Podcasts about Veerman

Our worship this morning was focused on Jesus as the Good Shepherd. In John 10:1-21, he contrasts himself with thieves and hired hands, calls his own sheep by name, and lays down his life for them of his own accord. We come to hear his voice and to follow him.

Borussia Dortmund could not close the deal on Said El Mala. Instead, they signed Giannis Konstantelias and Joey Veerman to bolster their squad. How do the new players fit into the system and improve the squad as a whole?

Met vandaag: Hoe blijf je onder de radar in Nederland, zoals 'Lucky'? | Gas en olie uit Libië | Bill Clinton wordt 80 jaar, Michiel Vos ontmoette hem | Jonge Denker Eveline Groot over het patriarchaat | 5v12: Youri Mulder geeft Joey Veerman een lesje Duits | Presentatie: Wilfried de Jong

Der nächste BVB-Transfer ist unter Dach und Fach. Joey Veerman hat seinen Vertrag unterschrieben. Die Familie ist mit dabei, auch seine Rückennummer steht fest.

Borussia Dortmund macht Tempo auf dem Transfermarkt – und im BVB-Podcast der Ruhr Nachrichten gibt es die neuesten Entwicklungen dazu. Moderator Hansi Küpper spricht mit den BVB-Reportern Dirk Krampe, Cedric Gebhardt und Kevin Pinnow über die spannenden Entwicklungen. Im Mittelpunkt steht Giannis Konstantelias: Der Deal ist durch! Der Grieche hat seinen BVB-Vertrag am Sonntag unterschrieben und ist anschließend noch einmal in seine Heimat zurückgereist. Wann er wieder in Dortmund zurückerwartet wird? Und welches neue Detail zum Transfer jetzt bekannt geworden ist, erfahrt ihr im Podcast. Parallel zur Aufnahme hat Joey Veerman am Montag seinen Medizincheck in Dortmund absolviert. Warum der Niederländer für den BVB so interessant ist, welche Qualitäten er ins Mittelfeld bringt und weshalb sich die Dortmunder gerade jetzt für ihn entschieden haben?! Und die BVB-Planungen scheinen noch nicht abgeschlossen zu sein: Barca-Talent Hector Fort bleibt ein heißes Thema – wir ordnen ein, wie realistisch ein Wechsel ist. Alle Hintergründe, exklusiven Informationen und Einschätzungen gibt es in der neuen Folge des RN BVB-Podcasts.

In de FCA Daily van maandag 17 augustus bespreken Bart Obbink, Jean-Paul Rison en Hugo Heinen het laatste voetbalnieuws!Met vandaag onder andere het afgelopen Eredivisie-weekend, Mika Godts die definitief naar PSG is vertrokken, PSV en Ajax die interesse zouden hebben in Danjuma, de transfer van Resink naar AZ en Veerman heeft zijn transfer naar het buitenland te pakken!Dat en nog veel meer in de nieuwe Daily!(00:00) Intro (02:40) Godts naar PSG(06:27) Ajax - Heerenveen(10:00) PSV en Ajax hebben Danjuma in vizier(12:32) Feyenoord - Go Ahead Eagles(16:20) Eagles wil Ritmeester van de Kamp(17:30) PSV wint en verliest Veerman(20:55) FC Utrecht - AZ(26:35) Transfers AZ(30:24) ADO - Groningen(32:13) Twente - PEC(33:03) Willem II - NEC(36:03) Telstar - Sparta(37:22) Fortuna - CambuurSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In de nieuwste aflevering van Voetbalpraat bespreken Wouter Bouwman, Willem Vissers, Maarten Wijffels en Kenneth Perez het laatste voetbalnieuws. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In de nieuwe aflevering van VI ZSM gaan Pieter Zwart en Jarno Verweij dieper in op de transfer van Joey Veerman naar Borussia Dortmund. Verder ook aandacht voor de Eredivisie-wedstrijden van zondag, met speciale aandacht voor Feyenoord, Heerenveen en Ajax.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Joey Veerman heeft zijn felbegeerde toptransfer te pakken, Mika Godts is gepresenteerd door Paris Saint-Germain, er is veel beweging bij AZ en bij sc Heerenveen staat juist niemand te springen om te verkopen. Dat en nog veel meer bespreekt Yordi Yamali met Thijs Zwagerman. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

De transfer van Joey Veerman naar Borussia Dortmund is een van de belangrijkste onderwerpen in de nieuwe aflevering van Heet van de Herdgang, de ED-podcast over PSV. De podcastmakers Mascha Prins, Rik Elfrink en Frank van den Muijsenberg kijken terug op de carrière van Veerman bij PSV. De Volendammer groeide uit tot sleutelspeler in de Eindhovense ploeg. Zijn passes, spelinzicht en authentieke karakter zullen worden gemist. „Het zal wennen zijn zonder Joey Veerman”, is de conclusie. Verder blikken de podcastmakers terug op de wedstrijd tegen Excelsior (1-2-zege), het debuut van Kodai Sano en het spel van onder anderen Ruben van Bommel en Sergiño Dest. Clubwatcher Rik Elfrink vertelt over de nog altijd durende transferzomer. Komen er toch nog absurd hoge bedragen voor spelers op tafel die PSV niet kan weigeren? En is een overgang van verdediger Lutsharel Geertruida, nu uitkomend voor RB Leipzig, dichterbij gekomen? In de historische rubriek is er aandacht voor latere topspelers die in het verleden streden om de Otten Innovation Cup, het PSV-jeugdtoernooi waar de grote talenten van Europa en daarbuiten schitteren. Ooit speelde Harry Kane, nu topspits van Bayern München en de nationale ploeg van Engeland, op het toernooi. Niet als aanvaller, maar als centrale verdediger.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In deze aflevering van Dit Was Het Weekend bespreken Milan van Dongen, Kenneth Perez en Kees Kwakman de afgelopen speelronde in de VriendenLoterij Eredivisie. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

BVB kompakt am Morgen - 14.08.2026 Sicher dir unser Angebot für echte BVB-Fans: Nur 1 Euro für 8 Wochen! Einfach hier entlang: https://www.ruhrnachrichten.de/bvbpodcast Was bewegt dich gerade beim BVB? Schick uns deine Fragen oder Meinungen mit deinem Namen gerne als WhatsApp-Nachricht an 0151 15288444. Dann sprechen wir hier bei uns im Podcast darüber. Zu unseren Beiträgen: BVB-Torwart vor dem Abflug Ramaj-Wechsel nimmt konkrete Formen an: https://www.ruhrnachrichten.de/bvb/bvb-diant-ramaj-wechsel-nach-kopenhagen-transfer-details-kaufoption-w1233635-2002184329/ Joey Veerman zum BVB? Diesen Plan verfolgen die Dortmund-Bosse bei der Sechser-Suche: https://www.ruhrnachrichten.de/bvb/bvb-transfergeruecht-joey-veerman-psv-eindhoven-sechser-suche-dortmund-w1233448-2002183938/ El Mala, Karetsas, Gadou Neue BVB-Strategie – und eine klare Transfer-Regel: https://www.ruhrnachrichten.de/bvb/borussia-dortmund-transfer-strategie-el-mala-50-millionen-karetsas-gadou-w1232967-2002183106/ Das BVB-Team der Ruhr Nachrichten im ... Dieser Podcast wird vermarktet von der Podcastbude.www.podcastbu.de - Full-Service-Podcast-Agentur - Konzeption, Produktion, Vermarktung, Distribution und Hosting.Du möchtest deinen Podcast auch kostenlos hosten und damit Geld verdienen?Dann schaue auf www.kostenlos-hosten.de und informiere dich.Dort erhältst du alle Informationen zu unseren kostenlosen Podcast-Hosting-Angeboten. kostenlos-hosten.de ist ein Produkt der Podcastbude.

Kenner buitenlands voetbal Süleyman Öztürk en Ton Molenaar gaan in VI ZSM in op de serieuze belangstelling van Borussia Dortmund in Joey Veerman én de mogelijk aanstaande transfer van Tijjani Reijnders. Ook gaat het uitgebreid over de komst van Xavi als nieuwe bondscoach van Oranje. Verder bespreken we de interesse van Ajax en PSV in Lutsharel Geertruida, maar ook de Europese wedstrijden komen aan bod.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Diant Ramaj hat beim BVB zwar noch kein einziges Spiel gemacht, steht aber wieder vor dem Abgang. Der FC Kopenhagen soll will ihn per Leihe zurückholen. Was die Zugangsseite angeht, gibt es neben El Mala viele Gerüchte um mögliche Neuzugänge. Zum Beispiel zum Niederländer Joey Veerman. Was ist da dran?

BVB kompakt am Morgen - 14.08.2026 Sicher dir unser Angebot für echte BVB-Fans: Nur 1 Euro für 8 Wochen! Einfach hier entlang: https://www.ruhrnachrichten.de/bvbpodcast Was bewegt dich gerade beim BVB? Schick uns deine Fragen oder Meinungen mit deinem Namen gerne als WhatsApp-Nachricht an 0151 15288444. Dann sprechen wir hier bei uns im Podcast darüber. Zu unseren Beiträgen: BVB-Torwart vor dem Abflug Ramaj-Wechsel nimmt konkrete Formen an: https://www.ruhrnachrichten.de/bvb/bvb-diant-ramaj-wechsel-nach-kopenhagen-transfer-details-kaufoption-w1233635-2002184329/ Joey Veerman zum BVB? Diesen Plan verfolgen die Dortmund-Bosse bei der Sechser-Suche: https://www.ruhrnachrichten.de/bvb/bvb-transfergeruecht-joey-veerman-psv-eindhoven-sechser-suche-dortmund-w1233448-2002183938/ El Mala, Karetsas, Gadou Neue BVB-Strategie – und eine klare Transfer-Regel: https://www.ruhrnachrichten.de/bvb/borussia-dortmund-transfer-strategie-el-mala-50-millionen-karetsas-gadou-w1232967-2002183106/ Das BVB-Team der Ruhr Nachrichten im ... Dieser Podcast wird vermarktet von der Podcastbude.www.podcastbu.de - Full-Service-Podcast-Agentur - Konzeption, Produktion, Vermarktung, Distribution und Hosting.Du möchtest deinen Podcast auch kostenlos hosten und damit Geld verdienen?Dann schaue auf www.kostenlos-hosten.de und informiere dich.Dort erhältst du alle Informationen zu unseren kostenlosen Podcast-Hosting-Angeboten. kostenlos-hosten.de ist ein Produkt der Podcastbude.

In de FCA Daily van woensdag 13 augustus bespreken Lars van Velsum, Bart Obbink en Alex Mazereeuw het laatste voetbalnieuws!Met vandaag Xavi die onze nieuwe bondscoach is, de Conference League wedstrijden van Ajax en Twente, Dortmund dat Veerman op het oog heeft, ook Ajax wil Geertruida en Reijnders naar de zandbak?Dat en nog veel meer in de nieuwe Daily! (00:00) Intro (00:20) Xavi nieuwe bondscoach(11:00) Shelbourne - Ajax(14:00) DAC - Twente(15:08) Veerman gelinkt aan Dortmund(17:00) Interesse voor Geertruida vanuit Amsterdam en buitenland(20:05) Reijnders naar Al Qadsiah?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

John 8:39-59 Our sermon text this morning is John 8:39-59. In the provided pew Bibles, you can find that on page 1063. This is a continuation of Jesus' dialog with the Pharisees. In our verses last week, Jesus told them that true disciples would know the truth and the truth would set them free. Remember, he was speaking about knowing him and being set free from slavery to sin. Well, the Pharisees did not think they were enslaved to anything. Because they were physical descendants of Abraham, they believed they were in right standing before God. In response, Jesus made it absolutely clear that they were not true sons but rather slaves. Jesus alluded to the fact that they had a different father. As I read, be listening for who their father truly was. Reading of John 8:39-59 Prayer I'm not proud of this, but when I was in elementary school, I often did not want to listen to my sister. And so, I would plug my ears and sometimes I would also say over and over "I can't hear you. I can't hear you." By the way, that had the side effect of irritating her. Honestly, it was very immature. I'm thankful for the Lord's work in my heart over time. But it is true that sometimes we just don't want to listen. We don't literally plug our ears, but we sometimes walk away or just dismiss everything that someone else says. We see that on display in public. Sometimes, people walk out of speeches on purpose like at college graduations. Other times, people heckle to distract the speaker and prevent other people from hearing. Honestly, those tactics say more about the people protesting than the one speaking. Well, in our verses today, it's as if the Pharisees had their ears plugged. They did not want to listen to anything that Jesus said. Jesus even pointed that out to them. Look at verse 43. He said, "you cannot bear to hear my words." And at the end of verse 47, Jesus said, "The reason why you do not hear them is that you are not of God." That's pretty intense. Really, this whole dialog, as you heard, is very intense. In fact, in the narrative arc of John's Gospel, chapter 8 is the climax of the verbal conflict between Jesus and the Jews. It began back in chapter 5 when Jesus healed a man on the Sabbath. It continued in chapter 6 when Jesus claimed to be the manna from heaven because he is the Son of God. It escalated in chapter 7 when Jesus declared that he was living water bringing eternal life. And now in chapter 8, Jesus and the Pharisees have come to this heated confrontation. To be sure, I'm not saying that these verses are the climax of the conflict. No, that will happen in the immediate lead-up to the cross. Rather, these verses are the climax of their interaction. And in the back and forth, we learn who is truly driving the Pharisees' anger and hate, and that is the devil himself. So, let's consider this text. We'll do that in three points this morning. 1. The Fight Over Fatherhood - you know, who is the Pharisees' real father and why? 2. The One Greater than Abraham - Jesus declares that he himself is God 3. The Triumph of Abraham's True Descendants - who are the true descendants of Abraham, and what benefit do they receive? That's where we are headed. 1. The Fight Over Fatherhood (8:39-50, 52) Again, #1, the Fight Over Fatherhood As you heard, Abraham is a central figure in the conflict. According to the Pharisees, because they were Abraham's physical offspring, they considered themselves God's people, with God as their ultimate father. But, as you heard, Jesus made very clear that they were not acting as true sons of Abraham. Jesus essentially gave them two reasons. ·      First, they were not doing the works that Abraham did. He said that right there in verse 39. Jesus then pointed to the Pharisees' desire to kill him. Their murderous desires betrayed Abraham. Abraham was a man of deep faith and he demonstrated that many times. He lived out his faith. Abraham responded to God's commands. Abraham's true spiritual children would not be acting like the Pharisees. ·      Second, not only were they not doing the works that Abraham did, but they were also not honoring God. The Pharisees were not listening to his word, as I mentioned earlier. They would not even consider that perhaps Jesus was the Messiah. Later in our text, Jesus made it absolutely clear that they were dishonoring God the Father by dishonoring him. That was very different from Abraham. Multiple times in Abraham's life, God spoke to him. Abraham humbled himself and listened to God and his word. Abraham lived out his faith by hearing God and believing. Now, just to be sure, Abraham was a sinner, but he sought the Lord by faith. The Pharisees, on the other hand, had no faith and no desire to seek the Lord. And for those reasons, Jesus declared that their true father was the devil. The Pharisees demonstrated through their lies and deceit and murderous hearts that they were not of Abraham, they were not of God, but rather, they were of the devil. In response, the Pharisees lashed out at Jesus. They questioned Jesus' origin. They told Jesus that he was a Samaritan, whom the Pharisees hated, and they accused Jesus of having a demon. Do you see how the conflict has reached new heights? A couple of times in the past, we've talked about how the Gospel of John is written like a play. Each chapter is like a new scene. You know, the curtain opens; the audience sees a new setting; we then witness Jesus speaking to different people. In each scene, Jesus reveals who he is in different ways. Well, for the apostle John's Jewish audience, every new scene challenged their understanding of God and Jesus and the purpose of their Jewish practices and beliefs. I want you to imagine that you are a Jew in the late first century. Imagine that you are hearing this for the first time. And imagine how shocking this interaction would have been. I mean, the tension had been escalating, but then Jesus drops the bomb in verse 44: "You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father's desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him." Think about how that would have come across. The Pharisees were the Jewish authorities. And yet, Jesus called them out as having the devil as their father. You see, the Apostle John was pressing against his readers' presuppositions and beliefs. He wanted them to re-evaluate everything. He wanted them to see that the very one at the center of it all is truly the promised One, the Son of God. John wanted them to know that there is no place for neutrality. Now, you may be sitting here, and you may be thinking, "Ok, but I don't live in the first century and I'm not Jewish. Why does this matter?" Let me try to answer that. In John's Gospel, the unbelieving Pharisees are the main antagonists. Really, they are the antagonists in all the Gospels. But their unbelief is representative of any and all outright rejection of Christ… back then and today. Not only do they not know God, they are hostile to him. They do not care to listen. Their hearts are full of murder and lies. Jesus is their enemy. They hate him and hate those that love him. On the outside, they are religious, but their religion is driven by the devil whose goal is to undermine the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Their opposition to Jesus is the same opposition to Jesus that we see in different ways today. We see that opposition in false religions. We see a similar rejection in the hearts of those opposed to God and opposed to truth and opposed to his standard of right and wrong. That includes those who present a perversion of who Jesus is or reject his divine or human nature. And it is all driven by the devil. You see, we are engaged in a cosmic battle of light versus darkness. It's a battle of the truth of God versus the lies and murders of the great enemy of faith. The hard thing for us is that we live in a time and place where the Christian ethic is still relatively strong. And so, we sometimes don't see the spiritual battle that is raging. In our culture, the light and darkness can sometimes appear to blend together to produce shades of grey. When that happens, it is harder to see and distinguish the light from the darkness. But what we learn in John 8 is that the dividing line is still there. Discerning right and wrong is still at the center of pursuing truth. Good and evil are no less real today than they were in the first century. The devil is still breathing his lies and spreading unbelief as he was in the hearts of these Pharisees. There are plenty of people today who outright reject Jesus, who reject God the Father, and who live a life opposed to him. They are like the Pharisees, unknowingly driven by the father of lies. The devil is at work all throughout the world, some places more than others. As the Scriptures say, he prowls around like a roaring lion seeking whom he can devour. We need to be aware that there is both God the Father, the father of truth and light and life, who gave his Son; and there is also the father of lies and murder, the devil himself. He hates God and hates the truth and he seeks to undermine Jesus and the Gospel. Now, there is no comparison in who has true authority and who will conquer the other in the end. That is the one true Father, but for now he has given the devil room to lie and deceive the world. 2. The One Greater than Abraham (8:53-59) Ok. That brings us to point #2 - The One Greater than Abraham. In these verses, Jesus makes absolutely clear who he truly is. It's unmistakable. Remember, the Pharisees were the ones who originally brought up Abraham. But then Jesus turned the tables on them. Because the Pharisees rejected him, Jesus made it very clear, as we considered, that they were not true descendants of Abraham. And part of Jesus' argument included his claim that he was the Son of God and that his Father was God the Father. And so, the Pharisees asked him in verse 53, "Are you greater than our father Abraham?" Jesus answered them and he said two things. And speaking of shocking statements, these two statements were scandalous. First, Jesus said to them that "Abraham rejoiced to see my day. He saw it and was glad." That's verse 56. And then second, Jesus said, "before Abraham was, I AM." Let's consider those two statements in order. First, Abraham rejoiced to see Jesus' day. The question is, what was the apostle John referring to? What was that day? Well, that question has been asked for centuries. The general consensus, which I agree with, is the day refers to the day that Isaac was born. You see, as we read earlier in Genesis 15, God promised to give Abraham a son. It seemed impossible, though, especially as Sarah aged, but yet God fulfilled his promise to Abraham. Do you remember what happened when Isaac was born? Abraham and Sarah laughed. It wasn't like the laughter before, when they were questioning God. Rather it was a joyful laughter of amazement. In fact, the name Isaac means "to laugh." The semantic range for the word "laugh" in Hebrew includes a joyous laughter. That's why I think that particular day is the one referred to in verse 56. Abraham saw God fulfill his promise in an amazing way. Abraham then rejoiced when Isaac was born. And he knew, as God had promised, that through Isaac, his offspring would be as numerous as the stars in the sky. He knew, as God also promised, that all the nations of the earth would be blessed through him. You see, the promise that God made to Abraham was the promise of a Messiah. Just like God gave Abraham and Sarah a son according to God's promise, so one of Abraham's descendants would be the promised Messiah. In that sense, Abraham saw Jesus' day and rejoiced. But when Jesus said that, it only further enraged the Pharisees. They said to him, "You are not yet fifty years old, and have you seen Abraham?” Which brings us to the second and even more shocking statement. Verse 58. Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am.” "I AM." We've come across that statement multiple times now. Earlier in chapter 8, Jesus twice said, "I am he." In the Greek it is simply "I am" - "Ego Eimi." In the Hebrew it is Yahweh. Jesus was saying that as God the Son, he is the eternal God and he has always existed. Before Abraham was, I AM. It was yet another claim of divinity. Jesus was indeed greater than Abraham. Let's take a step back for a moment. You know, every Sunday, I try to connect our sermon text to some of John's overall themes. Really, it's helpful to see how each passage fits within the book as a whole. Well, one thing that God has been revealing in John is all the ways that Jesus has been fulfilling God's promises of old. For example, Jesus has been entering into the major Jewish institutions and he has been revealing that he is their ultimate fulfillment. ·      In chapter 2, Jesus turned water into wine at the wedding, revealing that he is the bridegroom who will cleanse his bride the church. ·      In the same chapter during the Passover, Jesus declared that he was the fulfillment of the temple. Do you remember that? ·      Chapter 5's setting was the Sabbath, another institution. Jesus demonstrated he was Lord of the Sabbath. ·      Chapter 7 and earlier in this chapter, Jesus revealed how he has fulfilled the Feast of Tabernacles as the living water and light of the world. Since most of us don't have a Jewish background, we don't naturally see those connections. But for John's original audience, each example has been expanding their understanding of who Jesus is and making the case that he is the true Messiah. Well, besides institutions, Jesus is also greater than the patriarchs and prophets of old. Back in chapter 6, Jesus revealed that he is the prophet that Moses promised. He revealed that he is greater than Moses. He is the true manna from heaven. Moses was held in great regard, but Jesus, as God the Son, is greater. And when we get to these verses on Abraham, it's similar. Abraham was the preeminent father of the Jewish people. Abraham was the one through whom God promised a people would come, as we already considered. And so, when Jesus said that before Abraham was, I am, it was a remarkable declaration of his preeminence as the God of all creation and over his people. Do you see how all these fulfillments are working together? They all reveal that Jesus is indeed the One in whom life and light is found. It's all an amazing revelation for us to grasp and believe. But, for the Pharisees, again, it was scandalous. Jesus had just declared that the devil, not Abraham, was their father, and now, he claimed that he is greater than Abraham. Look at verse 59. "So they picked up stones to throw at him." Of course, they did. They were enraged and furthermore, in their minds, Jesus had blasphemed God. Their response only confirmed that indeed the devil was their father. They could not stand for truth. They could only do what was in their nature as sons of the devil. They all the more rejected Jesus and sought to kill him. As they went to get stones, Jesus then slipped away into the crowd. As he has said before, it was not yet his time. But Jesus' time would come. You see, Chapter 8 accelerates the path to the cross. The day would soon come when Jesus would bring his fulfillment to completion. And in God's sovereignty, he would use the Pharisees (and others) to accomplish his plan. 3. The Triumph of Abraham's True Descendants (John 8:47, 51) Which brings us to #3. Point 3: The Triumph of Abraham's True Descendants. God's true sons and daughters will "not see death," but live. You know, in the order of the narrative, this point should really be point number 2. The reason that I put it last is because I wanted to end with encouragement. I did not want to end with the devil or the stones that they picked up. Rather, I wanted to end with the blessing of being a true descendant of Abraham. Now, I know that a couple of you here have Jewish roots, but the vast majority of us are Gentiles. We are the nations that have been grafted into Christ. It doesn't matter where you or your family is from, what nationality or ethnicity. It doesn't matter if you have some Jewish heritage or not. No, the only thing that matters is whether you are a true spiritual descendant of Abraham by faith. Look at verse 47. "Whoever is of God hears the words of God." Remember, the question is who their father is. And we learn that those who hear the words of God have God as their father. Those are the ones who are true descendants of Abraham - spiritual descendants by faith. What matters is believing in the Gospel - it is believing in who Jesus is and what he has accomplished. And when you do, then you are a true descendant of Abraham, a spiritual descendant by faith. In Romans 9, it says "It is not the children of the flesh who are the children of God, but the children of the promise are counted as offspring." Galatians 3 uses similar language. It says, "In Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith. ...And if you are Christ's, then you are Abraham's offspring, heirs according to promise." If that is you, then you can say that Abraham is indeed your spiritual father, through faith… the promise to him of salvation is the promise for you. Let me say one more thing. You know, as we've gone through John's Gospel, we've come across several "truly, truly" statements. Each of those statements emphasizes an important truth. When Jesus uses the phrase "truly, truly", he is saying, "most assuredly I tell you this important truth" and he goes on. Well, in our verses today there are two "truly, truly" statements. One of them we've already considered. "Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am." The other one is in verse 51. Look at it. Jesus said, "Truly, truly, I say to you, if anyone keeps my word, he will never see death." Those who truly hear Jesus, and truly believe in him, and demonstrate their faith by abiding in his word, "will never see death." No, the true descendants of Abraham will triumph with Jesus forever. As we've read over and over in John's Gospel, we will receive eternal life in him. You see, in the middle of this chapter of conflict, there is hope. At the very heart of these verses - where the Pharisees are called out as sons of the devil, and by the way, who are also destined to spend eternity apart from God - at the heart of these verses, there is a promise. And the promise is this: Those who believe in Jesus' word will overcome death. They will be with God forever. It is a hope and promise reserved for those truly of God, who are spiritual descendants of Abraham. It's for those who believe in Jesus as the I AM of God, the eternal God of the universe, the Son of God, who is greater than Abraham. So, may we not plug our ears like the Pharisees, but instead hear Jesus' words, for they are words of life. May we also see the reality of the devil… and know that he is the father of lies who sows darkness and opposes the truth of God. BUT, may we know that as true descendants of Abraham, we will be with Jesus forever.

