37:41
Speaker 2: because it's Jesus' own testimonies. Hold your place at verse
37:46
Speaker 2: 36 and glance at verse 30. Chapter 10, verse 30.
37:52
Speaker 2: This gives credence to what is said later. Jesus makes
37:56
Speaker 2: the statement, I and the Father are one. And the
38:01
Speaker 2: Jews took up stones again to stone him. You see,
38:04
Speaker 2: that was a blasphemous declaration to them. Now, verse 36.
38:11
Speaker 2: Do you say of him, whom the Father sanctified and
38:16
Speaker 2: sent into the world, you are blaspheming because I said,
38:21
Speaker 2: I am the Son of God. That underlined. Jesus himself
38:28
Speaker 2: declares it. I've heard people say, now if Jesus would
38:31
Speaker 2: only say, I am the Son of God, then I'd
38:34
Speaker 2: believe it. But there's nowhere that Jesus says, I am
38:40
Speaker 2: the Son of God. What in the world is verse
38:43
Speaker 2: 36 of chapter 10 in John's gospel saying? It's saying,
38:49
Speaker 2: I am the son of God. His own testimony is
38:56
Speaker 2: to his own deity. There's another across the page. Chapter 11,
39:00
Speaker 2: verse 27. This is Martha. She said to him, yes, Lord,
39:07
Speaker 2: I have believed that you are the Christ. The Son
39:14
Speaker 2: of God, I have that underlined. Martha testifies, as did John, Nathaniel, Peter,
39:22
Speaker 2: and Jesus himself. You say, well, those were all people
39:26
Speaker 2: on his side. How about a testimony from a doubter? Fine,
39:31
Speaker 2: I'm glad you asked for that. Chapter 20, verse 28.
39:35
Speaker 2: He's the confirmed doubter. There ever was a man from
39:39
Speaker 2: Missouri on the staff of the disciples, it was Thomas.
39:45
Speaker 2: Thomas says, you prove it to me, I'll believe it.
39:47
Speaker 2: And so Jesus said, verse 27 of chapter 20, reach
39:53
Speaker 2: your fingers and see my hands. Reach your hand and
39:57
Speaker 2: put it into my side. Be not unbelieving, but believing.
40:01
Speaker 2: Thomas the doubter answered, said to him, my Lord and
40:06
Speaker 2: my God. I underline that. Thomas, a confirmed skeptic, said
40:13
Speaker 2: when he saw the facts, he is the son of God.
40:18
Speaker 2: One more, John himself, verse 31. These are written that
40:22
Speaker 2: you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son
40:28
Speaker 2: of God. Now that's the message. What's the method of presentation?
40:36
Speaker 2: How does John develop his message? What's the structure of
40:43
Speaker 2: the book as it is put together? To save time
40:47
Speaker 2: this morning, I want you to take the chart that
40:51
Speaker 2: is in your bulletin or on the other side of
40:55
Speaker 2: the sheet that you may have been looking at. At
40:58
Speaker 2: the top is written a survey, Gospel of John. Let's
41:03
Speaker 2: study that for a moment or two and get a
41:06
Speaker 2: glimpse of how John communicates the message of the Son
41:11
Speaker 2: of God. See the circle in the middle down toward
41:15
Speaker 2: the bottom of the chart with the word change in
41:18
Speaker 2: This book, like many Bible books, has a hinge upon
41:25
Speaker 2: which the book revolves or turns. There's a transitional point
41:32
Speaker 2: at the end of chapter 12 and the beginning of
41:35
Speaker 2: chapter 13 in which things change. If you miss this,
41:40
Speaker 2: you miss much of what the gospel is teaching. Let
41:44
Speaker 2: me show you the contrasts. On the left-hand side, that
41:49
Speaker 2: is in chapters 1 through 12, there's a public ministry
41:53
Speaker 2: and message. But when chapter 13 begins, rejection has grown
41:59
Speaker 2: to such heights that Jesus turns his ministry to a
42:04
Speaker 2: private ministry. Only seldom is he even seen in public
42:10
Speaker 2: as far as John's point of view is concerned. On
42:13
Speaker 2: the left, we have three long years. Chapters 1 through 12.
