Good morning. Please take your copy of God's Word. Join me in John chapter 1. Our text for this morning is John chapter 1.
A little over a year. On the first Lord's Day, I introduced the book and gave a summary of it. We spent the last two Sundays looking at John's prologue where he introduces Jesus to us with three titles and two characteristics.
First, we see that Jesus is the Word, the physical representation of God. We see that he is preexistent, that he is the creator, that he is self-existent, and that he is the unquenchable light.
God stands, conquers darkness. John spends the first five verses establishing Jesus' deity. This is the aim of what he is doing in the prologue.
Jesus is God. It is a decorative statement. This is what he is trying to accomplish.
C.S. Lewis, speaking in 1942 and then published in Mere Christianity in 1952, gave the following argument concerning Christ.
And I quote,
I am trying here to prevent anyone saying the really foolish thing that people often say about Jesus.
I'm ready to accept Jesus as a great moral teacher, but I don't accept his claim to be God.
That is the one thing we must not say. A man who was merely a man and said the sort of things Jesus said would not be a great moral teacher.
He would either be a lunatic on the level with the man who says he is a poached egg, or else he would be the devil of hell.
You must make your choice. Either this man was and is the Son of God, or else a madman or something worse.
You can't shut him up for a fool. You can spit at him and kill him as a demon, or you can fall at his feet and call him Lord and God.
But let us not come with any patronizing nonsense about his being a great human teacher.
He has not left that open to us.
He did not intend to.
Now it seems to me obvious that he was neither a lunatic nor a friend, and consequently, however strange or terrifying or unlikely it may seem,
I have to accept the view that he was and is God.
End quote.
John makes some audacious claims in the first five verses, and they are claims that Jesus is going to reinforce again and again and again across the book.
How we respond to these claims makes all the difference in the world.
And we're going to see two responses to these claims in our text today.
Before I read it, I want to remind you, beloved, that this is God's word to us.
It was written for his glory and our good.
That we might believe its promises, obey its commands, and have affection for its author.
May we hear it and respond accordingly to it.
John chapter 1, verse 6 and following.
There was a man sent from God whose name was John.
He came as a witness to bear witness about the light that all might believe through him.
He was not the light, but came to bear witness about the light.
The true light which gives light to everyone was coming into the world.
He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him.
He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him.
But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God,
who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.
So we see in our text today three simple points.
Number one, a reliable witness.
And we're going to see witnesses again and again and again.
Sometimes Jesus himself, sometimes his works, sometimes people saying things about him,
and that's the case this morning.
We're going to see then rejecters of who Jesus is, and then we're going to see believers.
So first, a reliable witness.
And we can see this in verses 6 through 9.
And John continues to pick up this language of light.
So when we're seeing all of this language about light, we're thinking about Jesus.
Jesus is the light of the world.
And there we see a man sent from God whose name was John.
A different John than the John that wrote this.
That's John the Apostle.
Here we're talking about John the Baptist.
I think it'd be better to say John the Baptizer, although I don't mind claiming him at all.
So we will call him John the Baptist.
And he comes as a witness.
Witness to what?
To Jesus.
To who Jesus is.
That people would believe.
John the Baptist's intention, his point of his ministry, was the very same as that of John the Apostle.
That people would repent and believe in Christ, have deliverance from their sin, and eternal life in him.
John the Baptist, I'm making the case, was a reliable witness to Jesus as the Christ.
Because he was divinely appointed.
He was sent by God to be a witness to Jesus as the Christ.
We see that there in verse 6.
There was a man sent from God.
John the Apostle is telling us that John the Baptist was sent by God himself.
We can read a bit of John the Baptist's ministry and then his predicted birth.
Matthew chapter 3, verse 1 through 3 says,
In those days, John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea,
Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.
For this is he who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah in Isaiah 40, verse 3.
The voice of one crying in the wilderness,
Prepare the way of the Lord.
Make his paths straight.
So Matthew tells us that this is the prophet of Isaiah chapter 40 and verse 3.
Sent from God.