John 8:12-30 - I AM the Light Our sermon text this morning is John 8:12-30. But before we get there, let me make a few comments. You may have noticed that we are skipping the last verse of chapter 7 through verse 11 of chapter 8. Your Bibles likely have a bracketed note that those are not in the earliest manuscripts. That is true, but rather than just quickly move on, let me provide a little more explanation. And I'll do that with 3 reasons why we're skipping them. And then 3 reasons not to be concerned about the New Testament's reliability. 1. The main reason we are skipping them is because those verses did not appear in manuscripts until the 5th century. In fact, in one branch of manuscripts found, they didn't appear until the 8th and 9th centuries. None of the earliest manuscripts of John's Gospel have them. 2. The story interrupts the flow of chapter 7 and 8. We've already seen that chapter 7 has been about evaluating Jesus' teaching and self-identity as the Son of God. We'll see that theme continue in our verses this morning. The verses in question are a little out of place. Furthermore, our verses today continue the context of the Feast of Booths, so they line up very well with chapter 7, but this interim passage does not. 3. And I think the most compelling. There are about 14 words or phrases that are not found anywhere else in John's Gospel or his letters. So, there are some significant stylistic differences in the disputed passage. It's likely not written by the apostle John. Now, I do believe that the account of the woman caught in adultery actually happened. I think it's likely a story that John or other disciples recounted. It's just that it is very unlikely to be a part of God's inspired Word. But let me say, if this is causing you to be concerned about the rest of the New Testament, let me put you at ease. 1. First, there are only 2 major sections of verses in the New Testament that are disputed. This one and a few paragraphs at the end of Mark's Gospel for similar reasons. 2. Second, it is amazing how consistent the rest of the New Testament manuscripts are. At Easter, I spent several minutes discussing the 5,800 manuscripts and just how consistent they are. 99.9 percent of the differences are minor - word order and spelling and none affect a core doctrine of faith. Also, a couple of years ago during our apologetics Sunday school class, we had a whole class talking through the veracity of the manuscripts. Our website has the recordings of those if you are interested. 3. Third, there is a big misconception that the New Testament was orally passed down. That is simply not true. In 2 Timothy 4:13, Paul requests his books and "above all" his parchments. They are very valuable to him. Many believe the parchments were copies of his letters. New Testament letters were copied at the time they were written. Similarly, the four Gospels were also copied almost immediately for the express purposes of distributing them. And let me say one more thing. Many of the New Testament manuscripts are in book form rather than a scroll. That book form is called a codex. And interestingly, some codexes were clearly transcribed for the public reading of Scripture. They were bigger with bigger writing. Other codexes were in a smaller personal form, like for a family or individual. Early Christians loved their books and preserved them well. So, be encouraged. Ok, let's now get into chapter 8 verses 12-30. You can find that on page 1062? of the pew Bible. Our reading includes the second of seven "I am" statements in the book of John. The first was in chapter 6. Jesus said, "I am the bread of life." And here he says, "I am the light of the world." As I read, listen for the phrase "I am." You'll hear it several times. Reading of John 8:12-30 and prayer. Last week, we considered how some aspects of the Feast of Tabernacles emphasized water. Remember that? Part of the ceremonies included recalling how God miraculously gave them water in the wilderness. We saw how Jesus keyed off of the theme of water when he called out for the people to come to him and drink. Well, water was only one aspect of the Feast. Light was another. This annual festival happened somewhere between late-September and mid-October. Just like we experience, the daylight hours were getting shorter and shorter. And at the end of every day of the feast, the priests would light four massive oil filled candelabra. These were elaborate bowls which had about 27 gallons of oil and had dozens of cloth wicks drawing from the oil. The four candelabra were elevated on very tall pedestals and spread out in the largest courtyard of the temple. The pedestals towered above the temple walls. After sunset, young Levites would climb ladders and light every single wick in each of the bowl. For the boys here, can you imagine how fun that would be? I'm sure it was the highlight of the year for them. Well, all the flames produced a massive amount of light. Remember, the temple area was elevated. And furthermore, the city of Jerusalem sloped up the western hill from the temple. So, from much of the city you could see these tall pedestals. The light was cast all throughout the city. Let me read a short description from the Jewish Mishna about this. It says "The light from the candelabra was so bright that there was not a courtyard in Jerusalem that was not illuminated from the light." Even thought it was night, it was bright. Now, look at verse 20. We learn that Jesus was speaking in part of the temple area called the treasury. Well, the treasury was right there. The treasury was where alms were donated, and it was in the same large courtyard with these elevated bowls of fire. So, Jesus was right there, teaching. We're not told what time of day it was when he spoke these words, but think about the context and listen again. Verse 12, "Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, 'I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.'" It was clear and it was understandable. And the people could visualize it based on what they were experiencing that week. And really, I think everything in this passage in some way ties back to those opening words in verse 12. "I AM the light of the world" So, let's get into what Jesus says here. We'll do that in three points. 1. I AM the Light of Life 2. I AM the True Witness and Judge 3. I AM the Savior (repeat) 1. I AM the Light of Life As we get into #1, let me make one more connection to the feast of Tabernacles. As you may recall, this festival was a remembrance of what God had done for the Israelites in the wilderness. That is why God directed them to make temporary booths and live in them for the week. God had provided for them as they journeyed. Similarly, the water ceremony recalled God's provision of water from the rock that Moses was commanded to strike. Well, the light ceremony was a reminder of God leading them in the wilderness through a pillar of cloud during the day and a pillar of fire at night. The lights at the festival symbolized God and how he miraculously led them. So when Jesus said, "I am the Light of the World," he was claiming that he was the very God whose presence was with them in the wilderness and who led them. That's why he said, "whoever follows me will not walk in darkness." You see, it was all connected to the light of Yahweh, the Covenant God. He guided the people and protected the people. He was the light of life for them. Jesus was saying, I am he. Isaiah 60 would also have come to mind to them. It's where Yahweh declares that he is the light. Much of that chapter is about the light, and in verse 19, the prophet Isaiah wrote, "the Lord will be your everlasting light, and your God will be your glory." So, not only was Jesus saying he was the light, but in doing so, he was claiming to be the God himself. Another shocking thing about Jesus' statement was that not only is he a light for the Jews, but he is the light for the entire world. As you can imagine, Jesus' claim in verse 12 deeply disturbed the Pharisees. But as Jesus dialoged with them, it got even more disturbing. Jesus continued making unmistakable claims that he is God. In fact, right after saying he is the light of life, he also said, "I am from above." And he goes on to claim that he will return there, you know, to heaven. Now, the Pharisees at first didn't understand. It didn't make sense to them. They could not grasp what Jesus meant. But if he wasn't clear enough, Jesus then made absolutely clear what he meant. And it is captured in Jesus' "I AM statements."   Before we read, I asked you to listen for the phrase "I am." Did you hear it all throughout? Jesus said, I am the light of the world. I am the light of life. I am the one. I am from above. I am not of this world. Well, there are two "I AM" statements that I want to especially point out. Look at verse 24. Jesus said, "I told you that you would die in your sins, for unless you believe that I am he you will die in your sins." I am He. That same phrase is also there in verse 28. "I am he." In the Greek, however, there is no pronoun. It's just "I am." It's "Ego Eimi." We've come across this now in John, I think, 3 times. We're going to come across it again in a couple of weeks. It is a direct reference to the Hebrew "Yahweh." Jesus could not have been clearer with them. I am the light of the world because I am Yahweh. I am God. I am the creator God, the redeemer God, the God of Israel and indeed the God of the world. You know, as we have made our way through the Gospel of John, we have been given an increasingly clear description of Jesus in his divine nature. He is the light of the world and the light of life, because he is the eternal God of heaven and earth. He came from heaven to be a light of life, and he will return to heaven calling the world to follow him out of darkness and sin. He is THE light. 2. I AM the True Witness and Judge Point 2. I AM the True Witness and Judge. As the I AM of God, the eternal light, Jesus is true in his witness and true in his judgment. As you think about the analogy of light, one of the things light does is it exposes. It exposes what is false. It reveals what is right and true. When a bright light is shining, the darkness cannot overcome it. The light of God reveals truth in the darkness. These Pharisees who were dialoging with Jesus hated him. They wanted to kill him. Why? Because Jesus was exposing them. One of the things they did was to try to corner him by undermining his credibility. We saw a similar thing a couple of chapters ago. In the law, two witnesses were required for any testimony. That's what they were referring to in verse 17. But Jesus was only one and added to that, he was a self-witness. In response, Jesus pointed out that they were judging according to the flesh. They were blind to the light. They could not see or judge correctly. Jesus, on the other hand, does not judge like them. Jesus said, "I judge no one." Do you see that phrase in verse 15? I believe the best understanding is to see his statement as saying he does not judge according to the flesh, unlike them. No, his judgments are true. Why? Because he and God the Father judge rightly. The Father is the second witness that confirms Jesus' testimony. In fact, all throughout these verses, Jesus makes very clear theological statements about his relationship with and unity with God the Father. Let me just very briefly highlight them: ·      First, Jesus as God the Son shares the same true judgment with the Father (verse 16). ·      Second, the Father bears witness that Jesus is his Son (verse 18). ·      Third, Jesus shares the truth and authority of the Father as God the Son (verses 26 and 28). ·      And fourth, they are one together. The Father is with Jesus (verse 29). The summary is that Jesus is the true light because he shares the truth and authority of God. He is united with the Father. They are indeed one. Not only are their judgments right and true, but they are truth. That is part of the point of the I AM statements all throughout. I AM the light. Jesus does not say, "I display the light." No, "I AM the light." Jesus embodies truth and righteous judgment because he is the I AM of God, united with the Father. Really, the contrast in these verses is between the truth of Jesus as God and the rejection of that truth by the Pharisees. Even though they were asking for more witnesses, they were not really looking for a reason to believe. No, they just want to undermine the truth and light of Jesus. Really, they want to arrest him and have him killed. I think this is our fourth sermon in a row that has included something about judgment. You know, how do we judge Jesus and ourselves rightly? So, I don't want to belabor the point. Clearly, John's target audience struggled with judging Jesus correctly. For us, we have all the Gospel accounts, and we have the witness of the apostles in their letters. We have the testimony of the early church and their unity on Jesus' identity as divine and human. The question, I think for us, is, will we bear witness about Jesus' testimony and identity? Will we defend the truth of who Jesus is and his unity with the Father? We are to be true witnesses to the true witness and judge, Jesus Christ. He IS the truth and he IS the light of the world. So, may we reveal his light. 3. I AM the Savior Which bring us to #3. I AM the Savior. Jesus makes very clear that the consequences of not following and believing in him are dire. In fact, Jesus tells the Pharisees multiple times that they will not be going to where he is going. Why? Because they know neither him nor the Father. They are from below and not above, verse 23. They are of this world, caught in the lies of darkness and the self-deception of sin. They do not believe in the light. They are not walking in the light. No, they are bound by their sin and unbelief. Let me illustrate where they're at with a very familiar experience in the south. This time of year is the season for roaches. We sometimes try to be polite and call them palmetto bugs, but we all know what they really are. The worst ones are the flying ones, right. Well, what happens at night when you suddenly turn on your deck lights? All the roaches scatter away. They cannot stand the light. They hate it. They hide in the shadows until the light turns off. The Pharisees who were there hated the light. And Jesus was clear about the consequence of rejecting the light. Verse 21. "He said to them again, “I am going away, and you will seek me, and you will die in your sin." They were blind to their darkened hearts. [Slower] Ephesians 2 describes their state, "And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world…" and one verse later… "and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind." As Romans 3 reveals, all have sinned and have fallen short of the glory of God. You see, our sin separates us from God. And the consequence of sin is death. Even more, the consequence of our sin is the eternal punishment of hell. To be sure, Jesus does not refer to hell in these verses, but make no mistake, he speaks of hell often and clearly. Many times, referring to it as the lake of fire where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Well, the Pharisees were not listening, and so in John 8:24, Jesus again reiterated what he said… but this time he gave them hope. Look at verse 24. "I told you that you would die in your sins, for unless you believe [believe what?] that I am he [ego eimi] you will die in your sins." You see, God's grace and mercy were freely offered to them. So, were they to believe, they would not die in their sins. When Jesus said, "I am the light of life," he was revealing that he not only shines his light on the darkness out there, but he shines his light on our hearts so that we can see him and turn believe. Let me go back to Ephesians 2. It continues, "But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—[for] by grace you have been saved— [and listen to this] and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus" When Jesus told the Pharisees that they could not go with him because of their unbelief, implied is that those who do believe and come to the light will be brought with Jesus to where he is going. And where will he take us? As Ephesians says, those who are saved will be raised up with him and seated with him in the heavenly places. You know, these verses are full of contrasts. That is one of the hallmarks of John. Light and darkness. Life and death. Above and below. So, let me summarize our passage this way: Those who follow the light, will have the light of life, and will join the light of the world forever. But those who reject the light, will walk in darkness and will die in their sins apart from the light forever. Conclusion As we come to a close, let's look at one more thing in these verses, and it is a foreshadowing of what is to come. In fact, it foreshadows the Pharisees' role in Jesus' death. It's there in verse 28. Jesus said to them, “When you have lifted up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am he." They will partake in Jesus' crucifixion on the cross. He will be lifted up. That's another one of John's favorite phrases. He will be lifted up on the cross. He will be lifted up from the grave and then lifted up as he returns to heaven displaying his full glory as God the Son. And when that happens, then they will know, as it says, that he is truly the I AM of God. Yahweh. And beloved, that has happened. Jesus has been lifted up. He has returned to where he came from. And now his light, the light of the Gospel, is shining all over the world. It is exposing sin and evil and revealing truth. It is turning darkened hearts to hearts of light. It is shining to the ends of the earth. Jesus is the light of the world. And his light will continue to shine for eternity. We read from Revelation 21 earlier in the service. The new Jerusalem that is to come has no need for the light of the sun or moon. The light in the new Jerusalem will not be like the lights at the Feast of Tabernacles. As illuminating as those candelabra were to the people in Jerusalem, it will be nothing like the light in the new Jerusalem to come. And what is that light? It is the light of the glory of God, as Revelation says, and "its lamp IS the Lamb. By [his] light will the nations walk….. and its gates will never be shut by day—and there will be no night there." No night. No sin, no darkness, no evil. For the light of the world, the I AM of God, Jesus Christ himself, will be its light. May we all believe and follow Christ, the light of life.