42:19
Speaker 2: Covering in fact. Over three years. But when you get
42:23
Speaker 2: to chapter 13. There's a concentrated. Period of time. Of.
42:32
Speaker 3: Not.
42:33
Speaker 2: Not even two months. For a few days. We have.
42:39
Speaker 2: The conference that Jesus. Had with his men. His death.
42:43
Speaker 2: His resurrection. A brief time with his men. And. and
42:47
Speaker 2: the gospel closes. Look on the left again at the bottom.
42:53
Speaker 2: During the three-year ministry, there were miracles that Jesus performed.
43:00
Speaker 2: Chapter 2, he turned water into wine. Chapter 4, he
43:04
Speaker 2: healed an official's son. Chapter 5, he heals a man.
43:09
Speaker 2: Chapter 6, he feeds over 5,000. And before the chapter ends,
43:14
Speaker 2: he walks on water. In chapter 9, he heals a
43:19
Speaker 2: man suffering from congenital blindness. Chapter 11, he raises the dead.
43:25
Speaker 2: There's a crescendo in his miracles. Why? Remember the motive?
43:32
Speaker 2: John said, I'm writing a book so that those who
43:37
Speaker 2: read the signs, the miracles, will see the Son of
43:41
Speaker 2: God has performed these miracles. But look at the changes.
43:47
Speaker 2: As soon as you get to chapter 13, things quieten down.
43:52
Speaker 2: He's preparing his men for his departure. So he has
43:57
Speaker 2: quiet talks with them about heaven. Don't let your heart
44:01
Speaker 2: be troubled. I'm leaving, but I won't leave you as
44:04
Speaker 2: an orphan. I'm sending the Holy Spirit. Chapter 15 is fruit.
44:09
Speaker 2: And he talks about how fruit is born in their
44:12
Speaker 2: lives after he's gone off the earth. Chapter 16, he
44:16
Speaker 2: talks about promises. the Holy Spirit, and related subjects. Chapter
44:22
Speaker 2: 17 is the only chapter in all the Bible that
44:24
Speaker 2: we have the prayer of Jesus. If it weren't for John,
44:28
Speaker 2: we wouldn't know what he said to his father in
44:30
Speaker 2: the agony of that moment before the cross. Chapter 20,
44:35
Speaker 2: he gives his appearances and talks with his men with
44:38
Speaker 2: reassuring words. And then chapter 21, he talks with a
44:43
Speaker 2: few of his men regarding their future and his. Quiet talks.
44:48
Speaker 2: Look at the top of the chart. There's a plot.
44:53
Speaker 2: The plot grows as time passes. Belief, unbelief. As the
45:01
Speaker 2: belief grows, it becomes increasingly more concentrated so that the
45:06
Speaker 2: band of disciples become actually the only convinced followers, according
45:12
Speaker 2: to John. There were others, but his attention is on
45:15
Speaker 2: the disciples. The unbelief grows with maximum proportion and drives
45:21
Speaker 2: them to the cross. But it doesn't stop there. Death
45:25
Speaker 2: was overcome by the victory of the resurrection. And John
45:29
Speaker 2: shows how even unbelief does not have the final say.
45:33
Speaker 2: Let's set aside the chart for a minute. Let me
45:37
Speaker 2: show you something about unlocking the book. Hold it near.
45:40
Speaker 2: We want to look at it as comparison as we
45:42
Speaker 2: wrap it up. Go back to chapter 16 of the book.
