John

You Must Be Born Again

John 3:1-7

A number of years ago, a newspaper carried an account of a speech given by the president of a well-known university to a group of influential businessmen and civic leaders. The president told of a recent experience which he, his audience, and the newspaper reporter found humorous. The president was shopping during the Christmas season and happened to pass by a Salvation Army volunteer, standing by a “donation kettle” and ringing a bell. As he paused to make a donation, the woman volunteer asked him: “Sir, are you saved?” When he replied that he supposed he was, she was not satisfied, so she pursued the matter further: “I mean, have you ever given your full life to the Lord?” At this point, the president told his audience, he thought he should enlighten this persistent woman concerning his identity: “I am the president of such and such university, and as such, I am also president of its school of theology.” The lady considered his response for a moment, and then replied, “It doesn’t matter wherever you’ve been, or whatever you are, you can still be saved.”

The most tragic part of this incident is that both the seminary president and his audience actually thought his story was amusing. I can imagine that if Nicodemus had been confronted by this Salvation Army volunteer, he would have thought—and said—just about the same thing as the university president. Nicodemus is a Jew, but not just any Jew, a Pharisee, a ruler of the Jews, a member of the Sanhedrin, and a highly respected teacher of the Old Testament Scriptures. Can you imagine being Nicodemus and having Jesus tell you that all of this is not enough to get you into the kingdom of God? Yet this is precisely what Jesus tells Nicodemus. If a man like Nicodemus is not good enough for the kingdom of God, then who is? That is the question, and Jesus has the answer, which John records for us.

Listen to John’s account of Jesus’ conversation with Nicodemus in John 3:1-10

Does Jesus Believe in You?

John 2:23-25

I thought after last week’s study that I would be ready for us to move on to John 3. I am really looking forward to preaching messages from that great chapter. There we will find Jesus’ conversation with Nicodemus about our need to be born again. We will also find the greatest gospel verse that has ever been written, John 3:16.

But as I began to study this week, the Holy Spirit stopped me in my tracks at the end of chapter 2. There we find three verses that serve as a bridge between the events of chapter 2 and what happens in chapter 3. Remember that when the Bible was written it had no chapter divisions or verse designations. They were added later to help us in studying the Bible together—so that we all can know we are looking at the same place in the scripture.

So these verses conclude the stories of Jesus’ sign of turning the water into wine and His cleansing of the temple in Jerusalem, but they also introduce us to the encounter with Nicodemus.

As I have reminded almost every week, John’s purpose for writing this Gospel was (20:31), “that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name.” In the prologue (1:1-18), John immediately sets forth the glory of Jesus Christ as the eternal Word, who was with God and was God. He is the source of light and life. We saw in 1:12, “But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name.”

In 1:50, Nathanael is the first one in this gospel who is said to believe in Jesus. In 2:11, the disciples, who had already believed and followed Jesus, believed again when they saw His glory when He turned the water into wine. In 2:22, John tells us that after Jesus resurrection, “His disciples remembered that He had said this to them; and they believed the Scripture and the word which Jesus had said.” So John is drawing a portrait of Jesus as the glorious manifestation of God with us, the one in whom everyone should believe for eternal life. The disciples have are examples of early faith and growing faith in Jesus.

And then we read (John 2:23), “Now when He was in Jerusalem at the Passover, during the feast, many believed in His name when they saw the signs which He did.” We might expect this to be another example of saving faith following the earlier examples that he has given. But instead we read (2:24-25), “But Jesus did not commit Himself to them, because He knew all men, and had no need that anyone should testify of man, for He knew what was in man.” Why would Jesus refuse to commit Himself to those who believed in Him?

The word translated “commit” (2:24, NKJV) is the same Greek verb as “believed” (2:23). We might translate it this way, “Many believed in Jesus, but Jesus didn’t believe in them.” Jesus did not have faith in their faith.

I agree with John Piper, who explains (He Knew What Was in Man):

What it says, in essence, is that Jesus knows what is in every heart, and so he can see when someone believes in a way that is not really believing. In other words, Jesus’ ability to know every heart perfectly leads to the unsettling truth that some belief is not the kind of belief that obtains fellowship with Jesus and eternal life. Some belief is not saving belief.

So while most of us in this room today would probably say, “I believe in Jesus,” maybe the more important question we all need to ask today is, “Does Jesus believe in me?”

Jesus Cleans House

John 2:12-25

What gets you worked up? What gets you excited? Some people get excited over ballgames. Some get worked up over political issues. Others are energized by work or church. Some are passionate about their gardens or their homes. Some get worked up over their families.

Anyone here passionate about cleaning house? Jesus was—when it came to His Father’s house. Let’s read the text for today, John 2:12-25,

12 After this He went down to Capernaum, He, His mother, His brothers, and His disciples; and they did not stay there many days.

13 Now the Passover of the Jews was at hand, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.

14 And He found in the temple those who sold oxen and sheep and doves, and the moneychangers doing business.

15 When He had made a whip of cords, He drove them all out of the temple, with the sheep and the oxen, and poured out the changers’ money and overturned the tables.

