Latest / Bayside Davis Podcast / The Gospel of John | John 3:16-36

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The Gospel of John | John 3:16-36 · Bayside Davis Podcast

0:04
SPEAKER_00: Welcome to the Bayside Davis podcast.
0:07
SPEAKER_00: You are now listening to our current teaching series in the Gospel of John.
0:16
SPEAKER_00: The title of my message is Into the Light.
0:20
SPEAKER_00: And because Wesley is not here today, I'm making the slides purple because that's my favorite color.
0:25
SPEAKER_00: So we're gonna go with that.
0:27
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
0:28
SPEAKER_00: So for the people that are note takers, whether you like writing it down or putting your phone, I will kind of like give you the titles or whatever, but you can also see it behind me.
0:38
SPEAKER_00: So the first big title, number one, The Love of God Revealed.
0:44
SPEAKER_00: Verse 16 to 18.
0:46
SPEAKER_00: Essentially, verse 16 onward is a continuation of Jesus, Jesus' conversation with Nicodemus.
0:54
SPEAKER_00: Remember, Nicodemus was a very esteemed rabbi, he was the rabbi of all the rabbis, and he snugly tried to go and see Jesus to ask a couple of questions.
1:05
SPEAKER_00: So basically, this is the continuation of the conversation.
1:09
SPEAKER_00: And after Jesus explained what it meant to be born again, he also presented the gospel in a very simple way, as if you're giving it to a child, in a very simple way, but then it is so powerful.
1:22
SPEAKER_00: For God so loved the world, and you know the rest.
1:51
SPEAKER_00: I mean, it took some time because I mean I was a kid.
1:53
SPEAKER_00: Did I really understand what that whole that whole sentence meant for my life?
1:58
SPEAKER_00: No.
1:58
SPEAKER_00: But eventually it did.
1:59
SPEAKER_00: It took some time, but it did.
2:01
SPEAKER_00: But then it's such a famous verse that you see it everywhere in society.
2:05
SPEAKER_00: People will put it at in and out, people will put it on regalia, people will do ads and put it in there for some reason.
2:11
SPEAKER_00: I'm like, okay, thank you.
2:13
SPEAKER_00: So we see it all the time.
2:15
SPEAKER_00: And for the Christians in the room, you probably went to Bible, Bible studies and um vacation Bible schools and all the things.
2:23
SPEAKER_00: So you know the verse like the back of your hand, but then do you really feel the impact of what that verse says?
2:31
SPEAKER_00: Do you really see how transformational that verse is for you in your life, in your circumstances?
2:40
SPEAKER_00: The more we see things sometimes inside, it's very easy to just look over it, look past it.
2:46
SPEAKER_00: It doesn't really like do anything to me.
2:50
SPEAKER_00: But in the way that the Bible is, it is a living and breathing word.
2:55
SPEAKER_00: It is supposed to shake us in the core every single time that we really like ponder upon it.
3:02
SPEAKER_00: So now the next little point that you can write down is the object of God's love.
3:07
SPEAKER_00: Now let's break it down.
3:09
SPEAKER_00: If you take the simple basic structure of a sentence: subject, verb, object.
3:16
SPEAKER_00: So let's look at the first part of verse 16.
3:18
SPEAKER_00: For God so loved the world.
3:21
SPEAKER_00: So subject, God, the verb is love, and then the object is the world.
3:28
SPEAKER_00: We learn that the object of God's love is the world.
3:34
SPEAKER_00: Humanity.
3:36
SPEAKER_00: It's us.
3:37
SPEAKER_00: He didn't wait for us to love him first, he actually took the initiative, he pursued us first without us having to do anything at all.
3:48
SPEAKER_00: And as a side note, what Jesus said right there was actually kind of crazy because at the time, the Jewish people really very much believed that God only loved them and not everybody else.
4:00
SPEAKER_00: And that was their like sign of pride and all the things.
4:04
SPEAKER_00: It's like, oh yeah.
4:05
SPEAKER_00: So for Jesus to say that, it's like, first of all, what is he talking about?
4:10
SPEAKER_00: That must not be true, but actually, it was the truth.
4:13
SPEAKER_00: He didn't just come for the Jews, he came for the Gentile, he came for us, he came for every single one of you, not just the Jewish people.
