25.01.09 John 4:27-42 (NASB)
Audio Sermon File: John 4:27-42 (Part 1)
Going Deeper: Study Guide
Lesson From The Harvest Field - Part 1 of 2
This is our Scripture text for today: 27 At this point His disciples came, and they were amazed that He had been speaking with a woman, yet no one said, "What do You seek?" or, "Why do You speak with her?" 28 So the woman left her waterpot, and went into the city and said to the men, 29 "Come, see a man who told me all the things that I [have] done; this is not the Christ, is it?" 30 They went out of the city, and were coming to Him. 31 Meanwhile the disciples were urging Him, saying, "Rabbi, eat." 32 But He said to them, "I have food to eat that you do not know about." 33 So the disciples were saying to one another, "No one brought Him [anything] to eat, did he?" 34 Jesus ^said to them, "My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me and to accomplish His work. 35 "Do you not say, `There are yet four months, and [then] comes the harvest'? Behold, I say to you, lift up your eyes and look on the fields, that they are white for harvest. 36 "Already he who reaps is receiving wages and is gathering fruit for life eternal; so that he who sows and he who reaps may rejoice together. 37 "For in this [case] the saying is true, `One sows and another reaps.' 38 "I sent you to reap that for which you have not labored; others have labored and you have entered into their labor." 39 From that city many of the Samaritans believed in Him because of the word of the woman who testified, "He told me all the things that I [have] done." 40 So when the Samaritans came to Jesus, they were asking Him to stay with them; and He stayed there two days. 41 Many more believed because of His word; 42 and they were saying to the woman, "It is no longer because of what you said that we believe, for we have heard for ourselves and know that this One is indeed the Savior of the world."
Today we are going to learn from Jesus a ‘LESSON FROM THE HARVEST FIELD.’ Jesus is telling us that we need to be aware of the harvest of souls that are right before our very eyes. Jesus brings this important lesson to His disciples through three aspects:
v.27-29 The Harvest Sown
v.30-38 The Harvest Ripens
v.39-42 The Harvest Reaped
This passage will be divided into a 2 part series because there are some really important spiritual truths and applications that we need to consider in this passage, if we are going to grow in Christ - and be useful tools that Jesus uses to build this church. I will be covering the first two aspects - THE HARVEST SOWN - which can be seen through the evangelism that Jesus does in the Samaritan woman; and the second aspect THE HARVEST RIPENS - Jesus speaking to the necessity of evangelism by possessing a heavenly perspective.
In part of two of this sermon I will cover the final aspect of the LESSON FROM THE HARVEST FIELD, which is the HARVEST REAPED, which will be a challenge to us to get involved with the Great Commission.
1. The Harvest Sown - v.27-29
v.27 - As we ended our last sermon, in the Gospel of John, we found ourselves at Jacob’s well. Jesus and the Samaritan woman are still in conversation. The woman is expressing her conviction that the Messiah is coming. Jesus then proclaimed this to the woman - "I who speak to you am he." In other words Jesus outrightly declares that He is the Messiah. The Messiah that the Samaritans and this woman, had long awaited for. This was the zenith of the meeting between the Samaritan woman and Jesus - that Jesus reveals His identity - THE HARVEST IS SOWN. At that moment of revelation, we now find, that Jesus’ disciples arrive back from their shopping trip in town with food to eat. As the disciples approach the well - they were amazed that He had been speaking with a woman. If you remember the rabbinic Jews had a very low view of women, an unbiblical attitude - they were treated as sub-human. Also if you remember - the Jews and Samaritans were mortal enemies of each other, because of their history. They didn’t want anything to do with each other, because this would violate their customs - it would be a slap in the face of history. So the woman had at least two strikes against her - she was a woman and she was a Samaritan. So obviously, some of these factors influenced the thinking of the disciples, and as a result they were amazed. But none of the disciples asked Jesus about what he wanted from this woman, or dared to ask, Why do You speak with her? The reason for this is not given by the text, but as insiders they probably would have known through experience, that Jesus pushed the social and religious bounds of His day. Because of this the disciples themselves were challenged to a higher standard.
The disciples were there when Jesus challenged the corruption of the religious establishment when He cleansed the temple, back in chapter 2. And even on this trip Jesus didn’t go take the ‘scenic route’ around Samaria like His fellow Jews, but instead He took the ‘less traveled road’ right into and through enemy territory. The disciples therefore had developed a certain level of respect for Jesus, their leader. Jesus throughout this gospel and up to this point has demonstrated clearly that He is NOT bound by the customs, traditions, and laws of man, but He operates in the realm of righteousness. He establishes what is proper in the eyes of God. Jesus’ way of doing things lay in the authority of who He is - and not what others wanted Him to do. Jesus the God-man paves the way for a message that was for everyone - no matter what culture and societal position one is found in. Jesus’ ministry transcends all human cultures, and practices - so that the truth shall prevail.
v.28-29 - Jesus is the Messiah, He is the Lord of Heaven and Earth - this was the truth that was revealed to the Samaritan woman. In response to this mind blowing revelation - this is what takes place - the woman left her waterpot, and went into the city. She leaves her water jar - and then she takes off back into town - another ½ mile journey in the height of the daytime heat. It is not stated why she left her waterpot , but the reason for her coming to the well was overshadowed by something even more important - and now she was on a different mission.
She arrives back in Sychar - and says to the townspeople - Come, see a man who told me all the things that I [have] done; this is not the Christ, is it? Can you imagine the scene that is arising? This woman begins telling people, that a total stranger at Jacob’s well, told her details of her life that there was no way that He could have known about. The statement by the woman about Jesus knowing all the things she ever did was of course an exaggeration. But it emphasizes that the woman had fully come to the realization that in the words that Jesus spoke about her, back in verse 18 - she knew that Jesus’ knowledge of her was complete. This realization was also linked to Jesus’ profession that He was the Christ, which leads back to the woman’s testimony to her fellow townsmen. The woman asks this question - this is not the Christ, is it? This question is asked in a manner which expects a negative reply or one of doubt. But on the other hand she probably was hoping for an affirmation that Jesus was indeed the Christ. She was in the process of making a decision and she needed to bounce things off of the townspeople. So it appears that at this point of the account, she had not accepted Jesus as the Messiah - she was still wrestling with the information she received.
As a side note this underscores the reality that our faith is not a blind faith, but it is an informed faith. We need to know the truth and facts about Christ before we are able to receive Him as Lord and Savior. Genuine saving faith sometimes calls us to wrestle with the facts of who Christ is.
The woman’s question, did however, produce an increased interest to know more about this stranger. This kind of testimony would certainly stir up a lot of positive and negative emotions. Positive because this testimony is incredible - stirring up the hopes of the people. The testimony could also be taken as negative - as a threat - because some of the towns people probably would think - if Jesus knew everything about this woman, then He would know all the dirt in my life too.
Going back to the beginning of chapter four, and even as it continues in verses 27-29, THE HARVEST IS SOWN. The seeds of belief are first sown in the Samaritan woman, and then Jesus uses her to sow seeds into the hearts of her towns people. Just as a farmer plants a seed, he needs to wait for it to grow - Jesus knows that according to His will, it takes time for a THE HARVEST TO RIPEN.
2. The Harvest Ripens - v.30-38
v.30 - As our narrative continues, we now move on to the second aspect - THE HARVEST RIPENS. As THE HARVEST RIPENS there was a positive response. And this is what happens beginning in verse 38, the people - went out of the city, and were coming to Him. The woman’s witness was received as compelling and credible. It had the positive effect of stirring up urgency in the interest of the people. With their interest kindled and ablaze, the people are at least thinking - Hey, we better go check this guy out ! Despite the trek in the heat - at once they make their way out to Jacob’s well to meet Jesus for themselves.
v.31-33 - As the townspeople are making there way to Jacob’s well, in the meanwhile, Jesus gives the disciples an important lesson. The disciples had returned from their shopping trip, and now had with them the food they had gone into town to buy. So the disciples were urging Jesus - saying - Rabbi, eat. Jesus then takes this opportunity for teaching - He gives the disciples a response with a riddle - I have food to eat that you do not know about. The disciples look at each other puzzled. They posed this possibility to each other - No one brought Him [anything] to eat, did he?
Since Jesus’ conversation with the woman was still fresh in their minds, maybe they thought that she had given Jesus some food. But even this was not a real consideration since, the way they stated their question, in the Greek, expected a negative answer. Their speculations were not a real probability - but their frustration might have been. I know that I would certainly be frustrated, and maybe even quite upset if this happened to me... some one sends you to do something simple, but it turns out that you need to go through great pains to get it done. When you return, the person says to you - don’t worry everything has been taken care of... you find that all your efforts were seemingly wasted.
This is what kinda happens with the disciples. Everyone is hungry - Jesus sends the disciples out to buy food, into a town where they knew that people would be hostile to them. Not only that - they had to walk half a mile to the nearest town to search for food. In addition they had to do this in the hottest part of the day. So when they return from this simple, but rather involved mission - they probably thought Jesus should be quite pleased with the extent of their efforts. So they urged Jesus to eat something. But what does Jesus say to them in verse 32? He says that He already has food. The reality was that the disciples minds were still focused on earthly things. They were not thinking in a heavenly perspective. They were only thinking about the food the inconveniences of getting it. So they press Jesus to eat something.
v.34 - Once again, Jesus’ response was to bring the conversation from an earthly perspective to a heavenly one - just as He did with the Samaritan woman - in speaking about living water . Jesus replies - My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me and to accomplish His work
Jesus takes something as ordinary as food, and He uses this conversation about food, as a spiritual lesson. Jesus wasn’t saying that food was not important, but what Jesus meant was that His mission was as important as the necessity of food. Jesus’ mission was to do the will of God.
Let’s take a step aside at this point, because one of the lessons for the disciples is also a lesson for us. Isn’t it easy for us to get into the same kind of mindset as the disciples? We get bogged down by our material needs. We focus on the physical things in life and we forget that in the end these things are temporal, and not eternal. The point that I am driving at is that we often look at the role of building a career, or whatever it is - you can fill in the blank - and we look at that over and above, the true importance of building a deep relationship with Christ.
Maybe this is where you find yourself today - that you are drinking from the wellspring of earthly life - instead of drinking from the wellspring of eternal life - which has been already given to you as a believer in Christ.
We look eagerly to enjoying our life here on earth - and we are enticed to live by commercial maxims - life’s tough / play hard - ever heard of that one? I am not saying that there is no place for temporal things - I am not saying that material things are evil - because every good and perfect gift comes from above (Js. 1:17). But what I am trying to impress upon each one of you is that often our lives are unbalanced. And I want you to examine your life from a heavenly perspective just like Jesus leads His disciples to do, in our passage. I am focusing your attention on keeping a proper balance - to focus on the necessity for completing the eternal tasks, that God has given each believer to do - each one of you to do - here and now. I encourage you with this reality - if you re-align your heavenly priorities, then it will go without saying that you will experience true satisfaction - you will be living a life that is spiritually deep. Isn’t this what God tells us - seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well - Matt. 6:33. When we maintain a heavenly perspective, we will be spirit-filled, and this brings contentment and joy, knowing that we have been faithful to the good works that have been prepared for us to walk in - as a response to our salvation.
Our passage calls each of us to examine God’s desire for us to greater obedience and dependence upon His will. And part of the picture includes commitment to the local church. I believe that if we are doing everything that we are called by Christ to do here at ‘Cornerstone’ - then this is the point in time, if we desire - this is the right time to get involved in other outside ministries, in other personal activities. This local church is our priority - for Christ has set you here to be the brick layers, as He builds the church. In the churches I have served at, it seems that Christians are on strike. They are walking the picket lines instead of doing the work. If they are working, they are on a ‘work to rule’ basis. Ministry is to be done only because we are pressured into it and we have to - that is the rule. We serve God not because we desire to please Him, but we serve Him because we feel that we have to. In its worse case it is a neglect of the great salvation we have in Jesus Christ. The root is laziness for personal growth - a misunderstanding of the relationship that we have been bought into - because of our salvation. We as believers are no longer slaves to self and sin, but we are slaves of Christ - He is the Lord - not us. We are to put-on Christ and put off self. We are to strive for spiritual discipline, and not spiritual self satisfaction.
Because of our salvation, it is totally about how we can make ourselves more available to Christ - how can I deepen my walk with the Lord - how can I truly demonstrate full commitment to Christ and His local church - to keep that heavenly perspective and forsake the earthly perspective. If we foster a heavenly perspective - it will invariably impact our evangelism. It will place our eyes on the Great Commission - because the more Christ centered we are about church, the level of commitment to His church will increase. Commitment to Christ and His church is the necessary ingredient in loving and growing the local church. If you are not committed to Christ’s church then you will not be committed to others in evangelism. Why? Because evangelism calls for selfless obedience to Christ’s command and a commitment to the lost. I encourage you all to look at the big picture - often we look at - and are distracted by the trees and we miss the beauty of the expanse of the forest - look at the big picture of what God has called you to, in light of your salvation - and the results will be a blessing.
Jesus teaches us some of the best lessons, when we find ourselves confronted with our failures - when we are challenged by the power of His Word? Maybe God is speaking to you this day - encouraging you into a deeper obedience to Christ. If we are heavenly minded, then ‘circumstances’ will not focus us on our self, but instead - upon what God is trying to teach us…in what area is He calling me to a greater commitment to Him….how is God shaping me….in what way is God maturing me? Let us apply what Jesus tells His disciples in verse 34 - that is to ‘do the will of Him who has called us and let Him accomplish His work through us.’
What I have just said is a broad application of the principles laid out in these verses, but the narrow - more direct application - is as I have mentioned is in the realm of the HARVEST FIELD as it ripens. It is in the realm of evangelism. If we commit our self to Christ and His church, then evangelism will become an important part of our Christian growth.
Jesus knowing that the work that He had begun in the woman, and now overflowing upon her community was utterly important. It was the will of Him who sent Jesus. God’s will, to save many of these Samaritans, was Jesus’ primary task - Jesus wanted to accomplish [God’s] work. Jesus never lost sight of His priorities and in this sacrifice, Jesus was willing to go without any lunch. Doing God’s will, the spiritual labour that Jesus engaged Himself in, was much more important. Jesus wanted to teach the disciples this spiritual truth - that God would supply the spiritual resources in order that they can serve God (it also is true that God will provide the material resources). Food was important, but to accomplish God’s work - took precedence - to see the ripening harvest was the priority - the Samaritan woman and her countrymen needed the saving grace of God in their lives.
v.35-37 - Jesus’ immediate priorities are laid out to the disciples more clearly in verse 35. Jesus focuses on the ministry taking root in the Samaritans as they speak. Jesus has already planted the seeds and now the coming harvest is in sight. Jesus once again continues to caution the disciples not to think upon earthly terms - He states to them - Do you not say, `There are yet four months, and [then] comes the harvest'? Jesus is drawing the disciples attention to the earthly perspective that a farmer’s crop takes time to mature and then the harvest of that crop is ready. The farmer plants the seed and waits a fixed period of time, and then the harvest is at hand. In order to focus the disciples attention upon a heavenly perspective, Jesus draws the illustration back to the present work that He is doing in the Samaritans of Sychar. Jesus makes the point that God’s redemptive spiritual work - the spiritual harvest - is always ready and it must be harvested. Jesus directs the eyes of the disciples to look on the fields. I imagine what they would probably have seen was this - maybe this is influenced by Hollywood a little bit - this is what I picture - the disciples are already looking at the farmer’s crops that Jesus was using as an illustration - and then at the crest of the crops is the distant horizon - there is a slight haze rising due to the heat being released from the ground - and something is emerging from the haze - you can’t quite make it out clearly…. but there is just enough visibility to make out that there is a large group of people walking closer - it is all the townspeople coming out through the fields to meet Jesus. Jesus points over to the horizon and states - they are white for harvest. These people are the direct object of the heavenly lesson - the LESSON FROM THE HARVEST FIELD. And what is to be said is the direct application that you and me are to make in our Christian lives too.
The spiritual harvest was about to begin in the Samaritans. The disciples, like a reaper, are called to cut and harvest the crop. The disciples as the reapers - now had the responsibility to harvest the souls of the spiritual crop - by proclaiming the Messiah. Just as the earthly crop and harvest gives physical nourishment, Jesus points out that the heavenly/spiritual crop yields spiritual nourishment - that is life eternal for those individuals who would respond and entrust their lives in the hands of Christ for salvation from their sins. The result of the harvest is that both the sower - Jesus, and the reapers - the disciples - are able to rejoice together.
The point is made by Jesus and now the application is also stated - in verses 37 and 38. It reads "For in this [case] the saying is true, `One sows and another reaps.' 38 "I sent you to reap that for which you have not labored; others have labored and you have entered into their labor." These verses in light of the near context of chapter 4 bring us back to the parallel reality that One sows and another reaps. It was John the Baptist who sowed many seeds in pointing people to the need for repentance in preparation of the Messiah. And even to the greater context of the prophets, that God sent to point people to the coming Saviour. These are the ones that labored - have done the hard work. They are the ones that tilled the soil and have loosened up the ground and planted the seed. These are the believers who were not focusing upon having their needs met, but instead they focused upon their commitment to Christ and served Him in the harvest field.
