THROUGH THE NEW TESTAMENT
JOHN 1B
10-7-99
INTRO: Matthew presented Jesus Christ as the King of the Jews, their
promised Messiah. And you will find in Matthews gospel no less that
60 O/T prophecies that find their fulfillment in Jesus.
Mark presents Jesus Christ as the suffering servant of God &
since no one was interested in the pedigree of a servant, Mark’s is the
only gospel without a genealogy.
Luke was a gentile physician so it makes sense that he presents
Jesus Christ as the Son of Man. And we’ve seen how Luke focused on
the humanity of Jesus tracing His roots all the way back to the first man,
Adam.
And as we come now to the gospel of John, John presents Jesus
Christ as the Son of God, diety come in human flesh. And we saw last
time how John begins his gospel with the divine genealogy of Jesus.
1-2 Jesus is the Word, Jesus is God. And we will see over and over in the
gospel of John how Jesus is presented as God come in human flesh. In
fact, we see that in the very next verse.
3 Now Jesus was not created as some suggest, He is the creator. Jesus created
everything. If it was created, it was created by Jesus Christ. In Colossians
we read, For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens
and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or
rulers or authorities - all things have been created by Him and for
Him. And He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.
Col. 1:16-17
Now "All" means all. "Nothing" was made without Jesus. He is the Creator.
Now we’re told back in the book of Genesis "In the beginning, God created
the heavens & the earth..." Yet here we’re told that Jesus created all things.
How can that be....unless Jesus is God. You see, He was not the first created
being, as some cults believe; He Himself created all things.
4 In Him - in Jesus - was and is life. You may be alive, but you don’t have life
without Jesus. You are alive physically, but you don’t have spiritual life
without Jesus. Jesus is the Word Who became flesh to show you life - true
life, eternal life. Someone has well said that doctors may help us live longer,
but they don’t give us a reason to live. Jesus gives us a reason to live.
4-5 Now when John says that "the darkness did not comprehend it," the
word "comprehend" means extinguish. The darkness did not extinguish
the light. Oh, they tried. Perhaps the greatest evidence of this truth is
when they crucified Jesus. As they sought to extuingush the light,
darkness fell upon the land. But for only 3 hours. The light shined
again. The darkness couldn’t comprehend, extuingush it.
You see, the message of Jesus Christ is a light shining in the darkness of
sin and death, a beacon to draw men to God. "Darkness" speaks of the
condition humanity is in apart from Jesus Christ. 2Cor. 4:4 ...the god
of this world, has blinded the minds of the unbelieving, that they
might not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is
the image of God.
Maybe you remember the Simon & Garfunkel song from the 70’s
called "The Sounds of Silence." A verse in that song says..."Hello
darkness, my old friend, I’ve come to talk with you again." That is a
vivid and accurate description of the way people feel today - they
are living in darkness. Blinded by the devil to the glorious gospel of
Jesus Christ. But Jesus wants to be the light in our lives. He’s come
to deliver us from the darkness.
6-8 Jesus was the light of men, not John. That’s an important point, because
many people actually thought John was the Messiah. We’ll see next week
how a delegation sent from Jerusalem thought he might be the Messiah.
No, Jesus was the light. Jesus came and shined light on every person.
9-11 Notice that Jesus Christ "gives light to every man coming into the world."
Every man! Like some of you, I am often asked "but what about the
aborigines or the pygymies?" The bible says that Jesus gives light to
every man who comes into the world. Now how does He do that?
I believe we find the answer over in Romans 1:19-20. First of all,
every man has the external witness of creation. Secondly, every man has
the internal witness of conscience.
But tragically, humanity seeks to reject that witness. The world knew
Him not. He came unto His own & His own received Him not. And
if you’re one here this morning without Jesus, then you’re no different
than they.
12 For notice who it is that become sons of God. It is those who believe in
His name. Those who believe in His name become children of God.
13 They are not born of blood. You can’t be a child of God by blood. It doesn’t
matter who your ancestors were or whether you had a priest in the family. It
doesn’t matter if your parents are Christians, or your kids are. You cannot
become a child of God by blood.
They are not born of the will of the flesh. It’s not about straightening up your
life and deciding, "Hey, I’m going to stop being so sinful. I’ll quit drinking,
smoking, and cussing, and then I’ll be a child of God. No one becomes a
child of God by the will of their flesh.
They are not born of the will of man. No one can force you to become a child
of God. Maybe your wife has been wanting you to become a Christian. Maybe
someone at work has been telling you about the gospel. Maybe your neighbor
has been debating for the existence of God. But none of those things make you a
child of God. They desire you to have life, to see the light, but they cannot force
you into becoming a child of God.
There is only one way to enter God’s family. Just as every person in this room
entered into human life by means of birth, to become a part of God’s family
you must be "born again." That’s what Jesus told Nicodemus in John 3.
There is no other way into God’s family.
John put it very clearly in his first letter: "He who has the Son has eternal life;
he who does not have the Son does not have life," {cf, 1 Jn 5:12}.
Which group are you in this morning?