4:21
SPEAKER_00: So that was a little much for them.
4:24
SPEAKER_00: But basically, yeah, he he came, his love, his expression, the object of God's love was us, humanity.
4:34
SPEAKER_00: Moving on to the next point: the expression of God's love.
4:39
SPEAKER_00: Continuing the verse says, He gave his only son.
4:44
SPEAKER_00: He, God, gave the verb, his only son, the subject.
4:51
SPEAKER_00: He showed the ultimate expression of love to lay one's life for others in John 15, verse 13.
5:00
SPEAKER_00: To lay your life down for your friends, for the people that you love.
5:03
SPEAKER_00: He didn't just see the state of the world that we're living in, the chaos, the hatred, disease, and all the things.
5:09
SPEAKER_00: He actually decided to do something about it.
5:12
SPEAKER_00: He gave his only son.
5:15
SPEAKER_00: I don't know about you, but if this were my kid, I don't think I could do that.
5:21
SPEAKER_00: Not at all.
5:22
SPEAKER_00: No, no.
5:24
SPEAKER_00: I I can I can clearly say I would never I would not do that.
5:28
SPEAKER_00: I don't know how much I love you, but no, that is too much for me.
5:31
SPEAKER_00: And I'm pretty sure none of us, at least the people that are parents in the room, I don't think you could either.
5:37
SPEAKER_00: I don't think so.
5:38
SPEAKER_00: But I mean that's the reason why we're not God.
5:40
SPEAKER_00: Praise the Lord, hallelujah.
5:43
SPEAKER_00: To the next part.
5:46
SPEAKER_00: So we see ultimately that the expression of God's love is Jesus.
5:50
SPEAKER_00: And now to the next part, the recipient of God's love.
5:54
SPEAKER_00: Believers.
5:55
SPEAKER_00: The verse goes on to say, talk about who benefits from God's love.
6:00
SPEAKER_00: Whoever believes in him.
6:04
SPEAKER_00: Anybody.
6:06
SPEAKER_00: There's no criteria, there's no qualifications that you need to fulfill.
6:11
SPEAKER_00: Whoever believes in him.
6:13
SPEAKER_00: And it's not just like, oh yeah, you know, that Jesus, he sounds cool.
6:17
SPEAKER_00: That's fine.
6:18
SPEAKER_00: Okay, he can stay over there.
6:19
SPEAKER_00: No, it's somebody that actually believes in him, trusts in him, hangs on to him for dear life.
6:25
SPEAKER_00: Like he's your only lifeline.
6:28
SPEAKER_00: That's how much you need to believe in him.
6:30
SPEAKER_00: And of course, bro, you've never seen the dude.
6:32
SPEAKER_00: Makes sense.
6:34
SPEAKER_00: But that's what faith is.
6:36
SPEAKER_00: Faith doesn't make sense.
6:38
SPEAKER_00: And it's pretty bold sometimes to just, you know what, Jesus, I don't understand what's happening.
6:45
SPEAKER_00: I have no clue what's going on, but I'm still gonna trust you.
6:49
SPEAKER_00: So the recipient of God's love, believers.
6:54
SPEAKER_00: So you just have to believe.
6:56
SPEAKER_00: And then the next part of the verse says, shall not perish.
7:01
SPEAKER_00: Perish here refers to eternal separation.
7:04
SPEAKER_00: Think about it like the worst breakup of all the breakups ever, or like the worst divorce that can ever happen is that, oh, it's like, oh, you don't exist anymore, like it's done.
7:16
SPEAKER_00: It's like that, but worse.
7:18
SPEAKER_00: Eternal separation from him.
7:20
SPEAKER_00: Like you can't feel his presence anymore.
7:22
SPEAKER_00: Like for me, it's like I feel God, like let's say I'm walking in nature, I feel the sun on my skin, I hear the birds chirping, the wind is blowing.
7:32
SPEAKER_00: I don't know, I just feel a certain sense of peace, and I can feel his presence.
7:36
SPEAKER_00: Like something as simple as that.
7:38
SPEAKER_00: You don't even have it because of the eternal separation.
7:42
SPEAKER_00: So Jesus comes to save us, to prevent that from happening, so that we can have a relationship with him.