And in Luke chapter 1, verse 13 and following, we can learn,
An angel says to Zachariah, John the Baptist's father,
Your prayer has been heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son,
and you shall call his name John.
And you will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth.
For he will be great before the Lord.
And he must not drink wine or strong drink,
and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother's womb.
And he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God.
And he will go before him in the spirit and power of Elijah
to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children
and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just
to make ready for the Lord a people prepared.
So John the Baptist's entire mission
was to prepare the way for the Messiah, for the Christ,
and point others to him, not to himself.
John the Apostle, who wrote the text before us,
is careful to note in verse 8,
he was not the light.
John the Baptist, not the light,
but came to bear witness about the light.
John the Baptist was also clear on this matter.
He famously declared in John chapter 3 and verse 30,
He, Christ, must increase, but I must decrease.
He sought to magnify Christ with his life.
John fearlessly called people to repentance and faith.
John the Baptist suffered and died
rather than compromising the truth.
In every way, John's testimony calls us
to look away from ourselves
and behold the true light, Jesus Christ.
John the Baptist's ministry
was about drawing people's gaze to behold Jesus.
And John the Apostle employs him
in what fairly could be framed
as the introduction to this book
to do that very same thing,
to draw our attention off ourselves
and draw our gaze toward Christ.
So we see a reliable witness,
and we'll see that pattern again and again
throughout John the Apostle's book.
Secondly, though, we see responses to this declaration,
Jesus is the Christ.
We see rejecters, verses 10 and 11.
There it says,
He was in the world,
and the world was made through him,
yet the world did not know him.
He came to his own,
and his own people did not receive him.
This is a theme developed through John's writing,
the tragic rejection of the divine Jesus as the Christ,
specifically the rejection of him by the Jewish people.
Praise God, not all Jewish people rejected Christ.
You can even back up a little bit to what Luke had to say
about John the Baptist and the people being prepared.
But largely, there was a rejection of Jesus as the Christ
by the Jewish people.
Let me just show you with some selected texts throughout John.
There's a pattern that repeats again and again,
a theme that's being developed,
and I believe it's being developed,
that we would not be a people who reject Jesus as the Christ.
So John chapter 5 and verse 18,
this is why the Jews were seeking all the more to kill him,
because not only was he breaking the Sabbath,
but he was even calling God his own Father,
making himself equal with God.
That was a blasphemy in their mind,
and it would have been if it wasn't true.
The Spirit who gives life, verse 63 and following.
There it says,
It is the Spirit who gives life.
The flesh is no help at all.
The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and life.
But there are some of you who do not believe,
for Jesus knew from the beginning
who those were who did not believe,
and who it was who would betray him.
And he said,
This is why I told you that no one can come to me
unless it is granted him by the Father.
And then verse 66 says,
After this, many of his disciples turned back
and no longer walked with him.
So when the teaching got difficult,
they bailed.
John chapter 7, verse 28 and following.
Jesus proclaimed as he taught in the temple,
You know me and you know where I come from,
but I have not come of my own accord.
He who sent me is true,
and him you do not know.
I know him, for I come from him,
and he sent me.
So they were seeking to arrest him.
But no one laid a hand on him,
because his hour had not had come.
He says,
You don't know God,
but I do,
because I came from him.
God sent me,
and they sought to kill him as a result.
John chapter 10, verse 20.
Many of them said,
He has a demon and is insane.
Why?
Listen to him.
John chapter 12, verse 37.
Though he had done so many signs before them,
they still did not believe in him.
And this rejection, we know,
ends in Christ's suffering and death on the cross.
Widespread by the Jewish people,
and in our day,
this rejection of Jesus,
of the Christ.
Why does this happen?
Paul tells us in Romans chapter 1,
verse 18 and beyond says,
For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven
against all ungodliness
and unrighteousness of men,
who by their unrighteousness
suppress the truth.
For what can be known about God
is plain to them,
because God has shown it to them.
For his invisible attributes,
namely his eternal power and divine nature,
have been clearly perceived
ever since the creation of the world
and the things that have been made.
So they are without excuse.
Darkness doesn't love light.
Light causes darkness to scatter.