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John 7:37-52 Please turn to John chapter 7. We'll be considering verses 37-52 this morning. You can find that on page 1062. The context of chapter 7 has been the Feast of Booths - also called the Feast of Tabernacles. It was one of the three major festivals in the Jewish calendar, so there were lots of people in Jerusalem. Earlier in the chapter, Jesus appeared at the temple in the middle of the festival and began teaching. That caused a crowd to gather around him. And most of the crowd was amazed. They had heard of or seen Jesus' signs (or miracles)  but now they witnessed his teaching. In our text this morning, we will hear that it is now the end of the feast. Jesus called for people to come to him but, as you will hear, he received a mixed response. Some were intrigued but others all the more wanted to kill him. Reading of John 7:37-52 Prayer There's no doubt that water is THE foundation to our physical existence. Our bodies are made up of about 60% water. Without water, we cannot survive for more than a few days. Without water, crops cannot grow and animals cannot survive. But for us in our day and age, water is readily available. Even in drought situations, we manage pretty well. Farmers can pump water from the underground water table to water their crops. We can clean and store water from storm runoff. We can dam rivers and we can pump water from one region to another. The worst it gets here, is that we're told to only water our lawns on certain days. But if you lived in Jerusalem back in the first century, it was very different. They didn't have all the modern technologies to drill or store significant amounts of water. Given its geography high up in the mountains, Jerusalem didn't have any nearby rivers. The Kidron valley and brook were dry for most of the year. And so, the people really did rely on the seasons. They hoped and prayed for rain at certain times of the year. It's no wonder that Jesus used the concept of water to symbolize spiritual realities. Remember, we saw that first back in chapter 2 when Jesus turned water into wine, symbolizing his cleansing ministry. And again, we saw that in chapter 4, when Jesus told the woman at the well that she needed his living water and that when she drank it, she would never be thirsty again. He was speaking of the eternal life that she would receive through believing in him. Well, this morning we have a new spiritual reality symbolized by water. And that is the ministry of the Holy Spirit. He will be like rivers of living water flowing forth from our hearts. So, this morning we'll begin our time with that… with Jesus' teaching about the giving of the Spirit. That's verses 37-39. As we'll see in a minute, his analogy of water directly connects to what was happening at the Feast. And then second, we'll survey the responses to Jesus' teaching. That's verses 40-52. As you heard, out of people's hearts flowed very different responses to Jesus. That's where we are headed. #1 The Holy Spirit - the River of Living Water As we get into the verses about the Holy Spirit, let me first note that the Feast of Tabernacles was at the very end of the dry season. In fact, most years, it had not rained for months in the leadup to the festival. To be sure, Jerusalem did have a source of water. Their main source of water at the time was the Gihon Spring which they diverted into the Pool of Siloam. It was on the south side of the city about a third of a mile down from the temple. It was King Hezekiah about 700 years earlier who had a tunnel dug through the rock to reach the spring and divert the water to inside the city. Just a few years after he finished that, Assyria surrounded Jerusalem and attempted to cut off the supply lines, including water, but they did not know of the hidden water channel. And so, Jerusalem was able to endure. By the way, if you go to Jerusalem today, you can actually walk through Hezekiah's water tunnel. I did that several years ago with a friend. It's about 1/4 mile long and pretty narrow and the water is maybe 1-2 feet deep. At one point my friend snuck ahead, turned off his little flashlight and then, when I rounded a corner, he jumped out at me. I may or may not have been momentarily scared. Anyway, you end up at the Pool of Siloam - or a small portion of what remains. I'm telling you this because at the Feast of Booths, every day one of the priests would make his way down to the Pool of Siloam. Jewish literature records that he would dip a golden vessel into the pool, and he would make his way back to the Temple. The crowds would follow him as he passed through the lower gates into the temple area. Trumpets would sound as he ascended the temple steps. They would read from passages like Isaiah 12:3 which says, "with joy you will draw water from the wells of salvation." That was our call to worship this morning. And then with great pomp, when the festival branches described in Leviticus 23 were waved, the priest would pour the fresh water onto the altar. A channel was made for that purpose, and it would drain to the base. The purpose of the water was a remembrance of God's provision of water in the wilderness. Remember, the Feast of Booths was about celebrating God's provision in the wilderness. That included water from the rock. God called Moses to strike a rock, and when he did, water flowed forth. Well, on the seventh day of the feast, Jewish literature also records that the water ceremony happened 7 times. 7 times the priest would fill the golden vessel from Siloam and return to the temple, and pour it onto the altar. By the seventh time, the water would have overflowed from the altar onto the temple floor. And while this was happening, the people were rejoicing, waving various branches while the trumpets sounded and the water flowed. It was on this day, the 7th day, called the great day, that Jesus stood up and cried out “If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.'” We don't know what time of day Jesus proclaimed these words, but the people would have had water on their minds. It was hot and dry. Likely it had not rained. Furthermore, they either anticipated the priests carrying the water to the altar or they just witnessed that event. They were thirsty - physically and spiritually. And Jesus cried out to them, calling them to come to him and drink. And not only would their spiritual thirst be quenched, but if they came and drank, rivers of living water, he said, would flow from them. The apostle John then adds a brief commentary that Jesus was referring to the Holy Spirit. Those who came to him would receive his Spirit, once he was glorified. Now, before we consider what that means for you and me, let me note 4 brief things. #1. Jesus quotes a Scripture which says, "Out of his heart [the one who believes] will flow rivers of living water." There's actually no single Old Testament passage directly matching the quote. However, several Old Testament texts parallel this idea. We read from Isaiah 44 earlier in the service. Verse 3 says, "I will pour water on a thirsty land" and then "I will pour my Spirit upon your offspring." Zechariah 14:8 was another one. It was also read during the Feast of Booths. It speaks of living water flowing out of Jerusalem. There are other passages like Ezekiel 47 and Isaiah 55 which are similar. In other words, the idea of living water connected to the Holy Spirit and salvation is very prevalent in the Old Testament. #2. Some Greek translators believe that the "rivers of living water" referenced here is the Holy Spirit being given out of Jesus' heart, not ours. They argue that phrase "whoever believes in me" is actually part of the invitation to drink and does not describe the one who has a river flowing from his heart. Honestly, there are some good arguments for that. Personally, I lean toward the translation we use. But I also think that even if this alternative is true, those who believe are still the recipients of the Holy Spirit. When we receive the Spirit, then our hearts will display forth the Spirit's ministry in us. So, in the end, I don't think it really changes the impact. #3. The third thing I want to point out. The fact that verse 39 says that the Spirit would be given after Jesus was glorified does not minimize the Holy Spirit's work in the Old Testament. No. From the very beginning in Genesis 1, the Spirit was present. He was hovering over the waters. He was at work in the hearts and minds of the remnant of God's people - true Israel. The Spirit directed people to look forward to the Messiah who would come. The Apostle Peter in 1 Peter 1 tells us that the Spirit of Christ was at work in the prophets who testified beforehand about Christ's sufferings and glory. What is the difference, then? The giving of the Holy Spirit mentioned in verse 39 is the outpouring of the Spirit to all peoples, not just Israel, but every tribe, tongue, and nation. Furthermore, as the Spirit dwells in his people, he now applies the finished work of Christ to us. So, the difference is in the scope of the Holy Spirit's work and the fulness of salvation being applied. I think that's important to understand. #4 - the last brief comment. And this is related. When verse 39 speaks of Jesus' glorification, I'm guessing you have in mind Jesus' ascension to heaven where he now reigns. That's true. However, John's Gospel includes Jesus' death and resurrection as part of his glorification. We're going to see this very clearly when we get to chapter 12. We will see that Jesus finally tells his disciples that his hour HAS come. And what is that hour? Jesus tells them it is the hour of his glorification. He must die in order to be raised. So, as we think of the ministry of the Holy Spirit, we need to understand that he is applying Jesus' full ministry including his atonement for our sin through his sacrifice and the hope and new life we have in his resurrection and ascension to glory. It is out of that fulness as the inaugurated King, that Jesus sends his Spirit to continue his ministry to the ends of the earth. Now, I know that's a lot of theology packed into those comments. Let me summarize it this way. Jesus' promise of his Spirit is an amazing promise and reality for you and me. Every single one of us is spiritually thirsty. Every single person in the entire world is spiritually thirsty. Not everyone recognizes it but we all long for meaning and purpose. We all experience pain and suffering. We all know the toil of work as a consequence of the fall. Those thing weigh on us every single day. And Jesus promises that when you come to him in belief, out of your heart will flow rivers of living waters. Through the ministry of the Spirit in you, the abounding grace of God in Christ will flow to you and from you. Your heart will display to others the transforming ministry of the Spirit. And others who likewise are given the Spirit will minister to you through him. To be sure, that does not minimize the impact of our remaining sin, nor does it minimize the realities of our suffering and grief in life. But what it does is give us an unshakeable foundation. Repentance from sin.  Hope in grief. Joy in suffering. Perseverance in trials. Through the Holy Spirit in us, we can live, not only with our eyes fixed on the cross and the redemption we have from our sin, but we can fix our eyes on our resurrected and glorified Lord. Through his Spirit, rivers of living water will flow. His ultimate sender is the Son, but the blessings of his ministry will flow from you to me and from me to you. It will flow between us and overflow to our community around us. An old song came to mind this week. A 1970's children's song. "I've got a river of life flowing out of me." Some of you are old enough to remember it. Do you remember the chorus? "Spring up, O well, within my soul; Spring up, O well, and make me whole; Spring up, O well, and give to me; That life abundantly" May that river of life, God's Spirit, abundantly minister in us and through us as we drink of the living waters of Christ. Amen? Divided Responses Now, we're not done. Here's where we are. Jesus made an astonishing offer. For those who come to him and drink, out of their hearts will flow the living water of God's Spirit. The question now is, how did the people respond? What did flow out of their hearts? Well for some it was curiosity, for another, it was an honest search. But for the priests and Pharisees, it was the exact opposite. Instead of rivers of living water, out of their hearts flowed hatred and bitterness. Let's consider those three categories in verse 40-52. (1) those intrigued by Jesus, (2) those who outright reject him, and (3) those honestly evaluating. That first group, those who are intrigued, find Jesus very interesting. He has interesting things to say. He's some kind of prophet. In verse 40, some said that he is THE prophet. That's a reference to Moses' prophecy in Deuteronomy that a Prophet would come after him. Others said, "This is the Christ." That may include some who truly believed. But we get the sense that it's just an external observation. After all, the apostle John does not use his favorite word, believe. He just notes that some "said" he was the Christ. I think we should also put the temple officers into this first category. Last week, we read that the chief priests and Pharisees sent the temple officers to arrest Jesus. These were Levites assigned to temple security. But notice that they did not arrest Jesus. And what was their reason? Verse 46, "No one ever spoke like this man!" They could not do what they were commanded to do because they were amazed by his teaching and authority. This first group is marked by an external recognition that Jesus is unique. He plays some important role in God's purposes. But they had yet to take the next step toward belief. I suspect some will. That brings us to the second group mentioned here - the chief priests and Pharisees. They are not intrigued by Jesus one bit. There is no possibility in their minds that he may truly be the Son of God. Their hearts are hard. Multiple times in these verses they react to even the suggestion that Jesus may be legitimate or the desire to consider his claims. And think about this: these were the very men who presided over the water ceremony at the feast. Some even participated in the water being poured out on the altar day after day, but they could not recognize the living water standing in their own temple courts Look at what they said to the officers that did not arrest Jesus. They said, "Have you also been deceived?" They then appealed to their own authority and they literally cursed the crowd. Verse 49, they said, "this crowd that does not know the law [you know, like they do] is accursed.” Think about the contrast between the hearts of the Pharisees and the hearts of those who would come to Jesus. Those who believe in Jesus are promised rivers of living water flowing from their hearts. Yet, out of the hearts of the Pharisees and chief priests came deceit and anger. And look how they responded to Nicodemus. Nicodemus was one of them. All Nicodemus wanted to do was judge fairly. But the Pharisees responded, "Are you from Galilee, too?" That's a classic ad hominem. They attacked Nicodemus for merely suggesting that Jesus deserved a fair hearing. They just wanted to kill Jesus. Rather than rivers of living water, out of their hearts flowed rivers of hate and self-serving unbelief. Out of some hearts will flow love, joy, peace, patience, goodness, kindness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Those fruits of the Spirit, identified in Galatians 5, will flow forth from those who have been given the Spirit - those who believe. But out of the hearts of these so-called leaders of Israel flow self-idolatry, enmity, strife, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, and envy. Out of one flows fresh, clean water, spiritual water, that is life giving and quenches the soul, yet out of the other, stagnant, poisoned water that accuses and kills. Which brings us to the third response. I've already mentioned Nicodemus, but let's consider his response more thoroughly. In fact, I think Nicodemus was originally in that first category. He was intrigued. Back in chapter 3, as Coleman reminded us last week, Nicodemus had sought Jesus out at night. Something compelled Nicodemus to want to know more. But he didn't understand when Jesus told him he needed to be born again. He had yet to believe. But in these verses Nicodemus has moved from being intrigued to honestly desiring to evaluate Jesus' claims. He even defended Jesus, asking that he be given a fair hearing. We get the clear sense that Nicodemus was a man of integrity. Even though he was a teacher of Israel and part of the Sanhedrin, he wanted to know the truth. In verse 51, look what he says to his fellow Pharisees, "Does our law judge a man without first giving him a hearing and learning what he does?" Do you hear his honest desire to know the truth? I want to remind you that John wrote his Gospel primarily for Jews of the later first century. John has been revealing who Jesus is as the Messiah. And he wants his readers to have an open heart and mind like Nicodemus. John wants his readers to give Jesus a hearing, as verse 51 says. Really, John wants them to believe, but at this point in the book, he just wants them to take a step forward and truly evaluate Jesus for who he is. As Coleman pointed out last week, some of you here are like Nicodemus and have an honest heart and seek to live a life of integrity. But you've yet to respond to Jesus calling to come to him and drink. Will you evaluate Jesus' claims and calling? You know, as we move forward in the Gospel of John, one thing that we'll see is that the two neutral responses to Jesus will go away - both the intrigued by Jesus' response and the honest search response. The temple officers will be forced to choose. And Nicodemus himself will be called to account. What will they decide? We'll find out in chapters 18 and 19. What will you decide? So where does that leave us? Well, Jesus is still standing and calling out, "If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink." The water that he gives will never run dry, because it is nothing less than the Holy Spirit, poured out from our risen and glorified Lord, applying all the riches of his death and resurrection to thirsty souls. And so, will you stand at a distance, intrigued but uncommitted? Will you be like Nicodemus, honestly seeking him out, but not yet willing to come to him and drink. Or will you drink of his life-giving stream? For those of you who have, the promise is yours: out of your heart will flow rivers of living water. The Spirit of truth and grace will flow in you and through you, forever. Amen.

This sermon focuses on the perfect judgment of God in his Word and through his works. In John 7:14–24, Jesus rebukes the Jewish leaders for judging his words (teaching) and works (healing) by self-serving and hypocritical motives rather than by judging from a pure heart with "right judgment" (John 7:24).

Bart Verbruggen is weer van de partij bij Oranje en dat is goed nieuws volgens Valentijn Driessen, Mike Verweij en Jeroen Kapteijns. In een nieuwe aflevering van Kick-off Oranje bespreken ze samen met Hein Keijser de vorm van Nederland richting het duel tegen Japan. Verder gaat het over de prestatie van Hwang In-beom tegen Tsjechië, moet Feyenoord hem behouden? En: Joey Veerman heeft de hoofdrol in een opvallende advertentie. En de goaltune van het Nederlands elftal is bekend. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Welkom bij aflevering twee van FC Afkicken Komt Z’n Nest Uit! De ochtendshow waarin Lars van Velsum, Mart ten Have en Sieb Uenk je in dertig minuten bijpraten over het laatste WK-nieuws!Met vandaag de Verenigde Staten, dat na een telefoontje van Donald Trump uit de startblokken schoot en Paraguay met 4-1 overmeesterde. Ook bespreken we Canada - Bosnië en Herzegovina en bellen we met Jan Roelfs, die vanuit Hilversum verslag deed van die wedstrijd!De focus ligt uiteraard op HOLLAND! Joey Veerman neemt op fraaie wijze wraak op Ronald Koeman en Wij Houden van Oranje, van André Hazes is de officiële goaltune van het Nederlands elftal.Ook hebben we een gloednieuwe quiz en wordt er weer voorspeld. Speel mee in de YouTube-comments en win een prachtige Brian Rompoe-sjaal.Namens Lars, Mart en Sieb: Veel luisterplezier!De SkyBox zie je hier: https://www.youtube.com/@FCAfkicken De WK-short over Paraguay vind je hier: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PEVfk1E1m1w Matt Sleeps Deze maand hebben ze bij Matt de hoogste kortingen ooit, tot wel 50%! Ga naar mattsleeps.com/fcadaily en krijg daar met de code FCA ook nog eens extra verrassingskorting bovenop. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Kenner buitenlands voetbal Bas van den Hoven en Matthijs Vegter bespreken in VI ZSM het WK tot nu toe. Het is uitkijken naar een geweldige zondag, want niet alleen Curaçao en Nederland komen dan in actie, maar Brazilië en Marokko trappen om middernacht af. Ook de advertentie van Joey Veerman en de vermeende boodschap richting Ronald Koeman komt ter sprake.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Bread of Life Part #1: Seeking, Seeing, Believing Please turn in your Bibles to John 6. We'll be focusing on verses 22-36 this morning. That is found on page 1059 I'm calling this a part 1 sermon about Jesus as the Bread of Life. But really, last week could be considered part 1. The first section of chapter 6 was about Jesus feeding the 5000. In our verses this morning, Jesus explains that the bread which he multiplied was a sign that he fulfilled as the bread of life. And then next week, he will elaborate on what that means and its implications. So, chapter 6 is one big narrative that focuses on Christ as the bread from heaven. If you remember from last week, the disciples are now in Capernaum on the western shore of the sea of Galilee. They had left on a boat on the eastern short without Jesus. Well, on their journey, a storm arose, but Jesus came to them, walking on the water. He calmed the storm and they arrived in Capernaum. So that is where they were, but the crowd was still on the other side of the sea. Let's now come to God's Word. Prayer Reading of John 6:22-36 I know it's not Thanksgiving, but Black Friday came to mind this week. That is the day after Thanksgiving. It's the day that almost every store has crazy sales and tries to lure shoppers in to buy their stuff. It's the biggest shopping day of the year. People literally camp out the night before so that they can be the first in line and buy big TVs, fancy speakers, laptops and phones, games, and appliances. Of course, the sales are only "while supplies last." So, you'd better be there early. You may have heard about the fist fights that break out or you may have seen the videos of people running through the store when the doors open to get to that TV before the other guy does. It's a picture of how we will go to great lengths to satisfy our so-called needs. We want to be comfortable and well fed and have all the latest things out there. But we are not thinking about our eternal and spiritual needs. The crowd following Jesus was similar. They wanted him to feed them. They saw the signs he did including the miracle of multiplying the bread. And they wanted more. They were even in a kind of frenzy to find him. But they didn't want him for the right reasons. They wanted to satisfy their earthly needs not their spiritual ones. As we work our way through these verses, that is what we will see this morning. We'll see that contrast between searching for bread which will perish and searching for the bread who gives eternal life. There's an outline on page 4 of the bulletin. We'll consider these verses in three points: 1. Seek the eternal provider 2. See the one signified And 3. Believe in him and his eternal provision And let me say that each point is contrasted by the Jewish crowd's selfish motivation, their lack of understand, and their unbelief. That is clear in these verses. 1. Seek the eternal provider Ok, again, number 1, seek the eternal provider. The crowd did not see their spiritual need and how Jesus could fulfill it. No instead, as I mentioned, they were fixated on the temporary provision thinking it could save them. They should have been seeking Jesus for who he is but instead were seeking him because of what they thought he could do for them. That's what we see in the first couple of verses. The problem was that their motivations were suspect. Really, they didn't want Jesus. They just wanted temporary things that they thought Jesus could give them. As we get into the narrative, remember that it was the day after Jesus fed them. And the crowd quickly realized that Jesus was no longer there. But where was he? The evening before, they had witnessed Jesus' disciples enter a boat and leave for the other side of the sea to Capernaum. But Jesus didn't get on the boat. But, where was he? They wanted to find him. At this point in Jesus' ministry, there was a buzz, so to speak. At the end of chapter 4, Jesus had been up in Galilee and if you remember, had healed the official's son. Word had gotten out about that and other signs. Just the day before, they witnessed Jesus miraculously multiply the fish and loaves. They crowd was (in a way) desperate to find him. They wanted to find this man who healed people and performed signs and miraculously fed them. They even believed he was the prophet that Moses promised. We learned that last week. Well, at this point, several boats had arrived from across the sea. Maybe they had sheltered there from the storm the night before or maybe some boat owners heard there was a crowd and therefore an opportunity to make some money by ferrying them somewhere. We don't know why the boats were there. But whatever the case, the crowd quickly got on the boats and directed them to travel to Capernaum. Remember, that's where Jesus' disciples had gone. Maybe he was somehow there? Well, when they got to Capernaum, lo-and-behold, he was there. They had no idea how Jesus had gotten there. They hadn't seen him leave and they hadn't witnessed him walking on the water, but somehow he had arrived. That's why they asked him in verse 25, "Rabbi, when did you come here?" Maybe they were wondering whether he arrived at night. Or whether he had taken a different boat. They wanted to know because they had been very eager to find him. And here's where the narrative pivots. Jesus changed the subject. Remember, he did something similar with Nicodemus in chapter 3 and with the woman at the well in chapter 4. Jesus pivoted the conversation to penetrate to the heart of their problem. Nicodemus needed to be born again and the woman at the well needed living water. Jesus said to the crowd, "Truly, truly, I say to you, you are seeking me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves." You see, they cared more about the food. They cared more about their earthly situation than their spiritual need. They wanted to find the man who performed the miracle so that he could do more miracles for them. In other words, their search for Jesus was not about Jesus, it was about what he could do for them. Their motivations were about satisfying their appetite. Let me connect this to last week. Look a few verses earlier at verse 15. The crowd had just pronounced that Jesus was the Prophet that Moses promised. Now, look at what they wanted to do. Verse 15. It says that Jesus perceived that the crowd wanted to take him by force, and make him king. That is when Jesus withdrew from them. They wanted to make him king because they wanted a king who would provide for their earthly needs. It's the same near sighted motivation. The irony in all of this is that Jesus was and is the true King, the eternal King, and he was the one who could truly feed them - you know, spiritually feed them for eternity. But as the crowd came to him, they only cared about their earthly and physical needs. That is why in verse 27, Jesus then said to them, "do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures to eternal life." Jesus was saying, even though the fish and the loaves fed you and it was a miracle, that bread and fish will not endure to eternal life. To be sure, our earthly needs are important. God has made us as physical beings. We are body and soul. We have daily needs for food and water. It is not wrong to seek our daily bread. We pray for our daily bread in the Lord's prayer. However, when our pursuit for daily provision becomes our main pursuit in life then we have lost sight of our greater need. The crowd did not see their need for the spiritual provision that Christ could give them. They simply wanted to have more of their earthly, physical, near-term needs met… food and an earthly king to provide for them. This sin manifests itself in different ways in our hearts and in our culture. For one, we live in a time and place of great prosperity. And it is so easy to get caught up in the rat race of our culture and the pursuit of comfort and things. Our covetous hearts do not help us! Certainly, many around us are blind to this. They cannot see that the near-term path that they are on is a path that leads to destruction and judgment. But even for believers in Christ, we can be so caught up working for our daily needs or our pursuit of comfort in this life, which can become idols, that we lose sight of our greater spiritual need. We lose sight of Christ. That's one pitfall in our culture and in our hearts. Related to that, Jesus just becomes to us a means to an end. That's what was happening here. We've talked about this in the past. There are so-called preachers out there that say that God wants to bless you with material wealth. Your barns will be full, they say, if you just have more faith. I don't sense that anyone here believes that, but are you seeking Jesus for who he is? As the one who saves and gives eternal provision and life, OR are there subtle ways that he has become for you just an avenue to meet your perceived needs in this life? Just to be sure, I am not disregarding the benefits and blessing that come with knowing Christ like peace with God and community. But Jesus should never be a means to an end. He is the end. He is the telos of all things. We should be seeking him as the one who gives life and not for bread which perishes. So, seek him, the ultimate provider. 2. See the one signified #2. See the one signified. The crowd was so enamored with signs that they missed the significance of them. Look at verse 30. The crowd said to Jesus, “Then what sign do you do, that we may see and believe you?" In other words, show us something. Give us a sign. It's quite ironic because Jesus had just given them a sign the day before, but they didn't see that it pointed to him. And then the crowd mentioned the example of manna from heaven. That was to them the great sign that Moses performed as God's chosen instrument. Moses was the one, in their eyes, who opened heaven to give them this bread from heaven. The crowd wanted a sign like the manna. As Coleman pointed out last week, this whole chapter includes allusions to Moses and the Exodus. A first century Jewish reader would have seen the parallels. We see those in reference to the Passover, the miracle of the food, the crossing of the sea, the reference to the Prophet which Moses promised. And a little bit later, the Jews grumbled just like the Israelites grumbled in the wilderness. It's all there. Really at the heart of the parallel is the manna. The manna was the miraculous food that God provided the Israelites from heaven. We read about it earlier in the service. Now, you may be asking, if the crowd just experienced Jesus miraculously giving them food, why would they mention the manna as an example of a sign? Well, think about this. Jesus fed 5,000 people one meal. That's amazing, but it pales in comparison to the provision of manna. There were at least 2 million Israelites in the wilderness, and they received the manna 6 days a week for 40 years. It was tremendous. And so the miracle of the manna was unparalleled from their perspective. And furthermore, it was Moses who had opened heaven on God's behalf for them. Look at Jesus' response in verse 32. Jesus said, "truly, truly, I say to you, it was not Moses who gave you the bread from heaven, but my Father gives you the true bread from heaven." Jesus was telling them that they missed the point. For centuries they thought that the sign of the manna was the greatest provision of all. It was THE sign. What they didn't realize or acknowledge is that the manna was really pointing to something greater, "true bread from heaven." They missed that. The manna in the wilderness spoiled and only endured for a day. The true manna, on the other hand,  would sustain them forever. What they needed was not more physical manna. No, what they needed was the spiritual manna from heaven. Jesus continued, "for the bread from God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world." Look how the crowd responded in verse 34. "Sir, give us this bread always." Did you notice that their response exactly paralleled what the Samaritan woman said at the well? After Jesus said to her that the water he gives will spring up to eternal life, she said, "Sir, give me this water, so that I may not be thirsty." In both cases they were still thinking about physical water and physical bread. The crowd here wanted to eat this bread. They thought it was something they would physically consume. "Give us this bread, always." You know, every day, just like the manna from heaven. And here's the climax, verse 35. Jesus said, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst." He is the bread. The sign of manna was merely revealing that they needed true bread from heaven. They needed Christ. Colossians chapter 2 speaks to this. It speaks of various Jewish ceremonies and institutions like food, drink, festivals, new moon, and the Sabbath. And then the apostle Paul says this in Colossians 2:17, "These are a shadow of the things to come, but the substance belongs to Christ." Jesus is the manna who came down from heaven. He is the one who gives life. He fulfills the sign of manna. The manna was a shadow, but Christ is the substance. In fact, Jesus' very statement that he is the bread of life affirms this. It's the first of 7 "I AM" statements in the book of John. Besides the bread of life, Jesus also said, for example,  "I am the light of the world." "I am the good shepherd." "I am the resurrection and the life." We'll consider all of them as we work our way through John. And each of these "I am" statements is yet another connection back to Moses. A few months ago when we started this series in John, I mentioned the I AM statements. They connect back to the burning bush when God spoke to Moses in the wilderness. Remember that Moses asked God who he was. And God answered and said, "I am who I am." That's the Hebrew name, Yahweh, which means. I am. Yes, Jesus was saying that he was spiritual bread, but he was saying a lot more than that. He was equating himself with God. To the crowd, he was saying that he was greater than Moses. They had been appealing to Moses and to the manna. But Jesus revealed to them that he is greater because he IS God. He is the I AM of God. He is the bread of life, the true manna from heaven. Those who feed on him will never hunger nor thirst. Never. Let me put it this way, Jesus is the spiritual manna that we daily need, who will sustain us all the way to the promised land. See not only the sign, but see the one signified. 3. Believe in him and his eternal provision Ok, here's where we are so far: 1. Seek the eternal provider. Seek Jesus for who he is not what you believe he can do for you. 2. See the one signified. Do not get caught up in the signs themselves that you miss out on what the signs signify. Jesus' miracle of the fish and loaves and the sign of manna in the wilderness reveal who he is. Jesus is the bread of life. And now #3. Believe in him and his eternal provision. Jesus was telling the crowd to look to him as the bread of life, and not to the food that perishes. And he calls them to believe. How do we to receive this bread from heaven? We're to believe in him. Earlier in these verses, the crowd had asked what they needed to do? Did you catch that? They had this mentality that they needed to be working to receive the food that endures to eternal life. In verse 29, Jesus answered them, "This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent." Let me make something very clear. Faith or belief in God is not a work. We do not work in any way to earn favor from God. That is why verse 29 says, 'This is the work of God, that you believe in him'” Do you see the emphasis that it is God's work? Our belief is in response to God's work. In fact, this is very clear throughout all of chapter 6. It is God who draws people to himself. The Father is the one who is at work. We believe by faith in God's work… what he has done and is doing in Christ and through his Spirit. We'll see this very clearly next week. The crowd's problem was that they did not believe in him. And look at the stinging statement that Jesus made to them in verse 36. "But I said to you that you have seen me and yet do not believe." I grew up in the church. It was not a reformed or Presbyterian church, but it was faithful. One of my elementary Sunday school teachers said something that was kind of shocking to me at the time. She said, "there are people in the church who are not Christians." She wasn't talking about visitors who were exploring Christianity and were coming to search for truth. She was referring to people who had been in the church for a while and who thought they were believers in Christ, but hadn't truly believed in him. My little 9-year-old mind had a hard time understanding that at the time, but it stuck with me. When Jesus said to them that they had seen him but do not believe, he was telling them that even though they thought they were God's people, they had yet to believe. Many of them were Jews by birth. After all, they had just demonstrated a knowledge of the Scriptures and Israel's history, yet they were not secure in God. They did not have the eternal life that God promises for those who believe in him. They did not believe in the true manna, the bread of life. Jesus could not have been clearer to them. Let me read verse 35 one more time because it's so important. Jesus said, "I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst." To receive the food that endures to eternal life, is to believe in the one who is the bread of life. I know many of you and your testimonies of faith in Christ. But some of you I don't know as well or we haven't yet me, and so I want to ask, have you feasted on the bread of life? Do you believe in the one who will satisfy your spiritual thirst and hunger forever? Let me say, he is the only one who can satisfy your soul forever. All other life pursuits when they are your primary life pursuits are working for bread which perishes. But the work of God is that you believe in the one sent from heaven. He is the true manna of God. Conclusion In summary, the crowds were seeking Jesus but for the wrong reasons. They were seeking Jesus as a means to an end. They were seeking the manna that their forefathers experienced and tasted. They wanted that manna instead of realizing that physical manna was meant to direct their attention to the true end - to Jesus himself. Standing before them and standing before us in heaven is the Bread of Life, the true manna from heaven. He is the I AM of God. And he calls us to believe in him. May we repent of working for bread which perishes. May we not trust in the things of this world which cannot save. May we not look to the signs and shadows but to the substance which is Christ. May we, believe in him, the Bread of Life, who will feed us for eternity.