Our church has been in this community for just over 2 years now. In that time frame many people have come and gone through our doors. And I do not doubt that God will lead some of these people (like yourselves) to stay and to become His labor force. To be the ones that till the soil and loosen up the ground and plant the seed of the gospel into this community. And it is already taking place because there is an increasing knowledge of this church. So it is safe to say that THE HARVEST SOWN, is a reality in this community. Not only this but God has used other churches in planting the seed for us to reap, just as some of you have done the same for other churches. The hard work of sowing has also been done by many other Christian ministries, Christian TV, Radio, Newspapers, etc. So out there in our community is a RIPENED HARVEST FIELD. Some of us here today are being called to do the labour - the hard work too. Some of you whether you realize it or not have the gift of evangelism. The balance of the us may not have the spiritual gift of evangelism, but we also are called to do the Great Commission - we are called to get uncomfortable. We need to be actively making known the gospel to others. We need to be constantly assessing, through prayer, the HARVEST FIELD which is RIPE. We need to continue to till the soil, loosen up the hardened ground, and plant the seed of the gospel in this community; and also in the spheres of influence which God has place you in. It is hard work, but it is not an insurmountable task which cannot be accomplished - why? - because that is part of the LESSON FROM THE HARVEST FIELD that Jesus draws us to - that God will provide the spiritual and physical resources to do His will and to finish His work.
All of us are called to put the Great Commission into action in our day to day circumstances. Jesus is now telling the disciples that they are the ones that are now to prepare to reap the benefits of their labor. The disciples are the ones that will carry forth the Gospel. And we too have been called to do the same - some as sowers and some as reapers.
We are the new generation of disciples in this community - that will carry the torch of the saving grace of the gospel - into the HARVEST FIELD.
(For a full explanation of the Gospel of Jesus Christ - click here - http://www.doihaveeternallife.blogspot.com/)
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Sunday, January 25, 2009
Sunday, January 18, 2009
John 4:1-26 The Fountain of Life
18.01.09 John 4:1-26 (NASB)
Audio Sermon File: John 4:1-26
Going Deeper: Study Guide
The Fountain of Life
In 1508 a man named Ponce sailed the seas with Christopher Columbus, and settled in a place we today know as Puerto Rico. While he was there he heard many stories of a magical water source called ‘The Fountain of Youth.’ Ponce decided that he must find it. After years of research and searching he felt that he knew where it was, the year now was 1513. Off he sailed, with his crew, for the island which he believed contained The Fountain of Youth. He sailed for days but could not see the island named Bi-mini, then he spotted land. What he found was Florida, but no Fountain. Eight years later, he set sail again for Bimini, but once again landed at Florida (still thinking it was an island). In the end Ponce never found the Fountain of Youth. Ironically his search for The Fountain of Youth resulted in his demise, for along the way he was attacked in Florida by native tribesmen. Despite his injuries he set sail and reached Cuba where he entered the hospital, but then met his death. He never found The Fountain Of Life.
Many have sought after the fountain of life, but there are few who have found it. People throughout the ages in nearly all cultures have desired to discover it.
In our journey to discover the fountain of life, we are going to meet a new character. Someone who the Jews classified as a people as being hostile and impure. A people who were despised - a people group called the Samaritans.
I invite you join me in the Bible - John chapter 4:1-26. Allow me to read to you verses 1-4 to set the stage for what is going to happen: Therefore when the Lord knew that the Pharisees had heard that Jesus was making and baptizing more disciples than John 2 (although Jesus Himself was not baptizing, but His disciples were), 3 He left Judea and went away again into Galilee. 4 And He had to pass through Samaria.
v.1-3 As we discovered last week, Jesus’ ministry was growing at a quick pace, and John the Baptist’s ministry was shrinking. Jesus was making and baptizing more disciples than John - yet as I mentioned last week it was not Jesus that doing the baptisms, but it was through His disciples. Because of all the attention that Jesus was getting, the Pharisees took note. The Pharisees were the religious ruling class of the people so they were very keen on investigating this new movement. There was some potentially dangerous results of this popularity, because the authorities could interpret the peoples’ interest as being a political movement - which then would be in direct conflict with the Jews and Romans. Jesus knew about the Pharisees attitude towards Him, therefore He didn’t want an untimely and unwelcomed conflict - so He left the Judean region of Israel. Jesus then heads north back again into Galilee.
v.4 If you have a Bible with some maps in it - it would be helpful to turn to them to get your visual bearings. The quickest way to Galilee would be to go due north right through the Samarian region. But for most Jews, they would take the long route - instead of going through Samaria - the normal Jew would go around Samaria - going east through Perea, then north, and then back west. There were several reasons for this, which are important to understand in order to gain the significance of our passage - these reasons lie in the history between these two peoples going back to the division of the nation of Israel into 2, after Solomon’s rule (931 BC).
The capital city of the northern kingdom was called Samaria - and eventually the entire region became to be known as Samaria.
In 722 BC, God used the Assyrians to capture and exile the Jews to Assyria - which was located in what we know today, as northern Iraq. The Assyrians did leave a large amount of Jews in Samaria, while also transporting many non-Jews into Samaria to occupy the land. A result of mixing these two people groups was intermarriages and syncretistic religion.
When the exiled Jews returned to their own land, tensions developed. As a result the Samaritans withdrew their worship from the temple in Jerusalem and established Mt. Gerazim in Samaria as the new worship center. In addition the Samaritans rejected the OT canon, and only accepted the Pentateuch as authoritative. When the Jerusalem temple was being rebuilt, the Samaritans were barred from participating (Ezra 4:1-3). Later in 128 BC a Jewish leader lead an attack on the Samaritans and as a result the temple at Mt. Gerazim was destroyed. Because of these - and other related factors - the Jews viewed the Samaritans as being unclean, half-breed, apostates. There was intense hatred among the Jews and Samaritans, so it was the norm to avoid contact with each other.
Now back to verse 4 - Jesus as it states in this verse - He had to pass through Samaria. There in this verse is a strong sense of compulsion, by Jesus, to go the more ‘dangerous’ route. There is a necessity for Christ to minister to the 'enemy.'
As we now enter into the core of our passage - it will also reveal to us THE FOUNTAIN OF LIFE as we examine:
THE OFFER v.5-15
THE CONFRONTATION v.16-20
THE REVELATION v.21-26
In this passage we will discover that THE FOUNTAIN OF LIFE is not a place but a Person, and that Person who is the source of THE FOUNTAIN OF LIFE is Jesus Christ.
We continue reading our passage from verse 5 to 26:
5 So He came to a city of Samaria called Sychar, near the parcel of ground that Jacob gave to his son Joseph; 6 and Jacob's well was there. So Jesus, being wearied from His journey, was sitting thus by the well. It was about the sixth hour. 7 There came a woman of Samaria to draw water. Jesus said to her, "Give Me a drink." 8 For His disciples had gone away into the city to buy food. 9 Therefore the Samaritan woman said to Him, "How is it that You, being a Jew, ask me for a drink since I am a Samaritan woman?" (For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.) 10 Jesus answered and said to her, "If you knew the gift of God, and who it is who says to you, `Give Me a drink,' you would have asked Him, and He would have given you living water." 11 She ^said to Him, "Sir, You have nothing to draw with and the well is deep; where then do You get that living water? 12 "You are not greater than our father Jacob, are You, who gave us the well, and drank of it himself and his sons and his cattle?" 13 Jesus answered and said to her, "Everyone who drinks of this water will thirst again; 14 but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him shall never thirst; but the water that I will give him will become in him a well of water springing up to eternal life." 15 The woman said to Him, "Sir, give me this water, so I will not be thirsty nor come all the way here to draw." 16 He said to her, "Go, call your husband and come here." 17 The woman answered and said, "I have no husband." Jesus said to her, "You have correctly said, `I have no husband'; 18 for you have had five husbands, and the one whom you now have is not your husband; this you have said truly." 19 The woman said to Him, "Sir, I perceive that You are a prophet. 20 "Our fathers worshiped in this mountain, and you [people] say that in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship." 21 Jesus said to her, "Woman, believe Me, an hour is coming when neither in this mountain nor in Jerusalem will you worship the Father. 22 "You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews. 23 "But an hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for such people the Father seeks to be His worshipers. 24 "God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth." 25 The woman said to Him, "I know that Messiah is coming (He who is called Christ); when that One comes, He will declare all things to us." 26 Jesus said to her, "I who speak to you am [He]."
1. THE OFFER (v.5-15)
- The offer to the Fountain of Life
v.5-6 - Jesus arrives at a town called Sychar, which is near the OT city of Shechem, about half a mile from Jacob’s well. You may recall that the land that this well was located, was purchased by Jacob from the children from Hamor for 100 pieces of money in Gen. 33:19. Later in Gen. 48:22, Jacob gave his son Joseph, a part of that land. The exact location of the well is undisputed by Jews, Muslims, Samaritans, and Christians. The well today is in a crypt of an Orthodox church. It is still active today and has been long known for its depth - providing refreshing cool water.
The well lies between the foot of Mt. Ebal and that of Mt. Gerazim - Mt. Gerazim, as I mentioned earlier, being the center of Samaritan worship. Jesus arrives at the well wearied by the journey. He sits down - and the Apostle John notes that it was about the sixth hour, according to Jewish time keeping - making it around noon. We should note that in our passage today we see both aspects of Christ’s character - he gets tired - emphasizing His humanity - and later on we will see the revelation of His Deity.
This is where the story begins. Noon time would be an unusual time to be getting water - due to the Mediterranean heat, but for an un-stated reason a woman came - yet of course the meeting was not by mere accident - but on the grand scale - it was by divine appointment. All the events take place in the heat of the day. We have to remember that the well was a half mile walk to the town for this woman. Some people suggest that she intentionally came at this hour because it was outside the normal time that the other women would draw their water. By doing so the woman could avoid perhaps the scorn that she could face because of her characteristic lifestyle, as we will discover in verse 18.
v.7-9 This is the scenario beginning in verse 7, as we witness a series of taboos:
Taboo #1 - A person of a traditionally despised race comes to the well to draw water. If you glance down at the end of verse 9 - John gives us an historical insight - it reads (For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans).
Taboo #2 - Not only was she a despised Samaritan, she was also a woman. This is what a Jewish document states (Mishnah - Niddah 4.1) - ‘The daughters of the Samaritans are deemed unclean as menstruants from their cradle.’ So according to the Rabbinic Jews of that day, a person was considered to share in this ritual impurity if he took food or drink from the hand or vessel of a Samaritan woman.
Despite these taboos, Jesus interacted with her, because He was interested in her spiritual needs. Jesus’ opening line to initiate a conversation is - Give Me a drink. This respectful and polite request - opens the door to direct the conversation into the spiritual realm. The reason for his request is given in verse 8 - For His disciples had gone away into the city to buy food.
With Jesus’ request, it invokes some surprise in the woman - she is startled. She probably immediately thinks about the taboos that I mentioned.
v.10 - Yet Jesus continues the conversation. He demonstrate to us that He is not bound by tradition or prejudice. Jesus quickly brings the topic into the spiritual with two assertions. If the woman: knew the gift of God; and recognized who she was speaking to, that had asked for a drink - she would have asked and received living water.
In other words Jesus was indicating that the woman: needed to know salvation - she needed to know eternal life (Jn. 3:16); and secondly - needed to know the Saviour -who was the sole source of that salvation….then she would have living water.
If we stop and think about what water is - we will find that in our day to day life, we use water as a life sustaining agent and we also use it as a cleansing agent - we drink it and we use it to wash things. The term ‘living water’ at this time was commonly used to indicate water that flowed from a spring, as opposed to water from a still source like a cistern. In Jewish thinking and Scripture, the word - water, was used as a metaphor for divine blessing, redemption, and cleansing.
And now, here in verse 10, Jesus uses it to refer to Himself. In other words Jesus is pointing out that in Him, He is the ‘FOUNTAIN OF LIFE. Spiritual refreshment can be found only in Jesus.
v.11- This is the reply of the woman - Sir, You have nothing to draw with and the well is deep. It is quite apparent that she is still thinking in earthly terms. As a resident and user of the well, she was well aquatinted with the characteristics of the well. She would have known that Jacob’s well was really deep - more than 100 feet deep. So she was probably thinking - first You ask me for a drink - and now You are telling me that You can give me some water ? Strange! And of course she would have observed that Jesus had nothing to draw up the water from the well. So she is really puzzled and comes out and asks - where then do You get that living water? She is still thinking in literal terms - thinking about the water, which was so far down the well hole.
v.12-14 - The woman begins to formulate in her mind that perhaps… this guy standing right in front me….maybe He is someone unique. Let me ask Him this… - verse 12 - You are not greater than our father Jacob, are You. From the words used in the Greek (negative particle - me) we know that she was expecting a negative answer. Jesus doesn’t give her the answer to her question - but He continues to raise the level of her interest. Jesus knew her spiritual needs - for He knows all hearts. But Jesus uses a comparison of the ‘living water’ He offers, to that of the natural waters of Jacob’s well - Everyone who drinks of this water will thirst again. In other words the water from this well is only good for satisfying your thirst for a short time.
Isn’t it true that people search every where and everything for the opportunity to look a bit younger - live a little bit longer. But, apart from Christ’s Divine working in their life, they never can discover the truth because they never find the sole source for THE FOUNTAIN OF LIFE.
Jesus is offering the woman water, living water, that will quench her thirst eternally. Jesus offers that to us too, right now. Wow, what an offer. This offer is more than just a cup or some vessel containing a source of quenching, it is more than some temporal solution to live a bit more or healthier - but instead it is an offer to THE FOUNTAIN OF LIFE. A perpetual wellspring of spiritual refreshment. Jesus’ offer is eternal….eternal life. Jesus masterfully shifts the conversation from earthly things to an object lesson about heavenly realities. Jesus gives us a model to follow here. When we encounter friends, family, strangers, co-workers we can point people toward Christ by using our conversations about ordinary things as an entry point into spiritual things. When people are open to spiritual things then we can use the ordinary as an object lesson about heavenly realities. We can discuss their spiritual views and then reveal to them the saving grace of the gospel.
v.15 - Up to this point the woman was focusing on everything stated, from an earthly perspective. In her mind as we can discern from verse 15 - the woman is only thinking of personal convenience. She says to Jesus - Sir, give me this water, so I will not be thirsty nor come all the way here to draw. In other words she is saying that she wanted the convenience of having access to living water, so that she didn’t have to go to the well every day. I guess she was expecting some kind of super thirst quenching drink - some kind of new invention - a different kind of water than was the norm.
Her conscience was still not up to speed to the spiritual offer Jesus made, and the connection to eternal life. Her mind was blinded by sin. But now comes -
2. THE CONFRONTATION (v.16-20)
- The confrontation of what keeps one from the Fountain of Life.
v.16-17 - In a rather dramatic shift - Jesus raises up the issue of sin in her life and confronts the issue by telling her to - Go, call your husband and come here. In her mind maybe she was thinking - Ouch ! Hey Jesus aren’t you getting a little too personal right now?
One commentator wrote this: "Just as a surgeon must treat an ugly cancer, so the great Physician must deal with sin to bring spiritual healing." - Laney
It is hard in our society to talk about sin. It is an uncomfortable topic, but if we are to bring the gospel to others then the issue of sin cannot be avoided or minimized. Jesus deals with the topic of sin in her life. The woman responds - I have no husband. And Jesus responds to her by saying - You have correctly said, `I have no husband.' Keep in mind that Jesus is a total stranger to this woman. And at this point we should also remind ourselves that the woman is speaking unknowingly, to God the Son, and as such He can know the thoughts of her heart. The word husband in Greek can mean man or husband. So the woman being confronted about her sin, chose her words very carefully. She could say that she had no legal husband, but under the veil of her words she tried to veil the truth - she did have her man - a man that she was in a common-law relationship with - an adulterous relationship.
v.18-19 - Jesus continues on confronting her sin, and brings to light the facts. The reality was that she had been married five times - as the text states - you have had five husbands. The man that she was with right now was not her husband. Feeling the heat - sensing the convicting presence of the Holy Spirit - recognizing that this stranger can reveal her life details - she realizes that this stranger - Jesus - was no ordinary person. She comes to this conclusion - Sir, I perceive that You are a prophet.
Under the pressure to acknowledge her sins, the woman tries to change the subject. Isn’t that a typical thing to do. When faced with the truth, and when we don’t want to deal with it we try to change the topic, or we just drop the subject. Being faced with God’s presence do you get jittery….do you get uncomfortable because your life doesn’t match up to your profession of faith?