And so man in his sinful state
wants to hide away from Jesus
that their sins would not be exposed.
And this category of people,
if you want to reduce us most simply,
we have those who will reject Jesus
as the Christ
and those who will receive Jesus
as the Christ.
which brings us to our third
and more expansive point.
Third, believers.
Believers.
Verses 12 and 13.
There John writes,
But to all who did receive him,
who believed in his name,
he gave the right to become children of God,
who were born not of blood
nor of the will of the flesh,
nor of the will of man,
but of God.
Now I was careful here
to use the word believers
rather than receivers,
which is in the text.
I so wanted to alliterate my point,
reliable witness,
rejecters,
receivers,
that work so well together.
But I think clarity
is very necessary at this point,
and I think that John thought so too.
He states in verse 11,
his own people
did not receive him,
or as I've said,
rejected him.
And then at the beginning of verse 12,
he turns his attention
to others,
the other group
who did not reject,
but received him.
At this moment, however,
he does something peculiar.
He qualifies
his previous statement.
He doesn't just leave off there,
but who did receive him,
he gave the right
to become children of God.
He could have done that.
I think he certainly
could have,
but he qualifies
and he adds clarity
to what he means.
And I think we should
especially stop
when things like that happen
in the scripture.
Why?
It feels like a redundancy,
doesn't it?
What's he doing here?
What does it mean
to receive Jesus?
John's telling us
that very thing.
If we are to receive him,
then we need to
believe in his name.
That's what it means
to receive Jesus.
It is to believe
in his name.
The word rendered,
believe,
is the Greek verb
pistou,
which conveys
far more
than mere intellectual
agreement
with a set
of facts.
It's far more
than that.
The original readers
would have understood
the word
in that way,
but we tend
not to.
It carries
the kind of idea
that we're so
confident
in a thing
that it's going to
shape how we act
in relation
to that thing.
It's not
just an assent.
It's just not
intellectual agreement.
There's so many
people today
who will go,
I believe in Jesus.
Just saying it
with your words
doesn't necessarily
mean
you believe
the way the Bible
uses this
word.
This is critical.
We need such
careful clarity
at this point.
To believe
carries the idea
of full trust,
personal reliance,
and wholehearted
commitment.
You may have
heard the example
before of the
parachute.
I did this
with my boys
on our couch
where we jumped
off the couch
like we were
jumping out
of a plane.
Well,
catch me
if I fall
on the ground
is an easy
thing to do.
It's different
altogether
when you're
the next one
out the door.
It's that kind
of confidence.
You put it on
and you know
it's going to
do the thing
that it's
designed to do.
That's how
we're to believe
in Jesus.
To believe
is not simply
to acknowledge
the historical
existence
of Jesus
but to
entrust
yourself
entirely
to him.
All that
his name
represents
his person
and his
work
his saving
power
and implies
a surrender
of the will
a confidence
that Jesus
alone
can save
and an
active
ongoing
dependence
upon him.
That word
is packed
full
of meaning
in the original.
The text
before us
doesn't mention
it
but we also
must be sure
to understand
that true
pistuo
is in
step 14
and 15.
Now,
after John
the Baptist
was arrested,
Jesus came
into Galilee
proclaiming
the gospel
of God.
Listen to the
words that
Jesus says,
proclaiming
the gospel
of God
as Mark
records it
for us.
This is the
good news.
The time
is fulfilled
and the
kingdom of
God
is at hand.
Repent
and believe
in the gospel.
Now,
there's much
to be said
about what
the gospel
itself is
but what
are Jesus'
instructions
in response
to the gospel?
The way
he calls
people
as he says,
repent
and believe
in the gospel.
Repentance,
that word
at its very
core
means to
change
one's mind.
So,
contextually
we understand
that it is
a turning
away
from sin.
It's a
rejecting
of the
way
of this
world
and belief
is what
we're
turning
to.
So,
we're
turning
away
from
sin.
Repentance
rejects
the world.
Belief
takes
hold
of,
receives
Christ.
Belief
is not
passive
ascent
but active,
living faith
that transforms
the heart
and produces
obedience.