The Spirit of Truth Who Leads Us in Righteousness - John 14:15-17, 25-27; John 15:26-27; John 16:4-15 Please turn in your Bibles to John 14. You can find that on page 1071. Before we read, let me remind you of a couple things and explain why we're jumping ahead to chapter 14. Last week, we finished up John 5. If you remember, chapter 5 was about the Jewish leaders accusing Jesus of equating himself with God. Jesus responded by affirming that, yes, he was indeed equal with the Father. In the middle of chapter 5, Jesus made a very clear declaration that he shares the glory and power of the Father because he and the Father are one. Well, today, I thought we would do something a little different. Since we just considered God the Father and the Son, I thought we would round that out by considering the Holy Spirit. We're going to stay in the Gospel of John, but look at selected passages from chapters 14-16. Next week, we'll return to chapter 6 So, if you would, turn to John 14 and we'll begin with verses 15-17. Reading John 14:15-17, 25-27; John 15:26-27; John 16:4-15 Prayer “Who is the Holy Spirit and what is his role in your life?” That question stumped me. I was a High school senior at the time. And I was applying to a Christian college. That question about the Holy Spirit was on the admissions application, but I didn't know how to answer it. Yes, I had grown up in the church, and yes, I was a believer in Jesus. Our church, although a faithful church, was light on teaching and discipleship or maybe I just wasn't paying attention. “Who is the Holy Spirit?” I didn't know. Maybe that's you… if I asked you to tell me about the Holy Spirit, would you know where to begin? If not, you're not alone. Of all the doctrines about God, the area of weakest understanding is the Holy Spirit. In a recent study from Lifeway Research, 28% of Christians in the United States believe the Spirit is divine but not equal to God the Father and the Son. Another 21% were unsure. In a second question, 56% believed the Spirit of God to be a force but not a divine person. You know, when it comes to God, we can conceptualize God as a Father… we can comprehend Jesus in his human nature, and through Jesus' testimony and ministry, we can understand that he is fully God. But it's harder to understand the Holy Spirit. My hope is that by the end of this sermon... We would each more fully grasp… Who the Holy Spirit is, what role he performs, and how we benefit from and receive him. Who, what, and how. But even beyond these important questions about the Holy Spirit and the benefits we have in him… I also hope that we would each feel and sense his convincing and convicting work in our hearts and minds. That's my prayer. As we begin, let me summarize Jesus' teaching about His Spirit… this way: (1) The eternal Spirit of God, (2) who speaks truth and conviction as God, (3) dwells in those who know God, because they have received his grace by faith in Christ. There are three points there. Let me say that again if you are taking notes... (1) The eternal Spirit of God, (2) who speaks truth and conviction as God, and (3) dwells in those who know God, because they have received his grace by faith in Christ. 1. The eternal Spirit of God… answering the WHO 2. who speaks truth and conviction as God… answering the WHAT 3. dwells in those who know God, because they have received his grace by faith in Christ. the HOW. And just to be sure… These verses on the Holy Spirit are not exhaustive… they are just a few of the many Biblical texts. All throughout the Scriptures we learn about the Spirit of God. ·      In the book of Acts… The Holy Spirit is given and he leads the early church. ·      We learn of his work in and through believers through the apostles Paul and Peter and others. ·      In Genesis 1, we learn that the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters… ·      Furthermore, the Old Testament Feast of Tabernacles… was given as a festival by God to teach about salvation and God's grace in the giving of His Spirit. ·      The prophets also spoke of God's Spirit… ·      And all throughout the Scriptures… we're promised to have “rivers of living waters” flowing forth from us… through the work of God's Holy Spirit. We can't cover all of that, but Jesus' teaching on the Holy Spirit in John's Gospel is very helpful. It's very clear and very foundational. So let's dive in. (1) The eternal Spirit of God So again, #1, The eternal Spirit of God. In the verses we read, Jesus calls God's Spirit by many names. He's called “the Helper” which means advocate. Jesus also names him the “Spirit of Truth” several times … Jesus calls him the “Holy Spirit.” That title is used throughout the New Testament. But the most common New Testament name is just “the Spirit.” Referring to God's Spirit. And from these verses… one thing we see over and over… is that the Holy Spirit is sent from both God the Father and from God the Son. Let me highlight some verses: ·      Chapter 14:16 – “The Father will give you the Helper” ·      and 14:26 “The Father will send [him] in my name” ·      Chapter 15:26, Jesus said, “I will send you from the Father… the Spirit of truth. Who proceeds from the Father.” ·      And again, in chapter 16, Jesus said again, “I will send him to you” We'll be reciting the Nicene creed in a little bit. It summarizes what we believe the Bible teaches about God… And regarding the Holy Spirit, it says He “proceeds from the Father and the Son.” That's helpful… it's a good summary of what these and other verses teach. The Holy Spirit “proceeds from” both the Father and the Son. The Spirit, therefore, has the full authority of God because he is God. He proceeds from God. He's unified with God the Father and God the Son. Furthermore, we learn here that the Holy Spirit is eternal. We get a glimpse of his eternal nature in chapter 14 verse 16… he's given to us forever. He will be with us for all time into heaven. And as we look to eternity past, as I briefly mentioned from Genesis 1, the Holy Spirit has always existed. Jesus teaches that not only is he, himself, fully God… but he teaches that the Holy Spirit is also God. Remember what we considered two weeks ago from John 5? Our God is one God, three persons, same in substance, equal in power and glory. Well, these verses affirm that for the Holy Spirit. We call God a triune God - a Trinity - 3 in 1. All three persons of God work in union one with one another; the Father, the Son, and the Spirit… and they share the same substance and power and glory. That's why in John 16 verse 14… Jesus says of the Holy Spirit that “he will glorify me.” That's because each divine person of the Trinity exalts one another as God. So, to summarize point #1 - the Holy Spirit is the eternal Spirit of God… fully God, forever existing, with all the knowledge, wisdom, glory, power, and authority of God. (2) who speaks truth and conviction as God # 2… He speaks truth and conviction as God. We're on to the what question. What role does the Spirit fulfill? What do the Scriptures teach that the Holy Spirit accomplishes? Well, first, the very titles that Jesus uses for the Spirit reveal his role. Jesus calls the Holy Spirit the “Helper.” In our reading, we heard that four times…. the English doesn't really capture the breadth of the concept here. Really “helper” in Greek comes with the sense of being a counsellor or an advocate. You know, someone who represents you, who is for you, like in a legal setting. He guides you and he speaks to you and is for you. Jesus also calls the Spirit, the “Spirit of Truth.” That is in our verses three times. What is this Counsellor counselling us about? Well, he counsels us on the truth. He counsels us on God's truth. His Word. Throughout these verses, over and over, we're given a very clear understanding of what truth the Holy Spirit speaks. Look down at chapter 14 verse 26. Jesus says, “he will teach you all things AND bring remembrance all that I have said” Now keep that in mind and go one chapter ahead to chapter 15, verse 26. The very end of the sentence, there… Jesus says of the Spirit “he will bear witness about me.” So, the Holy Spirit is revealing Christ and his testimony. Chapter 16 is similar. Verse 13 it says, “he will guide you in all the truth” and then “He will declare to you the things that are to come” This is the role of the Holy Spirit… to speak God's truth, to enlighten our minds, to bear witness about Jesus' work… All the things about Jesus… You know, his life, his teaching, his redemption, and our future hope in him to come. The Spirit declares all this to us. He testifies to us the truth of God's Word. You see, all those things are found in God's Word. It is the Holy Spirit who reveals God Word to us. Really, God's Word and Spirit go hand and hand. They are inseparable. We're given a beautiful image of this in Ezekiel chapter 37. God gave Ezekiel a vision. In a dream, God showed Ezekiel a valley full of dead dry bones. But as God's Word went forth… God breathed his breath onto those dry bones. His breath is his Spirit - same word. And through the ministry of the Word being spoken by the prophet and God's Spirit being given… the valley of dry bones began to rattle... And then the bones came together. God gave new life to the bones. A vast army of God's people was resurrected through the work of God's Word and His Spirit… together. Friends, none of us can know and believe this Word without the work of the Holy Spirit. We're ignorant and sinful, we're dead dry bones…. We're unable to know God and nor believe in him by ourselves. But God has given us a great gift… the Spirit of Truth. Furthermore, the Holy Spirit does more than just speak God's word to us. He also convicts our hearts and minds. Look now at chapter 16 verse 8… it says, “He will convict the world concerning sin, and righteousness, and judgment” Verses 9-11 then elaborate on that. We're not capable of seeing our sin and our blindness. And what the Spirit does in our lives is that he persuade us in three ways. He brings conviction of sin. He brings conviction of righteousness. And he brings conviction of judgment. “Conviction” here means to convince. To bring to light. To see yourself and your need for God and his salvation.  Let me say it this way… conviction is the Holy Spirit applying his truth to your heart in your situation. He shows you your condition and he enables you to respond. And it's more than just knowing what is right and wrong. It's also seeing your own depravity and your failure to live up to God's standard. God's Spirit brings that conviction… When you are filled with the Holy Spirit, he enlightens your mind to see your sin and to repent of it. And that's related to the second conviction… the conviction of righteousness. You see, the Holy Spirit also reveals to you God's standard of holiness and goodness. He prompts you to not only repent of your sin, but to pursue the goodness and righteousness that God calls you to in his Word. Do you see the two sides of it? Not only conviction of your sin, but a conviction to pursue holiness. And the third conviction is conviction of judgment. You see, it is more than just knowing your sin and seeing the path to holiness. It is realizing the judgment of God upon sin and the devil. It's a recognition that God has been at work throughout history to bring redemption from that judgment through Christ. Truly, without this conviction of sin, righteousness, and judgment… our hearts and minds would remain blind. We would not be able to see our sin or our situation, nor how to respond. But God has revealed his truth and is applying it in our hearts and minds. So, to summarize point #2… The Spirit of God, the Holy Spirit, speaks the truth of God, through His Word. He reveals God's redemption in Christ and he brings conviction. He convicts us of sin. He points us to the righteousness of God. And he shows us the judgment and hope of God in Christ. 3.) dwells in those who know God, because they have received his grace by faith in Christ So, here's where we are … #1 The eternal Spirit of God - the who. #2 He speaks truth and conviction as God - the what. And that brings us to #3… he dwells in those who know God, because they have received his grace by faith in Christ. This is the how question. How does God do this? How does he dwell in us?  Well, it's a mystery… ok, let me close in prayer. I'm just kidding. It is a mystery, but we can't leave it at that. Look with me at John chapter 14, the end of verse 17. Look at it. John 14:17 “You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you.” Do you see that? Notice the two prepositions … “with” and “in.” “He dwells with you and will be in you” Have you ever seen one of the Pixar movies called “Inside out?” There are two movies. Maybe some of the kids have seen them. Well, in the first movie, a young girl named Riley was dealing with all of her emotions after her family moved across the country. And we're brought to the headquarters of her mind… In her head, there's a command center with knobs and levers and buttons. It's where Riley's emotions lived. They're represented by different characters. Joy, sadness, anger, fear, and despair. And of course, they all want control… Well, at one point, Sadness and Joy were arguing… and they accidentally knocked over some of Riley's memory blocks. But as they scramble to retrieve them, Sadness and Joy got sucked like a vacuum out of the headquarters of Riley's mind. Well, that causes Anger and Despair to take over. Because of it, Riley was left in a state of apathy. I won't tell you what happens. You'll have to see it. It's a good movie, helpful in many ways… It's a picture of how we struggle with sin and emotions on the inside. But one thing is apparent. Riley is missing something. Riley is not in control. Her emotions are battling it out. If I can relate this to the Holy Spirit… What the Spirit does is enter into the headquarters of our hearts and minds. He speaks to our thoughts, and our emotions, and our desires, and our passions. Our sinful tendencies don't go away, but as we fill our mind with God's Word, the Holy Spirit takes that and guides us and speaks to us. He guides us in all the ways that we discussed… in truth and conviction. So, when you are on the precipice of sin or when you are struggling with unbelief about one of God's promises, God's Spirit prompts you. For example, maybe a family member or co-worker has said something unkind… and you're tempted to become angry. But then, you're prompted by the Holy Spirit… “Man's anger does not bring about the righteousness that God requires.” James 1. Or it's late at night, you have your phone with you and lustful thoughts come to mind. You're struggling with temptation… but you also have the Spirit's leading. He brings to mind Jesus' word. “if anyone looks at a woman with lustful thoughts he has already committed adultery in his heart” or the corollary “if anyone looks at a man in that way” Will you listen to the Spirit within you in those moments when he prompts you? Or maybe you feel the weight of physical pain, or grief, or discouragement. If so, let the Holy Spirit bring to mind the truth and hope of Christ. That is, what he's accomplished for you on the cross and in the resurrection… and the hope he gives. We would be here for days to unpack all the ways the Spirit prompts, guides, encourages, and convicts us. And to be clear, the Holy Spirit is not like a professional counsellor that you meet with every so often. He does not have office hours nor only occasionally speaks into your life. No, if you believe by faith in Christ, God's Spirit is with you and is in you. He's given you a new heart. He's enlightened your mind. He has applied the work of Christ to you, that you may receive and rest upon Christ alone for salvation. And in that salvation, the Holy Spirit has united you to Christ. You are ingrafted into Christ. The Spirit of God dwells within you. Sinclair Ferguson, you know, pastor and theologian, says it this way, “…to have the Spirit is to have Christ; to have Christ is to have the Spirit. Not to have the Spirit of Christ is to lack Christ. To have the Spirit of Christ is to be indwelt by Christ.” If you are in Christ, you have the Holy Spirit in you. Now, there's a lot more that could be said. When we get to John 15, in particular, we'll consider our union with Christ and the indwelling of the Holy Spirit in us. As Jesus said, he is the vine and we are the branches. That will be a few months out. Here's the summary: The eternal Spirit of God, who speaks truth and conviction as God, will dwell with you and in you, ifyou have received the grace of Christ by faith in him. Conclusion Back to the opening question: “Who is the Holy Spirit and what is his role in your life?” Honestly, I don't even remember what I wrote on my college application. This was before the internet, by the way, so I couldn't research online. But I did call a friend in another state who was also applying and all I remember is that he was a great help. And the school did accept me. But how would you answer that? Well, if I had to answer that question today, here's what I'd say: The Holy Spirit is one of three Persons of the Trinity. He is the same in substance and equal in power and glory with the Father and the Son. He is eternal and unchangeable having proceeded from the Father and the Son. And he is the one who applies the salvation of Christ in the hearts and minds of God's children. He unites us to Christ by faith. The Holy Spirit furthermore speaks the truth of God Word to us. He brings conviction of sin and causes us to repent and renew our trust in God and in the Gospel. In moments of temptation, he reminds us of God's promises and reminds us of Jesus ministry of reconciliation and his righteousness. The Holy Spirit sanctifies us in truth. He reveals that we are God's and assures us of salvation in Christ. He is not some mystical force, but as God and as a person of the Godhead, he possesses God's nature as a loving, just God, who knows us, his creatures… and speaks to us through his Word… We need God's assurances and his conviction, and we need to know and believe in our Savior, Jesus Christ. I would furthermore add by saying that when I find myself overwhelmed by situations or being tempted, I seek to listen to his convicting voice within… who brings to mind his Word, which he inspired… and who reminds me of the cross and my forgiveness in Jesus. The Spirit of Truth is my Helper and he will be with me forever. May God, through the Holy Spirit, assure and bless us in Christ. May he mature us in our understanding of him and may he lead us in righteousness and truth. Amen

In de FC Afkicken Daily van dinsdag 19 mei bespreken Lars van Velsum, Bart Obbink en Anne de Jong het laatste voetbalnieuws. Met vandaag onder meer de uitsupporters van Groningen die tochwelkom zijn in Volendam, Devy Rigaux die de nieuwe TD van Feyenoord wordt, Pep Guardiola die stopt bij Manchester City, de Engelse titelstrijd, een emotioneel afscheid van Lewandowski en Griezmann en steeds meer WK-selecties die bekend worden!(00:00) Intro(02:29) Toch uitsupporters bij de wedstrijd Ajax - Groningen(08:48) Devy Rigaux de nieuwe TD van Feyenoord!(11:58) Pep Guardiola verlaat Manchester City(17:34) Arsenal zet goede stap richting kampioenschap(21:19) José Mourinho terug naar Real Madrid(23:22) Lewandowski speelt zijn laatste wedstrijd voor Barcelona(26:02) Afscheid van Griezmann bij Atlético Madrid(27:36) Ronald Koeman gister bij Rondo(33:15) WK selecties zijn bekend(35:15) Neymar zit weer bij de WK selectie van Brazilië(37:41) Curaçao selectie bekend(38:17) Kaapverdië selectie ook bekendRØDEBen je zelf op zoek naar de beste podcast apparatuur voor in de studio of onderweg? Check: https://rode.com/en-nlSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Vandaag in de studio: Henk Spaan, Suse van Kleef, Danielle Kliwon en Frans Thomése. Koeman heeft gewoon geen zin in Veerman, bobo's moeten op de tribune blijven en welk land heeft op papier de beste opstelling tijdens het WK. Deze podcast wordt mogelijk gemaakt door Staatsloterij. Tourdata en kaartverkoop voor de Hard Gras Theater tour: brocastmedia.com/hardgras Bekijk de podcast ook op ons YouTube-kanaal. Probeer het zelf of geef Hard gras cadeau! https://www.hardgras.nl/#ABONNEMENTSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Confined, the Blind, and the Divine Please turn in your Bibles to John 5:1-18. We'll find in these verses that Jesus was back in Jerusalem. He and his disciples were there for one of the annual feasts. While there, Jesus met a man who had been significantly disabled for 38 years. Jesus then healed him. You'll hear that the Jewish leaders didn't like that at all. As I read, listen for the reasons why they wanted to kill Jesus. Reading of John 5:1-18 Prayer Several years ago, I was in Tel Aviv for a conference. Tel Aviv is a modern city in Israel (you know, the nation state). Well, my trip spanned a weekend, so I was there on a Saturday. Saturday is the Jewish Sabbath - their day of rest. And I remember walking out of my hotel room on Saturday morning. And when I got to the elevators, there was a strange thing. One of the elevators was in "Sabbath mode." What I came to find out was that the elevator would go up or down one floor at a time and open on each floor. Its purpose was so that orthodox Jews wouldn't need to press any elevator buttons. Turns out, pressing an elevator button was a Sabbath violation. But, they could get on the Sabbath elevator and just ride it up or down until they reached their destination floor. I didn't remember anything in the Old Testament about elevator buttons, so I looked it up and it turns out that they have all these additional rules on what can or can't be done on a Sabbath. You are not supposed to handle money or get a haircut or turn on lights or add water to a vase. But you can hire a "sabbath guy" to do some of those forbidden things for you. None of these legalistic laws are new. No, it's been going on for thousands of years. And that is what we come across in our text this morning. The guy who was healed broke the Sabbath by carrying his mat. Jesus himself broke the Sabbath by healing him. And those things caused the Jews to be enraged. They were so angry at Jesus that they wanted to kill him. All of it revealed a few things. It revealed the hypocrisy of the Jewish establishment, and it revealed who Jesus truly is. Not only that, in the bigger trajectory of John's Gospel, this text introduces the tension between Jesus and the Jews. That tension will ultimately culminate in the cross. So, in other words, there are a lot of layers in these verses - healing, matters of the Sabbath, Jesus' identity, Jewish motivations, and broader redemptive historical things. In order to peel the layers back, we'll work through the different people involved and see how they interact. That will reveal a lot. So, we'll consider these verses by looking at the three main characters. #1 the confined, #2 the blind, and #3 the divine. The confined meaning this disabled man. The blind meaning the Jews. And, of course, the divine, meaning Jesus. 1. The Confined So, #1 - the confined. We learn up front that this man had endured some kind of serious debilitating condition. I'm hesitant to call him paralyzed because it could have been some other condition that prevented him from walking or really even moving much at all. And this guy had endured this condition for 38 years. That's a long time. We learn that he and others with life-long disabilities would spend time at one of the city pools. This particular pool was north of the temple mount near the Sheep Gate. By the way, the Sheep Gate was likely named that because livestock could enter the city and the temple area without dealing with a long set of stairs. Well, nearby the Sheep Gate was a public pool called Bethesda. It was a large pool. It had 5 colonnades, which were covered porches or porticos and which allowed people to take cover under the shade. Interestingly, archeologists believe they found this exact pool. It was unearthed in the late 19th century adjacent to this northern gate - at the very location where this narrative occurred. And it turns out it had exactly 5 porticos. It had two levels of pools, one upper and one lower with 5 total colonnades. It's likely that one or both of the pools was fed by an underground spring that would bubble up at times. The water in the pool was thought to have some kind of healing power. Some have even suggested that the healing was associated with a pagan god. That's undetermined, but because of the supposed healing, the pool attracted a crowd of people with different conditions. Moreover, the healing was thought to be the greatest when the water was stirring. At certain times the spring or springs or perhaps another water source would bubble up. That would cause the water to be stirred up and that was the precise time when you wanted to be in the pool if you wanted to be healed. That helps to explain verses 6 and 7. Jesus asked the man if he wanted to be healed. We expected this man to say yes. But he didn't have in mind that Jesus could actually heal him. What he had in mind was getting into the water when it was stirred up… when its healing power was supposedly the greatest. That's why when he answered Jesus, he said, "Sir, I have no one to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up." In other words, yes, I want to be healed, but I can't get into the water. And if I try to work my way down, someone gets in front of me. He was confined by his condition. Although he wanted to experience the so-called healing power of the water, he just couldn't get in. He was stuck on his bed mat. But then something tremendous happened. Jesus said to him, "get up, take up your bed and walk." And immediately, as verse 9 tells us, he was healed. He took up his bed and walked. It's hard to even imagine all that this man felt when that happened. We learn a few verses later that Jesus had withdrawn from the crowd. So, this man couldn't even identify at the time who healed him! But he was healed. And then he carried his mat around. Maybe carrying his mat was a reminder to himself and others that he had been unable to walk, but now he could. Ok, I want to note something important here. This miracle is not associated with this man's faith. Did you notice that? Furthermore, the events immediately before or after the miracle did not involve Jesus conveying some kind of spiritual message. No, in the leadup to the healing, Jesus did not identify himself nor was he teaching. He was just there; he asked a question, then healed the man, then retreated into the crowd. Look down at verse 14. At some point later, Jesus found the man in the temple court. And look what Jesus said to him. It's very interesting. "See, you are well! Sin no more, that nothing worse may happen to you.” That may seem out of place but it's simply there to emphasize that this man's greater need was to be reconciled to God. He'd been healed, yes, but what he really needed was to be saved from hell. Hell would be worse than the 38 years of his disability. Jesus was not saying that some former sin caused his paralysis. Nor was Jesus saying that if the man continued to sin that he would have some other worse disability. No, Jesus was just warning the man of the coming judgment. What I am saying is that the purpose of this miracle was not a spiritual object lesson …like the healing of the official's son. Rather, the purpose of this miracle was to expose the Jewish establishment's hypocrisy and unbelief… and to reveal the one who is Lord of the Sabbath. 2. The Blind Which bring us to #2 The Blind. You probably noticed, there's nobody physically blind in this story. No, but the Jewish elite here were spiritually blind. That is very clear. I think it will become even more clear as we go through this. As I mentioned earlier, it was the Sabbath. And back in Jesus' day, the Sanhedrin had come up with a list of 39 forbidden tasks on the Sabbath. Just like today's additional Sabbath laws, this list was the invention of these ruling Rabbis. They thought that by adding rules, over and above the Scripture, that they were helping the people. But in reality, it was merely turning people's hearts to external things and away from the very purpose of the Sabbath - worship and rest. Even worse, if you broke one of these extraneous laws, there were severe punishments. You could be publicly shamed, or excommunicated, or even put to death. Rule 39 stated that it was forbidden to carry your load between your domains - like between your home and your work. That rule is actually derived from Jeremiah 17:21, but it expanded on it. Instead of just avoiding bringing your work burden home, this extra law prevented you from carrying anything. I bring this up because when this man picked up his sleeping mat, he violated command 39. He pushed the elevator button. And for the Jews, that was a big problem. That's why they told him in verse 10 that it was unlawful for him to carry his bed. And look at his response in verse 11. "The man who healed me, that man said to me, ‘Take up your bed, and walk.'” Well, that stirred the pot even more. Who is this guy? Who is the one who told you to break the Sabbath laws? We want to know! Did you notice… they did not care that he was healed. The man made a point to say that the guy who healed him told him to pick up his mat. But the Jews ignored that point. Look at verse 12. They asked, who is the man who told you to do this… to break the Sabbath. They didn't say, "who was the man who healed you." This man had been an invalid for 38 years. He had been around. People knew he was disabled. But there he was walking around. He even had enough energy to carry his mat! It was amazing! But they showed no excitement for him. They weren't even curious about how it happened. Rather, all they cared about was that he broke the rules. You see, they were blind. They were spiritually blind. They cared not about the miracle nor this man. In fact, when the man later learned that it was Jesus who healed him, he pointed Jesus out to them. And again, he emphasized that Jesus was the one who healed him. But again, they ignored that part. Instead, they were furious. Why were they angry? Because Jesus had been doing these things on the Sabbath. Again, it doesn't even mention the healing. Rather, Jesus and this man …had broken their laws. This spiritual blindness was not just about being blind to the healing. No, they were blind to the purposes of the Sabbath, they were blind to God and the Scriptures… and they were blind to Jesus himself. It didn't even cross their minds that perhaps Jesus was the Messiah. They were so blind to Jesus, they wanted to kill him. We're going to get to Jesus in a minute. But before we do, I want to ask you two things. First, are there areas in your life where you are spiritually blind? I suppose that if you are blind to them, you don't even know what they are. The question is really, what are you blind to? Are there patterns of sin that you are unwilling to confess or address? Are you unwilling to let the Lord lead you in certain areas of your life? And let me point out, it was not just the Jews that are blind here. We're not given any sense that this healed man responded to Jesus with faith. After Jesus warned him, the first thing he did was point out to the Jews who Jesus was. We don't know for sure, but perhaps he never heeded Jesus' warning about forsaking his sin and about judgment. Again, we don't know for sure, but we should heed Jesus words to him as a warning for us. The second thing I want to ask is about how you treat the Sabbath. The Jews had suppressed the whole purpose of the Sabbath. It is supposed to be about worship and rest. It is supposed to be about our hearts and minds turning to God to give him glory. Their added laws undermined that purpose. I am not saying that God's laws are the problem. No, disobeying God's law reveals hearts that are turned away from him. But obedience needs to come from hearts of faith. We set aside this day for worship because we desire to worship God. Telling someone they can't carry a bed or telling someone that they can't push an elevator button distracts from the Sabbath's very purpose. So I ask, where is your heart in regard to the Sabbath? Is this day a going-through-the-motions day? Or are you striving to look to and honor the Lord with a heart of faith? Just to be sure, neither your spiritual blindness nor your understanding of the Sabbath is the focus of these verses. But as you read the Word, like these verses, are you striving to search your own heart? Are you looking to see whether the examples or warnings or the call to believe apply to you? I know that's a little off topic, but those are important questions to ask. 3. The Divine Ok, returning to the text, let's move on to point #3. The Divine. One clear emphasis in these verses is Jesus' divinity. These verses testify to Jesus' nature as God in the flesh. Certainly, Jesus' divinity is displayed through the healing of this man. For 38 years he had been unable to walk, but Jesus healed him immediately. But an even greater emphasis of Jesus' divinity is found in how he responded to the Jews. And they knew it. We read in verse 16 that after the Jews found out who healed the man, they were angry. Jesus was violating the Sabbath. We don't know how, but it says that in some way, they were persecuting Jesus. It's most likely that they were verbally attacking him about violating the Sabbath. And how did Jesus respond to their accusations? Verse 16 “My Father is working until now, and I am working.” Now, you may be wondering, is that true? Is God the Father working? After all, on the seventh day of creation, which they were in and we are in, Genesis 1 says that God rested. When it says that God rested does that mean he no longer works? In other words, on days 1-6, God certainly had been working… He established the universe; he hung the stars and planets in their places; he formed the earth and populated it with plants and birds and fish. He created man in all his glory as an image bearer. He did all those things, but that does not mean that God is not still at work, even on the Sabbath! His work, rather, has moved from establishing the order of creation to providentially maintaining his creation. God is still upholding his creation even on the Sabbath, which for us is on Sunday, the resurrection day. Every day, including the Sabbath, God is turning hearts to him. Babies are born. God is receiving his own into heaven when they pass from this life. He is hearing our prayers and guiding his people and enacting his providential care… and judging the unjust. Those works continue every day of the week, including the Sabbath. When Jesus healed this man on the Sabbath, he was furthering the work of God. He was fulfilling his calling as God the Son in whom is found dominion and power… and through whom and for whom are all things created. Though the Jews were blind to him, yet before them stood the one in whom is all life. He is the preeminent one in all the universe… He is the very one who upholds the universe by the Word of his power. The act of healing this disabled man was only a glimpse of his glory and power. And in him, all the fulness of God was pleased to dwell. As God the Son, Jesus could say to them that he was working just as his Father was working. In saying that, not only was Jesus giving the reason he could heal on the Sabbath, but he was also testifying that he was indeed God in the flesh. And do you know what? The Jewish establishment knew exactly what he was saying. And for that very reason they wanted to kill him even more. As we learn in verse 18, to them not only was Jesus breaking the Sabbath, but as it says, he was making himself equal with God. It was blasphemy. It was claiming to be God or equal to God. And the punishment was death. All the more they wanted to kill him. They were blind to him and to his healing ministry and divinity. Their hearts were so hard, that they couldn't even consider that Jesus was God. But he clearly claimed to be and displayed his divine power. Now, if you were a first-century Jew reading this Gospel, you would be very unsettled by this passage. Yes, the chapters before were reframing your understanding of Jewish intuitions and the Messiah. But this chapter in particular would put you in a difficult place. You wouldn't be able to read these verses without realizing you were in a predicament. Do you believe that this man Jesus is who he claimed to be? Or do you believe the Jewish establishment that he was a blasphemer, who justly deserved to be hung on a cross? There's really no middle ground. What do you believe? In fact, the rest of this chapter seeks to establish the case that Jesus is indeed God. Next week and the week after, we'll see that he has divine authority and he has witnesses which testify to him. Conclusion So, the confined, the blind, and the divine. A man trapped in 38 years of helplessness, now healed. A religious establishment so blinded by their rules and darkened hearts that they couldn't see the miracle right in front of them. And the Son of God, who continues the work of his and our Father. May we see Jesus as Lord of the Sabbath, the healer of our souls, and truly equal with the Father. And may we bow to him and worship him with hearts and minds desiring to honor him… every day of the week and especially the Sabbath.