16 And He said to those who sold doves, “Take these things away! Do not make My Father’s house a house of merchandise!”

17 Then His disciples remembered that it was written, “Zeal for Your house has eaten Me up.”

18 So the Jews answered and said to Him, “What sign do You show to us, since You do these things?”

19 Jesus answered and said to them, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.”

20 Then the Jews said, “It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and will You raise it up in three days?”

21 But He was speaking of the temple of His body.

22 Therefore, when He had risen from the dead, His disciples remembered that He had said this to them; and they believed the Scripture and the word which Jesus had said.

23 Now when He was in Jerusalem at the Passover, during the feast, many believed in His name when they saw the signs which He did.

24 But Jesus did not commit Himself to them, because He knew all men,

25 and had no need that anyone should testify of man, for He knew what was in man.

In our last study, the disciples got an initial glimpse of Jesus’ glory when He turned the water into wine and they believed in Him (2:11). They had already believed in Him, but when they saw more of who He really is, they believed in Him again, in a deeper way. After Jesus’ resurrection when the disciples remembered this incident, the result was the same: “they believed the Scripture and the word which Jesus had spoken” (2:22). John writes these things so that we might get a deeper understanding of who Jesus is so that we might believe in Him as the Christ, the Son of God, and through believing, we might have life in His name (20:30-31). John want us to behold the glory of Jesus and to receive His grace.

Water into Wine

John 2:1-11

John’s majestic Gospel serves as a magnificent gallery which displays the glory of Jesus as no other literature on earth can. As you enter in chapter 1, John gives convincing testimony of the deity of Jesus and declares Him to be the Son of God. Jesus is shown in all the majesty of His place in the Godhead. Verse 14 said, “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.”

In chapters 2 through 12 through his narrative John will focus on seven miracles that he calls signs. Remember that in John’s purpose statement in chapter 20 he writes:

30 And truly Jesus did many other signs in the presence of His disciples, which are not written in this book; 31 but these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name. (John 20:30-31)

A sign points to something beyond itself. John chose these particular signs because they show who Jesus is and what He came to do. The signs are almost like a parable in that there is a spiritual meaning behind the story. These miracles are actual historical events in the life of Jesus. If you had been at the wedding in Cana you could have tasted the wonderful water that had been turned into wine. Yet, because it is a sign, it also has a deeper lesson to teach us. These are signs call us to believe in Jesus as the Christ, the Son of God. They call us to behold His glory and to experience His fullness and His grace.

The last verse of today’s passage confirms this purpose.  After the story of the wedding of Cana in John 2:1–10, John says in verse 11, “This beginning of signs Jesus did in Cana of Galilee, and manifested His glory; and His disciples believed in Him.” So the focus is on seeing the glory of Christ and believing in Him. His disciples saw his glory, and they believed in Him. That’s why John is writing this Gospel. He wants to reveal the glory of Christ to us. And he wants us to receive the grace of believing.

So it would be appropriate for us to ask today: what is the significance of the sign of Jesus turning water into wine? How does it show His glory? Why should we believe in Him?

Meeting Jesus

John 1:43-51

(Sorry, there is no audio for this sermon)

When did you meet Jesus? How did it happen? Who told you about Him? How did you come to believe in Him as the Lord and Savior of your soul? Wouldn’t it be a wonderful experience if we took turns and let each person tell how he or she came to know Jesus? Each of our stories would be unique and special.

Some of you, like me, grew up going to church. My mother was a true believer in Christ and my father always went to church too and I believe he also later came to a personal faith in Christ.

I remember going to Sunday School, Vacation Bible School, and church camp. I attended confirmation class and professed to have believed in Jesus Christ. I remember praying with my mom for Jesus to come into my heart at a young age. Was I saved then? Probably not, but these things laid the foundation for faith that would become real and personal for me in my college years. My later years of high school beginning of college were proof enough that my profession of faith was not real. My hidden sin and depraved heart became more open and unrestrained.

In my second year at the Air Force Academy a fellow cadet invited me to Bible Study at the Baptist Student Union in Colorado Springs. There I met some young people who were really living out their faith in Jesus Christ, like my mother had. They seemed to have the real thing, something I was sorely lacking. My sin became even more evident to me in that light. One night after hearing the BSU director, Don Gurney share the gospel message, my friend told me about how he had trusted Christ. That night, realizing my sin and my need for a Savior, I met Jesus for real. And my life was changed forever.

Others of you came from unbelieving homes, where the name of Christ was only used as a swear word. Perhaps you didn’t know what love and kindness were. But someone showed you the love of the Savior, and told you about Jesus who gave Himself on the cross to redeem you from all your sins. You came to Him and found the love that you had never known. Your life was changed.

Probably some of you were going full-bore in sin. You lived to do whatever felt good at the moment. But there was always an emptiness of soul that these momentary pleasures could not satisfy. Someone shared with you about the lasting peace and joy that only Christ can give. You turned from your sin and asked God to apply the blood of Christ to your guilty soul and you were changed.