It was obvious from the context of our passage, that the woman had the knowledge of worship which would include access to the Mosaic Law - but her life didn’t match up to God’s Word. She became uncomfortable. What are the details of your life as a professed believer, which have not been given over to Christ? We all have them….maybe it is anger, perhaps self-centeredness opposed to God centeredness, how about impatience, maybe it is addiction to work - your a workaholic, maybe its addiction to money, to food. Take some time today to bring it to the Lord in repentance….so that under the searching presence of the Holy Spirit - you no longer need to change the subject. Sin obscures the truth.
v.20 - The woman doesn’t want to go down the path that Jesus is headed - so she changes the topic - she brings up a historical and religious tension between the Jews and Samaritans - the major issue of where God has ordained worship to take place. As I addressed at the beginning of the sermon the Jews worshipped at Jerusalem and the Samaritans, as stated in verse 20 - in this mountain - ie - at Mt. Gerazim, due to historical factors. Yet Jesus being the Master of circumstances moves toward:
3. THE REVELATION (v.21-26)
- The revelation of the One who is the Fountain of Life
v.21 - Jesus doesn’t jump in on the debate, but rather states that worship of the Father, in the future, will not be exclusively at either of these two places. Worship would not be limited by a place. Jesus was speaking of the change of dispensations from the Old Covenant to the New Covenant. We as believers today are under the New Covenant. With the Old Covenant the worshipper and worship was tied together by a location - that being the tabernacle or temple - where God’s presence would dwell. Today we are not bound by worship that is tied to a specific building or place. Instead the New Covenant believer because of Christ’s redemptive work on the cross, is able to worship anywhere.
So do we need a church building? Yes and no. Yes because it helps people identify us and it is a tool for ministry. No - because the New Covenant believer is indwelt with the Holy Spirit and may worship without the building. Another question we could ask is - Do we need to go to church then? Yes - Hebrews 10:24-25 states - And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. 25 Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another--and all the more as you see the Day approaching. God reveals to us through His Word that by meeting together we are able to encourage one another to serve Him. In addition we are instructed to meet together corporately, especially in light of Christ’s near return. What Hebrews is telling us is that you better get your act together - in terms of a deep commitment to worship - because Christ is coming very soon. So it is that for the born again Christian - worship is our supreme and absolute priority.
v.22 - Jesus didn’t debate with the woman, but simply He stated the truth. He clarifies that Samaritan worship was based upon their peoples own ignorance. In contrast the Jews accepted all of God’s revealed Scripture and therefore had the right knowledge and place of worship - though as a whole they did not recognize Christ for who He is. Jesus then affirms that God’s plan of salvation is from the Jew first, and from that point on to the peoples of the world.
v.23-24 - Since the woman had the wrong kind of worship, Jesus now proceeds to give to her the nature of true worship. Jesus says that - an hour is coming, and in fact with His Incarnation - now is - it has now come - follow with me in verse 23 - when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth. Jesus speaks of true worshippers - He is referring to people who worship God. Literally worship means to bow the knee, to worship - suggesting ascribing reverence, adoration, and honour, to God. These are people whose hearts are solely focused on God and not idols. These are people who will be identified as true worshipers, not by a identifiable location like Mt. Gerazim or Jerusalem - or even this building that we are in. But rather these true worshipers will be identified by their worship of the Father through Jesus Christ His Son.
These are people who worship God in spirit. What does it mean to worship in spirit? To worship in spirit is to worship God in His true nature which is spirit - if we glance down at verse 24 - God is spirit. The nature of God is that He is emphatically invisible, unlike us who are of a physical or material nature. We would never have been able to comprehend the invisible God, but we are only able to do so because God has revealed it to us through the Bible and the Incarnation. Because God is invisible spirit, our worship must be in the spiritual realm. To worship in spirit does not refer to the Holy Spirit, but to our own human spirit. Spirit, speaks of a heart attitude - it is not an outward religious conformity - like what Nicodemus back in chapter 3 was involved with. It is not tied to a location. But worshipping God in spirit involves having a regenerated heart through believing in Jesus Christ.
Not only do we worship God in spirit, but we are called to worship Him in truth. The word truth is tied to the fact that God is true and that His fundamental and unchangeable nature is truth. God cannot lie. Therefore true worship needs to take place in the realm of revealed truth found in the Bible. Our worship must be filtered through the pages of Scripture. It needs to be centered upon the Word made flesh (Jn. 1:14) - Jesus Christ. Worship of God without Christ at the heart of the picture, is not true spiritual worship. If Jesus Christ is not your Lord and Saviour you will have no proper worship of God - just like the Samaritan woman. Her sin blocked her worship, so did her lack of knowledge, and therefore Christ in His grace and mercy draws her in and opens her eyes.
The kind of worshipers the Father is actively seeking are those who worship Him in spirit and truth. These are the kind of people that God desires to worship Him - people who acknowledge and repent of their sin, and turn in belief in Jesus Christ as their personal Lord and Saviour - people who are spiritually born again, and now ascribe to God what He is worthy of.
Christians are a people who worship the true God, sincerely and authentically from the heart. We worship God because we want to exalt Him for who He is, and not for what we can get out of Him. We worship Him if even if we find the world crumbling in upon us - like our global financial crisis. We worship Him even if our music might not be where it could be - we worship Him even if the sermon doesn’t tickle our ears, we worship Him even if our friends are not here, we worship Him because He is worthy to be worshipped - and we do it in spirit and truth.
Often we think these outward things make a worship worship. We tend to think that if we don’t have the things other churches have then ‘I need to find a better worship service.’ Jesus reveals to us what true worship is. Everything apart from worship in spirit and truth, is outward and can be done away with, because they are not the essentials. They are there in order to compliment our spiritual worship.
In verse 24 is our mandate as professing believers - those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth. This is the second time the phrase, in spirit and truth is mentioned - so it is something that cannot be overlooked. It is important to worship God in this way. In fact as the verse states it is a - must, not an option. It is an absolute necessity, which is tied directly with THE FOUNTAIN OF LIFE. Worship is man’s highest calling - worship of God through Christ, is the believers’ supreme and absolute priority.
We are saved unto worship of our Saviour. Jesus Christ makes it clear to the Samaritan woman that she needs to worship, and she knows that she is not doing so because her life is a web of lies. There is something missing in her life - the cleansing power of knowing Jesus Christ. There are areas of her life which need to be swept clean, and she realizes this…and she looks forward to that that time.
v.25-26 We close with these 2 final verses. This is how the woman responds to Jesus - she says - I know that Messiah is coming… when that One comes, He will declare all things to us. The conversation turns again, this time to the coming Messiah. The woman as her religion would have believed, is that the Messiah will come as a teacher and restorer of true worship. Perhaps she sensed this in this unique stranger - named Jesus. After all, He spoke so plainly about her tainted life, and so captivatingly about true worship. He broke the bounds of history and tradition in speaking with her. She was a social outcast even in her own community, but Jesus reached out to her. We have a powerful witness recorded for us to ponder as we close - Jesus said to her, "I who speak to you am [He].
In the circumstances of our passage today, Jesus Christ the God-man reaches out and reveals His Deity, not to the elite, and not even to His disciples, but He reveals it to a person of a despised people group - a Samaritan woman - who like us are lowly sinners who have offended a holy God. In this plain, short, yet powerful statement - Jesus declares that He is the Messiah, the Son of God. This declaration should be noted - it literally is translated as - I am, the one speaking to you. And as such it is a self declaration that Jesus is the Great I AM of the Old Testament (Ex. 3:14). The point is made - a Divine revelation is made - no further discussions are necessary. How does one respond to such a mind blowing revelation…except to bow down in humility - to repent of sin and to be saved by the Messiah… and to worship Him in spirit and truth.
Jesus Christ is life, and He is the THE FOUNTAIN OF LIFE, giving to those who believe in Him - eternal life... a life that is worth living.
(For a full explanation of the Gospel of Jesus Christ - click here - http://www.doihaveeternallife.blogspot.com/)
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Audio Sermon File: John 4:1-26
Going Deeper: Study Guide
The Fountain of Life
In 1508 a man named Ponce sailed the seas with Christopher Columbus, and settled in a place we today know as Puerto Rico. While he was there he heard many stories of a magical water source called ‘The Fountain of Youth.’ Ponce decided that he must find it. After years of research and searching he felt that he knew where it was, the year now was 1513. Off he sailed, with his crew, for the island which he believed contained The Fountain of Youth. He sailed for days but could not see the island named Bi-mini, then he spotted land. What he found was Florida, but no Fountain. Eight years later, he set sail again for Bimini, but once again landed at Florida (still thinking it was an island). In the end Ponce never found the Fountain of Youth. Ironically his search for The Fountain of Youth resulted in his demise, for along the way he was attacked in Florida by native tribesmen. Despite his injuries he set sail and reached Cuba where he entered the hospital, but then met his death. He never found The Fountain Of Life.
Many have sought after the fountain of life, but there are few who have found it. People throughout the ages in nearly all cultures have desired to discover it.
In our journey to discover the fountain of life, we are going to meet a new character. Someone who the Jews classified as a people as being hostile and impure. A people who were despised - a people group called the Samaritans.
I invite you join me in the Bible - John chapter 4:1-26. Allow me to read to you verses 1-4 to set the stage for what is going to happen: Therefore when the Lord knew that the Pharisees had heard that Jesus was making and baptizing more disciples than John 2 (although Jesus Himself was not baptizing, but His disciples were), 3 He left Judea and went away again into Galilee. 4 And He had to pass through Samaria.
v.1-3 As we discovered last week, Jesus’ ministry was growing at a quick pace, and John the Baptist’s ministry was shrinking. Jesus was making and baptizing more disciples than John - yet as I mentioned last week it was not Jesus that doing the baptisms, but it was through His disciples. Because of all the attention that Jesus was getting, the Pharisees took note. The Pharisees were the religious ruling class of the people so they were very keen on investigating this new movement. There was some potentially dangerous results of this popularity, because the authorities could interpret the peoples’ interest as being a political movement - which then would be in direct conflict with the Jews and Romans. Jesus knew about the Pharisees attitude towards Him, therefore He didn’t want an untimely and unwelcomed conflict - so He left the Judean region of Israel. Jesus then heads north back again into Galilee.
v.4 If you have a Bible with some maps in it - it would be helpful to turn to them to get your visual bearings. The quickest way to Galilee would be to go due north right through the Samarian region. But for most Jews, they would take the long route - instead of going through Samaria - the normal Jew would go around Samaria - going east through Perea, then north, and then back west. There were several reasons for this, which are important to understand in order to gain the significance of our passage - these reasons lie in the history between these two peoples going back to the division of the nation of Israel into 2, after Solomon’s rule (931 BC).
The capital city of the northern kingdom was called Samaria - and eventually the entire region became to be known as Samaria.
In 722 BC, God used the Assyrians to capture and exile the Jews to Assyria - which was located in what we know today, as northern Iraq. The Assyrians did leave a large amount of Jews in Samaria, while also transporting many non-Jews into Samaria to occupy the land. A result of mixing these two people groups was intermarriages and syncretistic religion.
When the exiled Jews returned to their own land, tensions developed. As a result the Samaritans withdrew their worship from the temple in Jerusalem and established Mt. Gerazim in Samaria as the new worship center. In addition the Samaritans rejected the OT canon, and only accepted the Pentateuch as authoritative. When the Jerusalem temple was being rebuilt, the Samaritans were barred from participating (Ezra 4:1-3). Later in 128 BC a Jewish leader lead an attack on the Samaritans and as a result the temple at Mt. Gerazim was destroyed. Because of these - and other related factors - the Jews viewed the Samaritans as being unclean, half-breed, apostates. There was intense hatred among the Jews and Samaritans, so it was the norm to avoid contact with each other.
Now back to verse 4 - Jesus as it states in this verse - He had to pass through Samaria. There in this verse is a strong sense of compulsion, by Jesus, to go the more ‘dangerous’ route. There is a necessity for Christ to minister to the 'enemy.'
As we now enter into the core of our passage - it will also reveal to us THE FOUNTAIN OF LIFE as we examine:
THE OFFER v.5-15
THE CONFRONTATION v.16-20
THE REVELATION v.21-26
In this passage we will discover that THE FOUNTAIN OF LIFE is not a place but a Person, and that Person who is the source of THE FOUNTAIN OF LIFE is Jesus Christ.
We continue reading our passage from verse 5 to 26:
5 So He came to a city of Samaria called Sychar, near the parcel of ground that Jacob gave to his son Joseph; 6 and Jacob's well was there. So Jesus, being wearied from His journey, was sitting thus by the well. It was about the sixth hour. 7 There came a woman of Samaria to draw water. Jesus said to her, "Give Me a drink." 8 For His disciples had gone away into the city to buy food. 9 Therefore the Samaritan woman said to Him, "How is it that You, being a Jew, ask me for a drink since I am a Samaritan woman?" (For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.) 10 Jesus answered and said to her, "If you knew the gift of God, and who it is who says to you, `Give Me a drink,' you would have asked Him, and He would have given you living water." 11 She ^said to Him, "Sir, You have nothing to draw with and the well is deep; where then do You get that living water? 12 "You are not greater than our father Jacob, are You, who gave us the well, and drank of it himself and his sons and his cattle?" 13 Jesus answered and said to her, "Everyone who drinks of this water will thirst again; 14 but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him shall never thirst; but the water that I will give him will become in him a well of water springing up to eternal life." 15 The woman said to Him, "Sir, give me this water, so I will not be thirsty nor come all the way here to draw." 16 He said to her, "Go, call your husband and come here." 17 The woman answered and said, "I have no husband." Jesus said to her, "You have correctly said, `I have no husband'; 18 for you have had five husbands, and the one whom you now have is not your husband; this you have said truly." 19 The woman said to Him, "Sir, I perceive that You are a prophet. 20 "Our fathers worshiped in this mountain, and you [people] say that in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship." 21 Jesus said to her, "Woman, believe Me, an hour is coming when neither in this mountain nor in Jerusalem will you worship the Father. 22 "You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews. 23 "But an hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for such people the Father seeks to be His worshipers. 24 "God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth." 25 The woman said to Him, "I know that Messiah is coming (He who is called Christ); when that One comes, He will declare all things to us." 26 Jesus said to her, "I who speak to you am [He]."
1. THE OFFER (v.5-15)
- The offer to the Fountain of Life
v.5-6 - Jesus arrives at a town called Sychar, which is near the OT city of Shechem, about half a mile from Jacob’s well. You may recall that the land that this well was located, was purchased by Jacob from the children from Hamor for 100 pieces of money in Gen. 33:19. Later in Gen. 48:22, Jacob gave his son Joseph, a part of that land. The exact location of the well is undisputed by Jews, Muslims, Samaritans, and Christians. The well today is in a crypt of an Orthodox church. It is still active today and has been long known for its depth - providing refreshing cool water.
The well lies between the foot of Mt. Ebal and that of Mt. Gerazim - Mt. Gerazim, as I mentioned earlier, being the center of Samaritan worship. Jesus arrives at the well wearied by the journey. He sits down - and the Apostle John notes that it was about the sixth hour, according to Jewish time keeping - making it around noon. We should note that in our passage today we see both aspects of Christ’s character - he gets tired - emphasizing His humanity - and later on we will see the revelation of His Deity.
This is where the story begins. Noon time would be an unusual time to be getting water - due to the Mediterranean heat, but for an un-stated reason a woman came - yet of course the meeting was not by mere accident - but on the grand scale - it was by divine appointment. All the events take place in the heat of the day. We have to remember that the well was a half mile walk to the town for this woman. Some people suggest that she intentionally came at this hour because it was outside the normal time that the other women would draw their water. By doing so the woman could avoid perhaps the scorn that she could face because of her characteristic lifestyle, as we will discover in verse 18.
v.7-9 This is the scenario beginning in verse 7, as we witness a series of taboos:
Taboo #1 - A person of a traditionally despised race comes to the well to draw water. If you glance down at the end of verse 9 - John gives us an historical insight - it reads (For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans).
Taboo #2 - Not only was she a despised Samaritan, she was also a woman. This is what a Jewish document states (Mishnah - Niddah 4.1) - ‘The daughters of the Samaritans are deemed unclean as menstruants from their cradle.’ So according to the Rabbinic Jews of that day, a person was considered to share in this ritual impurity if he took food or drink from the hand or vessel of a Samaritan woman.
Despite these taboos, Jesus interacted with her, because He was interested in her spiritual needs. Jesus’ opening line to initiate a conversation is - Give Me a drink. This respectful and polite request - opens the door to direct the conversation into the spiritual realm. The reason for his request is given in verse 8 - For His disciples had gone away into the city to buy food.
With Jesus’ request, it invokes some surprise in the woman - she is startled. She probably immediately thinks about the taboos that I mentioned.
v.10 - Yet Jesus continues the conversation. He demonstrate to us that He is not bound by tradition or prejudice. Jesus quickly brings the topic into the spiritual with two assertions. If the woman: knew the gift of God; and recognized who she was speaking to, that had asked for a drink - she would have asked and received living water.