John 4:46-54 - Faith in the Word, Not the Wonder Please turn to John 4:46-54. What we'll find in these verses is that Jesus and his disciples have arrived back in Galilee. They had left Jerusalem a few days earlier. On the way, they stopped in Samaria for a brief rest. However, that rest turned into two-days. As we saw last week, many Samaritans believed. It started with the testimony of the woman at the well, but then spread to many in her town. Some believed her testimony, but many more believed in Jesus' word. And do you remember how they came to meet Jesus? She invited them. She's a great example for us. They finished their journey to Galilee and were welcomed. That brings us to verse 46. Reading of John 4:46-54 Prayer There are moments in life when you would do absolutely anything to save someone you loved. Especially if it was your child. You would break down walls. You would run into burning buildings. You would stand in the way of someone attacking them. You would do whatever it took. In fact, there are some documented cases of mothers displaying a supernatural like strength to save their children… One such case happened in 1982 up in Lawrenceville. A teenage boy named Tony Cavallo, was working under his car. Unfortunately, the jack slipped and the car fell on him. It didn't crush him, but he passed out because of it. Well, his mom, Angela, saw it happen. She ran over and literally lifted up the side of the car. She yelled for help. A neighbor heard and ran and was able to replace the jacks and pull her son to safety. There's a name for it. They call it "hysterical strength." You know, in the hysteria of the moment, someone will have unnatural strength. And that's just one example of dozens. Well, our passage this morning is not about adrenaline-induced strength, but it is about a father willing to do anything to save his dying son. If you look at verse 47, you'll read that when this man heard that Jesus was in Cana, it says, "he went to him." That sounds simple enough, except, it was anything but simple. You see, Capernaum, where he and his family lived was about 15-20 miles from Cana. And not only was it a day's journey on foot, but when you travelled from Capernaum to Cana, you were travelling up. Capernaum was right on the Sea of Galilee and Cana was up in the hill country. You would be walking uphill about 1500 feet as you travelled those 15-20 miles. It was arduous and I suspect that this man would have travelled much further. After all, his son was gravely ill. Now, before we get into the specifics… let me remind you of two background things. First, at the very end of chapter 2, the apostle John wrote that Jesus knew all people. It says there that Jesus himself knew the heart of man. That statement introduces a series of conversations that Jesus had with different people. So far, we've met Nicodemus, a Jewish teacher and judge. Then, we met someone very different - the Samaritan woman, who had been living in sin. Today is the third person, a royal official - very different than the other two. And then next week, we'll meet a poor, paralyzed man in Jerusalem. Do you see how the apostle John is conveying the full extent of Jesus' ministry? He knows the heart of all men - all mankind, and he knows our needs, including and especially our need for him. So that is one reminder. The second reminder relates to verse 54. It says that this was now the second sign that Jesus did in Galilee. The first was back in chapter 2. Jesus turned water into wine. But remember, no one knew about that miracle except Jesus' mother and the servants. I bring that up because in verse 48, people were looking for signs and wonders. Word had gotten out that Jesus could perform miracles and could heal. The question is when and where would people have heard about or seen these signs? Well, the answer goes back to chapter 2 verse 23. After Jesus cleansed the temple area, it says that he stayed in Jerusalem for the Passover and then it says, "many believed in his name after seeing the signs that he was doing." In other words, Jesus had been performing other signs, not just the ones mentioned so far. We're also told that many Galileans had actually been in Jerusalem for the Passover. Look at chapter 4 verse 45. It says, "So when he came to Galilee, the Galileans welcomed him, having seen all that he had done in Jerusalem at the feast. For they too had gone to the feast." So, there were many in Galilee who had heard about or seen Jesus perform signs in Jerusalem. And because of that, there was a buzz. Word had gotten around that Jesus was back in Galilee. He was in Cana, and they wanted to see more. Well, that word also reached this official. And so he made his way to Cana.  But who was this man? Well, we're not exactly sure, but the Greek word for official indicates that he was more than just an officer in the Roman guard. The same word could be translated "royal" as a noun. He had some official royal capacity in the Roman hierarchy. We don't know exactly what and we're also not given his nationality, but he served the government in some kind of authoritative position. Perhaps he was over the region or over the city of Capernaum or over some aspect of civil life. Furthermore, he was either wealthy enough or had a high enough status to have multiple servants. Well, this man's son lay dying in bed at home. He had heard about Jesus, who performed signs and wonders. Could it be that this Jesus could heal my son? Would he be willing to come down to Capernaum before he dies? I mean, what parent in that situation would not make the same journey? He didn't send his servants. He went himself. And he pleaded with Jesus to come down and heal his son. That phrase "come down," by the way, simply refers to coming down from the hills of Cana down to Capernaum. Jesus, would you make the day's journey and come down and heal my son? As you and I know, this official misunderstood Jesus divine nature in two ways. First, he thought that Jesus had to be there in person - that's why he asked him to come to Capernaum. And second, he thought that Jesus had to heal his son before he died - the official didn't know that Jesus could raise the dead. All he knew was that Jesus had these powers and so he went to him hoping to save his son from death. In response, what did Jesus say? Verse 48: "Unless you see signs and wonders you will not believe." Jesus, what did you say? All I asked is that you come to Capernaum … I think you would agree… Jesus' response is interesting. He didn't really answer the request. No, instead, he addressed a different problem. This is yet another example of Jesus disrupting the natural flow of the conversation to make a point. Back in college, I worked as a camp counsellor for a couple of summers. In our training, the camp director talked about "teachable moments." He said that when something out of the ordinary happens, that was the exact moment when you could speak into the hearts and minds of your campers. Like when a fight broke out or when the camp store ran out of candy or when a kid got hurt at an activity. In those moments, the kids would be more likely to hear spiritual truths… more so than regular cabin devotions. Teachable moments are very effective. By the way, parents, take note of that concept. Well, imagine the scene in Cana. A crowd of some size was there when this royal official approached Jesus. We know this is because the word "you" in verse 48 is plural. Jesus said, "unless you (meaning you all) see signs and wonders, you all will not believe." So, multiple people were there. Why were they there? Remember, word had gotten out. Jesus was no longer just the son of Mary and Joseph. No, this was the man who had been in Jerusalem performing signs and wonders, and people wanted to witness it. So, a crowd had gathered. Then, this nobleman approached Jesus. Perhaps the people knew him. They were, after all, from the region. But even if they didn't know him personally, they would have known his royal capacity. And then he asked Jesus to do exactly what they wanted to see. He asked Jesus to heal his son. It was a teachable moment. And so, Jesus took the opportunity to address their misunderstanding about his signs and wonders. Again, "Unless you see signs and wonders, you will not believe." Jesus was saying, "You've got it backwards! You are focused on the wrong thing. You care not about the one who is performing the signs and wonders. No, all you care to see are signs and wonders themselves." Jesus was not performing the signs as if it was a magic show, yet that is how the Galileans saw it. They didn't care that these signs signified who Jesus was. No, they only cared about the wonders. Ok, let's take a little tangent, here. As some of you noticed, Amy is not here this weekend. When I'm preparing my sermon, sometimes I'll ask her for input. Specifically, I ask her about something controversial that I want to say. And usually she'll say, "you may not want to include that." Well, she wasn't around for me to ask. I'm going to say something controversial. Today in the church, we do a similar thing as the Galileans. We look for signs and wonders instead of looking to Jesus. I think we do. Sometimes we search for experiences and emotional highs to somehow legitimate our faith… or we want to hear feel-good stories. Some in the church take the latest innovations and seek to merge them with ministries or merge them with worship practices. Worship in the church can easily become man centered and not God glorifying. It often becomes a show and not worship. Our ministries can be filled with strategies that manipulate rather than calling people to faith and repentance. Much of it, to be honest, directs our attention away from faith in Christ and away his word. Others are taken in by so-called healing ministries. Now, we believe that God can heal - we often pray for healing, but these ministries claim themselves to have the ability. It's a sham. Others are drawn in by so-called pastors who promise material blessing if you just have enough faith or you give to their program. But friends, all of it is distracting us from the truth and distracting us from Christ himself and faith in him. But what if it went away? What if those innovations and emotion-inducing experiences and prosperity-promising messages went away? What if our country was overthrown by a communist regime and the church had to go underground? What if church buildings were taken over and our bank accounts were seized. What if gatherings of more than 10 people were banned. If that happened and all the consumerism and emotionalism in the church went away, would people still believe? What if you lived in North Korea where it's illegal to own a Bible and if you are found with one, you'll receive the death penalty? Would you still believe? I'm just asking. I know it's a little off topic, but it's a legitimate question. The Galileans were drawn in by the mystery and wonder of what they heard. But, as Jesus pointed out, they missed the point. It was about belief in him. It wasn't about the signs that he was performing. Those merely testified to him as the Son of God, the Savior of the World, and all those other titles that we've seen in John's gospel so far. We are called to believe him and believe his Word. Going back to this official... he was part of the crowd and Jesus was talking to him. He was targeted in Jesus' critique just as much as the other. This man had been looking for a sign - a specific sign. It wasn't at first about Jesus. But then something changed in him. You know, one of the beautiful things in this passage is how this man's faith matured. He went from a simple faith, perhaps no faith, to a deep trust in Christ which led to his entire household believing. At first, it seemed that all he cared about was his son being healed. Jesus may have only been a means to that end at first. But what we see over the course of these two days is a deep belief in Jesus and a maturing of his faith. Let me take a moment to clarify something. The Bible uses the word "faith" in two different senses. ·      The first is saving faith. Faith in the Christ for salvation, like Ephesians 2:8 - By Grace you are saved through faith. It's saving faith in Jesus and what he has done that saves us, not our works, which cannot save. That's one use of the word faith. ·      But second, faith is also something that we can mature in. Some saints in the Bible are referred to as having a strong faith. Others are said to have weak faith, and all of us are called to increase our faith. This second sense of faith is about the level of trust that we have in God and his word. Well, in this short period of time, this official's faith was born and it grew. Look at what he said in response to Jesus' exhortation. He said, “Sir, come down before my child dies.” Jesus had just said to believe and not look to signs. The man's statement affirmed that he believed the Lord could heal his son. By the way, that word "sir" in the Greek can also be translated "Lord." It's the word "kurios." In fact, in other places in John, it is translated "Lord" like in chapter 11 when Martha said to Jesus "Lord, if you had been here, my brother [Lazarus] would not have died." The word "sir" doesn't fully capture the sense of reverence in this man's response. And notice what happened next. Jesus said that his son would live. As it turns out, Jesus didn't even need to go down to Capernaum. Jesus said the word and the man believed. Look at verse 50. That phrase in the middle really captures the heart of the passage. "The man believed the word that Jesus spoke." He believed Jesus' word before he could even confirm that his son was healed. That's flipped around from Jesus' critique of the people. Do you see how the official's faith was increasing? It increased even more when he met his servants. He learned that his son was healed at the exact hour when Jesus gave the word. And what was his response? Verse 53, it says, "he himself believed, and all his household." Let me note two things: ·      First, the emphasis is on Jesus. Verses 50 and 53 repeat the same exact phrase: "Jesus said 'your son will live.'" That's repeated. Any time you see a repeated phrase, it indicates the author's focus. So here, the focus is on Jesus and his word. This father believed in Jesus and his word. He no longer just believed that Jesus could heal his son. He believed in him. ·      And second, he took the responsibility to let his entire household know this. Did you notice that verse 53 is the first time that he is referred to as father? He was acting as the father, as head of his household. His whole household believed. His son who had been sick, believed. His servants believed. We don't know anything else about his household, but we know, as it says, that "all his household" believed in Jesus. It's quite the testimony. He had moved from… (#1) An earnest pursuit to find this man who may be able to heal his son, to (#2) believing Jesus' word without even seeing his son healed, to (#3) a maturing faith in Christ believing in Jesus and testifying to his whole household. May we each strive to set aside any temptations to search for wonders or signs… but instead believe in the very word of God, which testifies to Christ. In closing, I want to go back to the repeated phrase there in verse 50 and 53. Jesus said, "your son will live." It's actually present tense. Your son lives. It makes sense to translate it, "your son will live" because he'd been deathly sick and Jesus was saying he would not die from his sickness - no, he will live. These few verses not only direct us to believe in Christ and believe in his word and mature in our faith… they clearly do that, but they also reinforce that Jesus is the life giver. Life is found in him. As we've heard over and over in the Gospel of John, he has come to bring eternal life. So yes, may we believe in Jesus and in his word, but may we also believe that in him we will live.  