45:47
Speaker 2: Look at verse 28. I like to call John 20,
45:53
Speaker 2: 30 and 31 the back door key. It's hidden away
45:58
Speaker 2: in the mailbox and you'd miss it if you didn't
46:00
Speaker 2: know where to find it. And so we've looked at
46:02
Speaker 2: it carefully as it opens the book for us. But
46:05
Speaker 2: there's a side door key. John 16, verse 28. I
46:12
Speaker 2: came forth from the Father. I have come into the world.
46:19
Speaker 2: I am leaving the world again. I'm going to the Father.
46:26
Speaker 2: Look at the chart. I came forth from the Father.
46:30
Speaker 2: That's the prologue. That's next Sunday morning. I came from God.
46:37
Speaker 2: I came into the world. That's chapters 1 through 12.
46:43
Speaker 2: I'm leaving the world. That's chapters 13 through 19. He
46:48
Speaker 2: prepares them for his departure. I'm going to the Father,
46:52
Speaker 2: chapters 20 and 21. Here's an inspired outline tucked right
46:58
Speaker 2: into the side door of this book. But there's one
47:02
Speaker 2: better than that. All the way over to chapter 1,
47:05
Speaker 2: verse 11, verse 12. You keep the chart handy now
47:17
Speaker 2: as we go through the book because you'll need to
47:19
Speaker 2: refer to it to orient yourself. John 1, 11. He
47:26
Speaker 2: came to his own. That's chapters 1 through 12. Those
47:32
Speaker 2: who were his own did not receive him. Referring to
47:37
Speaker 2: his own people, the Jews. That's 13 through 19. But
47:42
Speaker 2: as many as received him, he gave them the right,
47:44
Speaker 2: the authority to become the children of God. That's chapters
47:48
Speaker 2: 20 and 21. Here again, there's a hint of an
47:54
Speaker 2: outline given to us by the Holy Spirit. Will you
47:59
Speaker 2: notice now the final question we want to answer? Who
48:03
Speaker 2: will believe the message? John's taken the time to think
48:09
Speaker 2: through his motives. plan his message, develop it with a
48:13
Speaker 2: method that makes sense and is systematic. Who's going to
48:17
Speaker 2: believe it, John? Verse 12, chapter 1. As many as
48:24
Speaker 2: receive him, even those who believe in his name. Listen
48:34
Speaker 2: to that. God says... Those who receive my son, those
48:42
Speaker 2: who believe in him, become my children. And here again,
48:51
Speaker 2: I'm not referring to a casual historic acceptance of facts
48:55
Speaker 2: about a person. I'm referring to an absolute commitment, a
49:02
Speaker 2: decision of your will that says, I receive him without reservations.
49:09
Speaker 2: No strings attached. In our home these days, my oldest
49:14
Speaker 2: son has been reading with a great deal of delight
49:17
Speaker 2: and relish for all the family. a work that has
49:23
Speaker 2: to do with a man by the name of Philippe Petit,
49:30
Speaker 2: a 25-year-old Frenchman who has distinguished himself not on the earth,
49:35
Speaker 2: but many, many feet above it. He's a tightrope walker.
49:40
Speaker 2: And you may have read of him or seen him
49:44
Speaker 2: on Wide World of Sports some time ago when he
49:48
Speaker 2: made an incredible feat of walking between the towers of
49:54
Speaker 2: the Notre Dame in France. He strung a cable and
49:59
Speaker 2: he walked. In fact, he did somersaults and he laid
50:03
Speaker 2: on his back with that long 30-foot pole dangling across
50:08
Speaker 2: his chest. many, many feet above. But that wasn't the
50:13
Speaker 2: height of his desire. As a matter of fact, he
50:17
Speaker 2: came across a story about the Twin Towers of Manhattan,
50:22
Speaker 2: the World Trade Center buildings. They're built in Manhattan, and
50:29
Speaker 2: they stand near one another, and there is a treacherous
50:32
Speaker 2: wind draft between the two. They are immense structures built 1,350
50:39
Speaker 2: feet off the ground. That's over a quarter of a mile.