In other words Jesus was indicating that the woman: needed to know salvation - she needed to know eternal life (Jn. 3:16); and secondly - needed to know the Saviour -who was the sole source of that salvation….then she would have living water.
If we stop and think about what water is - we will find that in our day to day life, we use water as a life sustaining agent and we also use it as a cleansing agent - we drink it and we use it to wash things. The term ‘living water’ at this time was commonly used to indicate water that flowed from a spring, as opposed to water from a still source like a cistern. In Jewish thinking and Scripture, the word - water, was used as a metaphor for divine blessing, redemption, and cleansing.
And now, here in verse 10, Jesus uses it to refer to Himself. In other words Jesus is pointing out that in Him, He is the ‘FOUNTAIN OF LIFE. Spiritual refreshment can be found only in Jesus.
v.11- This is the reply of the woman - Sir, You have nothing to draw with and the well is deep. It is quite apparent that she is still thinking in earthly terms. As a resident and user of the well, she was well aquatinted with the characteristics of the well. She would have known that Jacob’s well was really deep - more than 100 feet deep. So she was probably thinking - first You ask me for a drink - and now You are telling me that You can give me some water ? Strange! And of course she would have observed that Jesus had nothing to draw up the water from the well. So she is really puzzled and comes out and asks - where then do You get that living water? She is still thinking in literal terms - thinking about the water, which was so far down the well hole.
v.12-14 - The woman begins to formulate in her mind that perhaps… this guy standing right in front me….maybe He is someone unique. Let me ask Him this… - verse 12 - You are not greater than our father Jacob, are You. From the words used in the Greek (negative particle - me) we know that she was expecting a negative answer. Jesus doesn’t give her the answer to her question - but He continues to raise the level of her interest. Jesus knew her spiritual needs - for He knows all hearts. But Jesus uses a comparison of the ‘living water’ He offers, to that of the natural waters of Jacob’s well - Everyone who drinks of this water will thirst again. In other words the water from this well is only good for satisfying your thirst for a short time.
Isn’t it true that people search every where and everything for the opportunity to look a bit younger - live a little bit longer. But, apart from Christ’s Divine working in their life, they never can discover the truth because they never find the sole source for THE FOUNTAIN OF LIFE.
Jesus is offering the woman water, living water, that will quench her thirst eternally. Jesus offers that to us too, right now. Wow, what an offer. This offer is more than just a cup or some vessel containing a source of quenching, it is more than some temporal solution to live a bit more or healthier - but instead it is an offer to THE FOUNTAIN OF LIFE. A perpetual wellspring of spiritual refreshment. Jesus’ offer is eternal….eternal life. Jesus masterfully shifts the conversation from earthly things to an object lesson about heavenly realities. Jesus gives us a model to follow here. When we encounter friends, family, strangers, co-workers we can point people toward Christ by using our conversations about ordinary things as an entry point into spiritual things. When people are open to spiritual things then we can use the ordinary as an object lesson about heavenly realities. We can discuss their spiritual views and then reveal to them the saving grace of the gospel.
v.15 - Up to this point the woman was focusing on everything stated, from an earthly perspective. In her mind as we can discern from verse 15 - the woman is only thinking of personal convenience. She says to Jesus - Sir, give me this water, so I will not be thirsty nor come all the way here to draw. In other words she is saying that she wanted the convenience of having access to living water, so that she didn’t have to go to the well every day. I guess she was expecting some kind of super thirst quenching drink - some kind of new invention - a different kind of water than was the norm.
Her conscience was still not up to speed to the spiritual offer Jesus made, and the connection to eternal life. Her mind was blinded by sin. But now comes -
2. THE CONFRONTATION (v.16-20)
- The confrontation of what keeps one from the Fountain of Life.
v.16-17 - In a rather dramatic shift - Jesus raises up the issue of sin in her life and confronts the issue by telling her to - Go, call your husband and come here. In her mind maybe she was thinking - Ouch ! Hey Jesus aren’t you getting a little too personal right now?
One commentator wrote this: "Just as a surgeon must treat an ugly cancer, so the great Physician must deal with sin to bring spiritual healing." - Laney
It is hard in our society to talk about sin. It is an uncomfortable topic, but if we are to bring the gospel to others then the issue of sin cannot be avoided or minimized. Jesus deals with the topic of sin in her life. The woman responds - I have no husband. And Jesus responds to her by saying - You have correctly said, `I have no husband.' Keep in mind that Jesus is a total stranger to this woman. And at this point we should also remind ourselves that the woman is speaking unknowingly, to God the Son, and as such He can know the thoughts of her heart. The word husband in Greek can mean man or husband. So the woman being confronted about her sin, chose her words very carefully. She could say that she had no legal husband, but under the veil of her words she tried to veil the truth - she did have her man - a man that she was in a common-law relationship with - an adulterous relationship.
v.18-19 - Jesus continues on confronting her sin, and brings to light the facts. The reality was that she had been married five times - as the text states - you have had five husbands. The man that she was with right now was not her husband. Feeling the heat - sensing the convicting presence of the Holy Spirit - recognizing that this stranger can reveal her life details - she realizes that this stranger - Jesus - was no ordinary person. She comes to this conclusion - Sir, I perceive that You are a prophet.
Under the pressure to acknowledge her sins, the woman tries to change the subject. Isn’t that a typical thing to do. When faced with the truth, and when we don’t want to deal with it we try to change the topic, or we just drop the subject. Being faced with God’s presence do you get jittery….do you get uncomfortable because your life doesn’t match up to your profession of faith?
It was obvious from the context of our passage, that the woman had the knowledge of worship which would include access to the Mosaic Law - but her life didn’t match up to God’s Word. She became uncomfortable. What are the details of your life as a professed believer, which have not been given over to Christ? We all have them….maybe it is anger, perhaps self-centeredness opposed to God centeredness, how about impatience, maybe it is addiction to work - your a workaholic, maybe its addiction to money, to food. Take some time today to bring it to the Lord in repentance….so that under the searching presence of the Holy Spirit - you no longer need to change the subject. Sin obscures the truth.
v.20 - The woman doesn’t want to go down the path that Jesus is headed - so she changes the topic - she brings up a historical and religious tension between the Jews and Samaritans - the major issue of where God has ordained worship to take place. As I addressed at the beginning of the sermon the Jews worshipped at Jerusalem and the Samaritans, as stated in verse 20 - in this mountain - ie - at Mt. Gerazim, due to historical factors. Yet Jesus being the Master of circumstances moves toward:
3. THE REVELATION (v.21-26)
- The revelation of the One who is the Fountain of Life
v.21 - Jesus doesn’t jump in on the debate, but rather states that worship of the Father, in the future, will not be exclusively at either of these two places. Worship would not be limited by a place. Jesus was speaking of the change of dispensations from the Old Covenant to the New Covenant. We as believers today are under the New Covenant. With the Old Covenant the worshipper and worship was tied together by a location - that being the tabernacle or temple - where God’s presence would dwell. Today we are not bound by worship that is tied to a specific building or place. Instead the New Covenant believer because of Christ’s redemptive work on the cross, is able to worship anywhere.
So do we need a church building? Yes and no. Yes because it helps people identify us and it is a tool for ministry. No - because the New Covenant believer is indwelt with the Holy Spirit and may worship without the building. Another question we could ask is - Do we need to go to church then? Yes - Hebrews 10:24-25 states - And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. 25 Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another--and all the more as you see the Day approaching. God reveals to us through His Word that by meeting together we are able to encourage one another to serve Him. In addition we are instructed to meet together corporately, especially in light of Christ’s near return. What Hebrews is telling us is that you better get your act together - in terms of a deep commitment to worship - because Christ is coming very soon. So it is that for the born again Christian - worship is our supreme and absolute priority.
v.22 - Jesus didn’t debate with the woman, but simply He stated the truth. He clarifies that Samaritan worship was based upon their peoples own ignorance. In contrast the Jews accepted all of God’s revealed Scripture and therefore had the right knowledge and place of worship - though as a whole they did not recognize Christ for who He is. Jesus then affirms that God’s plan of salvation is from the Jew first, and from that point on to the peoples of the world.
v.23-24 - Since the woman had the wrong kind of worship, Jesus now proceeds to give to her the nature of true worship. Jesus says that - an hour is coming, and in fact with His Incarnation - now is - it has now come - follow with me in verse 23 - when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth. Jesus speaks of true worshippers - He is referring to people who worship God. Literally worship means to bow the knee, to worship - suggesting ascribing reverence, adoration, and honour, to God. These are people whose hearts are solely focused on God and not idols. These are people who will be identified as true worshipers, not by a identifiable location like Mt. Gerazim or Jerusalem - or even this building that we are in. But rather these true worshipers will be identified by their worship of the Father through Jesus Christ His Son.
These are people who worship God in spirit. What does it mean to worship in spirit? To worship in spirit is to worship God in His true nature which is spirit - if we glance down at verse 24 - God is spirit. The nature of God is that He is emphatically invisible, unlike us who are of a physical or material nature. We would never have been able to comprehend the invisible God, but we are only able to do so because God has revealed it to us through the Bible and the Incarnation. Because God is invisible spirit, our worship must be in the spiritual realm. To worship in spirit does not refer to the Holy Spirit, but to our own human spirit. Spirit, speaks of a heart attitude - it is not an outward religious conformity - like what Nicodemus back in chapter 3 was involved with. It is not tied to a location. But worshipping God in spirit involves having a regenerated heart through believing in Jesus Christ.
Not only do we worship God in spirit, but we are called to worship Him in truth. The word truth is tied to the fact that God is true and that His fundamental and unchangeable nature is truth. God cannot lie. Therefore true worship needs to take place in the realm of revealed truth found in the Bible. Our worship must be filtered through the pages of Scripture. It needs to be centered upon the Word made flesh (Jn. 1:14) - Jesus Christ. Worship of God without Christ at the heart of the picture, is not true spiritual worship. If Jesus Christ is not your Lord and Saviour you will have no proper worship of God - just like the Samaritan woman. Her sin blocked her worship, so did her lack of knowledge, and therefore Christ in His grace and mercy draws her in and opens her eyes.
The kind of worshipers the Father is actively seeking are those who worship Him in spirit and truth. These are the kind of people that God desires to worship Him - people who acknowledge and repent of their sin, and turn in belief in Jesus Christ as their personal Lord and Saviour - people who are spiritually born again, and now ascribe to God what He is worthy of.
Christians are a people who worship the true God, sincerely and authentically from the heart. We worship God because we want to exalt Him for who He is, and not for what we can get out of Him. We worship Him if even if we find the world crumbling in upon us - like our global financial crisis. We worship Him even if our music might not be where it could be - we worship Him even if the sermon doesn’t tickle our ears, we worship Him even if our friends are not here, we worship Him because He is worthy to be worshipped - and we do it in spirit and truth.
Often we think these outward things make a worship worship. We tend to think that if we don’t have the things other churches have then ‘I need to find a better worship service.’ Jesus reveals to us what true worship is. Everything apart from worship in spirit and truth, is outward and can be done away with, because they are not the essentials. They are there in order to compliment our spiritual worship.
In verse 24 is our mandate as professing believers - those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth. This is the second time the phrase, in spirit and truth is mentioned - so it is something that cannot be overlooked. It is important to worship God in this way. In fact as the verse states it is a - must, not an option. It is an absolute necessity, which is tied directly with THE FOUNTAIN OF LIFE. Worship is man’s highest calling - worship of God through Christ, is the believers’ supreme and absolute priority.
We are saved unto worship of our Saviour. Jesus Christ makes it clear to the Samaritan woman that she needs to worship, and she knows that she is not doing so because her life is a web of lies. There is something missing in her life - the cleansing power of knowing Jesus Christ. There are areas of her life which need to be swept clean, and she realizes this…and she looks forward to that that time.
v.25-26 We close with these 2 final verses. This is how the woman responds to Jesus - she says - I know that Messiah is coming… when that One comes, He will declare all things to us. The conversation turns again, this time to the coming Messiah. The woman as her religion would have believed, is that the Messiah will come as a teacher and restorer of true worship. Perhaps she sensed this in this unique stranger - named Jesus. After all, He spoke so plainly about her tainted life, and so captivatingly about true worship. He broke the bounds of history and tradition in speaking with her. She was a social outcast even in her own community, but Jesus reached out to her. We have a powerful witness recorded for us to ponder as we close - Jesus said to her, "I who speak to you am [He].
In the circumstances of our passage today, Jesus Christ the God-man reaches out and reveals His Deity, not to the elite, and not even to His disciples, but He reveals it to a person of a despised people group - a Samaritan woman - who like us are lowly sinners who have offended a holy God. In this plain, short, yet powerful statement - Jesus declares that He is the Messiah, the Son of God. This declaration should be noted - it literally is translated as - I am, the one speaking to you. And as such it is a self declaration that Jesus is the Great I AM of the Old Testament (Ex. 3:14). The point is made - a Divine revelation is made - no further discussions are necessary. How does one respond to such a mind blowing revelation…except to bow down in humility - to repent of sin and to be saved by the Messiah… and to worship Him in spirit and truth.
Jesus Christ is life, and He is the THE FOUNTAIN OF LIFE, giving to those who believe in Him - eternal life... a life that is worth living.
(For a full explanation of the Gospel of Jesus Christ - click here - http://www.doihaveeternallife.blogspot.com/)
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Sunday, January 11, 2009
John 3:22-36 The Final Call
11.01.09 John 3:22-36 (NASB)
Audio Sermon: John 3:22-36
Going Deeper: Study Guide
The Final Call
Listen to these recent quote excerpts from the Globe and Mail, and try to see if you know who is saying it:
"If people are asking why, it's because I failed."
"I fully accept my share of the responsibility."
"We must learn quickly from this experience and move on.
These are the ‘famous last words’ of Stephane Dion, Liberal Party Leader after he and the Liberals lost voter support in the Federal election late last year. His party was ‘reduced to 77 seats, down from 103 won in the 2006 election. They captured only 26.2 per cent of the popular vote’ - the second worst showing the party has seen since 1867. Dion also stated that ‘he never had a chance to establish his personal image with voters because of the Conservative ads depicting him as a "dithering egghead."’ (wikipedia)
As we come to the end of chapter three of the gospel of John, we will also find John the Baptist’s last words - in context of his last appearance in this gospel - and these words are certainly of much more importance in light of eternity. John the Baptist issues his FINAL CALL to faith in Jesus Christ. In today’s passage we find that on the ‘coat tails’ of the preceding section we have the issue of faith in Christ. Nicodemus believed that he was going to heaven because of his outward morality and religion, but in reality he was not. Therefore Jesus called Nicodemus to believe in Him as God’s Son for eternal life. It is solely upon faith in Christ that brings one to be ‘born again’ - to be born from above. True spiritual transformation comes through a vital and active relationship with Jesus - and in the context of the gospel, in light of the Baptist’s life - we are sobered by a FINAL CALL. Here is what our inspired text states:
22 After these things Jesus and His disciples came into the land of Judea, and there He was spending time with them and baptizing. 23 John also was baptizing in Aenon near Salim, because there was much water there; and [people] were coming and were being baptized-- 24 for John had not yet been thrown into prison. 25 Therefore there arose a discussion on the part of John's disciples with a Jew about purification. 26 And they came to John and said to him, "Rabbi, He who was with you beyond the Jordan, to whom you have testified, behold, He is baptizing and all are coming to Him." 27 John answered and said, "A man can receive nothing unless it has been given him from heaven. 28 "You yourselves are my witnesses that I said, `I am not the Christ,' but, `I have been sent ahead of Him.' 29 "He who has the bride is the bridegroom; but the friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly because of the bridegroom's voice. So this joy of mine has been made full. 30 "He must increase, but I must decrease. 31 "He who comes from above is above all, he who is of the earth is from the earth and speaks of the earth. He who comes from heaven is above all. 32 "What He has seen and heard, of that He testifies; and no one receives His testimony. 33 "He who has received His testimony has set his seal to [this], that God is true. 34 "For He whom God has sent speaks the words of God; for He gives the Spirit without measure. 35 "The Father loves the Son and has given all things into His hand. 36 "He who believes in the Son has eternal life; but he who does not obey the Son will not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him."
Today we will discover THE FINAL CALL to faithfulness. We will arrive at THE FINAL CALL to Christ as we look at:
The Final Stage Of Ministry v.22-26
The Final Witness for Christ v.27-30
The Final Warning v.31-36
THE FINAL STAGE OF MINISTRY v.22-26
V.22 - While Jesus was speaking with Nicodemus, He was in Jerusalem at the time of the Passover. The city of Jerusalem is in Judea, and now Jesus and His disciples go out of the urban area, and into the rural areas of this region. Jesus spent some time with His disciples fellow-shipping and teaching them, preparing them for ministry. They also begin to baptize the people who were responding to His message. It seems that Jesus is performing the baptisms, but it was His disciples - if we look ahead a little at chapter 4 verse 2 which states - (although Jesus Himself was not baptizing, but His disciples were). So what took place was that Jesus was baptizing people through His disciples.
v.23-24 - At this same time frame, we find that John the Baptist was also doing the same. The Baptist performed his baptisms at a place named Aenon near Salim. This area of Judea has been lost to history, but from the text we do know that it was known for the abundance of water at that location. The impact of the Baptist’s ministry was great since there was a constant flow of people coming and were being baptized.