7:51
SPEAKER_00: So the intention of God's love is salvation to save us and to save us all.
7:57
SPEAKER_00: Not just a few people, not just the chosen ones, everybody.
8:03
SPEAKER_00: And now, the duration of God's love.
8:06
SPEAKER_00: It says, shall not perish, but have eternal life.
8:12
SPEAKER_00: It's very hard for us to understand what eternity means because I mean we have a very, very finite understanding of what time is, but God is beyond time, he is above time.
8:24
SPEAKER_00: Time is not a restriction for him.
8:26
SPEAKER_00: So his love for us is beyond measure.
8:31
SPEAKER_00: There's no limit, it is everlasting, it doesn't change, and that is how our relationship with him will never change.
8:38
SPEAKER_00: It is there to stay forever and ever and ever and ever, whatever that means.
8:46
SPEAKER_00: I don't know what forever means, but it sounds like a good idea.
8:49
SPEAKER_00: I thought this quote from FF Bruce was very fitting.
8:52
SPEAKER_00: If there is one sentence more than another, which sums up the message of the fourth gospel, it is this the love of God is limitless, it embraces all mankind.
9:07
SPEAKER_00: No sacrifice was too great to bring its unmeasured intensity home to men and women.
9:17
SPEAKER_00: The best that God had to give, He gave His only Son, His well-beloved.
9:26
SPEAKER_00: Very beautiful.
9:28
SPEAKER_00: The heart of God by sending Jesus is to bring salvation and hope into the world.
9:35
SPEAKER_00: However, because we have free will, we have the freedom to choose.
9:39
SPEAKER_00: Not all of us, honestly, would choose Jesus.
9:44
SPEAKER_00: And honestly, to think about it, it is kind of sad.
9:48
SPEAKER_00: And as a result, there is condemnation for unbelief.
9:52
SPEAKER_00: Now, someone would be like, you know what, what about the people that have never heard, don't know who even this Jesus is?
10:00
SPEAKER_00: Honestly, I'm not about the technicalities.
10:02
SPEAKER_00: I am not God, so I'm not gonna try to like rack my brain around how that happens.
10:07
SPEAKER_00: But I know that we have something to play in this for the people that have never heard, we are taxed to go and share the gospel with them, to share who Jesus is with them.
10:17
SPEAKER_00: So at least that is a part that we can play instead of trying to figure out, like, oh, what about that one person that lives in Namibia in the freaking middle of the freaking jungle?
10:26
SPEAKER_00: And I'm like, the Lord sees them, the Lord will figure out how He's gonna get the Bible to them.
10:30
SPEAKER_00: Amen.
10:32
SPEAKER_00: So let's not be God, that's a headache in its own.
10:36
SPEAKER_00: We are not God, praise the Lord, hallelujah.
10:38
SPEAKER_00: So, with that being said, I'm not trying to be harsh by saying it's like there is condemnation for unbelief.
10:44
SPEAKER_00: It's just what the Bible says, it's the truth, but that doesn't mean that it's a dead sentence.
10:50
SPEAKER_00: There is a way forward.
10:52
SPEAKER_00: You just have to believe, especially when it doesn't make sense.
10:58
SPEAKER_00: Now moving on to the second, second big point for the people that are note takers, the response of humanity revealed.
11:06
SPEAKER_00: In verse 19 to 21, it basically says, like, light has come, but of course, there's because we are in darkness, some people are gonna reject the light and they're gonna stay in the darkness.
11:17
SPEAKER_00: So all that whole section is basically trying to say that as humans, our flesh is drawn to darkness, leading us to run away from God, leading us to run away from the light because of all the things that we have done.
11:32
SPEAKER_00: And honestly, we're scared for all of that to be exposed.
11:36
SPEAKER_00: Darkness and sin are all we know when we're born.
11:38
SPEAKER_00: You're born into the world, news flash, you are a sinner, darkness is all you know.
11:44
SPEAKER_00: It is like a generational curse that never stops, basically.
11:48
SPEAKER_00: But then Jesus comes to offer us something different.
11:53
SPEAKER_00: But then, of course, that's not gonna go well.
11:56
SPEAKER_00: There's gonna be some resistance.