50:44
Speaker 2: Seventy feet down in bedrock they have been built, surrounded
50:50
Speaker 2: by masses of concrete and steel just to hold them
50:55
Speaker 2: together in that heavy webbing of matter. And then they
50:59
Speaker 2: tower so high, architects tell us that they sway several
51:04
Speaker 2: feet as this treacherous wind draft blows. He looked at it,
51:10
Speaker 2: studied it, circled it in the paper, and tossed it
51:12
Speaker 2: into a box marked future projects. And so he got
51:18
Speaker 2: enough money to come to America. You know that's illegal
51:21
Speaker 2: to do that. Not to come to America, but to
51:23
Speaker 2: walk across the towers. He brought with him over 250
51:28
Speaker 2: pounds of steel cable. And an incredible plan to get
51:33
Speaker 2: that cable to the top. and to stretch it across
51:37
Speaker 2: those buildings. Engineers had said to him when he sought
51:43
Speaker 2: their counsel that the extremes of stress on that cable
51:47
Speaker 2: would grow from five tons to a thousand tons as
51:53
Speaker 2: the building swayed. That didn't stop him. He had a
51:59
Speaker 2: friend of his tell him, you're a fool to go
52:02
Speaker 2: up there without buckling a small wire to your belt.
52:07
Speaker 2: And then that wire down around a ring that goes
52:10
Speaker 2: around the cable. So that if you, by chance, fall,
52:14
Speaker 2: you'll just dangle up there and you can bring yourself
52:17
Speaker 2: back up again. But listen to his response. The words
52:22
Speaker 2: of a real tightrope walker. To use a safety buckle
52:29
Speaker 2: contradicts the whole ideal of high wire walking. You should
52:37
Speaker 2: take your life, not just your body, onto the walk,
52:44
Speaker 2: onto the wire. You don't take just your body. You
52:50
Speaker 2: put your whole life out there. And he describes the
52:53
Speaker 2: feeling when he walks across that incredible journey. He put
53:00
Speaker 2: his whole life on it. That's belief. I don't snatch
53:06
Speaker 2: a safety belt together that says if I pay the penance,
53:10
Speaker 2: I'll get to heaven. Or if somehow my birth is such,
53:15
Speaker 2: or my gifts are such, or my surroundings are such,
53:19
Speaker 2: or my church attendance is such, I'm saved. I can dangle.
53:25
Speaker 2: God says, I give you the gift of eternal life.
53:29
Speaker 2: If you accept it, you accept it on one basis. Faith.
53:36
Speaker 2: You don't just put a part of your body on
53:38
Speaker 2: the line. You entrust your entire life to it. Now,
53:43
Speaker 2: I want to say this. Some of you have snatched
53:47
Speaker 2: a little bit of truth here and there so that
53:50
Speaker 2: you've been able to snap a little safety, a little
53:53
Speaker 2: release from guilt, a little feeling that if things don't
53:57
Speaker 2: work out right, at least you tried this, and you're
54:00
Speaker 2: calling that becoming a Christian. I want you to know
54:03
Speaker 2: in the authority of the Word of God, That faith
54:07
Speaker 2: in Jesus Christ is an abandonment of my will, giving
54:13
Speaker 2: myself to the Father on the merits only of Jesus Christ, period.
54:20
Speaker 2: No strings attached. No merit. No works. Faith in Jesus Christ, period.
54:35
Speaker 2: If you've never made that decision, you're lost and you
54:39
Speaker 2: need to know him. Let's bow our heads together, please.
54:45
Speaker 2: The most significant part of the service is now before us.
54:51
Speaker 2: This is the part where God records, not man. This
54:58
Speaker 2: is that incredible moment of time where life is changed.
55:04
Speaker 2: And at the time of decision, nobody knows but you
55:09
Speaker 2: and God, unless you choose to make it known personally.
55:16
Speaker 2: We wish to respect the moment of decision. I'm responsible
55:21
Speaker 2: for giving the facts and then letting God do the work.