The ministries of Jesus and John the Baptist overlap, yet they had the same message. This message was focused on repentance - both called people to ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near’ (Matt. 3:2 and 4:17). John called people to repentance in preparation for Jesus the Messiah; and Jesus called people to repent because heaven’s spiritual rule upon the hearts of believers was now a reality. Jesus picks up where John the Baptist’s ministry is coming to an end. All this takes place, as the author of this gospel - The Apostle John notes - before John the Baptist was thrown into prison. We know from the other gospels that the Baptist was put into prison - because the Baptist rebuked King Herod (Antipas) for his seduction and incestuous marriage to his niece, Herodias. In the end, through a wicked plot, Herod was obligated to murder John the Baptist by beheading him (Matt. 14:1-12; Mk. 6:14-29; Lk. 9:7-9).
v.25 - As John the Baptist’s ministry continued a problem arose. Though John’s ministry ran parallel to Jesus’ ministry, there was no conflict, but in the public’s eye there was. There was a certain unnamed Jew who debated with John’s disciples about purification - referring to ceremonial washing. The argument centered upon the purification ritual observed by the Jews. Ceremonial washing could refer to any of the Jewish purification rituals like the washing of hands, pots, cups, and pitchers. But in context of what is happening - it probably was a discussion over the value of Jesus’ and John’s baptism. Maybe the Jew was questioning the baptism’s value. Or maybe they were dealing with the issue of who’s baptism is more effective, because in the following verse - verse 26 …. Jesus’ success seems to come into the spotlight.
This is the first recorded dispute about baptism we have in Scripture. In Christian circles there seems to be an endless debate over the mode of baptism. The Presbyterians have sprinkling, the Baptist have immersion, and others usually practice one of the two, which are the primary practices. So what is the proper mode of baptism? Did you ever wonder about this? Have you ever taken a moment to think upon what the correct mode is? The answer lies in studying the Biblical use of the word baptize and baptism. These English words are transliterated from the Greek. The definition of these words means to dip, immerse, sink, or ablutions (religious ceremonial washing of the body). This briefly is how we derive our practice in this church, which is immersion (you can do more study on your own).
v.26 - states - And they came to John and said to him, "Rabbi, He who was with you beyond the Jordan, to whom you have testified, behold, He is baptizing and all are coming to Him." - The disciples of John go to the Baptist. What is said from these disciples gives us a look at what was in their hearts. There was some confusion, and seeming jealousy. Perhaps they were remembering that it was John the Baptist who began this ministry of reconciliation by baptizing. They recalled that it was John that first testified about Jesus. It was he who had baptized Jesus (Matt. 3:13-17). But it seems that Jesus was now stealing the lime-light. There was such an extensive following that Jesus gained - that John’s disciples exaggerated Jesus’ ministry - all are coming to Him. This was in light of John’s dwindling ministry and following. So jealousies arose in John’s disciples. Jealousy is a temptation for all of us as we see others succeed. Yet John set for us a great example to emulate - he knew who his priority was - and the faithfulness to the Word, helped him to be unhindered in the temptation to jealousy. This is John the Baptist’s response to this temptation to jealousy - as we now look at:
THE FINAL WITNESS FOR CHRIST v.27-30
v.27 - All along John the Baptist knew his role that God had called him to be the forerunner to Christ. He submitted to God’s calling and fulfilled his ministry - this is how he kept away from jealousy. John knew that his ministry was going to be temporary and was to be eclipsed by Christ’s ministry, and he willingly let that happen. In obedience to Christ he pointed and led people to the Messiah, even if it meant that his own following was to dwindle. In his obedience to God’s will he found peace and not jealousy. He found joy and not frustration. This was John’s reply - A man can receive nothing unless it has been given him from heaven. Therefore he was thankful in all circumstances.
Yet, John’s disciples were dismayed that John would support his own followers to go to Jesus. John’s disciples missed the whole importance of this act of obedience. John totally demonstrates his humility, understanding, and trust in what God was doing. He knew that God was sovereignly in control of all these latest developments. The people following Jesus, were going to Him, because God drew them to His Son. As our church grows we will be faced with the same kind of temptation. There will be new ministries, and perhaps there will be more gifted people to lead them. So we must understand that as Christ providentially builds His church, we should allow Him to build. We should not be jealous of anyone else who is called to a ministry opportunity. Humble focus on God and His will, a focus on the abilities that God has called us to (and not beyond what He has called us to) helps us in the arena of jealousy.
v.28 - John emphatically explains his calling and role to this group that came to him- that they should know that John taught that he was not the Christ but only the one who would go before the Messiah. So it was natural that Jesus was to become more popular than himself - since John did his job faithfully.
v.29 - John furthers his point with an analogy from a wedding, and brings out the necessary attitude to be a servant of God. In the OT it was common that a wedding was used to picture God’s relationship with Israel (Is. 54:5; 62:4; Jer. 2:2, 3:20; Ezek. 16:8; Hos. 2:19). In John’s analogy the bride is representative of believing Israel. The bridegroom is Christ. John the Baptist is likened to the friend who attends the bridegroom. As John waits and points others to the Messiah - it is only when the anticipation is realized that John’s joy… has been made full. The friend was not the one who was important, but it was the one he associated with, that is the bridegroom.
John was not to be the center of attention, but Jesus was. In our day it is the same - when we attend a wedding our attention is not on the bridesmaids and groomsmen, it is on the bride and bridegroom. The real joy from the anticipation, does not come when the groomsmen are at the front of the church - or even when the bridesmaids walk down the aisle. The joy comes when the bridegroom takes his place and the bride enters into the church and enter into a covenant before God. With the entrance of Jesus Christ the Messiah, John realizes his joy. His faithful ministry is to end, and is completed with joy. A lesson to be learned for us is that Jesus is always to take first place, He is to be glorified.
v.30 - All of John the Baptist’s life was spent on being a servant to the Lord. He was born for this purpose as God called him to be the forerunner to the Messiah, Jesus Christ. As a servant John was always focused on pleasing and exalting his master. And in verse 30 we have a summary statement of his life - He must increase, but I must decrease - in other words Jesus must become greater; and John the Baptist must become less. That is Jesus Christ, out of God’s will had to be exalted, to keep on growing in greatness; whereas John was to keep on decreasing in prominence as he faithfully discharged his calling to its completion. And this is what John the Baptist faithfully submitted to in obedience. The Baptist’s life was one of humble sacrifice.
Later on when John was imprisoned this is what Jesus said of John in the Gospel of Luke - I say to you, among those born of women there is no one greater than John; yet he who is least in the kingdom of God is greater than he (Lk. 7:28). What a statement of praise from Jesus. What about us? Are we faithful to Christ in everything? Do we seek to exalt Jesus throughout our entire life. When we appear before Christ in the future will he have a praise worthy statement for us about our service to Him as a Christian? Will Jesus find us faithful to the end?
Not only is the Baptist faithful to Christ up to and including THE FINAL STAGE OF MINISTRY, and even in his FINAL WITNESS FOR CHRIST, we find that our passage calls us to focus on faithfulness to Christ. We can be found faithful in Christ, if we take this last section of our study seriously…
THE FINAL WARNING v.31-36
v.31 - Here we begin a contrast between Jesus and John the Baptist. From the text we see that there is - He who comes from above and then there is the one who - is from the earth. Obviously the reference to the one from above is the Messiah, Jesus. Jesus is indeed above all, because He is God. Jesus has authority over His creation and us as His created ones - we are made in God’s image. Jesus’ pre-eminence is clearly brought out in this passage as it is stated twice, once at the beginning and again at the end of the verse that He is the One from above. On the other hand John the Baptist was from the earth. He was born from earthly origins, he had an earthly ministry, he was human.
v.32 - Jesus has come to earth, sent by God because He so loved the world (3:16). God does not desire to see those who reject Him perish, but He rather wants to see unbelievers allow themselves to be reconciled to Him. Yet Jesus’ testimony continues to be rejected by people. Even though Jesus gives us His witness as one that comes down from heaven, people allow themselves to be blinded to the reality. Jesus’ words are trustworthy, but people continue in unbelief. The words - no one receives His testimony - in verse 32 emphasize the reality that so many people reject Christ.
v.33 - But God does save people. God initiates salvation in people despite the overwhelming level of rejection and unbelief. Those whom God saves are able to have their eyes open to the truth and therefore become His witnesses. The Christian serves God by being living evidence that God is true. Through faith in Christ we are able to certify that God is true - He is true and reliable. We know that Christ is real, yet often we do not live lives which reflect this reality.
We come to church to worship, but when we are busy with work, school, personal enjoyments, our salvation gets push off to the side….we find it so simple to skip a Sunday here and there…we have trained our consciences in unrighteousness, and have no repentance. We know that Jesus is true and our salvation came at a great price, but we don’t really desire to grow in Him. We look at church, fellowship meetings, discipleship, teaching, ministry training, conferences, prayer meeting - and the like as an intrusion into our schedules. It all comes down to a me first attitude - the cross of Christ becomes willfully distant. Does your attitude before committing to spiritual growth say this - What can I get out of this? Does it meet my needs? But in fact we should be considering this…. Will Christ will be pleased by my participation and service. You will find that your needs will be met if you are faithful to making Christ your priority.
Too often, our salvation is in our heads (intellectual knowledge), and it does not translate into obedience to our Savior and Lord. Too many times it remains in the realm of head knowledge and we do not walk as we are truly saved. We certify that God is truthful, but if we are really truthful - if we honestly examine our gratitude, devotion and lifestyle as believers - we certify Him to be false. How can we be more alive to Christ today? What should I do as a believer saved by Christ? Is God certified true in my life? Am I a faithful ambassador for Christ? If I am to certify that God is true, that everything that Jesus witnesses to is a reality, then my life is called to respond to the upward call of Christ Jesus. How can I make Christ’s compassion for the lost known? For myself - if I stay in my comfortable office with my nose in my books, then how will people know that Christ is real, that the witness of the church is real?
Being alive to Christ is not always that easy. It has to take us out of our comfort zones. It calls us forward in life commitment to Christ. It has to wake us up away from self-dependence, and self centeredness. It calls us to risk - so that Christ must become greater - and we become less.
I have observed that this is the pattern of practice for those who are committed to Christ - those we consider spiritual giants. Ordinary people who live out their life with Christ truly as Lord and Saviour. These are the people in the church who are the most mature. They step out and act out in faithfulness, because they realize - that they have a great Saviour and a great salvation in Him. So with each act of faith they are rewarded with greater faithfulness - isn’t this part of the key to Christian maturity? If you find yourself struggling with sin, obedience to Christ, perhaps you could consider a deeper devotion to Christ - a selfless attitude towards desiring the things of His Kingdom. Make Jesus Christ who He is - Lord and Saviour.
v.34-35 - The basis for Christ’s authority lies in verse 34. It echoes what was stated back in verse 11, of this chapter. Christ’s authority is established because He is the one - whom God has sent. Jesus Christ is God’s divine revelation to us and He brings an authoritative message, because what Jesus states are the words of God. Jesus, without measure, is empowered by the Holy Spirit. This means that the Father has placed all authority, knowledge, and truth in Christ. Jesus Christ is the full revelation of God and there is nothing that Christ cannot do, that is true of His character.
This brings us back to what was laid out in chapter 1:1-18, that Jesus Christ is the only absolute and conclusive disclosure of God Himself - because Jesus Christ is God. As it states in this passage in verse 35 - The Father loves the Son and has given all things into His hand. It is interesting to note that the tense of the word love - in the Greek (present), expresses that the Father’s love for the Son is ongoing, it is continuous - and God’s love for the Son is the reason why Jesus is empowered by the Spirit without measure.
v.36 - The whole of John’s life testimony comes down to this crucial statement - THE FINAL CALL - a statement which contrasts belief with unbelief. Look down at verse 36 - He who believes - if you have a pencil write on top of the word ‘believe,’ the words ‘continues to believe’ and put some brackets around it (Greek present tense) - He who believes in the Son has eternal life. This person by faith believes in the foundational truths about who Christ is and turns from his/her sins and embraces Christ for the forgiveness of sin, and then lives in submission and obedience of the Word of God.
Maybe your asking why does that matter? It matters because life lived apart from God is not a truly joyous life - it is a life which may bring temporal fulfillment, happiness - but not joy - but when reality hits - it is outweighed by God’s wrath against sin. It matters because if we are to find the purpose of our life, then we need God to inform us of what that is. Therefore it becomes imperative that we obey God’s loving command to humble ourselves before Christ and turn from sin and believe in the Son. It become paramount that we allow ourselves to resist being reconciled to God, by making a life changing response to the call to follow Him.
The person who believes in Christ - experiences in this life the privileges and blessings of eternal life. Look back at the words that I asked you to write above the word ‘believe’ in verse 36. The person who has eternal life possesses a belief that is a continuous pattern of his/her life. In the life which continues after physical death - he/she then will experience in its fullness - the sum total of God’s salvation - that is glorious sinless perfection in the ever-present fellowship of Christ.
Now this is the devastating contrast - the flip side of the coin - circle the word - ‘but’ in verse 36 - because this is where the all important contrast begins - but he who does not obey the Son will not see life. Once again take your pencils and write on top of the word ‘obey’ - these words - ‘does not continually obey’ (Greek present tense). This is important to understand because to disbelieve in the Son, Jesus Christ - is the same as not obeying Him. To believe in Christ is to obey Him. But those who continue to disobey and reject Christ as a life long continuous habitual pattern - a continued hardness of heart toward God and Christ - will not see life.
This life that we are talking about is the truest kind of life which all seek for, but few find and embrace. For this person, he/she will never be able to have a right relationship with their Creator. You will never know the joy of being forgiven for your sin. You will never know what true love is which comes from the Father. You will never experience faithfulness, joy and peace - yes you may feel happy, but that too will perish and in the end, leave you empty. Rejection of the Son is rejection of God, and the sinner lives under the present wrath of God - as verse 36 finishes off - but the wrath of God abides on him (you). The culmination of this wrath is eternal judgement - because God is a holy God, who hates sin, and will therefore bring sin and the sinner into judgement.
THE FINAL CALL of this passage is sobering. It is a call for all those who believe in Jesus Christ to faithfulness - to rejoice, praise and worship Him - because God has saved us from our sin, and no longer looks at us as sinners - but as His righteous children - heirs to eternal life and the riches of our heavenly inheritance. It also is a call for all those who reject Christ to obedience - to respond to God’s loving command to be back into a right relationship with Him, through Jesus Christ. It is a call to respond to God’s love by an abiding belief in the Son - by acknowledging that you are a sinner in need of a Lord and Saviour in Jesus Christ.
As we conclude - we do indeed have a wonderful Lord and Saviour who has died on the cross for our sins. God is true and He must increase, but I must decrease.
(For a full explanation of the Gospel of Jesus Christ - click here - http://www.doihaveeternallife.blogspot.com/)
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Audio Sermon: John 3:22-36
Going Deeper: Study Guide
The Final Call
Listen to these recent quote excerpts from the Globe and Mail, and try to see if you know who is saying it:
"If people are asking why, it's because I failed."
"I fully accept my share of the responsibility."
"We must learn quickly from this experience and move on.
These are the ‘famous last words’ of Stephane Dion, Liberal Party Leader after he and the Liberals lost voter support in the Federal election late last year. His party was ‘reduced to 77 seats, down from 103 won in the 2006 election. They captured only 26.2 per cent of the popular vote’ - the second worst showing the party has seen since 1867. Dion also stated that ‘he never had a chance to establish his personal image with voters because of the Conservative ads depicting him as a "dithering egghead."’ (wikipedia)
As we come to the end of chapter three of the gospel of John, we will also find John the Baptist’s last words - in context of his last appearance in this gospel - and these words are certainly of much more importance in light of eternity. John the Baptist issues his FINAL CALL to faith in Jesus Christ. In today’s passage we find that on the ‘coat tails’ of the preceding section we have the issue of faith in Christ. Nicodemus believed that he was going to heaven because of his outward morality and religion, but in reality he was not. Therefore Jesus called Nicodemus to believe in Him as God’s Son for eternal life. It is solely upon faith in Christ that brings one to be ‘born again’ - to be born from above. True spiritual transformation comes through a vital and active relationship with Jesus - and in the context of the gospel, in light of the Baptist’s life - we are sobered by a FINAL CALL. Here is what our inspired text states:
22 After these things Jesus and His disciples came into the land of Judea, and there He was spending time with them and baptizing. 23 John also was baptizing in Aenon near Salim, because there was much water there; and [people] were coming and were being baptized-- 24 for John had not yet been thrown into prison. 25 Therefore there arose a discussion on the part of John's disciples with a Jew about purification. 26 And they came to John and said to him, "Rabbi, He who was with you beyond the Jordan, to whom you have testified, behold, He is baptizing and all are coming to Him." 27 John answered and said, "A man can receive nothing unless it has been given him from heaven. 28 "You yourselves are my witnesses that I said, `I am not the Christ,' but, `I have been sent ahead of Him.' 29 "He who has the bride is the bridegroom; but the friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly because of the bridegroom's voice. So this joy of mine has been made full. 30 "He must increase, but I must decrease. 31 "He who comes from above is above all, he who is of the earth is from the earth and speaks of the earth. He who comes from heaven is above all. 32 "What He has seen and heard, of that He testifies; and no one receives His testimony. 33 "He who has received His testimony has set his seal to [this], that God is true. 34 "For He whom God has sent speaks the words of God; for He gives the Spirit without measure. 35 "The Father loves the Son and has given all things into His hand. 36 "He who believes in the Son has eternal life; but he who does not obey the Son will not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him."