John 4:27-45 - Come, See the Savior of the World Please turn to John 4:27-45. This is our third sermon involving the woman at the well. The first two centered on her conversation with Jesus which ended in verse 26. She ironically told Jesus that the Messiah, the Christ, was coming. To which Jesus responded, "I who speak to you am he." Interestingly, that is the first time in John's Gospel that Jesus identifies himself as the Christ. In earlier chapters, John the Baptist had made that clear. Jesus' disciples had also identified him as the Messiah as well as the King of Israel and the Son of God. But while speaking with this women, Jesus made it absolutely clear who he is. Which brings us to verse 27 where we find out what happened next. Reading of John 4:27-45 Prayer The protestant reformer Martin Luther, once said this: "I'm just one beggar showing another beggar where to find bread." I think that's good description of a faithful Christian. Every single person in the world is searching for truth. Some acknowledge it… some don't. A Christian is someone who believes that he or she has found truth… has found the Bread of Life… and wants to bring others to likewise taste and see. "I'm just one beggar showing another beggar where to find bread." In many ways that captures what happened next in this narrative. When the Samaritan woman woke up that morning, she had no idea what was in store for her that day. She had no idea that she would meet someone and her life would change. At first, she was shocked that a Jewish man was speaking to her. She a woman of Samaria, after all. But even more shocking was what she learned from him. She learned three things: 1. That he had spiritual water to give her that would spring up to eternal life 2. That a time had come when true worshipers would worship in Spirit and truth. Worship was no longer tied to a time and a place. 3. The most shocking - this man claimed to be the promised Messiah. Try to put yourself in her shoes. Can you imagine the excitement in her heart?   Some of you don't have to imagine what she felt. I know some of your testimonies - how you met Jesus for the first time and how everything changed. Well, her heart was bursting with the same excitement. She left her water jar, verse 28, because she had to tell others what happened.   At this point there are two parallel things happening in the narrative. First, the disciples had returned. And Jesus taught them using an object lesson. Second, at the same time, the woman had gone back in her hometown, to Sychar. She went to tell people what happened. So, let's begin with those two separate interactions. What Jesus taught his disciples and then what happened in the town. Those will then converge in verse 39. 1. Jesus and His Disciples By the way, did you notice that the disciples returned at precisely the right time. They arrived at the well right at the end of Jesus conversation with the woman. If they had arrived earlier, they would have interrupted his conversation with her. If they had come later, they would never have seen the woman… and wouldn't have known what was happening. You see, God had orchestrated it all. That's similar to what happened at the end of Jesus' conversation with his disciples. He told them about the harvest… and then immediately when he was done, people started coming to Jesus. It all happened in God's perfect timing. I just wanted to point that out. The apostle John has not only been conveying who Jesus is through the words that Jesus and the others spoke. But we're also learning about him and God the Father and God the Spirit through what's been happening.  So, Jesus disciples returned to the well. Remember, they had gone into town to buy food, which they did. When they got back, they naturally urged Jesus to eat. "Rabbi, eat!" But he wasn't eating. No, as I mentioned Jesus took this opportunity to teach a lesson. He said, verse 32, "I have food to eat that you do not know about." He wasn't talking about food that nourishes the body. No, he was talking about spiritual food. But the disciples hadn't yet made that connection. So, they asked, "has someone brought you food to eat?" Does this sound familiar? This is the fifth time, so far, that Jesus used a real tangible physical object to teach a spiritual truth. Last week, Coleman reminded us of them. First, the water turned to wine indicating our need for Jesus' cleansing ministry. Second, Jesus' comment about the temple being destroyed and rebuilt in 3 days, referring to his forthcoming death and resurrection. Third, Jesus told Nicodemus that he needed to be born again, referring to a spiritual not a physical birth. And fourth, earlier in this chapter, Jesus offered the Samaritan woman living water that would spring up to eternal life. And did you notice that in each one of those cases, just like here, Jesus' audience didn't understand at first. The disciples didn't get it, at first. That's why they asked the question - "has someone brought you food?" Which brings us to an important question: since Jesus wasn't referring to real food, what food was he referring to? Well, he answers that. He answers by first giving his disciples the broad category and then he applies his answer to what was happening in Samaria. The broad category is God the Father's will. Look at verse 34. "Jesus said to them, 'My food is to do the will of him who sent me and to accomplish his work.'" Jesus' food was to be obedient to his Father's will for him. That included many things - His becoming man. It included his perfect obedience to God's law. It included Jesus being and revealing light and truth to the world. And notice the phrase at the end of 34 "accomplish his work." Jesus primary task was to accomplish redemption. And he ultimately accomplished that by (1) dying on the cross to satisfy the demands of the law that we failed to uphold… and (2) rising from the grave to vindicate us and give eternal life. By doing all those things, Jesus was redeeming a people unto himself. His obedience, which he identified as his spiritual food, sustained his ministry and led to the redemption of a people. That relates directly to the next part of this lesson - the harvest Do you see that connection? The harvest continues the food metaphor …by highlighting what the result of his obedience would be - a harvest of souls. Now, remember, Jacob's well is on the outskirts of town. As Jesus and his disciples sat there, they could see fields of wheat or other crops. The sense we get from verse 35 is that it was not yet harvest time. It could be that there were still 4 months left, as is mentioned… or they were in that period of waiting. It was not yet time… the grain was not yet ready. Jesus said to them, "lift up your eyes, and see that the fields are white for harvest." But, as the disciples looked, the fields were not ready. The grain kernels of wheat were not yet a pale white and therefore not yet ready to harvest. Rabbi, What are you talking about? There's still some time before the harvest. The fields are not yet white for the harvest. But then, Jesus clarified. Look at verse 36. He said to them, "the one who reaps is receiving wages and gathering fruit for eternal life." Jesus wasn't referring to the harvest of grain… no, he explained that he was talking about gathering people unto eternal life. Gathering people to hear of the living water and spiritual bread that he offers. By the way, this is now the 6th time that Jesus uses a common tangible, physical reality to refer to a spiritual truth. And it won't be the last. Let me make a brief comment about the sowing and reaping mentioned here. Jesus said that others sowed the seed and the harvest was now ready for the reapers. The question is, who sowed the seed? The answer is that many have sowed the seed. The patriarchs and prophets of old sowed the seed. John the Baptist and his disciples most recently sowed the seed. Jesus himself is the great sower. All the seed had been planted, and now it was time to reap the harvest. Jesus also makes an interesting point. Usually, the sowing and the reaping are months apart. But he points out that the sowing and harvesting are happening together. In other words, no longer is a wait necessary. The sowing and reaping are now happening at the same time. As the message of salvation goes forth… a harvest of souls was happening. And that is exactly what was happening in this Samaritan town. 2. The Samaritan Harvest So, let's now go back to the Samaritan woman and her testimony. Before we consider what happened, I want to remind you of something important - a  contextual matter. This whole thing was happening in Samaria. This did not happen in Judah. The Jews did not consider Samaritans to be part of God's promised people. Their religion had been corrupted and they were considered unclean. This spiritual awakening that we are about to witness sent a clear message to the original Jewish readers. The salvation that the Messiah had come to fulfill was for the world. The harvest includes people from all tribes, languages, and nations. Last week, up in verse 22, we learned that "salvation is from the Jews."  The salvation that God brought to the world came through Israel. God revealed himself and his salvation through them. Jesus was in the line of King David as his greater son. He's the fulfillment of the prophets and high priest, and is the true the Lamb of God. In all those ways, salvation is FROM the Jews… but that salvation is FOR the world. The harvest was for all peoples. This awakening in this town of Samaria, demonstrated that in a powerful way. Jesus disciples and the apostle John's original audience needed not only to hear it but to see and experience it. Jesus came to redeem a people out of every people groups on earth. So, Jesus had just conveyed to his disciples the harvest had arrived. They (and we!) have been called to participate as workers in God's harvest. Now, let me ask, as you think about this narrative, who is the example for the disciples? Who is the person in this story who demonstrated what it means to harvest souls? It's the Samaritan woman. While Jesus was teaching his disciples, the Samaritan woman had gone to be a worker in the harvest. And what does she tell those in her town? Go back up to verse 29. She tells them (look at it) to come and see the man who told me everything that I ever did. And then she asks, "can this be the Christ?" Ok, I've been thinking about this all week... thinking about her words in verse 29. And I've been asking myself, was she being a good witness? After all, she didn't make an argument that Jesus was the Christ…. Her question, in fact, wasn't really a definitive statement about Jesus. So, was she a faithful witness? I have an answer. Absolutely! And let me give you three reasons why. ·      First, she wanted to bring them to meet Jesus for themselves. She was just one beggar showing other beggars where to find bread. Come and see… it's like she was holding them by the hand to bring them to meet him. ·      Second, she was telling her own testimony. That's a powerful thing. It wasn't polished, but it was compelling because she was conveying what she experienced. And I want you to think about this. Why in the world would people listen to her? I mean, they knew she had had 5 husbands and was now living with another guy. And now she was telling them she found yet another man. Why would they listen to her? Well, because they saw that something changed in her. There was something radically different. You see, it wasn't just the testimony of her words, it was the testimony of her life. ·      And third, she asked a thought-provoking question. Can this be the Christ? Questions are helpful because they get us thinking and they stir our curiosity. So, yes, she was a faithful witness. I'd like to say a word to two groups of people who are here today. First, some of you here are not sure whether Christianity is true… maybe you're asking questions and seeking answers but perhaps unsure whether you believe Jesus is who he said he is. Maybe you're here with a friend or family member. If that's you, I simply want to say, come and see Jesus for yourself. Don't take my word for it or a friend's word… but read this Word. In this book, I believe you will find answers and I believe you will see Jesus for who he is. I encourage you to read it. Study it. Ask God to show you whether he is the way, the truth, and the life - as Jesus himself said. It's changed my life and many here. Like the woman at the well, your friends or family or neighbors simply want you to see what they found. After all, if it is the truth, then of course they would want you to see and believe it as well. The second group. Most of you are here because you do believe. If that is you, consider this: Sometimes we think we need to have all the answers. Sometimes we think that if we just say the right things, then others will come to believe as we do. But most often, that's not the case. No, most often, others come to believe either because of our testimony which includes the testimony of our lives… or because we brought them to come and see Jesus for themselves. That is exactly what happened in this town. Look down at verse 39. "Many Samaritans from that town believed in [Jesus] because of the woman's testimony." Furthermore, they asked Jesus to stay so they could learn more, and so he stayed for 2 days. And then look at verse 41. "Many more believed because of his word." I think verse 42 is great. The people said, "It is no longer because of what you said that we believe, for we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this is indeed the Savior of the world.” To our knowledge, the Samaritan woman didn't even tell them that Jesus was the Savior of the world. No, she just asked them whether he could be the Christ and she brought them to Jesus. But what they found was that he indeed was the Christ, the Savior. By the way, that phrase, "Savior of the world" really captures the heart of this whole chapter. Jesus wasn't just a Savior for the Jewish people. No, he was a Savior that the Samaritans needed. He was a Savior that this woman needed in her sin and wandering. He was a Savior who had come to offer salvation to the world. And remember, the disciples were there seeing it all. They witnessed a glimpse of the great harvest of souls unto eternal life. In fact, only three years from that point, they would each be sent out to end of the earth. They would themselves testify to all that Jesus said and did. And each would experience a similar harvest. You know, throughout history, there have been many great awakenings similar to what happened in Samaria. At different times and different places, thousands and thousands have come to see and believe. It's not typical. No, most often, God works through his people in the normal course of life… as individuals and families come to know the Savior.   But there have been times when the Holy Spirit has moved in tremendous ways. It's happened in Africa and Korea and Britan. In our country in the early 18th century, the first great awakening began. It started through the faithful witness of believers and faithful preaching by pastors like Jonathan Edwards and George Whitfield. It spread through all the colonies and even back to England. By the thousands, people hearts were open to hear and then believe. I think it is fair to say that the Protestant Reformation was a great harvest - an awakening or really a revival all throughout Europe to believe or rediscover the Gospel of Jesus Christ. And let me ask, how did each of these spiritual awakenings begin? Well, they each began through the faithful witness and testimony of God's people. Come and see Jesus. In Sychar, it began with one woman, so moved by God in her life, that she had to tell others what happened and invite them to meet Jesus. It started by one beggar showing other beggars where to find bread. Would it be that God would so move in our city? I don't know, but what I do know is that the fields are white for the harvest. May we be faithful to enter into the labor of the harvest… and may God so move that many would come to believe in Jesus as indeed the Savior of the world.

De kampioenseditie! Björn van der Doelen en Marco Timmer hebben het over het kampioenschap van PSV en de huldiging.

John 4:1-18 - The Source of Living Waters Please turn in your Bibles to John chapter 4, verses 1-18. You can find that on page 1056 of the pew Bibles. This is the well-known interaction between Jesus and the woman at the well. Their conversation is a little long, so we'll take this in two sermons. Today is part 1. Next week is Easter, and I'm planning a different sermon text. But in two weeks we'll get to part 2. As I read, think about the differences between Nicodemus and the woman at the well. Jesus had met Nicodemus earlier in chapter 3. Remember, he was a Pharisee and a member of the Jewish council and a teacher of Israel.  And now in chapter 4, Jesus meets a very different person in a very different setting. Reading John 4:1-18 Prayer In my high school and college days, I enjoyed  multi-day wilderness trips. You know, you hike a few miles, then camp, then hike another few miles, and camp again, and you do that for several days. For some reason, it doesn't really sound fun anymore! I'll never forget the very first trip I went on. It started out pretty rough. It was very hot. We were mostly hiking in the shade, but we had 30-40 pound backpacks and so we were sweating. What made it worse is that we got lost on the first day. We didn't really know what we were doing, and then we got turned around. And then, we ran out of water. We had brought extra water because of the heat, but we drank it all by mid-day - we didn't know what rationing meant. Furthermore, the streams and lakes had an unusually high level of parasites that summer, and so we couldn't drink from them. And because we got lost, we didn't make it to our destination. Our planned destination had fresh water, but we were still some miles away when it got dark. So, we had to camp in the middle of a dense forest without water. I've never been more thirsty in my life. We all know what it feels like to thirst. Jesus had been thirsty from his travels. He was fully human just as much as he was fully divine. He shared in our common experiences like hunger and thirst and weariness. But as we read, this story is about much more than just satisfying our physical thirst. No, Jesus uses the common experience of thirsting and drinking to convey a deeper truth - spiritual thirst and spiritual refreshment. This Samaritan woman didn't even know she was spiritually thirsty, but she would soon come to realize how thirsty she was... and where to find the source of life-giving water. As we look at this text, we'll consider it in three basic points: The setting, the scene, and the summons. 1. The Setting - what is the cultural and religious background 2. The Scene - what happened in this conversation 3. The Summons - how are we summoned to respond. By the way, my first outline had a bunch of "s" in my subpoints… like spring, satisfy, Sychar, sixth, sinner, source, surprising, soul, and savior. But it was a little too much, so I decided to spare you from that! 1. The Setting Ok, #1, the setting. Before we work through this captivating narrative, it's important to understand some of the religious and cultural dynamics at play. First, the Samaritans were deeply despised by the Jews. They were outcasts and they were considered unclean. There were a couple of reasons for this. ·      #1 - Samaria was where the northern tribes of Israel had been. Back when the Assyrians conquered the northern kingdom of Israel, some of the Assyrians settled in the land. And over time the Assyrians and the Israelites from the northern tribes intermarried. That was a problem because their religions got mixed together. The Samaritans claimed the same forefathers as the Jews in Judah, but their religious practice and beliefs had been corrupted. We'll consider this more in part 2 of this dialogue. I simply bring it up because the Samaritans were considered not worthy to associate with. In fact, in order to get from Jerusalem to Galilee, the fastest route was to go through Samaria. But, some Jews would go to great lengths to literally travel around Samaria to get to Galilee. It was that bad. ·      #2 - This hatred of the Samaritans did not go away after Jesus walked the earth. In fact, it got worse. The Jewish historian Josephus records that around 51 AD, some Jewish pilgrims passing through Samaria were murdered. In response, several Samaritan villages were attacked by Jews. This killing went back and forth until the Romans had to step in. John wrote this Gospel account after those conflicts. What I'm saying is that throughout the first century Jews deeply mistrusted or even despised the Samaritans.   One of the commentators that I like is Gary Burge. He describes the book of John like scenes in a play. It's helpful to think of it that way. A couple of weeks ago, the curtains opened and it was dark. Nicodemus had come to Jesus at night. Nicodemus, who was an upstanding member of the Jewish elite was searching for answers. And he learned that he needed to be born again. He needed the cleansing ministry that Jesus was offering. But then the curtain closes while he's still searching. Now the curtain opens again, but this time it's the middle of the day. The 6th hour is about noon and the sun is shining. And there is Jesus again, but instead of Nicodemus, instead of this esteemed member of the Sanhedrin and a teacher of Israel, Jesus is speaking with an unclean Samaritan woman. Can you hear the gasps in the audience? And it gets worse as the narrative unfolds. Not only was she a Samaritan, but we find out that she has had 5 husbands and was now living with a guy to whom she was not even married. What a contrast to Nicodemus. ·      He was a squeaky-clean Pharisee on the outside… who had yet to see his need for the transforming power of Christ for his darkened sinful heart. ·      And then this woman, a spiritual and relational mess on the outside, yet, who would come to see her need and drink from the life-giving water of Christ. By the way, I am not saying that Nicodemus never came to believe in Jesus. A couple of weeks ago, I mentioned that by the end of the book, it appears that his heart had changed. And in regard to the Samaritan woman, we learn later in this chapter that she not only came to believe, but through her testimony, many other Samaritans believed. It was all very revealing. You know, we're just a few chapters into John's Gospel, and several paradigms were being broken. John's Jewish audience had false perceptions about the Messiah. They also didn't understand the true reasons for their religious practices. So, their paradigms needed to be shattered. ·      The tables in the temple needed to be overturned. They needed to understand that Jesus fulfilled the temple promises. ·      They also needed to understand that Jesus did not come to re-establish Israel's geo-political dominance. Rather, as chapter 3 says, he came that the world may be saved through him.   ·      Furthermore, they needed to know that being a Jewish leader did not mean you would enter the kingdom of God. Keeping the rules or knowing the law does not get you into the kingdom. No, you need to be born again of the cleansing ministry of Christ and in his Spirit. They needed to learn all this. And here in chapter 4 - They are learning that the cleansing ministry of Jesus is also for Samaritans. And not only that, but Jesus came to save sinners, like this woman. Really, they were all sinners, like us.… but many in the Jewish community didn't understand that. What I'm saying is that if you were a Jew in the first century and you were hearing this for the first time, your religious foundations were being shaken. They needed to be shaken. So that's the setting… the cultural and religious backdrop. 2. The Scene Which brings us to #2 - the scene. Let's consider what happened. In the first century, travelling by foot from Jerusalem directly to Galilee would have taken 3-4 day. Jesus and his disciples travelled up the main road through Samaria… passing one village after another. And they came to Sychar. We learn that it was historically significant. It's where Jacob and his family had lived before moving to Egypt. Jacob was their forefather whom God would rename as Israel. He had 12 sons, whose families would become the twelve tribes of Israel. So, Jacob's well had been there for centuries. The well was near the field that Jacob had given his favorite son Joseph. This is Joseph who was given the multi-colored coat by his father and who was soon thereafter sold by his brothers as a slave. It was noon. The sun was beating down. Jesus and his disciples had more ground to travel but they needed rest and food and water. Jesus stayed at the well while his disciples went to find food. And as he sat there, a Samaritan woman approached. A common household chore for women at the time was filling the water jars. So it was not unusual for a woman to come to the well. However, what was unusual was the time of day. Usually filling water pots happened in the early morning or late afternoon when it was cooler. But given this woman's situation, either she was not welcome at other times, or she felt ashamed. And so, she came at mid-day. And to her surprise, a Jewish man was there. Now, the customary thing to do would have been to quickly fill her water jars and head home. But this man asked her a question. He asked her for a drink. By the way, Jacob's well was deep. You can actually visit the well today. It's about 135 ft to the bottom. That's pretty deep! Jesus didn't have anything to lower down and draw up water and he was thirsty. So, it was a reasonable request. But given the cultural dynamics, even such a request was unheard of. And it took her off-guard. Verse 9: "How is it that you, a Jew, ask for a drink from me, a woman of Samaria?" Now, think about this: What would we expect Jesus to say in response? Or what would John's readers expect? They were already in shock by the situation. But Jesus was thirsty, after all. The natural response would have been for Jesus to say something like, "We've travelled a long way so far. It's hot out. Those with me are in town buying food. But we've run out of water, and I'm thirsty. I have no way of drawing water from the well. Even though I am a Jew, will you help?" That's the expectation, but Jesus instead changed the conversation. That's what he does, isn't it? He disrupts the norms. He dismantles presuppositions. He pivots conversations. He asks penetrating questions and then he drives to the heart of the matter. He said to her, “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is that is saying to you, ‘Give me a drink,' you would have asked him, and he would have given you living water.” Of course, this made no sense to her at first. Jesus didn't have a way to get to the water. Furthermore, he referenced living water. Living water was the term used for fresh moving water like streams or springs. This was a well. Water fills the bottom of a well by seeping in through the earth from the water table and then it sits there. How can you get this water? This well is deep? You have nothing to draw it out. Where will you get the living water you offer? Then something happened inside of her. She sensed that she was in the presence of someone important. After all, Jesus had said so! His first comment was to ask if she knew the gift of God? And then immediately Jesus said to her, if you knew who it was who was asking… She didn't know. But she didn't ask Jesus who he was. No, instead, she asked, "Are you greater than our father Jacob?" This well had been Jacob's well. He and his family and his animals drank from it. Was there something special about the water in it? Is that what you're referring to? Jesus responded, "anyone who drinks from this water," referring to Jacob's well, "will be thirsty again." And then in verses 13 and 14 Jesus said something life transforming. I want you look down and read it again. Verse 13: "but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty again. The water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” The living water that Jesus was offering to give… was not physical water. No, it was something wholly different. And this water would yield in her, eternal life. Jesus was offering to her the gift of living water — faith in him, repentance from sin, and new life — all of which God alone can give. And this gift that Jesus was offering to her would come at a great cost. It would come through the giving of his life. This fountain of eternal life, this living water, would be purchased by his blood. She didn't yet understand this, and Jesus had yet to offer up his life… but he was drawing her to himself. "Sir, give me this water." Now at that time, she still thought that whatever water he was referring to would satisfy her physical thirst. She didn't yet understand her spiritual need. And this is where Jesus, yet again, redirects the conversation. "Go, call your husband, and come here." Jesus already knew her situation. He already knew that she had been married five times and was now living with a man who was not her husband. But Jesus wanted to reveal her need for this living water. She had been searching for something to satisfy her soul, something to give her life and meaning, but she had been searching in the wrong places. Let me say this. We are not given the details about her relationships. But we do know a little. We know that a wife at that time was not allowed to divorce her husband. So, she had been left by 5 men. Is it possible that she broke the wedding vows? Yes. Is it possible that these 5 husbands just decided to abandon her? Yes. Sometimes people assign all the blame to her, but likely it was a combination of broken vows and messy relationships. But whatever happened in her marriages, she was now living with another man… but had not consecrated their relationship by marriage. She was living in sin and had a history of messy relationships. It was a pattern of failure and sin. It appears that she had been pursuing relationships and intimacy within those relationships in hopes that they would give her long term satisfaction. But nothing was satisfying her longings. It was just getting worse. Jesus was saying to her: the spiritual water I give will satisfy you for eternity. It will be a never-ending fountain welling up to eternal life. I want this water of which you speak. Well, Jesus continued to talk to her. We'll cover that in a couple of weeks. And we'll even hear later that she testified to others that Jesus was the Savior of the world. What a tremendous thing. She drank of that "life-giving stream," as we sang earlier. #3 The Summons That's the scene. Which brings us now to #3 - The summons. What are we summoned to do? What does this mean for us? Two things come to mind. Two applications. #1 - When John's Jewish audience heard this, they had to come to grips with something. Their Samaritan neighbors needed the life-giving water of Christ just as much as they did. Beloved, your Muslim and Hindu neighbors need the life-giving waters of Christ. If your heart is turned against them… if you see them as the enemy rather than seeing them as people also made in the image of God and who also need the Gospel, then your heart-attitude needs changing. Remember, salvation is a gift. Did you notice that in verse 10? The living water of Christ is a gift from God. The gift that we have been given is a gift that Jesus offers to all. May we remember that and love our neighbors. And the greatest way that we can love our neighbors is to share the love of Christ with them. #2 - Every single person in the world is searching for satisfaction. Every one of us. We all have a spiritual and relational thirst within us that needs to be satisfied. We've been created as relational beings. We yearn for relationships, and we long to be fulfilled. But apart from Christ, we are searching in the wrong places. The problem occurs when we look for fulfillment in the things of this world or through relationships in this world. Sometimes we pursue the things of this world as if they can save us. Sometimes it's the idols of our culture like comfort or the love of money or our careers or our things or even our homes that replace God in our lives. Those are good things… but when we look to them to ultimately satisfy, then we have turned them into idols. Other times, we pursue saviors who are not saviors at all… that can include political heroes or cultural heroes. That can include your spouse, or your children, or perhaps even your pastor. I don't think that I'm anyone's idol… but celebrity pastor can sometimes become an idol. Other times in our search for satisfaction, we are drawn into sinful relationships… like adulterous relationships, or fornication like the Samaritan woman. Or we can search for satisfaction in our sinful desires for others or other things. But whether it is heart sin or actual sin, it is all stolen waters as proverbs 9 puts it.  It cannot save you and will not satisfy you. But Jesus offers living water. He offers you the life-giving water of salvation in him. And as he said, it will spring up to eternal life. The thirst of your soul will be satisfied in him forever. If you don't have this life-giving water, it is yours to receive as a gift from Christ. Come and drink. In case you didn't notice, I survived my first wilderness trip. But I'll say, it was a long first night. You know how it feels when you're thirsty. It's like having cotton balls in your mouth. That's what it felt like the whole night. We woke up and were still thirsty…and still had a few miles to hike. But we finally made it to fresh water! It was one of those hand pump wells, you know with the long handles. We pumped the handle for a bit and then the water started flowing. It was cold and fresh and satisfying. We drank and drank until we could drink no more. It was so refreshing. The life-giving water of Christ is the only source that will satisfy the thirst of your soul. May you drink and find your satisfaction in him for eternity.