11:59
SPEAKER_00: And it's scary because he's asking us to leave the darkness and to come into the light.
12:07
SPEAKER_00: And that is scary, very, very scary to have everything exposed.
12:13
SPEAKER_00: Your deeds, your thoughts, all the things you were talking about, thinking about Maria last the last time you saw her, your fears, your insecurities.
12:23
SPEAKER_00: We don't want to step into the light because somehow darkness feels familiar, it's comfortable, you know how it is.
12:32
SPEAKER_00: It's your it kind of like becomes your safety net, your comfort, but there's more to life than where we are right now, and all it takes is to take a step forward, and it's it's very scary.
12:47
SPEAKER_00: I don't take that away, but you just take a step forward and be bold, and all it takes is honesty, honesty with yourself, knowing that, yeah, I am that he and they were talking about, but then Jesus is offering me something better, and honestly, when you take that step, there is really nothing to hide.
13:13
SPEAKER_00: Because I can I can tell you all the things that I've done ever that I can remember ever since that I was ever since I was born, but then none of y'all could condemn me because Jesus already knows it all, but he also paid for it all.
13:28
SPEAKER_00: So, in the same way, it's like I don't have to hide, I don't have to be ashamed, I don't have to be scared because I shouldn't be scared of y'all, because if the Lord Jesus Himself is happy with me, then who are you?
13:39
SPEAKER_00: You know?
13:39
SPEAKER_00: So it's the same way, it lifts up a burden off of you when you take that step and just walk into the light.
13:49
SPEAKER_00: It literally says, so that it may be seen plainly that what they have done has been done in the sight of God.
13:58
SPEAKER_00: And if the Lord Himself is pleased with you, that's all that matters.
14:04
SPEAKER_00: A very good example that was brought up at sermon prep.
14:08
SPEAKER_00: Sermon prep happens on Wednesdays where all the pastors kind of like convene and then we talk about the passage that is about to be taught, and then people bring in ideas and commentaries and all the things.
14:17
SPEAKER_00: It's a fun time.
14:19
SPEAKER_00: I always leave with my my mind jumbled, but it's it's a very good time.
14:24
SPEAKER_00: So one example that stood out to me was the contrast between a baby in the womb and a baby at birth.
14:32
SPEAKER_00: In the womb, it's dark, it's warm, it's cozy, it's familiar.
14:38
SPEAKER_00: It's all the baby knows.
14:40
SPEAKER_00: And the baby is probably thinking, oh, life is great, you know, I'm being fed, I don't have to do anything, I'm sleeping all the time, yada yadda yada.
14:47
SPEAKER_00: But then the baby cannot stay in there forever.
14:50
SPEAKER_00: That's a concern.
14:51
SPEAKER_00: And at birth, man, it's cold, it's loud, it's bright.
14:57
SPEAKER_00: There's so many people that are touching me.
14:59
SPEAKER_00: Like, what is what is happening?
15:01
SPEAKER_00: It's more than the baby was used to.
15:05
SPEAKER_00: But then he gets to meet mom, he gets to meet dad, he gets to have new senses, he has gets to have new experiences, he gets to see so many things and hear so many things and taste so many things.
15:19
SPEAKER_00: Um, and that is what it means to be born again.
15:23
SPEAKER_00: And if you were in the darkness, there's so many joys and pleasure that you wouldn't be able to experience because you're just staying where you're at.
15:31
SPEAKER_00: But then, life of faith is a life of a lot of discomforts.
15:36
SPEAKER_00: My journey here as a Christian is filled with a lot of discomforts, but then there are little joys that actually make it worth it.
15:45
SPEAKER_00: And I wouldn't be able to experience those joys if I didn't just take the step and be bold and walk into the light.
15:55
SPEAKER_00: So we are encouraged to leave darkness behind and to walk into the light one step at a time.
16:02
SPEAKER_00: Doesn't mean it's easy, doesn't mean it's it's it's very hard, it's strange, it's uncomfortable.
16:07
SPEAKER_00: I don't like it, but the outcome is greater than the discomfort that I feel.
16:15
SPEAKER_00: See it, Spurgeon said what a marvelous life it is.
16:20
SPEAKER_00: It brings with it new perspectives, new perceptions, new emotions, new desires.