Today we will discover THE FINAL CALL to faithfulness. We will arrive at THE FINAL CALL to Christ as we look at:
The Final Stage Of Ministry v.22-26
The Final Witness for Christ v.27-30
The Final Warning v.31-36
THE FINAL STAGE OF MINISTRY v.22-26
V.22 - While Jesus was speaking with Nicodemus, He was in Jerusalem at the time of the Passover. The city of Jerusalem is in Judea, and now Jesus and His disciples go out of the urban area, and into the rural areas of this region. Jesus spent some time with His disciples fellow-shipping and teaching them, preparing them for ministry. They also begin to baptize the people who were responding to His message. It seems that Jesus is performing the baptisms, but it was His disciples - if we look ahead a little at chapter 4 verse 2 which states - (although Jesus Himself was not baptizing, but His disciples were). So what took place was that Jesus was baptizing people through His disciples.
v.23-24 - At this same time frame, we find that John the Baptist was also doing the same. The Baptist performed his baptisms at a place named Aenon near Salim. This area of Judea has been lost to history, but from the text we do know that it was known for the abundance of water at that location. The impact of the Baptist’s ministry was great since there was a constant flow of people coming and were being baptized.
The ministries of Jesus and John the Baptist overlap, yet they had the same message. This message was focused on repentance - both called people to ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is near’ (Matt. 3:2 and 4:17). John called people to repentance in preparation for Jesus the Messiah; and Jesus called people to repent because heaven’s spiritual rule upon the hearts of believers was now a reality. Jesus picks up where John the Baptist’s ministry is coming to an end. All this takes place, as the author of this gospel - The Apostle John notes - before John the Baptist was thrown into prison. We know from the other gospels that the Baptist was put into prison - because the Baptist rebuked King Herod (Antipas) for his seduction and incestuous marriage to his niece, Herodias. In the end, through a wicked plot, Herod was obligated to murder John the Baptist by beheading him (Matt. 14:1-12; Mk. 6:14-29; Lk. 9:7-9).
v.25 - As John the Baptist’s ministry continued a problem arose. Though John’s ministry ran parallel to Jesus’ ministry, there was no conflict, but in the public’s eye there was. There was a certain unnamed Jew who debated with John’s disciples about purification - referring to ceremonial washing. The argument centered upon the purification ritual observed by the Jews. Ceremonial washing could refer to any of the Jewish purification rituals like the washing of hands, pots, cups, and pitchers. But in context of what is happening - it probably was a discussion over the value of Jesus’ and John’s baptism. Maybe the Jew was questioning the baptism’s value. Or maybe they were dealing with the issue of who’s baptism is more effective, because in the following verse - verse 26 …. Jesus’ success seems to come into the spotlight.
This is the first recorded dispute about baptism we have in Scripture. In Christian circles there seems to be an endless debate over the mode of baptism. The Presbyterians have sprinkling, the Baptist have immersion, and others usually practice one of the two, which are the primary practices. So what is the proper mode of baptism? Did you ever wonder about this? Have you ever taken a moment to think upon what the correct mode is? The answer lies in studying the Biblical use of the word baptize and baptism. These English words are transliterated from the Greek. The definition of these words means to dip, immerse, sink, or ablutions (religious ceremonial washing of the body). This briefly is how we derive our practice in this church, which is immersion (you can do more study on your own).
v.26 - states - And they came to John and said to him, "Rabbi, He who was with you beyond the Jordan, to whom you have testified, behold, He is baptizing and all are coming to Him." - The disciples of John go to the Baptist. What is said from these disciples gives us a look at what was in their hearts. There was some confusion, and seeming jealousy. Perhaps they were remembering that it was John the Baptist who began this ministry of reconciliation by baptizing. They recalled that it was John that first testified about Jesus. It was he who had baptized Jesus (Matt. 3:13-17). But it seems that Jesus was now stealing the lime-light. There was such an extensive following that Jesus gained - that John’s disciples exaggerated Jesus’ ministry - all are coming to Him. This was in light of John’s dwindling ministry and following. So jealousies arose in John’s disciples. Jealousy is a temptation for all of us as we see others succeed. Yet John set for us a great example to emulate - he knew who his priority was - and the faithfulness to the Word, helped him to be unhindered in the temptation to jealousy. This is John the Baptist’s response to this temptation to jealousy - as we now look at:
THE FINAL WITNESS FOR CHRIST v.27-30
v.27 - All along John the Baptist knew his role that God had called him to be the forerunner to Christ. He submitted to God’s calling and fulfilled his ministry - this is how he kept away from jealousy. John knew that his ministry was going to be temporary and was to be eclipsed by Christ’s ministry, and he willingly let that happen. In obedience to Christ he pointed and led people to the Messiah, even if it meant that his own following was to dwindle. In his obedience to God’s will he found peace and not jealousy. He found joy and not frustration. This was John’s reply - A man can receive nothing unless it has been given him from heaven. Therefore he was thankful in all circumstances.
Yet, John’s disciples were dismayed that John would support his own followers to go to Jesus. John’s disciples missed the whole importance of this act of obedience. John totally demonstrates his humility, understanding, and trust in what God was doing. He knew that God was sovereignly in control of all these latest developments. The people following Jesus, were going to Him, because God drew them to His Son. As our church grows we will be faced with the same kind of temptation. There will be new ministries, and perhaps there will be more gifted people to lead them. So we must understand that as Christ providentially builds His church, we should allow Him to build. We should not be jealous of anyone else who is called to a ministry opportunity. Humble focus on God and His will, a focus on the abilities that God has called us to (and not beyond what He has called us to) helps us in the arena of jealousy.
v.28 - John emphatically explains his calling and role to this group that came to him- that they should know that John taught that he was not the Christ but only the one who would go before the Messiah. So it was natural that Jesus was to become more popular than himself - since John did his job faithfully.
v.29 - John furthers his point with an analogy from a wedding, and brings out the necessary attitude to be a servant of God. In the OT it was common that a wedding was used to picture God’s relationship with Israel (Is. 54:5; 62:4; Jer. 2:2, 3:20; Ezek. 16:8; Hos. 2:19). In John’s analogy the bride is representative of believing Israel. The bridegroom is Christ. John the Baptist is likened to the friend who attends the bridegroom. As John waits and points others to the Messiah - it is only when the anticipation is realized that John’s joy… has been made full. The friend was not the one who was important, but it was the one he associated with, that is the bridegroom.
John was not to be the center of attention, but Jesus was. In our day it is the same - when we attend a wedding our attention is not on the bridesmaids and groomsmen, it is on the bride and bridegroom. The real joy from the anticipation, does not come when the groomsmen are at the front of the church - or even when the bridesmaids walk down the aisle. The joy comes when the bridegroom takes his place and the bride enters into the church and enter into a covenant before God. With the entrance of Jesus Christ the Messiah, John realizes his joy. His faithful ministry is to end, and is completed with joy. A lesson to be learned for us is that Jesus is always to take first place, He is to be glorified.
v.30 - All of John the Baptist’s life was spent on being a servant to the Lord. He was born for this purpose as God called him to be the forerunner to the Messiah, Jesus Christ. As a servant John was always focused on pleasing and exalting his master. And in verse 30 we have a summary statement of his life - He must increase, but I must decrease - in other words Jesus must become greater; and John the Baptist must become less. That is Jesus Christ, out of God’s will had to be exalted, to keep on growing in greatness; whereas John was to keep on decreasing in prominence as he faithfully discharged his calling to its completion. And this is what John the Baptist faithfully submitted to in obedience. The Baptist’s life was one of humble sacrifice.
Later on when John was imprisoned this is what Jesus said of John in the Gospel of Luke - I say to you, among those born of women there is no one greater than John; yet he who is least in the kingdom of God is greater than he (Lk. 7:28). What a statement of praise from Jesus. What about us? Are we faithful to Christ in everything? Do we seek to exalt Jesus throughout our entire life. When we appear before Christ in the future will he have a praise worthy statement for us about our service to Him as a Christian? Will Jesus find us faithful to the end?
Not only is the Baptist faithful to Christ up to and including THE FINAL STAGE OF MINISTRY, and even in his FINAL WITNESS FOR CHRIST, we find that our passage calls us to focus on faithfulness to Christ. We can be found faithful in Christ, if we take this last section of our study seriously…
THE FINAL WARNING v.31-36
v.31 - Here we begin a contrast between Jesus and John the Baptist. From the text we see that there is - He who comes from above and then there is the one who - is from the earth. Obviously the reference to the one from above is the Messiah, Jesus. Jesus is indeed above all, because He is God. Jesus has authority over His creation and us as His created ones - we are made in God’s image. Jesus’ pre-eminence is clearly brought out in this passage as it is stated twice, once at the beginning and again at the end of the verse that He is the One from above. On the other hand John the Baptist was from the earth. He was born from earthly origins, he had an earthly ministry, he was human.
v.32 - Jesus has come to earth, sent by God because He so loved the world (3:16). God does not desire to see those who reject Him perish, but He rather wants to see unbelievers allow themselves to be reconciled to Him. Yet Jesus’ testimony continues to be rejected by people. Even though Jesus gives us His witness as one that comes down from heaven, people allow themselves to be blinded to the reality. Jesus’ words are trustworthy, but people continue in unbelief. The words - no one receives His testimony - in verse 32 emphasize the reality that so many people reject Christ.
v.33 - But God does save people. God initiates salvation in people despite the overwhelming level of rejection and unbelief. Those whom God saves are able to have their eyes open to the truth and therefore become His witnesses. The Christian serves God by being living evidence that God is true. Through faith in Christ we are able to certify that God is true - He is true and reliable. We know that Christ is real, yet often we do not live lives which reflect this reality.
We come to church to worship, but when we are busy with work, school, personal enjoyments, our salvation gets push off to the side….we find it so simple to skip a Sunday here and there…we have trained our consciences in unrighteousness, and have no repentance. We know that Jesus is true and our salvation came at a great price, but we don’t really desire to grow in Him. We look at church, fellowship meetings, discipleship, teaching, ministry training, conferences, prayer meeting - and the like as an intrusion into our schedules. It all comes down to a me first attitude - the cross of Christ becomes willfully distant. Does your attitude before committing to spiritual growth say this - What can I get out of this? Does it meet my needs? But in fact we should be considering this…. Will Christ will be pleased by my participation and service. You will find that your needs will be met if you are faithful to making Christ your priority.
Too often, our salvation is in our heads (intellectual knowledge), and it does not translate into obedience to our Savior and Lord. Too many times it remains in the realm of head knowledge and we do not walk as we are truly saved. We certify that God is truthful, but if we are really truthful - if we honestly examine our gratitude, devotion and lifestyle as believers - we certify Him to be false. How can we be more alive to Christ today? What should I do as a believer saved by Christ? Is God certified true in my life? Am I a faithful ambassador for Christ? If I am to certify that God is true, that everything that Jesus witnesses to is a reality, then my life is called to respond to the upward call of Christ Jesus. How can I make Christ’s compassion for the lost known? For myself - if I stay in my comfortable office with my nose in my books, then how will people know that Christ is real, that the witness of the church is real?
Being alive to Christ is not always that easy. It has to take us out of our comfort zones. It calls us forward in life commitment to Christ. It has to wake us up away from self-dependence, and self centeredness. It calls us to risk - so that Christ must become greater - and we become less.
I have observed that this is the pattern of practice for those who are committed to Christ - those we consider spiritual giants. Ordinary people who live out their life with Christ truly as Lord and Saviour. These are the people in the church who are the most mature. They step out and act out in faithfulness, because they realize - that they have a great Saviour and a great salvation in Him. So with each act of faith they are rewarded with greater faithfulness - isn’t this part of the key to Christian maturity? If you find yourself struggling with sin, obedience to Christ, perhaps you could consider a deeper devotion to Christ - a selfless attitude towards desiring the things of His Kingdom. Make Jesus Christ who He is - Lord and Saviour.
v.34-35 - The basis for Christ’s authority lies in verse 34. It echoes what was stated back in verse 11, of this chapter. Christ’s authority is established because He is the one - whom God has sent. Jesus Christ is God’s divine revelation to us and He brings an authoritative message, because what Jesus states are the words of God. Jesus, without measure, is empowered by the Holy Spirit. This means that the Father has placed all authority, knowledge, and truth in Christ. Jesus Christ is the full revelation of God and there is nothing that Christ cannot do, that is true of His character.
This brings us back to what was laid out in chapter 1:1-18, that Jesus Christ is the only absolute and conclusive disclosure of God Himself - because Jesus Christ is God. As it states in this passage in verse 35 - The Father loves the Son and has given all things into His hand. It is interesting to note that the tense of the word love - in the Greek (present), expresses that the Father’s love for the Son is ongoing, it is continuous - and God’s love for the Son is the reason why Jesus is empowered by the Spirit without measure.
v.36 - The whole of John’s life testimony comes down to this crucial statement - THE FINAL CALL - a statement which contrasts belief with unbelief. Look down at verse 36 - He who believes - if you have a pencil write on top of the word ‘believe,’ the words ‘continues to believe’ and put some brackets around it (Greek present tense) - He who believes in the Son has eternal life. This person by faith believes in the foundational truths about who Christ is and turns from his/her sins and embraces Christ for the forgiveness of sin, and then lives in submission and obedience of the Word of God.
Maybe your asking why does that matter? It matters because life lived apart from God is not a truly joyous life - it is a life which may bring temporal fulfillment, happiness - but not joy - but when reality hits - it is outweighed by God’s wrath against sin. It matters because if we are to find the purpose of our life, then we need God to inform us of what that is. Therefore it becomes imperative that we obey God’s loving command to humble ourselves before Christ and turn from sin and believe in the Son. It become paramount that we allow ourselves to resist being reconciled to God, by making a life changing response to the call to follow Him.
The person who believes in Christ - experiences in this life the privileges and blessings of eternal life. Look back at the words that I asked you to write above the word ‘believe’ in verse 36. The person who has eternal life possesses a belief that is a continuous pattern of his/her life. In the life which continues after physical death - he/she then will experience in its fullness - the sum total of God’s salvation - that is glorious sinless perfection in the ever-present fellowship of Christ.
Now this is the devastating contrast - the flip side of the coin - circle the word - ‘but’ in verse 36 - because this is where the all important contrast begins - but he who does not obey the Son will not see life. Once again take your pencils and write on top of the word ‘obey’ - these words - ‘does not continually obey’ (Greek present tense). This is important to understand because to disbelieve in the Son, Jesus Christ - is the same as not obeying Him. To believe in Christ is to obey Him. But those who continue to disobey and reject Christ as a life long continuous habitual pattern - a continued hardness of heart toward God and Christ - will not see life.
This life that we are talking about is the truest kind of life which all seek for, but few find and embrace. For this person, he/she will never be able to have a right relationship with their Creator. You will never know the joy of being forgiven for your sin. You will never know what true love is which comes from the Father. You will never experience faithfulness, joy and peace - yes you may feel happy, but that too will perish and in the end, leave you empty. Rejection of the Son is rejection of God, and the sinner lives under the present wrath of God - as verse 36 finishes off - but the wrath of God abides on him (you). The culmination of this wrath is eternal judgement - because God is a holy God, who hates sin, and will therefore bring sin and the sinner into judgement.
THE FINAL CALL of this passage is sobering. It is a call for all those who believe in Jesus Christ to faithfulness - to rejoice, praise and worship Him - because God has saved us from our sin, and no longer looks at us as sinners - but as His righteous children - heirs to eternal life and the riches of our heavenly inheritance. It also is a call for all those who reject Christ to obedience - to respond to God’s loving command to be back into a right relationship with Him, through Jesus Christ. It is a call to respond to God’s love by an abiding belief in the Son - by acknowledging that you are a sinner in need of a Lord and Saviour in Jesus Christ.
As we conclude - we do indeed have a wonderful Lord and Saviour who has died on the cross for our sins. God is true and He must increase, but I must decrease.
