Responding To The Real Jesus Series

Responding to the Real Jesus

Fortifying the Foundations #2

John 1:1-18

3-9-03

Intro:

John 1:1-18

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2He was with God in the beginning. 3Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. 4In him was life, and that life was the light of men. 5The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it. 6There came a man who was sent from God; his name was John. 7He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through him all men might believe. 8He himself was not the light; he came only as a witness to the light. 9The true light that gives light to every man was coming into the world. 10He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. 11He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. 12Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God- 13children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God. 14The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth. 15John testifies concerning him. He cries out, saying, "This was he of whom I said, `He who comes after me has surpassed me because he was before me.’" 16From the fullness of his grace we have all received one blessing after another. 17For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. 18No one has ever seen God, but God the One and Only, who is at the Father’s side, has made him known. NIV

If you could have one wish and only one wish granted in your whole lifetime, what would that request be? There are many things that immediately come to mind.

Health—some say, “If you’ve got your health, you’ve got the most important thing.”

Wouldn’t it be wonderful to go through life with perfect health—never sick, never depressed, never sore.

Money—we always need money. There are a lot of things you can do with money. You can buy a house. You can invest in more education. You can get the bills paid. Money is nice to have.

Family and friends are perhaps more important than those things. Would you choose to have children? Would you choose to have many close friends or a loving spouse.

If I had only one wish I wouldn’t choose anything that is temporal, no matter how valuable it is. “What good is it if a man gains the whose world and looses his own soul?” [1] I would choose eternal life in God and all that comes with that.

That’s what the Gospel of John is all about. That’s what is being offered us in this book. John 20:31 “But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.” NIV

In these first 18 verses John summarizes the message he is about to give us in his gospel.[2] It is a message about Jesus. It is a message about Who Jesus is and how we can have eternal life. What a wealth of revelation we have in these first 18 verses--far too much for one sermon. But this morning I would like for us to three areas of consideration from the text:

I. Reverence for Christ: It is God Himself Who has come to us.

II. Revelation through Christ: In His coming He has revealed to us the heart of God.

III. Response to Christ. Such a revelation requires a response on our part.

I. Reverence for Christ: Verse 14 “The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us.” This is no archangel. This is no resurrected saint. This is not an alien from another planet. This is God Himself coming to us. “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” The Creator of the galaxies, the Creator of the earth and all that is in it—became a man! He condescended to become one of us. For all eternity Christ always has been and always will be God. But 2000 years ago he also became a man: fully God and fully man—not half God and half man—fully God and fully man.

God, the Son became something he had never been before. He continued to be God but because of His love for us He also became a man. And He will always be a man. When Jesus was resurrected He did not cease to be a human. He continues to be a High Priest touched with the feelings of our infirmities.[3] This all-powerful God Who could anything He wants to do, so loves you and me, so identifies with us in His heart, that He chose to become one of us. We know that was necessary for our salvation. It was the man, Jesus Christ, who suffered and died on the cross in our place. It was the man, Jesus Christ, Who poured out His blood in payment for our salvation. But can you comprehend it? The Eternal God, Christ Jesus will dwell in a resurrected, human body forever! When we get to heaven we will see Him. The scars of His resurrection will be eternal reminders of His love for us.