16:29
SPEAKER_00: It has new senses, there are new eyes with which we see the invisible, new ears with which we hear the voice of God before inaudible, then have a new touch with which we lay hold on divine truth, then have then have we a new taste so that we taste and see that the Lord is good.
16:56
SPEAKER_00: This new life ushers us into a new world and gives us new relationships and new privileges.
17:06
SPEAKER_00: Everything is new.
17:08
SPEAKER_00: Rip me out the plastic, I'll be acting brand new.
17:11
SPEAKER_00: So, yeah, ultimately, let's leave the darkest and stem into the light.
17:15
SPEAKER_00: Moving on to the third big section, it is the humility of John revealed.
17:20
SPEAKER_00: So now, this whole section from verse 22 to 30, it came about that Jesus was baptizing people, he started his ministry.
17:27
SPEAKER_00: A lot of people were flocking to him once they were hearing his words, but also John, I mean, before Jesus started his ministry, John was also doing the same thing.
17:37
SPEAKER_00: He was talking about a Messiah that was coming, that he was just there to prepare the way, and he was baptizing people, and then he had a lot of disciples and a lot of followers and other things.
17:47
SPEAKER_00: And then eventually the his disciples noticed, they're like, Bruh, why are more people flocking to Jesus than where we are here right now with John?
17:57
SPEAKER_00: So they had a little, they were not happy about it, they had a little sissy feet.
18:01
SPEAKER_00: So they go to the guy, be like, John, bruh, what is going on?
18:05
SPEAKER_00: Why are more people going to him?
18:06
SPEAKER_00: Like, don't you feel a certain type of way about it?
18:09
SPEAKER_00: Is this okay?
18:10
SPEAKER_00: Like, what are we supposed to do about this?
18:12
SPEAKER_00: And he's like, Bruh, did I not tell you I am not the Messiah?
18:18
SPEAKER_00: I just came to prepare the way.
18:20
SPEAKER_00: I already told you this, and I told you that he is the Messiah.
18:24
SPEAKER_00: So why are you trying to?
18:27
SPEAKER_00: No, we are not doing that.
18:33
SPEAKER_00: We are not doing that.
18:36
SPEAKER_00: The whole point of ministry is to point people to Jesus.
18:42
SPEAKER_00: It's great.
18:43
SPEAKER_00: You have all the you have you can have all the gifts, you can have all the skills, you can have all the talents and be a great communicator, and like people fall to the ground and like hit it and all the things, and give the life to Jesus and all the things.
18:55
SPEAKER_00: But at the end of the day, it all points, it all should point back to Jesus.
19:02
SPEAKER_00: Because he's the one that's making all those things happen.
19:06
SPEAKER_00: We are just a vessel.
19:07
SPEAKER_00: And John really very much understood that.
19:11
SPEAKER_00: He knew who he was and he knew who Jesus was, he knew his place.
19:16
SPEAKER_00: He also gave the example of, like, oh, I'm just a friend to the bridegroom.
19:20
SPEAKER_00: Whatever he wants to happen, I will make it happen.
19:23
SPEAKER_00: It's kind of like you come to my wedding and then you're trying to steal my show.
19:26
SPEAKER_00: Hell, no, we are not doing that.
19:28
SPEAKER_00: I am the story of the day.
19:30
SPEAKER_00: It's all about me.
19:32
SPEAKER_00: So, in the same way, it's all about Jesus.
19:34
SPEAKER_00: He is the main character.
19:35
SPEAKER_00: We are props.
19:37
SPEAKER_00: Maybe paid actors, maybe side characters, but he is the main character.
19:43
SPEAKER_00: He is the whole story, he is the birthday.
19:46
SPEAKER_00: So, yeah.
19:48
SPEAKER_00: Let's give the main thing the main thing.
19:52
SPEAKER_00: As interesting it is, especially now with social media, with all like the emphasis on like the likes and the clicks and the and the views and um all the things that can blow up when you're on social media, especially when you're like sharing Jesus and all the things, it's like, let's not forget that the platforms that we have are because he gave them to us.
20:13
SPEAKER_00: Let's not forget that the maybe the people that are saying, oh my god, that was that was so good, what you said, whatever.