John 2:23-3:15 Born of the Spirit Please turn in your Bibles to the end of John chapter 2. Our sermon text is John 2:23 to 3:15. Chapter 2 so far has included Jesus' miracle, turning water into wine, and his cleansing of the temple. The narrative now shifts from Jesus' actions to his interactions. The end of chapter 2 introduces these interactions. You'll hear that Jesus knows the heart of man (he knows your heart and my heart). And then in chapter 3, we'll hear the first example of that. A man named Nicodemus. Reading of John 2:23-3:15 Prayer "Bullfrogs and butterflies, we've both been born again." I completely forgot about that children's song until Ed Sellers mentioned it this week in a conversation. He didn't even remember I was preaching on John 3. That song was a hit back in the late 1970s into the 80s. It was that same era that President Jimmy Carter called himself a "born again Christian." Billy Graham also used that title often to describe himself and his faith. It was a Christian cultural thing for a while. In some circles it is still used. And it comes right from John 3. I've been thinking a lot about that title "born again." It has not been my preference as far as a title for a Christian. In part, that's because of its typical association with a certain brand of Christianity. The phrase is also in a sense redundant. After all, every true Christian is born again. However, the more I've through about it, the more I appreciate it - maybe not as a title per-se, but at least as a description. It's true. After all someone who believes in Christ is a new creation in him, the old has passed, the new has come. We are tadpoles and caterpillars that have been transformed into bullfrogs and butterflies. It's a helpful description because being born again means that to be a Christian is more than just believing that Jesus existed. It's more than just knowing religious things. There is something deeper that has to happen in your life. And that is what Jesus is teaching here. As I was reading, you probably noticed there are a few things going on in these verses. ·      For one, at the end of chapter 2 we learn that Jesus is still in Jerusalem. It's still the Passover. He was performing miracles (you know, signs as John calls them). And people were believing. However, not everyone who said they believed in Jesus were truly transformed. That is why in chapter 2 verse 24 it says that Jesus "did not entrust himself to them, because he knew all people." He knew their hearts. He knew what was truly on the inside. ·      The second thing we learn is related. We're learning more about Jesus. As we've already seen in the first two chapters and which will continue throughout, there's a deepening revelation of who he is… and why he came. In these verses, we come to understand that Jesus does knows the heart of man; furthermore, he has come down from heaven; and he will be lifted up. We'll get to those two things later. ·      And the third thing we learn about is the ministry of the Holy Spirit. The Spirit plays a significant role here. We are to be born of the Spirit, as it says - water and Spirit. We'll get to that in a few minutes. So, there's a lot going on... But I think we can boil it down to two questions: How does one see the kingdom of God? You know, where should we look in order to find it? That phrase is there in verse 3. And then, how does one enter the kingdom of God? That's in verse 5. Well, the answers to those questions come through a dialogue. The conversation is between someone seeking answers - that's Nicodemus, an esteemed teacher of Israel, and Jesus - the one in whom the wisdom and knowledge of God is found. Ok, to give us a little structure, we'll consider these things in three points. You can see them on page 4: 1. A teacher who must be taught (3:1-2, 9-10) 2. A birth that must be given (3:3-8) 3. A testimony that must be believed (3:11-15) 1. A teacher who must be taught (3:1-2, 9-10) So, #1, again, a teacher who must be taught. I'm talking, of course, about Nicodemus. We're told that he was a Pharisee. Pharisees were prominent leaders known for their careful study of Jewish law. And it wasn't just the law of Moses which we have in the first 5 books of the Bible. But Pharisees were also experts in applying of the law. They had created additional rules with the goal to help people keep it. Pharisees get a bad rap, and often for good reason because many of them were "white washed tombs" as Jesus would call them. However, some really did desired to see reform and for God's people to strive for covenant faithfulness to God. It's just that for most, their emphasis focused on keeping the rules and not a heart love for God. That's one thing about Nicodemus. He is also called "a ruler of the Jews." So, he was more than just a Pharisee, he was a member of the ruling council, called the Sanhedrin. They had significant power. The Sanhedrin were like the Supreme Court and Congress combined into one council. And furthermore, in chapter 3 verse 10, Jesus referred to Nicodemus as a teacher of Israel. He not only had the knowledge, but he had the capability and authority to teach. He had the responsibility to instruct others in matters pertaining to God's law and the covenants and the history of Israel. So, added together, here was a man of great status and responsibility. He was like a lawyer, a judge, a senator, and a renowned professor all rolled into one. And he was there in Jerusalem observing Jesus and his signs. It's possible Nicodemus had even been at the temple when Jesus cleansed it. And notice that Nicodemus was searching. The text explicitly mentions that he came to find Jesus at night. The question is, did the interaction just happen to be at night? In other words, is the reference to night just because that's when it happened? I don't think so. Why would the apostle John mention night if didn't have significance? Most likely, Nicodemus wanted to talk Jesus but didn't want to attract a crowd. Or perhaps he did not want certain Pharisees or council members to know. After all, Jesus had just made a big ruckus at the temple. And so he goes at night and finds Jesus. And before asking any questions, Nicodemus opens with an observation. Verse 2 "Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher come from God, for no one can do these signs that you do unless God is with him." Did you notice that he said "we" and not "I?" "We know." Nicodemus was there on behalf of some of the other Pharisees. And even though he didn't ask a question, there was an implicit question in his statement. They wanted to know, was Jesus from God? Now, remember, we were just told that Jesus knows what is in man. He knows Nicodemus's heart. And at this point in his life, Nicodemus was still in the dark. By the way, it's possible that the reference to "night" indicates more than just the time of day. The apostle John loves contrasts like light and darkness and life and death. Jesus had already been described as the Light of the world. Nicodemus was still in the darkness, but was searching for the light. He was not hostile, like most of the other Pharisees, rather, he was looking for the light. That is why Jesus responded " unless one is born again, he cannot SEE the kingdom of God." Nicodemus was looking but could not yet see. And so, Jesus explains to him how to see and how to enter the kingdom of God. We'll come back to Jesus' answer in point 2, but in the meantime, jump ahead to verse 10. Jesus made a very eye-opening statement to Nicodemus. He said, "Are you the teacher of Israel and yet you do not understand these things?" Here's a man with tremendous credentials and social standing and responsibility. Nicodemus was in a sense a "Hebrew of Hebrews" as the apostle Paul described his own former life. Yet, Nicodemus did not understand. Now, you would have expected Nicodemus to react negatively. After all, Jesus had just accused him of ignorance. But Nicodemus didn't lash out in pride like we will see other Pharisees do. No, it appears that God's Spirit had been at work in his heart. He was a teacher who realized he needed to be taught. Now, we are never told that Nicodemus became born again. However, in chapter 7 he would stand up for Jesus before the chief priests. And in chapter 19, after Jesus' death, it is Nicodemus who brought 75 gallons of precious oils for Jesus' burial. It's kind of like the social media phrase today, "Tell me Nicodemus became a Christian without telling me Nicodemus became a Christian." But at this point… at this first encounter, Nicodemus had yet to understand. He was in the dark. He was a teacher who needed to be taught. 2. A birth that must be given (3:3-8) Which brings us to #2. A birth that must be given. Ok, so "born again." What does that mean? Well, for starters, the phrase "born again" can also be translated "born anew" or "born from above." I think the translation "born again" is the right one. After all, Nicodemus responded by asking, how can someone be born a second time from his mother? Born from above is true but that translation doesn't fit the dialogue. Now, think now about how radical that statement must have been to Nicodemus. Probably a majority of us have heard the phrase "born again" before. Or maybe you've read elsewhere in the Scripture that your heart needs to be regenerated… you needed to become a child of God, adopted into his family. Those ideas are related. But Nicodemus had none of that background. It was very unexpected. Born again? What do you mean? He asked, "How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother's womb and be born?" The question was not belligerent. Rather being born again just sounded impossible to Nicodemus. It's similar to what we considered last week. The Jews didn't understand how Jesus could raise a destroyed temple in 3 days. Here, Nicodemus didn't realize that Jesus had a deeper meaning, and so he simply asked the natural question. Jesus responded that to enter the kingdom of God, one needed to be born of water and Spirit. He went on to explain that what is born of the flesh is flesh, and what is born of the Spirit is spirit. Nicodemus, your credentials don't matter in the kingdom of God. Your efforts, your labor, your study, your status as a Pharisee nor your status as a member of the Sanhedrin will not get you into heaven. None of those flesh-oriented things get you into the kingdom of God. No, Nicodemus, you need to be born of water and the Spirit. The question is, what does that mean? What does it mean to be born of water and spirit? Well, let's tackle the easier one first. I think we can get our hearts and minds around being born of the Spirit… Jesus is referring to the Holy Spirit. It is God's Spirit who regenerates our hearts. He opens the eyes of our hearts to see and believe. He breathes new life into us as we sang earlier. We were dead and he made us alive. Furthermore, God's Spirit is like the wind, as verse 8 tells us. We can't see the wind, but we know it's there. Branches sway. Wind chimes make music. We hear rustling and whistling when wind passes through trees and in the grass. It's the same with the Holy Spirit. He moves in the hearts of mankind. We can't see him, but we can perceive his regenerating work in others and in our own heart. The Holy Spirit causes us to be born again. It's the water reference that is more difficult. I think, though, that if we consider the context, we can understand what water signifies. The reference to water is most likely the cleansing and renewal that comes with repentance.  Let me give you three reasons: ·      First, in chapter 1, John the Baptist was baptizing with water. It was a baptism of repentance and it signified our need for cleansing. In fact, John the Baptist and his water baptism will be revisited later in this chapter. ·      Second, earlier in chapter 2 we also came across a reference to water. The ceremonial pots were filled with water. Those pots were for purification… they were for cleansing. The water was turned to wine in part to signify our need for Jesus to cleanse us… not by the outward washing by water but by the inward cleansing of our sin. ·      And third, the connection between the symbolic cleansing of water and the Holy Spirit is elsewhere in Scripture. Take, for example, Ezekiel's prophecy in chapter 36. It says that the Lord will sprinkle clean water on you and you shall be clean from all your uncleanliness. It then goes on says the Lord will give us new hearts and put his Spirit within us. So, the cleansing of water and the Spirit. Or consider Titus 4. It says that Jesus Christ "saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness." In other words, we are not saved in our flesh, our works. Rather, it says, "by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit." So, the reference to water here is not talking about physical water. Rather it symbolizes our need to be cleansed from our sin. We need to be born of water and Spirit. Let me summarize: entrance into the kingdom of God comes through the cleansing ministry of Christ when the Spirit of God gives you new heart. He reveals your heart of sin and gives you a heart of repentance and faith. And all of it is God's work in us, not our work. To be born again is to be born of the Spirit and not the flesh. None of us here had anything to do with our natural birth.  It just happened to us. Well, new birth is similar in that way. It is God's Spirit who causes us to be born again.  3. A testimony that must be believed (3:11-15) #3. A testimony that must be believed. Well, that brings us to verses 11-15. Notice that at this point, the dialogue has stopped. Instead of a back and forth, Jesus now teaches the teacher of Israel. And what Jesus is now doing is he's pressing into Nicodemus about believing. I want to make a special note here. The "you" at the end of verses 11 and all the "you-s" in verse 12 are all plural. Remember, Nicodemus had come as a representative. He was inquiring on behalf of a group of Pharisees. So, while the Holy Spirit may have been softening Nicodemus's heart, that is not the case for some of the others. That is why Jesus asks a rhetorical question, " If I have told you earthly things and you do not believe, how can you believe if I tell you heavenly things?." And immediately after saying that, Jesus revealed that he himself is from heaven. He was saying, if you all don't believe that you need to be born again, how will you believe in me, the Son of Man, come from heaven? We came across the Son of Man title at the end of chapter 1. It's a reference to Daniel's prophecy about the Messiah - Remember, the Son of Man was given dominion and power and a kingdom. In other words, Jesus was saying in order for someone to be truly born again, they first needed to believe in his testimony… that he is indeed is God in the flesh. But Jesus doesn't end it there. No he continued. To be born again requires not only belief in his identity, but also belief about his saving ministry. That is what verse 14 and 15 are talking about. It refers to Jesus being "lifted up." That is, lifted up on the cross. We read from Numbers chapter 21 earlier. In the wilderness, God's people had been grumbling against him. And because of that, the people had been inflicted with poisonous serpents. Many died who had been bitten. And so, God told Moses to make a bronze serpent and to hoist it up on a pole. From that point onward, anyone who had been bitten by a serpent could look upon the bronze serpent, and they would live. What God was revealing in the wilderness, is that he would send one who would be lifted up. This one, this Messiah, would spiritually heal sinners condemned to death. You see, it was another pattern that displayed Christ, and more specifically it foreshadowed the cross. So, to be born again is to not only to believe that Jesus is the Son of God, but also to believe that he was lifted up on the cross to bring healing from sin. And, of course, when Jesus was talking with Nicodemus, the cross had yet to happen, so he was prophesying what would come. Conclusion So, a teacher who needed to be taught, a birth that must be given, and a testimony that must be believed. Let me conclude by circle back to the two questions being answered: How do we see the kingdom of God and how do we enter it? Well, Jesus has told us. We will not find the kingdom of God through our credentials or our religious knowledge. Nicodemus had all of that and yet he still could not see. No, the kingdom of God is spiritual, and we will only see it through spiritual eyes given to us by the Spirit. And we will only enter it when we are born again. That is, when we are cleansed by the ministry of Christ and renewed by the Holy Spirit. In other words, the path into the kingdom does not come through our own efforts. You do not enter the kingdom of God because your parents are Christians or in Nicodemus's case because he was an Israelite, and a special one at that. No, rather, you need to be born again... You need a transformation from being a tadpole or a caterpillar into a bullfrog or a butterfly. You need a new heart - a heart of repentance that believes in the one who came down from heaven and was lifted up on the cross. Maybe you are like Nicodemus. You've come to Jesus at night because you are seeking. If that's you, pray to him and ask him that he would grant you to be born again… born by water and the Spirit… the cleansing ministry of Christ and new life given to you….

John 2:13-22 Please turn to John chapter 2. Our sermon text is John 2:13-22. Last week Jesus turned water into wine - well, not really last week, but 2000 years ago. You know what I mean. That miracle, or "sign," as the apostle John calls it, (1) revealed Jesus' glory; (2) signified Jesus' cleansing ministry; and (3)  was a foretaste of the blessing that will come at the end of the age. In our reading today, Jesus and his disciples went up to Jerusalem. By the way, travelling to Jerusalem was always travelling up. It didn't matter whether you were coming from the north, south, east, or west, Jerusalem was in the mountains and you would be ascending. Reading of John 2:13-22 Prayer Earlier this week, I scanned through the Old Testament and counted how many chapters focused on the temple. You know, I was curious. I counted 39 chapters spread across 10 Old Testament books. That includes chapters focused on the tabernacle - which was the precursor to the temple. So 39 chapters on the temple and tabernacle. Then I thought I would count the chapters which focused on priests and priestly activity. I counted at least 30 more. I lost my place, actually… and didn't want to start over. So at least 30 more. That's about 70 chapters which focus on the temple or temple activity. And these are not just chapters that only mention the temple or tabernacle or priests, no, these are chapters that describe the construction and the contents of the temple… like the lampstands, the altar, the incense, and the Ark of the Covenant and all the details about the ark. These chapters also describe the different courts and the holy place and the holy of holies… all with specific measurements. We're given details about the priestly vestments and all the different sacrifices and their purposes. The High Priest was to wear special garb with different kinds of gems. The day of atonement is described. We're given details about the priestly activities and roles. The temple was to host annual festivals, such as the Feast of Weeks and the Passover. There's a lot. Furthermore, every temple object and practice was a divinely designed shadow of a greater substance to come. They were all types. They each in some way signified aspects of salvation or worship or God's character including and especially his holiness. When the Israelites travelled to Jerusalem, they were travelling for some activity related to the temple. In some way, they would participate in temple activities that drew them closer to God - those activities would reveal his holiness and the forgiveness they needed from their sin…. and the salvation which God would bring. The temple was the center of their spiritual life. It was a sacred place where God was to be revered and worshiped and where his presence dwelt. That is why the destruction of the temple by the Babylonians was so traumatic. That had happened about 600 year earlier. It's why the rebuilding of the temple in Ezra's day was a great joy. Even despite the second temple's shortcomings, it restored sacrifices and worship. I've had the opportunity to visit Jerusalem twice. And both times, I was able to visit the western wall of the temple mount. Maybe you've heard of it. The temple mount was the massive foundation upon which the temple was built. The temple was destroyed again almost 2000 years ago, but the temple mount is largely intact. The western wall is the closest that a Jew, today, can get to where the original temple used to be. The area next to the western wall is usually packed with people - people praying and rocking back and forth and putting little notes in between the massive stones. You see, even though the temple is no longer there, the location is still sacred and a source of grief for many in the Jewish community. I bring all that up because as the narrative now moves to Jerusalem, we're brought right to the temple. We're brought right to the center of life and activity in Jerusalem. And notice that not only does the temple come into view here, but we're told in verse 13 that the annual Passover celebration was at hand. The Passover was one of the two main festivals that would bring pilgrims to Jerusalem. It celebrated God's deliverance of his people out of Egypt. The whole event took a week and involved meals and rituals. The most important thing was the sacrifice of animals on the temple altar. The normal sacrifice was a lamb, you know a young sheep. However, wealthy families could offer an ox and poor families could offer pigeons. For the Passover, the population of Jerusalem would swell by at least a few hundred thousand people. If you believe Josephus, the Jewish historian, he estimated even higher - he estimated 2.7 million additional people. That's likely an over estimate, but the point is that the city was packed, and especially the area surrounding the temple and temple mount. And since a significant portion of the Passover involved sacrificing animals, families needed to have animals to sacrifice. Some, of course, brought their own, but if you were travelling a long way, that would be difficult. Other families didn't raise animals. And so, the Passover week involved the buying and selling of animals. Thousands and thousands of oxen and lambs and pigeons. Archeologists have found nearby caves with hundreds of bird pens. The birds would be raised and then sold at the Passover. All the buying and selling was, of course, a business. The problem here was not that animals were being bought and sold. No, to some extent, that had to happen. Rather, the problem was that the buying and selling of animals and the currency exchanges were happening in the temple area. Specifically, it was happening in the Court of the Gentiles which was right next to the main temple building. Now, it didn't need to happen there. There was plenty of space in other parts of the city. But, as you can imagine, being right there was very convenient. Right there you could exchange your foreign currency, and then buy your animal, and then you could walk couple hundred steps to the temple altar where the priests would then make your sacrifice. And so, the merchants set up shop right there in the temple courts. The problem was that God had graciously given Israel the temple and its practices as signs of his grace. By abusing them, the people were forsaking God and breaking his covenant promises Let me highlight 4 ways in which all this offended God: 1. First, the worship of God had become transactional. The ceremonies and sacrifices had been established by God as a means to worship him. They were the avenue through which God was revealing his salvation and character. Yet the people had turned true worship into empty worship… into going-through-the-motions worship. Their sacrifices were not pleasing to God. 2. Second, the temple area was to be a sacred place. It was to be where God's glory dwelt. People were to come there to pray and to be instructed by the priests and to commune with the living God. But all of that was disrupted by the merchants and money changers. Think of the disruption that the animals made - thousands of them! And they were doing animal things - you know what I mean - making noise and making a mess. It distracted true worshippers from worshipping the Lord. 3. Third, it was all a racket. It was striking against the very holiness of God. In the other Gospel accounts, Jesus called the traders and money changers a den of robbers. Their fraud and price gouging demonstrated hearts far from God and his ways. If you were to pick one word that described the temple… it would be the word holy. Holy refers to God's set-apart-ness - his pure and utter righteousness. Inside the temple building was the holy place and at the heart of the temple was the holy of holies. All of the temple elements and practices in some way or another demonstrated the holiness of God. That is why this activity was defiling the temple. It was unholy. It was all disgraceful to God. The merchants' unholiness was a stark contrast to the holiness of God. 4. And the fourth problem was that no one was doing anything about all this. The Jewish leaders failed by letting this all happen in the first place…  and they didn't put an end to it as it spiraled out of control. Maybe they were even profiting off of it - that's likely but we don't know. And so, when Jesus arrived, he witnessed the utter desecration of the temple. And notice he called the temple "my father's house." That acknowledged both his identity as the Son of God, and it acknowledged the significance of the temple as where God dwelt. And in response, Jesus "cleansed the temple" as this event is often called. Jesus fashioned whips, as verse 15 says. And he drove the merchants and animals out. He poured out the coins of the money changers. He flipped over their tables. People and animals scattered out of the temple courts in utter chaos. In verse 16, he told those who sold pigeons, "Take these things away; do not make my Father's house a house of trade." It was a display of righteous anger. It demonstrated Jesus' authority and his holiness and his justice - attributes, you know, that he possessed as God the Son. And the disciples witnessed it all. They recalled the words of Psalm 69 - those are quoted there in verse 17, "Zeal for your house will consume me." In Psalm 69, King David laments that his zeal for God's house brought reproach on him from his enemies… his enemies dishonored God. That's what was happening here. Jesus had a holy zeal for God's house, but the merchants and money changers were bringing reproach on God. The reference to Psalm 69 revealed that a greater King greater than King David had come. In other words, Jesus' cleansing of the temple was a prophetic fulfillment of Psalm 69. A righteous King had arrived in Jerusalem. I want to make a brief comment here. Sometimes people will use this event as a justification for righteous anger. You know, like when we get mad at sin and evil. But I don't believe that this event is our permission slip for righteous anger. I am not saying that we shouldn't be angry at sin. We should hate sin - first, and foremost, we should hate our own sin and unrighteousness. And we should be angry at oppression and injustice. We should. According, of course, to God's definition of oppression and injustice and not the world's. Ephesians 4 says "be angry and do not sin." So, yes, it is possible to be angry at the right things, but let me say, it is very hard to be angry and not sin. What I am saying is that yes, we should emulate Jesus, however, we should also  recognize that we are not him. His righteous anger here is pure and holy and perfectly justified. Rather, what this event underscores for us is our need to honor the Lord in our worship. We are to come before him in humility with hearts drawn to him. You see, we're the ones in the temple area either buying the animals or worse, selling and exchanging, or even worse than that, allowing it all to happen like the failure of the Jewish leaders. But what does that look like today? Well, perhaps we are treating worship as merely a transactional activity. It's easy to slip into that mindset thinking that all we are called to do is go through the motions in worship. But no, God wants our hearts. We are to come before him in humility and praise his name. Or perhaps, as did the merchants, we are desecrating worship by treating it as a consumeristic man-centered activity and not a God-glorifying one. That's also a trap that we can fall in today. Much of our society revolves around our so-called needs and the things we want to do or buy. Worship can turn into that. Or perhaps, as did the Jewish leaders, we are allowing our worship to be hijacked by these temptations… again, by self-serving practices that focus on ourselves and not on God Almighty in the splendor of his holiness according to his Word. God wants our hearts and minds to be drawn into reverent God-honoring worship through his Spirit, according to his Word. I could say more, but in the interest of time, let's continue on. Because this narrative takes a surprising turn. Of course, when Jesus disrupted the Passover activity at the temple, the Jews took notice. By the way, when John uses the word "Jews" he is most often referring to the Pharisees or the Sadducees, you know, the Jewish leaders. Well, they came at him, and asked, verse 18 "What sign do you show us for doing these things?" There's our word from last week, "sign." In other words, they were asking, "show us by what authority you do such a thing." And Jesus shocked them when he said, "Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up." They interpreted those words at face value. They had no sense that Jesus could have been indicating something deeper. To them, it was a ridiculous statement. And you see that in their response. "It has taken forty-six years," they said, "to build this temple, and will you raise it up in three days?" You see, 46 years prior, Herod the Great began a massive renovation project of the Temple Mount, and the Temple courts, and the Temple itself. Even though Herod had died two decades earlier, those renovations had continued. And they weren't even done. So, to them, it was absurd for Jesus to suggest that he could raise up a destroyed temple in three days. But he did. He wasn't referring to the temple structure, where they were standing. No, as John remarks there in verse 21, he was referring to the temple of his body. He was referring to his resurrection, when he would be raised up from the grave. When the disciples reflected back on Jesus' statement, as verse 22 highlights, they realized what he had been referring to. It was amazingly prophetic. Let's consider the original readers for a moment. It is very likely that John wrote this shortly after the Romans destroyed the temple in AD 70. There are good arguments for that which I agree with. That event was horrible. In Jesus' prophecy in Matthew 24, Jesus' called it the abomination of desolation. It was gruesome. Historical records confirm that. Many were killed including women and children. The temple was plundered; its massive stones were toppled; and it was all burned. This was all freshly painful for the original Jewish readers. They were likely without a temple. The very heart of Jewish life had been taken away from them. There was nothing left. No sacrifices. No annual festivals. No Holy of Holies for the High Priest to enter on Yom Kippur - the Day of Atonement. Yet, a greater Temple had been raised up. Christ himself had been raised. What Jesus was saying to the Jews was that the Temple would no longer be needed. That is, the physical Temple's purpose would soon be coming to an end. It needed to be destroyed. After Jesus' sacrificial death was accomplished on the cross, and after he was raised from the grave, there was no more need for sacrifices or priests or holy things. Do you remember what immediately happened after Jesus died? The temple curtain was torn in two. The temple curtain was the massive ornate curtain that separated the priests from God's presence in the Holy of Holies. It was torn in two by God! There was no longer a need for sacrifices because the once-and-for-all sacrifice had definitively secured redemption for God's people. Jesus had fulfilled the temple's purpose. He was now the only Temple necessary. And the event that sealed the deal and that fulfilled the Temple's ministry of God's presence, was Jesus' resurrection. And not only his resurrection, but also his ascension. He now lives and reigns in heaven. And because of that, we can commune with him through prayer and through the Holy Spirit. To the original Jewish reader, this would have been a tremendous revelation. The center of Jewish life had shifted from the Temple in Jerusalem to the temple of Jesus Christ. Jesus has fulfilled the Temple's ministry. ·      His sacrifice is the one true and final sacrifice as an atonement for sin. ·      The temple represented the holiness of God, which Jesus perfectly fulfilled as the embodiment of holiness. ·      Jesus is the great High Priest who did and continues to intercede for us. ·      He is the one in whom God's presence fully dwells as God in the flesh. Jesus is the one who came and dwelt among us - as we discussed in chapter 1. ·      Related to that, the temple held the very glory of God. That glory has been fulfilled in Christ Jesus. His glory will shine for eternity. We read earlier in the service from Revelation 21, there will be no temple in new heavens and earth, for the temple is the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb. The old Temple has passed. It has been destroyed, but God has raised up the new temple. Friends, you don't need to take a pilgrimage to Jerusalem. You don't need to visit the western temple mount wall. You don't need earthly priests. Sacrifices will not bring you to God. As the author of Hebrews put it, "it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sin." Those things have passed away. The temple is no more. In fact, we should not hope for a rebuilt temple in Jerusalem. To hope for a rebuilt temple would be to believe that Christ's sacrifice was insufficient. We should not desire that old shadow return… why? because the true substance has come. Jesus has come. The curtain was torn and the temple destroyed. Hoping for a rebuilt temple would be kind of like if you were planning a trip. And you bought a travel book. It had pictures and maps and information on where you are going - like maybe one of our great national parks. But you get there, and the whole time, you sit in your hotel room reading your travel guide. You miss out on the beauty and the wonder of the destination to which that guide was revealing. The temple's purpose was to reveal Christ. The fulfillment of the temple has come. Jesus has come. Through him is full access to God. Our hope should be in Christ and the New Jerusalem in eternity. Multiple times in the New Testament, God's people are called a temple of the living God. That is because when you are united to Christ by faith, God dwells in you. You have all the blessings of communing with God through the Holy Spirit when you are joined to him by faith. When that happens, your sin is atoned for. You can confess your sin in repentance, knowing you are forgiven. You can pray to the God of the universe for your burdens and pain and sickness. And, you can worship him with joy and hope. Are you a temple of the Living God? Do you believe this word? Did you notice that the word "believe" is used again? It's there in verse 22. Jesus' disciples "believed the Scripture", it says. It's a pattern. Last week, the disciples believed in Jesus. At the end of chapter 1, Nathaniel believed. And earlier in chapter 1, we're told that all who believe in his name, God gave the right to become children of God. If you don't yet believe, will you? Because, when you do, you will receive all the blessings and benefits formerly displayed in the temple of old, but now fully realized in Jesus Christ. You will have God's presence through his Spirit, forgiveness through his blood, and his holiness given to you. Come to the true temple.