Biblical
belief
is the
very
foundation
of saving
grace,
a total
entrusting
of oneself
to Christ
as Lord
and Savior.
So,
why all
the time
on this
matter?
Why be so
careful at
this point?
I think
that John's
being very
careful
at this
point.
Because the
gospel of
Jesus Christ
needs to
be
clear.
If we're
going to be
sorted into
two categories,
those who
receive
Jesus Christ,
those who
reject
Jesus Christ,
and this
message is
the saving
message,
we have
to be
so
clear.
The
gospel is
by itself
an offense.
Just by
itself,
the gospel
is
offensive.
It first
kills
so that
we can
live.
It first
shows us
how wretched
we are
so that
we turn
from that
wretchedness,
we repent,
and we
turn to
the
righteousness
of Christ.
When we
get it
just right,
it's
offensive.
We should
not add
to that
a lack
of clarity
or a
lack of
depth.
We should
be so
careful here.
I worry,
and I mean
this from the
very bottom
of my
heart,
I worry
with great
anguish,
probably more
than I
should,
that much
of our
modern
Christian
practice
is creating
vast
swaths
of false
converts.
And I'm
not suggesting
that we're
immune to
this.
False
converts,
people who
think that
they are in
Christ and
they are not.
I am grieved
to think that
this morning
there are
many well-meaning
people giving
lip service
to God,
but their
hearts are
far from
Him.
And that
there are
churches
that don't
seem to be
pressing against
that at
all.
Just think
with me for
a moment
about some
of the
language used
in calling
people to
saving faith.
So,
if you back
your mind
up just
for a
moment,
I met
you from
Mark
chapter 1
and verse
15,
how is it
that Jesus
called people
repent and
believe in
the gospel?
This is what
he said
said,
but we
get phrases
like,
say yes
to Jesus.
Salvation
is a
miraculous,
divinely
wrought
miracle
worked in
the heart,
not a
casual
agreement.
Ephesians
chapter 2
verse 1
and following,
Paul there
writes,
and you
were dead
in the
trespasses
and sins
in which
you once
walked,
following
the course
of this
world,
following
the prince
of the
power
of the
air,
the spirit
that is
now at
work in
the sons
of disobedience,
among whom
we all once
lived in the
passions of
our flesh,
carrying out
the desires
of the body
and the
mind,
and were
by nature
children of
wrath like
the rest
of mankind.
That should
hit.
If you
were not
in Christ,
that should
convict your
heart.
If you
are,
you should
remember,
yes,
that's who
I once
was,
dead,
a servant
of the
devil,
and destined
for wrath.
And then you
get this
beautiful
conjunction
in verse
4,
but God,
being rich
in mercy,
because of the
great love
with which he
loved us,
even when we
were dead
in our
trespasses,
made us
alive together
with Christ.
By grace,
you have
been saved.
This is a
miraculous,
divinely wrought,
beautiful
thing that
happens in
all those who
believe in
Christ.
To say
yes to
Jesus makes
it so
paltry.
Ask Jesus
into your
heart.
That's another
phrase.
The Bible
nowhere portrays
Jesus as
some destitute
stranger that
needs your
invitation to
do anything
He is the
Lord of the
universe.
Think about
how He's
been introduced
to us in
John chapter
1.
He's not
asking your
permission.
I don't care
how you work
out God's
sovereignty and
all the details
of your life.
He doesn't
need you to
ask Him to
do the things
He intends
to do.
John chapter
10,
verse 27
and following,
My sheep
hear my voice
and I know
them and they
follow me.
I give them
eternal life
and they
will never
perish and
no one
will snatch
them out
of my
hand.
My
Father who
has given
them to
me is
greater than
all and
no one is
able to
snatch them
out of the
Father's
hand.
That's a
declaration of
power to
save.
You have
not once,
nor will you
ever,
we don't have
sheep around
here,
you'll never
see a sheep
asking a
shepherd for
anything.
Another one,
make a decision
for Christ.
I won't
unpack the
problems with
this phrase
at the
moment,
but today's
text has
something to
say concerning
it, which
we will
address
momentarily.