20:20
SPEAKER_00: It's like he's the one that's bringing those people to us.
20:23
SPEAKER_00: But even then, it's not about us, it could be somebody else.
20:26
SPEAKER_00: He doesn't, it doesn't have to be me.
20:28
SPEAKER_00: If I'm not teaching today, it could be somebody else.
20:31
SPEAKER_00: I don't matter, that also other person doesn't matter.
20:34
SPEAKER_00: The person that matters the most is Jesus, and we cannot take that away from him, and we should not take that away from him.
20:41
SPEAKER_00: That's why the verse says, we decrease so that Jesus can increase.
20:47
SPEAKER_00: It's not about us.
20:48
SPEAKER_00: And honestly, as humans, it's very easy to blur that line between receiving praises from people out of gratitude because the Lord did it, and receiving people's praises because I did it.
21:12
SPEAKER_00: It's very easy to step over that line because we're all humans and we're works in progress, and you really have to watch your heart.
21:20
SPEAKER_00: Like, I think it's fascinating because sometimes I will catch myself going over that line, and then I'm like, uh-oh, I have to, I have to take a step back and go to Jesus and Jesus, please reframe my thinking, guard my heart.
21:38
SPEAKER_00: And honestly, I'm so glad that I mean, unbeknownst to him, maybe he knew, but whenever those moments happen, I am so glad because I was not on the schedule at all to teach.
21:48
SPEAKER_00: So I don't go over.
21:50
SPEAKER_00: So you always have to come like watch yourself to examine yourself and making sure that you don't take what is not yours.
22:00
SPEAKER_00: Because everything belongs to him.
22:03
SPEAKER_00: So yeah, but also John said his joy was complete.
22:09
SPEAKER_00: Do you feel a certain fulfillment when a person gives their life to Christ?
22:15
SPEAKER_00: Do you feel like you had a part to play in somebody saying yes to Jesus?
22:21
SPEAKER_00: And that sense of, you know what, Jesus, thank you for the opportunity you gave me, or be like, I did that.
22:28
SPEAKER_00: No, you did not.
22:29
SPEAKER_00: No, you did not.
22:31
SPEAKER_00: We are not capable of changing anybody's heart.
22:34
SPEAKER_00: The only person that is able to do so is Jesus.
22:38
SPEAKER_00: And we are just messengers, we are just vessels.
22:43
SPEAKER_00: He's just helped, he's just giving us the opportunity to participate with him, but we are not the ones that are actually doing the thing.
22:50
SPEAKER_00: Because if it's not us, it can be somebody else.
22:53
SPEAKER_00: But also, I'm also touching on the idea that as I was reading this, I'm just like, it's also very easy because of this whole social media thing to not be able to genuinely rejoice with people's successes and glories.
23:10
SPEAKER_00: Like when you see your friend like do this amazing thing, or like have this amazing grade, or submit this amazing paper, or get this amazing job, or you know, get married, have kids, or all the things, something that they did that maybe you want, you wish for yourself.
23:32
SPEAKER_00: Are you able to rejoice genuinely with them and not feel a certain type of way?
23:40
SPEAKER_00: And not feel envious and not feel jealous and all the things.
23:44
SPEAKER_00: And that is hard, and it's okay to admit it, it happens.
23:47
SPEAKER_00: We have desires, there's certain things that we pray to God about, the Lord itself has not done anything about it, and sometimes it can kind of like mess up with your head, but we ought to rejoice with those who rejoice, and we ought to mourn with those who mourn.
24:04
SPEAKER_00: We have to be there for one another, and we have to cheer each other on.
24:11
SPEAKER_00: But ultimately, as long as the Lord Jesus is glorified, that's all that matters.
24:18
SPEAKER_00: So, John here he displayed a lot of humility.
24:21
SPEAKER_00: He's like, it's not about me, but I'm gonna help make sure that whatever he needs happen will happen.
24:28
SPEAKER_00: So let's be cautious, let's be prayerful, let's wash our hearts and guard our hearts.
24:35
SPEAKER_00: Um, but yeah, because Loki, Loki, this is a very, very side note, but that's how cults happen.
24:43
SPEAKER_00: Because you will find somebody that has a lot of charisma, a lot of giftings, and they can somehow persuade the people.