(For a full explanation of the Gospel of Jesus Christ - click here - http://www.doihaveeternallife.blogspot.com/)
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Sunday, January 4, 2009
John 3:16-21 The Greatest Love
04.01.09 John 3:16-21 (NASB)
Audio Sermon: John 3:16-21
Going Deeper: Study Guide
The Greatest Love
Today we are going to look at a passage which includes a Bible verse that is perhaps the best known verse in the world. The verse I am referring to is JOHN 3:16. We see placards with ‘JOHN 3:16’ in bold on TV on ‘Hockey Night In Canada’ and other sports events throughout the world, the verse appears on t- shirts, Bible tracts, and even graffiti. All kinds of people know this verse, and the reach of this verse is great - just to illustrate this point is this experience.
One time I went to visit a Christian that I know and he had - I think was a step brother named Jack. I was introduced to Jack and I found him to be a very hardened and profane man. He knew I was a pastor - but that made no difference in his manner or speech. Jack passed away not too long ago - but while he was alive he clearly lived a life apart from Christ. Through his lifestyle and words he demonstrated his rebellion against God. He showed no respect to Christ, and his people - but in the midst of my attempts to point him to Christ - he was able to quote John 3:16 word for word. But to this man JOHN 3:16 meant nothing to him - and as far as I know that to his dying moment, he chose to reject THE GREATEST LOVE.
The last time that we were in the Gospel of John we examined the preceding verses, verses 11-15. Those verses are directly linked to this passage, because they are part of the conversation that Jesus had with Nicodemus. We discovered that Jesus authoritatively claimed to be a faithful witness to the spiritual realities that He spoke about. The reason that Jesus could speak so boldly and plainly about heaven and God was due to the fact that He is God the Son. As the pre-existent and eternal Word of God, Jesus is the only one who can reveal heavenly realities to us. No one else has and can do this, except for Christ.
Having established His authority, Jesus continues and foreshadows His own death upon a cross. Jesus was to be lifted up on a cross so we may have eternal life. Those who God saves are able to believe in the saving work of Christ. As a result these believers will not face the judgement of God’s wrath - they will not perish, but have eternal life. If you remember we focused our lesson on one key question. That question was - Why Did Jesus Come To Earth? The answer is sin. People do not have eternal life because of sin.
We spent a large portion of our time - the last Lord’s day, looking at what sin is. In summary sin could be defined and pictured in this way - sin is missing the mark. Because of sin we miss God’s standard of holiness for our life. The picture is of an archer trying to hit the bull’s eye of a target, but always misses. Without belief in Christ to take away our sin we will perish…and this leads us to the continuation of this subject, as Jesus continues His dialogue with Nicodemus. Jesus says beginning at John 3:16:
16 "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. 17 "For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him. 18 "He who believes in Him is not judged; he who does not believe has been judged already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. 19 "This is the judgment, that the Light has come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the Light, for their deeds were evil. 20 "For everyone who does evil hates the Light, and does not come to the Light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. 21 "But he who practices the truth comes to the Light, so that his deeds may be manifested as having been wrought in God."
In today’s passage we are going to examine THE GREATEST LOVE. We will look at the full meaning of God’s love in context to six verses. We will be able to see God’s love through these three aspects:
God’s Mercy v16
God’s Mission v17-18
God’s Mandate v19-21
These three aspects clearly mark out God’s message of salvation from our sins. The good news of Jesus Christ is unveiled by Christ Himself as He offers to us THE GREATEST LOVE.
1. GOD’S MERCY v.16
The Apostle John records for us the words of Christ in no shallow way. Jesus reveals to us that God’s love is not superficial. In fact God’s love is deep and real - and is emphasized by the word - so. Jesus expresses that God so loved the world, and because of this God…according to His self-giving nature - gave. The words loved and gave really underscore God’s Mercy. The love of God is the highest form of love that we able to comprehend - this word love in the Greek is agape - a love which is not self seeking. It is a love that God demonstrates to the pinnacle of His creation - man. A love which is offered despite our sinfulness. A love that reveals the depths of God’s mercy.
God’s love for us is realized in this way - God did not give something of little worth or value, but He gave His only begotten Son. There was nothing more important that God could give, but Jesus Christ His only Son.
Jesus’ death on a cross for our sin is never to be repeated again. There is only one way to be reconciled back to God, and not what the world around us proclaims - that all paths lead to God. No...the only way back to God is through His only begotten Son. If we think about this - it means that God salvation reveals to us that this is a one time act, because He only has one Son to die for our sins (therefore it is equally true that if one is to be saved from their sins, then it is only through God's only begotten Son - Jesus Christ).
Our salvation from our sins has been purchased at a great cost, because it cost God the sacrifice of His only Son. As we learned last time in verse 14 - Jesus Christ was ‘lifted up’ upon a cross to die for our sins. But salvation through Christ offered by God is not without condition, it is not something that every person receives. Not every single person is saved from their sins - His love is manifested to the world - all mankind - you and me. Yet there is a condition to receiving God’s love. There is a condition associated with God’s Mercy.
What is this condition? God reveals to us that this condition is that we must believe in Jesus Christ - whoever believes in Him, will be saved. We are to receive Jesus Christ as our Lord and Saviour by placing our complete faith in Jesus Christ alone. Christ calls us to give our full allegiance to Him, and to acknowledge all His claims - What are some of the truth claims that Jesus Christ makes? - He claims to be God in human flesh - and He is; He claims to be our Creator, Sovereign King and Lord over us - and He is; He claims to come and take away our sins through the sacrifice of His sinless life, upon a cross - and He did; He claims that you must trust in the historic reality of His life, death, and resurrection on the third day as foreshadowed in the OT - and these events have taken place and are verifiable; He claimed to ascend to heaven to reign over everything - and He does.
Christ also calls us to abandon sin and be obedient to His righteous ways. We are to believe in Him. Believing on Jesus’ name is the key element in receiving the revelation of our Saviour, who has come into this world. To believe in Jesus Christ’s name is more than just a ‘name’ which a person is given. Whoever believes in the name of Jesus Christ will embrace as true, the very character and person that the name is associated with. It accepts the deeds that He has done for us as I mentioned - came, died to pay for our sins, rose again for us. The person that God moves to believe, is marked by a life long belief in Christ and God - that grows. This person has a change in their mind, heart, and will towards God and His Son. This is reflected in your attitudes, character, habits, thoughts, patterns of life - which are shaped according to God’s Word. The results of true belief are abiding - it is not just a decision that was made at a certain point of time and place in your life.
Very frequently I meet a person who claims to have a relationship with God. One of those times, I met a man who said that he has a relationship with God. He believes that everything in his life God understands and will accept. He believes that he will be accepted by God into heaven (thinking he has eternal life with God) when he dies. I asked him what his basis of belief is based upon. He said, that in his heart he knows that there is a God. And the foundation of his belief was his own thoughts. And his heart impulses shaped his emotions and understandings about God. All of this together dictated his relationship with God. In other words whatever he made out God to be, was true and that became his assurance.
Did this man truly seek out God and have a saving relationship with his Creator? No. The Bible is clear on this point - Romans 3:10-12: As it is written: "There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands, no one who seeks God. All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one." This man has no relationship with God.
This is NOT the kind of believing that Jesus is talking about in this passage. The sole means of entrance in to heaven is belief in Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ is God’s only ordained way of salvation from our sins, for us today. The man I spoke with believed that he has a relationship with God - when I asked him about his belief in Jesus Christ, he outright rejected any necessity for any belief in Him. He felt that he did not have to have a relationship with Christ in order to have a relationship with God. This kind of believing has a deadly serious eternal consequence (it was a heretical cocktail of false doctrine).
This man and others like him, do not realize that because they have no relationship with Christ - it means that they also do not have a relationship with God. They are self deceived - because the God they envision is not the One true God - as revealed in the Bible. If this man truly accepted the one true God, then he would also accept and believe in Jesus Christ, who is God Himself - look back to John 1:1. When one rejects Jesus Christ he is in fact also rejecting God - and the implication is that he also rejects, the necessity for repentance, God’s forgiveness of sins, salvation in Christ, and eternal life.
True belief founded upon knowing Christ, is demonstrated by a continuous pattern of true life changing results. Those who truly believe in Christ and repent of sin, instantaneously enter into a relationship with the Word, Jesus Christ, who is the sole granter of the right to enter into the family of God as one of its members. It is not what you think and feel that you know - and what you feel and think that you like to believe in - this is subjective and false faith - BUT it is whom you know and in whom you believe in - and this is in Jesus Christ of the Bible - this is objective and true faith - the only kind of faith that can save. True belief in Christ comes at a personal cost - the love of sin must be forsaken, and Christ’s forgiveness must be sought out - and true spiritual change must be demonstrated in one’s life - no spiritual change = no eternal life.
For the man that I had a conversation with - he did not have a true belief which is marked by true life changing faith in Christ, brought about by the Holy Spirit. In fact if he continues in his errant subjective thinking he will have a big surprise…that he will be judged by Christ for his sins and shall perish. But we do not have to fall into the same category as that man. You can receive eternal life through God’s mercy. If He is drawing you into a relationship with Christ, then believe in Christ as your Lord and Saviour by responding to Him. We all need salvation from the power of sin and our sinful nature. We need a new nature and a conscience which is purified from guilt by Christ. As we learned last week you must be reconciled to God and as a result receive from God a new nature. A mind, heart, and will which is regenerated by the Holy Spirit to be righteous - alive to God...For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. In these 25 words we find God’s Mercy from the penalty of our sins.
Not only do we see GOD’S MERCY, but Jesus tells us of:
2. GOD’S MISSION v.17-18
In order to be faithful to the Word of God, we need to keep it in context of the following verses.
God’s Mission or purpose is laid out in verse 17. God’s character is often misunderstood. It is often distorted by unbelievers. Either they paint God as a God of love and that He overlooks all sin - that He accepts everyone without any reservations OR people paint a picture of God being a strong handed judge, who crushes and hates people. The reality is that God’s true character has both these attributes which are held in perfect balance. Yet from our passage today we see God’s Mission was not one that is to destroy the world or to crush and hate people - but - God’s Mission reveals His character. God is a loving and caring God. God loves the vilest of sinners. He loves you if you are Buddhist, Hindu, or any other cultist - holding to false systems of belief. He loves you if you are NDP, Liberal, Green party. He loves you if you are an ‘A’ student or a ‘F’ student. God loves you - not because you are lovable the way that you are which is a sinner - and certainly not for the things that you beleive (which if they are not from God's Word are offensive to Him). But He loves you because each one of you are made in His image. Man was created to worship God and to fellowship with Him and others. Yes God loves us, BUT He also is a Holy God. Therefore GOD HATES SIN. Sin so totally affects our worship of God and fellowship with Him, that it rips apart our relationship with God - that we have no relationship with God. We are hopeless and have no hope in ourselves. This is where God’s Mission is so revealing of His love for us.
What does God do then as a result of your sin? Does He say forget it, too bad, you are a sinner and you are going to pay for your sins? No. God sends His Son, Jesus Christ into the world NOT to condemn the world - but that the world might be saved through Him. Jesus comes into our world and builds a bridge leading repentant man back to God. Jesus comes and offers reconciliation through His own sacrifice - God initiates every step to bring us back into a right relationship with Him….if we submit to His loving command to come to His only begotten Son. Yes… if we respond to God’s saving grace in Jesus Christ. If we respond to God’s loving command which needs to be obeyed now. God has authority over us as His creation - so we need to submit to God’s authority and will. We can only submit to God by allowing Him to change our sinful will, so that we can turn toward Him.
We cannot blame God for who we are in light of our sin. Because God has done everything and offered up His Son to pay for all our sins. God’s Mission is to offer His love to everyone to remove the chief human problem - sin, but not everyone will accept His loving command to be saved. We all have the responsibility to respond, but not all do. The result is if we reject God’s love we are inviting His condemnation and wrath. This is the dark side of this passage, yet it is a real consequence of the decision you make in this life - for Him or against Him. Jesus says that - He who believes in Him is not judged - that is he will not be condemned. The root meaning of the word - judged, in the Greek comes from the word ‘separation’ - and in context of this verse it is of eternal separation . If we reflect back on verses 11-15 - Jesus makes this statement with authority - because He is God the Son, who has come from heaven and reveals these unalterable realities.
The reality of being condemned or being released from condemnation of our sin, lies in our belief in Christ. Those who humbly submit, obey, and follow Christ as their Lord and Saviour will be saved from their sins and from eternal separation from God. Those who choose to reject Christ as their Lord and Saviour are judged already. In this person is an ongoing attitude of permanent refusal to believe. Within this person there exists an unbelief due to a love of self and sin - more than a love for God and His holiness.
This kind of attitude is self condemning and leads to a verdict realized in the imminent future. The only way to overcome this condemnation, due to sin, is to believe in the name of the only begotten Son of God. God only has one Son - and as such He only has one way to heaven. Christianity is an exclusive reality - it is an exclusive faith. No other faiths or religious systems can save you. By believing upon God’s Son you will reap the blessings of eternal life now and in the life to come.
God offers us His loving MERCY through the sacrificial giving of His Son. God’s MISSION has been executed and we all need to respond rightly to Him. God clearly makes known to us His sole means of being saved from our sins as He now outlines:
3. GOD’S MANDATE v.19-21
God’s Mandate is clear. The verdict is decisive. Everything that has preceded this verse today is summed up in this judgment or verdict. Jesus Christ the Light has come into the world which we live in. But because people are sinners they love their sin….they love the darkness of a life of sin….they are enslaved to sin….held captive to the dominion of darkness…. ruled by the prince of darkness - Satan…and because of this bondage - Jesus states this truth - for their deeds were evil. Everyone who falls into this category hates the light…they hate Jesus Christ….they hate God…they have no true life in Him…they have no relationship with Him. Instead the love of sin drives them away from Christ to self …and to sins domination and temporal pleasures. The fact is, when a sinner comes before Christ all their evil deeds will be exposed. The book of Romans states this - chapter 1:17-25: "For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: "The righteous will live by faith." 18 The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth by their wickedness, 19 since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. 20 For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities--his eternal power and divine nature--have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse. 21 For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. 22 Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools 23 and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like mortal man and birds and animals and reptiles. 24 Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another. 25 They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator--who is forever praised. Amen."
The contrasting verdict is this - those who are saved by Christ - practices the truth - Christians live in the truth. A well known Bible teacher wrote this: "Trust in Christ prevents condemnation, for he takes our place and pays the penalty for sin for all who put their case in his hands. The believer in Christ as Saviour, does not come into judgment." - AT Robertson
This is true because the Christian has no fear of being in the Light - being in the all knowing and searching presence of Christ. Why? The answer is very simple - it is because they belong to Christ. Christ does not condemn those who belong to Him. Everything which is submitted to Christ in their life will be evident that it was not a mere intellectual belief, but a life changing belief in Christ. Perhaps we can distill this passage into this phrase - IT IS NOT WHAT YOU KNOW BUT WHO YOU ARE.
You can know everything about God, Christ, the Bible, but if your life has no change generated by the Holy Spirit - you are void of Christ’s salvation….you are not a believer….you cannot call yourself a Christian.
Jack Gulledge wrote this illustration in Proclaim - "There was a guy who tried to rid his house of mice. He bought a mouse trap but had no cheese. To remedy the problem, he cut out a picture of cheese from a magazine. He loaded the trap with the artificial cheese and went to bed. When he checked the mousetrap that following morning he was quite surprised to find a picture of a mouse in the trap. A counterfeit lifestyle produces artificial results!"
True saving faith is marked out by a transformed life which can only be wrought in God - only God can produce such a radical change in a person bent upon his sin nature. True saving faith is marked out repentance from sin, by true trust and commitment to Christ. It is realized by receiving a new nature controlled by the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. These realized blessings of eternal life produce a heart which is alive to Christ which obeys Him as Lord and Saviour. SIN CONDEMNS JESUS SAVES.
John 3:16 is perhaps the world’s best known verse. It’s impact is far reaching if we sincerely reflect and apply it to our life. Martin Luther called John 3:16 the miniature gospel. Others have called it a love letter from God written in blood and addressed to all. The impact of our passage is clear - we are called to belief in Christ. Jesus Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures (1 Cor. 15:3-4).
This is the greatest message given to all of us…look down at John 3:16 once again…and follow along…as I close off with this phrase by phrase /word by word summary…
The Greatest Love - John 3:16:
(I didn't write the following, and i can't remember where it is from)
For God = The Greatest One
so loved = The Greatest measure of Love ever demonstrated
the world = The greatest sum of all people who are without hope
that He gave = The greatest act of generosity and sacrifice
His only begotten Son = The greatest unique gift, the sole object of saving faith
that whoever = The greatest invitation to you
believes = The greatest simplicity and act of humble faith
in Him = The greatest assurance
shall not = The greatest certainty
perish = The greatest eternal loss
but = The greatest life changing difference
have = The greatest possession
eternal = The greatest quality and length of time
life = The greatest gift offered to you
(For a full explanation of the Gospel of Jesus Christ - click here - http://www.doihaveeternallife.blogspot.com/)
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Audio Sermon: John 3:16-21
Going Deeper: Study Guide
The Greatest Love
Today we are going to look at a passage which includes a Bible verse that is perhaps the best known verse in the world. The verse I am referring to is JOHN 3:16. We see placards with ‘JOHN 3:16’ in bold on TV on ‘Hockey Night In Canada’ and other sports events throughout the world, the verse appears on t- shirts, Bible tracts, and even graffiti. All kinds of people know this verse, and the reach of this verse is great - just to illustrate this point is this experience.