And then
my final
example,
this brings
us back to
our text,
receive Jesus
into your
heart.
Beloved,
we need to
use biblical
language when
calling people
to respond
to the
saving
message
of the
gospel.
Yes,
people need
to respond
to a
call,
but a
call to
what?
Repentance
and faith.
Repent
and believe.
This is the
language we
use because
it's the
language that
the Bible
uses.
It's the
language that
Jesus uses.
We ought
to call
people to
repentance
and faith
with great
earnestness
and explain
with great
care what
repentance
is and
what belief
is.
We have
to be sure
the gospel
of Jesus
Christ is
clear and
the way
people should
respond to
it is
also
clear.
Now,
John says
that those
who believe
in his
name,
Jesus gave
the right
to become
children
of God.
to be a
child of
God is
to be
lifted from
the ash
heap of
sin and
set among
the princes
of heaven.
He who
was once
a rebel
is now
called
beloved.
He who
was once
far off
is brought
near and
has a
forever
home.
The child
of God
is adopted
into the
divine
family,
clothed
with Christ's
righteousness,
loved with
an unshakable
love and
granted an
inheritance
that neither
time nor
any power
can take
away.
To be
God's
child is
to walk
under his
smile,
to rest
in his
promises,
to bear
his discipline
with hope,
and to
await his
glorious
appearing
with joy.
To be a
child of
God is
not an
abstract
principle,
but a
felt
reality.
Oh, I
hope you
feel what
it means
to be
a child
of God.
How good
it is
to belong.
Oh, how
wonderful to
have God
look at
you and
declare
mine.
Those who
believe in
Jesus' name,
he gives
the right
to become
children
of God.
God
how?
How?
How does
this happen?
What is
the impulse
for it?
John doesn't
pull any
punches
here.
He wastes
no time
dropping his
plum into
the depths
of God's
magnificent
grace.
John tells
us in
verse 13
that those
who Jesus
gave the
right to
become
children of
God
became
children,
not of
blood,
nor of
the will
of the
flesh,
nor of
the will
of man,
but of
God.
John makes
three negative
statements and
one positive
in answering
this question.
How is a
person born
again?
He says,
negative
statements,
not of
blood.
No ethnic
or national
claims can
save us.
Can't say we
belong to a
certain people
group and
therefore,
we are
saved.
He says,
nor of
the will
of the
flesh.
No desire
of the
will,
apart from
grace,
can save
us.
You can't
effort your
way.
I'm going
to do it.
I desire to
do it,
therefore I'm
going to
do it.
You need
the grace
to respond
in faith
to the
call of
the gospel.
Nor of
the will
man.
No religious
system can
save us.
Not following
the rules and
checking the
boxes.
How is a
person born
again?
He makes
one positive
statement and
he needs
only one,
as he says
summarily,
but of
God.
those three
little words
could take
up our
time for
the rest
of the
spring and
on into
the summer.
In fact,
I could argue
that those
three little
words will
be our
awe-filled
contemplation
for all
of
eternity.
The point
is,
we have
not nearly
the time
this morning
to unpack
them.
And,
frankly,
I don't
think John
would want
us to
delay too
long
here.
He's going
to give
us plenty
of opportunity
in his
writing to
consider the
doctrine of
divine
election.
So,
for our
attention to
verse 13
this morning,
I want to
address those
of you who
may have
your fists
up at the
very idea
that God
does all
the saving
work,
that we
contribute
nothing to
our salvation.
Just put
them down.
I think
that the
doctrine of
divine
election
has been
the focal
point of
so much
unnecessary
division.
So,
just keep
your hands
at your
side and
let me
ask you
a couple
of
questions.
Let's
see if
you answer
them the
same way
that I
do.
I'm asking
you the
questions,
I'm going
to answer
my own
questions.
Number
one,
apart
from
Christ,
apart from
Christ,
are you
utterly
sinful?
Left to
yourself,
do you
possess
within you
any
good?
Apart
from
Christ,
are you
utterly
sinful?
And I
would say
yes.