24:51
SPEAKER_00: And then what's something that starts as a very pure intention eventually goes down the rails because they were not guarding their hearts, and then eventually you hear that a lot of people die because of them.
25:02
SPEAKER_00: So please, please, I beg you, as much as I love watching the documentaries about cults and all the things, I don't want to know, I don't want to hear years down the line that any of us were, you know, the catalysts to that.
25:19
SPEAKER_00: Amen.
25:21
SPEAKER_00: Moving on to the next big section: the supremacy of Jesus revealed.
25:29
SPEAKER_00: This part essentially says that Jesus, as much as he had he was in human flesh, he came from above.
25:38
SPEAKER_00: He is from the heavens, he came, he that, but he still went back, he's up there in heaven on his throne.
25:44
SPEAKER_00: And he speaks the words of God.
25:48
SPEAKER_00: But all the things that he said, there's many people that did not accept what he had to say, there are many people that did not believe in what he had to say.
25:58
SPEAKER_00: And you know, there's that.
26:01
SPEAKER_00: But whoever does believe in him, they're basically confirming that Jesus is who he says he is, because he is who he says he is, he is God, he is the Son, He is our Savior, He is our friend, He is our Comforter, He is the creator of all things, He's outside of time, He made every single one of us, He loves us dearly, He is above all things, He holds everything together, He gives us breath, He is everywhere all the time.
26:41
SPEAKER_00: So John was reminding his disciples that Jesus was is greater than us, and we are not.
26:53
SPEAKER_00: We are humans, we are a grain of sand.
26:57
SPEAKER_00: We're here today, gone the next.
27:00
SPEAKER_00: But Jesus is all-encompassing, he's everything, and he has the Holy Spirit beyond measure.
27:10
SPEAKER_00: He he is above everything.
27:13
SPEAKER_00: So let's remember who we are, but also let's keep in mind who he is.
27:20
SPEAKER_00: We don't want any problems at all, but yeah, as I finish, I want us to really take some time to ponder and reflect.
27:37
SPEAKER_00: Like when you look at yourself, and when I look at myself, do you see the extent of how dark it can be around you?
27:49
SPEAKER_00: Of how cynical sometimes your heart can be, how angry your heart can be, how sad your heart can be, um, how sinful you can be.
28:00
SPEAKER_00: I am this guilty.
28:02
SPEAKER_00: I am guilty, like literally.
28:05
SPEAKER_00: Like if I if I if I had to die for my sins for all the things that I've done, bro, I would have been gone a long time ago.
28:16
SPEAKER_00: But as much as that is very much a reality, there's also the reality that I am loved so so much.
28:27
SPEAKER_00: You are loved so so much.
28:31
SPEAKER_00: We are this guilty, but we are loved so so much.
28:38
SPEAKER_00: And as I was giving my life to Christ and really like taking um, taking it seriously, it was very hard for me to come to terms with that concept.
28:52
SPEAKER_00: It's very hard, it's like it doesn't make sense.
28:54
SPEAKER_00: It's like, it's kind of like I went to my court hearing and somehow the judge is smiling at me and saying, Oh, you can go.
29:02
SPEAKER_00: And I'm like, what you mean I can go?
29:04
SPEAKER_00: What about this and this and this and this and this that I did?
29:08
SPEAKER_00: Like, huh?
29:09
SPEAKER_00: Huh?
29:10
SPEAKER_00: But he's like, no, you can go.
29:13
SPEAKER_00: Jesus paid for it all.
29:16
SPEAKER_00: Like, it doesn't make sense, but honestly, it is a truth that is there to stay.
29:21
SPEAKER_00: It's not gonna change.
29:23
SPEAKER_00: No matter how much you try to reason with it, no matter how much you try to wrestle with it, it doesn't change.
29:30
SPEAKER_00: You are loved.
29:32
SPEAKER_00: The Lord knows you, he knows everything that you think about, he knows all the things that you've done, he knows the way you see yourself, he knows the way you carry yourself, he knows the way you hide from yourself sometimes.
29:45
SPEAKER_00: He knows all of that, but he still chooses to love you despite all of it.
29:52
SPEAKER_00: He does.
29:53
SPEAKER_00: He knows you fully and he loves you fully, and that is something he wants us to experience.