There are as many different stories as there are people here. But there will also be some things in common. One of those is that coming to know Christ personally changes you. Your desires and focus for life change. Meeting Jesus personally will change your life forever.

In the Gospel of John chapter 1 starting in verse 35 we see several men who meet Jesus and their lives are forever changed.

Jesus and the First Disciples

John 1:35-42

One of the most amazing truths I have seen in the Bible is the truth that God invites people to come to Him. Of course, the Lord has to make the first move. The Bible teaches that man is a sinner and his sinful condition has left him spiritually dead (Eph. 2:1) and blind to God’s truth (2 Cor. 4:4). No person actually makes an independent move toward God. God always takes the initiative and He reaches out in love, grace and mercy to call lost sinners to Himself.

It may be easy for those of us who have come to Christ Jesus and have walked with Him for some time to think about that invitation as normal and expected. We may forget what an startling thing it is that God invites sinners to come to Him.

In our text today Jesus invites some men to consider what has been said about Him. This passage highlights the condition of man and the compassion of the Savior. Jesus only says a few words in these verses. He asks a question, “What do you seek?” in verse 38. And, He give an invitation, “Come and see” in verse 39. This question and this invitation have my interest today. Jesus invites those who do not know Him to come to Him and to examine Him.

The Testimony of John the Baptist

John 1:29-34

29 The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!

30 “This is He of whom I said, ‘After me comes a Man who is preferred before me, for He was before me.’

31 “I did not know Him; but that He should be revealed to Israel, therefore I came baptizing with water.”

32 And John bore witness, saying, “I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and He remained upon Him.

33 “I did not know Him, but He who sent me to baptize with water said to me, ‘Upon whom you see the Spirit descending, and remaining on Him, this is He who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.’

34 “And I have seen and testified that this is the Son of God.”

Last time we began to look at the testimony of John the Baptist about Jesus. Remember that the purpose of the Gospel of John is “that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name,” (John 20:31). As I said in a previous message this gospel is almost like a courtroom drama. Inspired by the Holy Spirit, the apostle John has given his opening statement in John 1:1-18. He has declared Jesus to be the eternal Word, the Light, the Life, and the only begotten Son of God who came into this world as the Word made flesh. So the gospel of John is in the opening eighteen verses a declaration of the deity of Christ.

 And then starting in verse 19, he gives us the evidences or witnesses proving that declaration to be true. The first witness he calls is John the Baptist. Verse 19 begins, “Now this is the testimony of John.”

In 1:19-28, John testified that he was not the Light, not the Christ; in 1:29-34, he bore witness to the Light testifying who Jesus is and what He came to do; and finally in 1:35-51, John’s witness bears fruit as several of his disciples believe in Jesus and begin to follow Him.

The Excellency of Christ

John 1:15-18

Our salvation and our spiritual growth is inextricably bound up with our view of Christ. As we see more and more of Christ, His excellence and His fullness, we grow in grace, in faith, and in obedience to God.

In C. S. Lewis’s children’s series, The Chronicles of Narnia, young heroine Lucy meets a majestic lion named Aslan, a symbol of Christ, in the enchanted land of Narnia. Making a return visit a year later, the children discover that everything has changed radically, and they quickly become lost. But after a series of dreadful events, Lucy finally spots Aslan in a forest clearing, rushes to him, throws her arms around his neck, and buries her face in his mane.

The great beast rolled over on his side so that Lucy fell, half sitting and half lying between his front paws. He bent forward and touched her nose with his tongue. His warm breath came all around her. She gazed up into the large wise face.

“Welcome child,” he said.

“Aslan,” said Lucy, “you’re bigger.”

“That’s because you’re older, little one,” answered he.

“Not because you are?”

“I’m not. But each year you grow, you’ll find me bigger.”

I hope that many of you have found that to be true. My desire is that as we continue our journey through the Gospel of John, that Christ will grow bigger and sweeter every day. I pray that we will grow in grace and grow in faith because we have come to see that Christ is greater than we ever imagined. And I would hope and pray that this greater understanding of Christ’s fullness will lead us to an even more spiritually dynamic life than we are already experiencing.

In verse 14, John wrote, “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.” In verses 15-18 that we are looking at today, John continues to unfold the glory of Jesus Christ, the eternal Word. Since the purpose of the whole Gospel is that you might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God and have life in His name (John 20:30-31), it fits well with that purpose that John would spend the last few verses of his introduction exalting Jesus Christ, showing His excellency. John said, “we beheld His glory.” And as we journey through this Gospel I think John expects that in some sense we will see His glory also so that we will be transformed into His likeness. Someday when we see Jesus in the fullness of His glory that sight will complete our transformation. John writes in his first epistle (1 John 3:2-3): “Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is. And everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself, just as He is pure.”

The more we know Christ, the bigger He grows. And the more we behold Him, the more we grow to be like Him. Christ is excellent so we must exalt Him.