Apart
from
Christ,
apart from
his saving
work,
apart from
his imputed
righteousness
given to
me,
I am
utterly
sinful.
I'm
sinful to
my very
core
before that
happened,
before he
gave me
his
righteousness.
I believe
this because
of Ephesians
2 verse
1, I
read it to
you earlier,
you were
dead in
the trespasses
and sins.
Secondly,
do you
think that
apart from
Christ?
You can
recommend
yourself to
God by
anything
that you
have done.
If you
were to
stand before
God and
plead your
case before
him,
why do
you not
deserve
eternal
damnation?
Why do
you instead
deserve to
be his
child?
Do you
have anything
in you that
you have
done that
you think
you could
actually stand
before him
and make
a reasonable
case?
To that,
I would
say no.
I would
say no.
I need
the righteousness
of Christ.
I need my
penalty paid
by his
death.
I need
his perfect
life given
to me in
that beautiful
thing called
the great
exchange where
I am
justified.
That way I
can be
declared in
God's
court.
Not guilty.
Not only
not guilty,
but perfect.
You have
kept my
law and
you are
welcome here.
I can't
plead my
own case.
All I can
plead is
Christ.
He did it.
He
accomplished
it on
my
behalf.
So do
you think,
apart from
Christ,
you can
recommend
yourself to
God by
anything you
have done?
I derive
this in
Ephesians
chapter 2
verse 8 and
9.
For by grace
you have been
saved through
faith and
this is not
your own
doing.
It is the
gift of
God,
not a
result of
works,
so that
no one
may boast.
I have
nothing to
boast in
in myself
except
Christ.
Thirdly,
if you
have been
saved by
Christ,
are you
now meant
to sustain
your faith
by your
own
power?
I would
answer to
that question
no.
I was
saved by
him.
His
spirit made
me alive.
I was
capable of
turning from
my sin and
turning to
him.
He saved
me and
I now am
sustained by
that very
same power.
He didn't
save me and
then leave me
alone to my
own devices.
Praise God.
Paul says in
Philippians 1.6,
I'm sure of
this, that he
who began a
good work in
you will
bring it to
completion at
the day of
Jesus Christ.
If you have
been saved by
Christ, are
you now
meant to
sustain your
faith by
your own
power?
No.
Fourth, if
you have been
saved by
Christ, are
you being
kept by
grace until
God calls
you home
or Christ
returns?
If you have
been saved by
Christ, are
you being
kept by
grace, by
Christ, until
God calls you
home or
Christ returns?
And to this
I would say
yes.
John 10,
verse 27
through 29, I
read it to
you already.
My sheep
are my
voice and I
know them and
they follow
me.
I give them
eternal life and
they will never
perish and no
one will snatch
them out of my
hand.
My Father who
has given them
to me is
greater than
all and no
one is able to
snatch them out
of the
Father's hand.
God
now
there are a
lot of people
who would
answer these
questions differently.
There are people
who claim to be
Christ followers
who would answer
them differently
and that opens
up all sorts
of problems.
I hope
you answer these
questions the
same way that
I did and
if you did
then we have
much to
agree upon.
We can get
into the nuance
of it all but
at the end of
the day this
is my understanding
of deprivity,
divine election,
justification by
grace alone
through faith alone
in Christ alone
and my perseverance
and preservation
to the end.
That's it.
If you answer
those questions
the way I answer
those questions
we are on the
same page.
So preserve
your armaments
for real battles
and settle into
John's gospel
account with me
as we observe
reliable witness
again and again
truth
and find
yourself
believing.
Jesus is
the Christ
the anointed
one sent
by God
that by grace
through faith
in him
we would be
called
his
children.
This is after
all why
John wrote
this book.
He's going to say
some stark things
to us
but don't
forget
John 20
verse 30
and 31
and I'll read
this and then
we'll pray.
Now Jesus
did many other
signs in the
presence of the
disciples
which are not
written in this
book
but these are
written so that
you may believe
that Jesus
is the Christ
the Son of God
and that by
believing
you may have
life
in his name.
Let's pray
together.