29:59
SPEAKER_00: Because honestly, there's nothing greater than to be fully known and to be fully loved.
30:05
SPEAKER_00: I remember before we got married, I was talking to my husband Alleckis, and I was just like, you know what?
30:11
SPEAKER_00: Let me just come out with all the things that I can think about that I've ever done or that have ever happened to me, so that by the time we get married, we cannot be like surprised by anything.
30:23
SPEAKER_00: So, like it literally felt like I was in a like it was like a whole confessional.
30:27
SPEAKER_00: I was just like, so there's this that happened when I was five years old, then when I kissed the boy, I kind of liked it.
30:32
SPEAKER_00: And then there was this.
30:35
SPEAKER_00: Imagine I was five, anyways.
30:38
SPEAKER_00: So there's this and all the things, and all this, like I just went deep with it.
30:43
SPEAKER_00: You can ask him, like all the things, even the things that you don't want to say out loud, even the things that you didn't even want to admit to yourself.
30:51
SPEAKER_00: I was like, you know what?
30:52
SPEAKER_00: I have to come right out with it because let's not be surprised.
30:57
SPEAKER_00: And that was very scary.
30:59
SPEAKER_00: Like, who who does that?
31:00
SPEAKER_00: You don't want to do that.
31:02
SPEAKER_00: You you you want to be perceived a certain way.
31:05
SPEAKER_00: I want to make sure that he still loves me despite all the things, you know.
31:09
SPEAKER_00: Let it not be that I time all this, and then he's like, you know what, we're not getting married anymore.
31:13
SPEAKER_00: Bro, that would suck.
31:15
SPEAKER_00: That would suck.
31:16
SPEAKER_00: But he didn't, he listened to every single one of them, and he's a real one, actually.
31:22
SPEAKER_00: He's a real one.
31:24
SPEAKER_00: Um, he listened to everything that I had to say, and there was no condemnation in his eyes, there was only love.
31:32
SPEAKER_00: And he's like, Bernice, I see you and I love you still, and that is what Jesus wants us to experiment with him, to experience, to live in, to know that he knows you, he sees us all the time, but to know that as much as we were exposed, he still loves us and he wants to transform us into something beautiful, into something that he's proud of.
32:03
SPEAKER_00: It is possible.
32:05
SPEAKER_00: He loves us so much that he paid the penalty for our sins.
32:08
SPEAKER_00: He didn't have to, he could have just, you know what?
32:13
SPEAKER_00: Let's not have to deal with this.
32:14
SPEAKER_00: Because honestly, sometimes I look at myself and I look at the things that I do.
32:17
SPEAKER_00: I'm like, bro, I'm tired of myself.
32:19
SPEAKER_00: I am tired of myself.
32:21
SPEAKER_00: Like, why do I do this?
32:22
SPEAKER_00: You know?
32:23
SPEAKER_00: But that doesn't faze him at all.
32:27
SPEAKER_00: He doesn't.
32:28
SPEAKER_00: And God did the greatest thing you could ever do to give your son to pay the ransom for every single one of us, for every single being on this planet, even the ones that we don't like, even our crazy politicians, even the freaking crazy billionaires, and all the every single one of us, even the people that are in freaking prison, he died for them too.
32:58
SPEAKER_00: So we just have to accept it.
33:04
SPEAKER_00: He died and he rose again so that we can have freedom, so that we can walk on this earth and feel without burdens and be free, and to live in the light without fear and without shame, to be transformed.
33:23
SPEAKER_00: All I'm asking you is to embrace it.
33:26
SPEAKER_00: It's hard, but it's beautiful.
33:31
SPEAKER_00: Just embrace it.
33:33
SPEAKER_00: Grab onto his hand and never let go.
33:37
SPEAKER_00: Please.
33:39
SPEAKER_00: It's the best thing that you will ever do.
33:42
SPEAKER_00: More than your achievements, more than more than this and that, and all the things that you want to accomplish in your life.
33:49
SPEAKER_00: There are better days and there are brighter days ahead when you walk into the light.
33:56
SPEAKER_00: And even if you haven't, even if you sleep up, it's fine.
34:00
SPEAKER_00: Just get back up and keep pushing.