One time I went to visit a Christian that I know and he had - I think was a step brother named Jack. I was introduced to Jack and I found him to be a very hardened and profane man. He knew I was a pastor - but that made no difference in his manner or speech. Jack passed away not too long ago - but while he was alive he clearly lived a life apart from Christ. Through his lifestyle and words he demonstrated his rebellion against God. He showed no respect to Christ, and his people - but in the midst of my attempts to point him to Christ - he was able to quote John 3:16 word for word. But to this man JOHN 3:16 meant nothing to him - and as far as I know that to his dying moment, he chose to reject THE GREATEST LOVE.
The last time that we were in the Gospel of John we examined the preceding verses, verses 11-15. Those verses are directly linked to this passage, because they are part of the conversation that Jesus had with Nicodemus. We discovered that Jesus authoritatively claimed to be a faithful witness to the spiritual realities that He spoke about. The reason that Jesus could speak so boldly and plainly about heaven and God was due to the fact that He is God the Son. As the pre-existent and eternal Word of God, Jesus is the only one who can reveal heavenly realities to us. No one else has and can do this, except for Christ.
Having established His authority, Jesus continues and foreshadows His own death upon a cross. Jesus was to be lifted up on a cross so we may have eternal life. Those who God saves are able to believe in the saving work of Christ. As a result these believers will not face the judgement of God’s wrath - they will not perish, but have eternal life. If you remember we focused our lesson on one key question. That question was - Why Did Jesus Come To Earth? The answer is sin. People do not have eternal life because of sin.
We spent a large portion of our time - the last Lord’s day, looking at what sin is. In summary sin could be defined and pictured in this way - sin is missing the mark. Because of sin we miss God’s standard of holiness for our life. The picture is of an archer trying to hit the bull’s eye of a target, but always misses. Without belief in Christ to take away our sin we will perish…and this leads us to the continuation of this subject, as Jesus continues His dialogue with Nicodemus. Jesus says beginning at John 3:16:
16 "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. 17 "For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him. 18 "He who believes in Him is not judged; he who does not believe has been judged already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. 19 "This is the judgment, that the Light has come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the Light, for their deeds were evil. 20 "For everyone who does evil hates the Light, and does not come to the Light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. 21 "But he who practices the truth comes to the Light, so that his deeds may be manifested as having been wrought in God."
In today’s passage we are going to examine THE GREATEST LOVE. We will look at the full meaning of God’s love in context to six verses. We will be able to see God’s love through these three aspects:
God’s Mercy v16
God’s Mission v17-18
God’s Mandate v19-21
These three aspects clearly mark out God’s message of salvation from our sins. The good news of Jesus Christ is unveiled by Christ Himself as He offers to us THE GREATEST LOVE.
1. GOD’S MERCY v.16
The Apostle John records for us the words of Christ in no shallow way. Jesus reveals to us that God’s love is not superficial. In fact God’s love is deep and real - and is emphasized by the word - so. Jesus expresses that God so loved the world, and because of this God…according to His self-giving nature - gave. The words loved and gave really underscore God’s Mercy. The love of God is the highest form of love that we able to comprehend - this word love in the Greek is agape - a love which is not self seeking. It is a love that God demonstrates to the pinnacle of His creation - man. A love which is offered despite our sinfulness. A love that reveals the depths of God’s mercy.
God’s love for us is realized in this way - God did not give something of little worth or value, but He gave His only begotten Son. There was nothing more important that God could give, but Jesus Christ His only Son.
Jesus’ death on a cross for our sin is never to be repeated again. There is only one way to be reconciled back to God, and not what the world around us proclaims - that all paths lead to God. No...the only way back to God is through His only begotten Son. If we think about this - it means that God salvation reveals to us that this is a one time act, because He only has one Son to die for our sins (therefore it is equally true that if one is to be saved from their sins, then it is only through God's only begotten Son - Jesus Christ).
Our salvation from our sins has been purchased at a great cost, because it cost God the sacrifice of His only Son. As we learned last time in verse 14 - Jesus Christ was ‘lifted up’ upon a cross to die for our sins. But salvation through Christ offered by God is not without condition, it is not something that every person receives. Not every single person is saved from their sins - His love is manifested to the world - all mankind - you and me. Yet there is a condition to receiving God’s love. There is a condition associated with God’s Mercy.
What is this condition? God reveals to us that this condition is that we must believe in Jesus Christ - whoever believes in Him, will be saved. We are to receive Jesus Christ as our Lord and Saviour by placing our complete faith in Jesus Christ alone. Christ calls us to give our full allegiance to Him, and to acknowledge all His claims - What are some of the truth claims that Jesus Christ makes? - He claims to be God in human flesh - and He is; He claims to be our Creator, Sovereign King and Lord over us - and He is; He claims to come and take away our sins through the sacrifice of His sinless life, upon a cross - and He did; He claims that you must trust in the historic reality of His life, death, and resurrection on the third day as foreshadowed in the OT - and these events have taken place and are verifiable; He claimed to ascend to heaven to reign over everything - and He does.
Christ also calls us to abandon sin and be obedient to His righteous ways. We are to believe in Him. Believing on Jesus’ name is the key element in receiving the revelation of our Saviour, who has come into this world. To believe in Jesus Christ’s name is more than just a ‘name’ which a person is given. Whoever believes in the name of Jesus Christ will embrace as true, the very character and person that the name is associated with. It accepts the deeds that He has done for us as I mentioned - came, died to pay for our sins, rose again for us. The person that God moves to believe, is marked by a life long belief in Christ and God - that grows. This person has a change in their mind, heart, and will towards God and His Son. This is reflected in your attitudes, character, habits, thoughts, patterns of life - which are shaped according to God’s Word. The results of true belief are abiding - it is not just a decision that was made at a certain point of time and place in your life.
Very frequently I meet a person who claims to have a relationship with God. One of those times, I met a man who said that he has a relationship with God. He believes that everything in his life God understands and will accept. He believes that he will be accepted by God into heaven (thinking he has eternal life with God) when he dies. I asked him what his basis of belief is based upon. He said, that in his heart he knows that there is a God. And the foundation of his belief was his own thoughts. And his heart impulses shaped his emotions and understandings about God. All of this together dictated his relationship with God. In other words whatever he made out God to be, was true and that became his assurance.
Did this man truly seek out God and have a saving relationship with his Creator? No. The Bible is clear on this point - Romans 3:10-12: As it is written: "There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands, no one who seeks God. All have turned away, they have together become worthless; there is no one who does good, not even one." This man has no relationship with God.
This is NOT the kind of believing that Jesus is talking about in this passage. The sole means of entrance in to heaven is belief in Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ is God’s only ordained way of salvation from our sins, for us today. The man I spoke with believed that he has a relationship with God - when I asked him about his belief in Jesus Christ, he outright rejected any necessity for any belief in Him. He felt that he did not have to have a relationship with Christ in order to have a relationship with God. This kind of believing has a deadly serious eternal consequence (it was a heretical cocktail of false doctrine).
This man and others like him, do not realize that because they have no relationship with Christ - it means that they also do not have a relationship with God. They are self deceived - because the God they envision is not the One true God - as revealed in the Bible. If this man truly accepted the one true God, then he would also accept and believe in Jesus Christ, who is God Himself - look back to John 1:1. When one rejects Jesus Christ he is in fact also rejecting God - and the implication is that he also rejects, the necessity for repentance, God’s forgiveness of sins, salvation in Christ, and eternal life.
True belief founded upon knowing Christ, is demonstrated by a continuous pattern of true life changing results. Those who truly believe in Christ and repent of sin, instantaneously enter into a relationship with the Word, Jesus Christ, who is the sole granter of the right to enter into the family of God as one of its members. It is not what you think and feel that you know - and what you feel and think that you like to believe in - this is subjective and false faith - BUT it is whom you know and in whom you believe in - and this is in Jesus Christ of the Bible - this is objective and true faith - the only kind of faith that can save. True belief in Christ comes at a personal cost - the love of sin must be forsaken, and Christ’s forgiveness must be sought out - and true spiritual change must be demonstrated in one’s life - no spiritual change = no eternal life.
For the man that I had a conversation with - he did not have a true belief which is marked by true life changing faith in Christ, brought about by the Holy Spirit. In fact if he continues in his errant subjective thinking he will have a big surprise…that he will be judged by Christ for his sins and shall perish. But we do not have to fall into the same category as that man. You can receive eternal life through God’s mercy. If He is drawing you into a relationship with Christ, then believe in Christ as your Lord and Saviour by responding to Him. We all need salvation from the power of sin and our sinful nature. We need a new nature and a conscience which is purified from guilt by Christ. As we learned last week you must be reconciled to God and as a result receive from God a new nature. A mind, heart, and will which is regenerated by the Holy Spirit to be righteous - alive to God...For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. In these 25 words we find God’s Mercy from the penalty of our sins.
Not only do we see GOD’S MERCY, but Jesus tells us of:
2. GOD’S MISSION v.17-18
In order to be faithful to the Word of God, we need to keep it in context of the following verses.
God’s Mission or purpose is laid out in verse 17. God’s character is often misunderstood. It is often distorted by unbelievers. Either they paint God as a God of love and that He overlooks all sin - that He accepts everyone without any reservations OR people paint a picture of God being a strong handed judge, who crushes and hates people. The reality is that God’s true character has both these attributes which are held in perfect balance. Yet from our passage today we see God’s Mission was not one that is to destroy the world or to crush and hate people - but - God’s Mission reveals His character. God is a loving and caring God. God loves the vilest of sinners. He loves you if you are Buddhist, Hindu, or any other cultist - holding to false systems of belief. He loves you if you are NDP, Liberal, Green party. He loves you if you are an ‘A’ student or a ‘F’ student. God loves you - not because you are lovable the way that you are which is a sinner - and certainly not for the things that you beleive (which if they are not from God's Word are offensive to Him). But He loves you because each one of you are made in His image. Man was created to worship God and to fellowship with Him and others. Yes God loves us, BUT He also is a Holy God. Therefore GOD HATES SIN. Sin so totally affects our worship of God and fellowship with Him, that it rips apart our relationship with God - that we have no relationship with God. We are hopeless and have no hope in ourselves. This is where God’s Mission is so revealing of His love for us.
What does God do then as a result of your sin? Does He say forget it, too bad, you are a sinner and you are going to pay for your sins? No. God sends His Son, Jesus Christ into the world NOT to condemn the world - but that the world might be saved through Him. Jesus comes into our world and builds a bridge leading repentant man back to God. Jesus comes and offers reconciliation through His own sacrifice - God initiates every step to bring us back into a right relationship with Him….if we submit to His loving command to come to His only begotten Son. Yes… if we respond to God’s saving grace in Jesus Christ. If we respond to God’s loving command which needs to be obeyed now. God has authority over us as His creation - so we need to submit to God’s authority and will. We can only submit to God by allowing Him to change our sinful will, so that we can turn toward Him.
We cannot blame God for who we are in light of our sin. Because God has done everything and offered up His Son to pay for all our sins. God’s Mission is to offer His love to everyone to remove the chief human problem - sin, but not everyone will accept His loving command to be saved. We all have the responsibility to respond, but not all do. The result is if we reject God’s love we are inviting His condemnation and wrath. This is the dark side of this passage, yet it is a real consequence of the decision you make in this life - for Him or against Him. Jesus says that - He who believes in Him is not judged - that is he will not be condemned. The root meaning of the word - judged, in the Greek comes from the word ‘separation’ - and in context of this verse it is of eternal separation . If we reflect back on verses 11-15 - Jesus makes this statement with authority - because He is God the Son, who has come from heaven and reveals these unalterable realities.
The reality of being condemned or being released from condemnation of our sin, lies in our belief in Christ. Those who humbly submit, obey, and follow Christ as their Lord and Saviour will be saved from their sins and from eternal separation from God. Those who choose to reject Christ as their Lord and Saviour are judged already. In this person is an ongoing attitude of permanent refusal to believe. Within this person there exists an unbelief due to a love of self and sin - more than a love for God and His holiness.
This kind of attitude is self condemning and leads to a verdict realized in the imminent future. The only way to overcome this condemnation, due to sin, is to believe in the name of the only begotten Son of God. God only has one Son - and as such He only has one way to heaven. Christianity is an exclusive reality - it is an exclusive faith. No other faiths or religious systems can save you. By believing upon God’s Son you will reap the blessings of eternal life now and in the life to come.
God offers us His loving MERCY through the sacrificial giving of His Son. God’s MISSION has been executed and we all need to respond rightly to Him. God clearly makes known to us His sole means of being saved from our sins as He now outlines:
3. GOD’S MANDATE v.19-21
God’s Mandate is clear. The verdict is decisive. Everything that has preceded this verse today is summed up in this judgment or verdict. Jesus Christ the Light has come into the world which we live in. But because people are sinners they love their sin….they love the darkness of a life of sin….they are enslaved to sin….held captive to the dominion of darkness…. ruled by the prince of darkness - Satan…and because of this bondage - Jesus states this truth - for their deeds were evil. Everyone who falls into this category hates the light…they hate Jesus Christ….they hate God…they have no true life in Him…they have no relationship with Him. Instead the love of sin drives them away from Christ to self …and to sins domination and temporal pleasures. The fact is, when a sinner comes before Christ all their evil deeds will be exposed. The book of Romans states this - chapter 1:17-25: "For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: "The righteous will live by faith." 18 The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth by their wickedness, 19 since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. 20 For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities--his eternal power and divine nature--have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse. 21 For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. 22 Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools 23 and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like mortal man and birds and animals and reptiles. 24 Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another. 25 They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator--who is forever praised. Amen."
The contrasting verdict is this - those who are saved by Christ - practices the truth - Christians live in the truth. A well known Bible teacher wrote this: "Trust in Christ prevents condemnation, for he takes our place and pays the penalty for sin for all who put their case in his hands. The believer in Christ as Saviour, does not come into judgment." - AT Robertson
This is true because the Christian has no fear of being in the Light - being in the all knowing and searching presence of Christ. Why? The answer is very simple - it is because they belong to Christ. Christ does not condemn those who belong to Him. Everything which is submitted to Christ in their life will be evident that it was not a mere intellectual belief, but a life changing belief in Christ. Perhaps we can distill this passage into this phrase - IT IS NOT WHAT YOU KNOW BUT WHO YOU ARE.
You can know everything about God, Christ, the Bible, but if your life has no change generated by the Holy Spirit - you are void of Christ’s salvation….you are not a believer….you cannot call yourself a Christian.
Jack Gulledge wrote this illustration in Proclaim - "There was a guy who tried to rid his house of mice. He bought a mouse trap but had no cheese. To remedy the problem, he cut out a picture of cheese from a magazine. He loaded the trap with the artificial cheese and went to bed. When he checked the mousetrap that following morning he was quite surprised to find a picture of a mouse in the trap. A counterfeit lifestyle produces artificial results!"
True saving faith is marked out by a transformed life which can only be wrought in God - only God can produce such a radical change in a person bent upon his sin nature. True saving faith is marked out repentance from sin, by true trust and commitment to Christ. It is realized by receiving a new nature controlled by the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. These realized blessings of eternal life produce a heart which is alive to Christ which obeys Him as Lord and Saviour. SIN CONDEMNS JESUS SAVES.
John 3:16 is perhaps the world’s best known verse. It’s impact is far reaching if we sincerely reflect and apply it to our life. Martin Luther called John 3:16 the miniature gospel. Others have called it a love letter from God written in blood and addressed to all. The impact of our passage is clear - we are called to belief in Christ. Jesus Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures (1 Cor. 15:3-4).
This is the greatest message given to all of us…look down at John 3:16 once again…and follow along…as I close off with this phrase by phrase /word by word summary…
The Greatest Love - John 3:16:
(I didn't write the following, and i can't remember where it is from)
For God = The Greatest One
so loved = The Greatest measure of Love ever demonstrated
the world = The greatest sum of all people who are without hope
that He gave = The greatest act of generosity and sacrifice
His only begotten Son = The greatest unique gift, the sole object of saving faith
that whoever = The greatest invitation to you
believes = The greatest simplicity and act of humble faith
in Him = The greatest assurance
shall not = The greatest certainty
perish = The greatest eternal loss
but = The greatest life changing difference
have = The greatest possession
eternal = The greatest quality and length of time
life = The greatest gift offered to you
(For a full explanation of the Gospel of Jesus Christ - click here - http://www.doihaveeternallife.blogspot.com/)
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