55:30
Speaker 2: Let me ask you three questions. Can you look back
55:35
Speaker 2: to a time in your life when you gave yourself
55:37
Speaker 2: to Jesus Christ with this kind of abandonment? If the
55:42
Speaker 2: answer is yes, then you pray through the next two questions.
55:48
Speaker 2: For those that are around you that have answered no.
55:52
Speaker 2: If your answer is I'm not sure, then consider the
55:56
Speaker 2: answer no. Second question. Do you believe that Jesus Christ
56:05
Speaker 2: died for you, rose from the dead for you, and
56:13
Speaker 2: will save you from sin right this moment? Third question.
56:24
Speaker 2: If you have not made this decision, will you make
56:28
Speaker 2: that decision before you leave this place? He that hears
56:34
Speaker 2: my words and believes on him that sent me has
56:38
Speaker 2: everlasting life and shall never come into condemnation but is
56:44
Speaker 2: passed from death to life. These three questions are for
56:50
Speaker 2: every person here today. Forgetting your works, your church membership,
56:58
Speaker 2: your church attendance, your money, your past, your sin, Everything.
57:07
Speaker 2: You willing to step out on that strong cable of faith?
57:12
Speaker 2: No strings attached. If it will help confirm that decision
57:18
Speaker 2: at this moment, slip up your hand and say, Pastor Swindoll,
57:21
Speaker 2: at this moment, I've received Jesus Christ as my personal Savior. Okay,
57:28
Speaker 2: thank you. I see the hand. Yes. Thank you. Today
57:36
Speaker 2: I give myself to Jesus Christ for the very first time,
57:41
Speaker 2: abandoning myself to him. He is my Savior. Yes, thank you.
57:51
Speaker 2: It's our desire to help you that have come to
57:54
Speaker 2: know Christ to work with you and talk with you.
57:58
Speaker 1: And now join me as we pray before our Heavenly Father.
58:03
Speaker 1: Our Father, as we bow before you in the quietness
58:06
Speaker 1: of these moments, having only started to explore the depths
58:12
Speaker 1: and the riches of John's magnificent gospel, we desire nothing
58:18
Speaker 1: less than the ability to hear and to discern your tender,
58:24
Speaker 1: gracious voice speaking truth into our lives. For those who
58:30
Speaker 1: may hear these messages yet remain stuck in a place
58:34
Speaker 1: of unbelief or perhaps having been disillusioned by a painful
58:39
Speaker 1: past or hurtful experience at the hands of one posing
58:45
Speaker 1: as a representative of your truth, break through those rigid
58:49
Speaker 1: walls of doubt, Lord. Break through those walls, those walls
58:54
Speaker 1: of resentment and fear and bring healing. We pray that
59:00
Speaker 1: all would come to a place today and in the
59:03
Speaker 1: days ahead where full surrender will be our only response. Now,
59:10
Speaker 1: only to the gripping and life-changing words of Jesus, your Son,
59:16
Speaker 1: but also to your perfect will. Be gracious to us,
59:20
Speaker 1: our Father, as we leave this place, as we step
59:25
Speaker 1: back into the traffic of frantic schedules, and near-impossible demands,
59:32
Speaker 1: remind us of your always-available, inexhaustible power through Christ and
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Speaker 1: through his Spirit to help us live above the chaotic
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Speaker 1: struggles and keep our hearts and minds fixed on you.
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Speaker 1: Thank you, Lord, for your word. Give each of us
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Speaker 1: a lasting desire not just to be hearers of it,
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Speaker 1: but doers of it, doers of all you have written
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Speaker 1: in this book. We ask these things in the preeminent
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Speaker 1: name of Jesus Christ, your only Son. Amen.
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Speaker 2: The preceding message, That You May Believe, was copyrighted in 1975, 1987,
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Speaker 2: All rights are reserved worldwide. Duplication of copyrighted material for
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Speaker 2: commercial use is strictly prohibited.