The Sign of Wine: Glory, Blessing, Blood John 2:1-12 Our sermon text this morning is John 2:1-12. In the lead up to these verses, Jesus has been introduced as the Son of God, the promised Messiah, the light of the world, the creator of all things, and various other titles and descriptions. John the Baptist and several of Jesus newly gathered disciples testified to those things. The apostle John now turns his attention to not just tell us who Jesus is, but to show us. In our passage this morning, we'll hear about the first miracle of Jesus. It happened at a wedding in Cana which is in the region of Galilee. Reading of John 2:1-12 Every single culture throughout human history has had weddings … you know, ceremonies and banquets. And there are some interesting customs. I've never been, but I understand that if you go to a Jewish wedding, you'll see the groom and sometimes the bride smash a piece of glass under their feet. At Greek weddings, the attendees will dance in big circles around the happy couple - apparently it's a sign of blessing. I've never witness that but I've seen the movie. A few years ago when I was in India with Pastor Chuck, we drove by a big wedding reception. There was an elephant and there were lots of colors. It was beautiful and very celebratory. And it's no wonder why weddings are so significant. God established marriage from the very beginning. Right there in Genesis 2, God instituted the union between man and woman. A man shall leave his father and mother and shall be united to his wife and they shall become one flesh. When I am meeting with engaged couples, one thing I emphasize is that Genesis 2 happened before Genesis 3. I know that sounds obvious and it is, but it is very significant.  Genesis 3 is the fall – it's when sin entered the world. Genesis 2 is when God established marriage. In other words, marriage between a man and a woman is part of God's created order before the fall. Marriage is not part of God's redemptive plan - No, it precedes it and transcends the fall. In other words, marriage is not just for Christians, rather, it is an institution that applies to all humanity. To be sure, not everyone is called to be married – the apostle Paul makes that clear. But marriage and family are at the very center of God's established order for humanity. So, it's no wonder that weddings have always been a big deal everywhere – because they are! I bring all that up because the fact that Jesus' very first miracle happened at a wedding is very significant. Jesus didn't turned water into wine at some arbitrary banquet. No, he did so at a wedding feast. He did so at a celebration of the most important union here on earth… and more importantly, a union modelled after his relationship with us - the marriage between Christ and his church. My hope is that as we work through what happened at this wedding in Cana, that you will see not only the glory of Jesus on display, but you will also see how it reveals the greater wedding banquet that is to come. Ok. Before we get into the specifics, I want to point out one other significant thing. Look at verse 11. It says, “This, the first of his signs, Jesus did at Cana in Galilee.” Notice that John does not use the word “miracle.” No, instead he uses the word “sign.” Sign is the word that John uses throughout the book. In fact, chapters 2 through chapter 12 are sometimes called the “book of signs.”  The content of these chapters revolve around 7 signs that Jesus performed. The word sign comes from the Greek word “sēmeia.” The word indicates that these events are more than just miracles. They point to something significant. Think about all the English words derived from the Greek word for sign. Significant, signify, signal, assign… all of those capture the idea that there's a deeper meaning here. And that is what these signs are. They direct our attention not to the miracles themselves, but rather to what the miracles reveal. I think the clearest example of this I think is in chapter 6. Jesus multiplied the fish and the loaves and then he said to the crowd, “I am the bread of heaven.” Through that miracle, Jesus gave us a sign that he is the one who spiritually feed us and gives us life. So here at the wedding in Cana, it's not only that Jesus displayed his glory and power by turning water into wine. But Jesus also revealed greater things. The question is, then, to what is this sign signifying? … you know, beyond just Jesus' glory? Well, as we work through the narrative, there are two additional things that the sign of wine is signifying. It foreshadows the cleansing blood of Christ, and it demonstrates the abundant spiritual blessings that we have and will received in him. We'll consider those in three points: #1 the sign of Jesus' glory. #2, the foreshadowing of Jesus' blood. and #3 the foretaste of eternal blessing. 1. The Sign of Wine - Glory So, first, glory. I think you would agree, this miracle displays God's glory in and through Jesus. Verse 11 tells us that. It says, "…it manifested his glory." The very act of the miracle itself manifested (or displayed) Jesus' glory. And by the way, just to be sure, this really was wine. As some of our Baptist friends think, Jesus did not turn water into grape juice, but, in fact, wine, good wine. Ok, let's spend a little bit of time just walking through the narrative. Notice first that it mentions this happened on the third day. The way we count days today, it's actually two days later. Back then, the current day was considered day one as you count days. Tomorrow would be day two. And the day after is the third day. As you know, we usually count tomorrow as day 1. So, basically two days later, Jesus and his new disciples were at a wedding. They'd been invited. And we find that in some way, Jesus' mother, Mary, was helping. Perhaps this was a relative. Furthermore, Jewish weddings at the time were multiple day affairs - some of them would go on for 7 days. I know that's hard for us to even imagine. It involved multiple meals and celebratory things. Furthermore, the wine used throughout was more than just for enjoyment, it indicated a mutual blessing upon the families being united together as they celebrated the marriage. Also, the groom's family would have hosted it, and they would have spent a lot of time and money. So, it was a big deal. But we find out pretty quickly, that there's a crisis. They've run out of wine! They couldn't just send someone to Kroger or Publix. It was a major problem… and running out of wine would have come with a social stigma. The groom's family would have been very embarrassed. Why did they run out? We're not told.  it could have been poor planning. Maybe they had more people than they expected. Maybe people drank more than they thought they would. We just don't know. When Mary said to Jesus that there was no more wine, we get the sense that she knew Jesus could resolve the problem. But Jesus responds to her, "woman, what has this to do with me? My hour has not yet come." Now, to our ears, it sounds a little roughly worded. It sounds like Jesus was scolding his mother. But actually, the word 'woman' was used in a different way at that time. I think the NIV translation does a better job here. It says "dear woman." You see, the word "women" was sometimes used as a term of affection. Jesus was lovingly saying to his mother that it was not his problem. His "hour," as he said, had not yet come. We'll come back to the word "hour" in a few minutes. The bottom line is that Jesus indicated that this was not his matter to resolve. Notice, though, that he did not say he wouldn't help. Mary understood that and she knew that Jesus in some way could fix the problem. And so, what does she do? She tells servants, "Do whatever he says." Truly, it was a display of deep faith on her part. She believed in what he could do. Now, the venue had a set of stone purification jars - there were six of them. We'll come back to their ceremonial purpose in a minute. Jesus asked the servants to fill them. So, the servants followed through with Jesus request as Mary had told them to. They filled them "to the brim," it says. That would have taken some time. And then immediately when they finished, Jesus had them draw some of it out and they were to bring it to the master of the feast. At this point, the miracle had already been done - the servants knew it, which is pointed out for us. The servants also knew, as did Mary and the disciples, that the wine had run out… but now there was plenty. But the master of ceremonies didn't know any of that. And when he tasted the wine, it was not diluted nor was it lower quality wine that was sometimes served after the good wine. No, hardly at all. The master went straight to the groom and said, "you have kept the good wine until now." It was an encouraging word. Not only had disaster been averted, but quite the opposite happened. The celebration ramped up! The festivities continued with good wine served to the guests. What a tremendous blessing for the whole wedding party! Part of the miracle was that Jesus never touched the stone jars. He wasn't the one who filled them with water. He was also not the one to bring the new wine to the master of the ceremonies. In fact, we're not told that the master, nor the groom, nor the guests ever knew about the miracle. But the servants knew, and Mary knew, and Jesus' disciples knew - they had observed from a distance. And look at the brief note at the end of 11… right after it says that Jesus manifested his glory… it says, "And his disciples believed in him." You may remember, at the end of chapter 1, we're told that Nathaniel believed. But now we're given a full testimony that they all believed. You see, even though this sign was concealed to a select few, yet it testified to Jesus' identity as chapter 1 revealed - it displayed the glory of God in Christ. So that's one display - one sign. Glory through the miracle itself. 2. The Sign of Wine - Blood #2. The sign of blood. If time travel actually existed… and if you transported yourself back to a first century Jewish community, one thing you would see over and over were the various ceremonial washings. You see, in order to participate in various events and meals and ceremonies, you had to be clean. You had to be purified.  it was both a cleanliness thing and spiritual purification thing. The Jews were constantly purifying themselves. That involved taking fresh water from a purification container and washing. And there were very specific regulations for the process. Some of the purification regulations came from the law… specifically Exodus and Leviticus and Deuteronomy. We learn from Mark chapter 7, that there were other additional cleansing traditions that had been added And one important thing is that the water needed to come from living water - you know, fresh sources like springs or wells or mountain streams. This water for purification also needed to be stored in stone jars (or basins) - not clay or wood or leather. While those vessels were allowed to temporarily hold consumable liquid, they were not appropriate for the cleansing rite. Stone, on the other hands, was. It was impermeable - the water would remain clean over time. In fact, you were not supposed to transport the water to the stone basins in something made of clay or wood - no, the process had to be pure. And when the time came for the purification, like the washing of your hands or feet (or your whole body if something happened to make you unclean), you would draw the water out with a stone cup and you would wash off to the side. In other words, you wouldn't stick your hands or feet in the stone jars - that would only make the water unclean. In verse 8, that phrase "draw out" is the same word used for ceremonial cleansing. The servants drew out the wine for the master of the feast. So, when Jesus told the servants to fill the stone water jars, they would have known exactly where to get the water and how to fill them. Furthermore, Jesus' disciples and his mother and the original readers would have been very familiar with all of it. What I am saying is that all of them would have understood the symbolism of the purification jars. A greater cleansing had come - the new wine has arrived. Even though the master of ceremonies, nor the guests, nor the bride and groom didn't know what happened, yet Mary and the servants and disciples did. They witnessed Jesus foreshadowing that he would cleanse them from their sin. Now, I doubt that Mary or Jesus' disciples would have associated the wine with Jesus' blood. I'm talking about at that moment. But let's go back to what Jesus' said to Mary. He said, "my hour has not yet come." We will come across that phrase multiple times throughout the Gospel of John. Jesus was indicating that an "hour" would come when his purpose in coming would be fulfilled. Jesus was referring to the "hour" of his crucifixion. In Jesus' prayer in chapter 17, right before he was arrested, Jesus prayed, "Father, the hour has come..." As he's performing this miracle, Jesus had just referenced his coming crucifixion. One commentator pointed out that immediately after Jesus died, a Roman soldier pierced Jesus' side… do you remember what came forth? blood and water. The apostle John makes a point to note that. That's in John 19 verse 34. You see, the cleansing water of purification is fulfilled in the cleansing blood of Christ. Again, at the time, Mary and the disciples didn't fully understand, but when they reflected back on this miracle, they would realize its significance. It displayed the cleansing that they would receive by faith in Christ through what he accomplished on the cross. In 1 John chapter 1 (the first of the apostle John's letters)… In 1 John 1:7, the apostle said that if we walk in the light of Christ… that is, if we believe in him and demonstrate that belief, he said, "the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin." You see, the ceremonial purification was anticipating the cleansing ministry of Jesus… a cleansing that we all need, and which we received by faith. The wine signified Jesus blood. It's just like at the Last Supper when Jesus said that the cup was the new covenant in his blood, for the forgiveness of sin. 3. The Sign of Wine: Foretaste of Eternal Blessing So, #1 glory, #2 blood, and now, #3 abundant and eternal blessing. Let's look again at verse 6. We've talked about the significance of the purification jars. But did you notice how large they each were? There were six of them and they each contained about 20-30 gallons. Each one of them was about as big as a normal size bathtub, today. That's big! And multiply that by 6 and you get about 150 gallons! That's a lot of wine. Is it possible that the wedding was that large and they needed that much wine? Yeah, it's possible. But the point of letting us know the volume of water turned to wine is not to tell us the size of the wedding. We're not given any details about the wedding. We don't know who the bride and groom were. No, the point of notating the size was to indicate the sheer volume of the wine. It signified the abundant blessing that Jesus's ministry has and will bring. His ministry to us is and will be far more abundant than what we can ask for or imagine. And let me say, even at those times in our lives when we feel like the wine has run out. You know, when we are worn down, or our faith feels weak or our hope is seemingly gone. Even during those times, we can know that there is an abundance of grace still to be poured out… far more than we can see or imagine. By the way, this concept of blessing through wine is rooted in a couple of Old Testament passages. God's people are told that when the Messiah comes, when the time is fulfilled, there will be an abundance of wine. It's really a metaphorical illustration of God's blessing. For example, the prophet Amos in chapter 11 prophesied of how days would come when the mountains would drip with sweet wine and the hills would flow with wine. Well, the fulfillment of those prophecies was coming true in Christ. This sign at Cana, this miracle, in part was revealing that the blessing of the Messiah had come… AND will come. As I mentioned earlier, the fact that this miracle happened at a wedding banquet is not happenstance. Rather, God was giving a foretaste of what would come. Yes, Jesus' ministry was ushering in a time of blessing to every tongue and nation, now… but the ultimate blessing that this sign is signifying is the greater wedding feast that has yet to come. In other words, the abundance on display here, in this miracle, is directing us to the eternal marriage supper of the Lamb. At the very beginning of God's Word was a marriage, you know, Genesis 2. Well, the Scriptures end with another marriage celebration. The Bible is book-ended by weddings. That second one will be the wedding between the Lamb of God and his church. You see, God has betrothed his people to himself. He has kept the covenant vows for us. This marriage will not be broken or marred by sin. No, Jesus was crucified for our spiritual adultery. He has made us, his bride, ready. Jesus, the bridegroom, has clothed his bride, the church, with fine linen bright and pure, as Revelation 19 says. And on that day, we will celebrate. The wine will never run out. We will rejoice and worship. Our purification in the blood of the Lamb will be forever. We will be pure and holy for he is pure and holy. God has saved for us, on that day, the choicest of wines - eternal blessing. So, as we think about and consider Jesus' miracle at Cana, yes, let's celebrate the glory that turning water into wine displays. Let's honor Jesus as the creator God who can do such a thing. But let's not miss the eternal redemptive picture we are given here. There is one who alone can purify. Jesus has offered his blood, his life, to cleanse us from all unrighteousness and sin. And, may we by faith look forward to that day when we will rejoice and worship the Lamb forever. For on that day, we will feast and drink and celebrate, not at someone else's wedding, but our wedding celebration as the bride of Christ. Amen

Sermon Notes: John 1:19-34 (I Am Not, but He Is) Please turn to the Gospel of John, chapter 1. We'll be considering verses 19-34 this morning. As you are turning there, let me say that the Gospel of John is a beautiful literary work. Greek scholars marvel at its elegance. Its words are simple, yet it has a depth of poetic beauty in how its themes are interwoven. And because of that, the Gospel of John speaks to both those with little or no background in the Christian faith as well as to those who have studied the Scriptures their whole lives. ·      On one level, the apostle John makes clear who Jesus is, what he has done, and why it matters. ·      And on another level, we are given profound theological insights in a rich literary form. We'll continue to see that as we work our way through the book. As I read, you will hear about John in these verses. This is referring to John the Baptist, not the apostle. Reading of John 1:19-34. Back in first grade, I was asked to give the opening comments for our first-grade play. That involved standing in front of the big curtain. I had a script which welcomed everyone, thanked the teachers, and gave a brief highlight of what they were about to see. The drama teacher told me multiple times to talk slowly and to keep my hands out of my pockets. Which of course, I forgot to do. But nonetheless, I did my part, and then the curtain opened and the play began. Well, the opening 18 verses of John's Gospel are like the prologue to a play. They set the stage for what is to come. We're given the book's background and themes and we're introduced to the main character. As we've studied, verses 1-18 speak of Christ's divine nature as creator and as the light of the world. We were also introduced to John the Baptist who bore witness to the light. We were told of what it means to believe. And then last week, we learned that the Word of God has come to us in the flesh, in the person of Jesus. And when he came, God displayed his glory and grace. All of that was introductory. And as we now get to verse 19, the curtain opens. We don't just hear about Jesus, but we are given story after story of his life and ministry. To say it in another way, verses 1-18 are the theological treatise for the book… and verses 19 to the very end are the historical witness of the book. John makes the upfront argument that Jesus is God in the flesh and that salvation is found in him, and then from verse 19 on, he shows us that this is true by showing us Jesus' life and ministry. Speaking of a prologue, that was my prologue for this sermon. Two points this morning. You can see them in your bulletin. Point number 1: I am not …and point number 2: But he is I am not, but he is. John the Baptist very clearly states that he is not the Christ, but he, that is Jesus, is. 1. I Am Not So, #1. I am not. Let me begin with a little context. It mentions here that John the Baptist was in the town of Bethany… specifically it's just beyond the Jordan River. This is a different town than the other Bethany which was near Jerusalem just over the Mount of Olives. This one was much farther away. It would have taken a day or two to travel there by foot. And in Bethany, John had attracted a crowd and a following. And one of the things he was doing was baptizing. Well, despite the distance, that caused a stir in Jerusalem. News reached the ears of the Jewish leaders, and so, as we read, they sent a delegate. They had two main questions: who are you? (verse 19) and why are you baptizing (verse 25)? John does answer both questions, but he does it in a way that redirects them away from himself and to Christ. I learned something interesting this week. There are people today who believe that John the Baptist was the greatest prophet. They not only venerate John the Baptist, you know, worship him in a way… but they also reject Jesus as the Messiah. Now, it's a relatively small group, several thousand. They live on the border of modern day Iraq and Iran. Their recorded history goes back to the 300s, so they've been around a while. And it's very possible that their roots go all the way back to the 1st century when this book was written. You see, one reason why the apostle John writes these things, is to make absolutely clear (1) who John the Baptist was and wasn't and (2) who Jesus is. And he quotes John the Baptist's words. ·      He was not the prophet Elijah. Yes, he came in the spirit of Elijah – but he was not Elijah in the flesh. The Jews expected Elijah to return. ·      He also makes clear that he was not “the prophet.” That is likely a reference to Moses or even the greater Prophet who was to come after Moses, namely Christ. John denies that as well. But most importantly, in verse 20 – he states unequivocally that he is not the Christ.  He is not the promised Savior who was to come. In the Greek, it's the phrase “ἐγὼ οὐκ εἰμὶ ὁ χριστός.” I am not the Christ. By the way, “ἐγὼ εἰμὶ” in the Greek is the phrase “I am.” It's the same Greek words that Jesus used in his “I am” statements throughout the book. I am the light of the world. I am the vine. I am the great shepherd who lays down his life for his sheep, etc. And so when John the Baptist says he is not the Christ, it is in part setting up the rest of the narrative in the book. Who is Jesus? He is the Christ - the promised Savior. A few years ago, a friend of mine passed away. He had a sudden heart attack. He was a single guy in his 40s, so he wasn't that old. Vocationally he was a nurse, but interestingly he had also been to seminary. He was a great guy. He loved to participate in ministry and mission work including medical missions. He also had a great Scottish accent. He was originally from the Isle of Skye. As one of his pastors I went to the funeral home shortly after they received his body. I was there with a close friend of his. And I learned something about him that I didn't know before. On his chest, he had a tatoo. It was a Greek phrase. “ἐγὼ οὐκ εἰμὶ ὁ χριστός.” I am not the Christ. You see, he had been so moved by this verse in John 1, that he wanted to remind himself each day in the mirror who he was not and to whom he should direct people. He was not the Christ… he was not his own savior nor a savior for others, but he had a savior who has come. That is what John the Baptist was doing in these verses. He was redirecting people away from himself and to Jesus. I count 6 times in these verses where John redirects people away from himself and to Christ. No, I am not him but let me tell you and show you who he is. A couple of examples are found in his further answers to the delegation. By the way, they were very persistent, as we read. They asked him, ok, then if you are not Elijah nor the prophet nor Christ, then who are you and why are you baptizing? ·      First, John answers who he was. He quotes the prophet Isaiah. He says, “I am the voice of one crying out in the wilderness, ‘Make straight the way of the Lord,'” You see, Isaiah had prophesied that one would come. This prophet's very purpose was to prepare the way for the Messiah. John was saying that he is that one. His whole ministry was to direct people to Christ. It was to prepare the people for the arrival of the Lord. ·      And second, John answered why he was baptizing. His answer also revealed Christ. Verse 31 makes that clear. John said, “I came baptizing with water that he might be revealed to Israel.” Here's what that means. John's baptism was about calling people to repentance and warning them about judgment. The water symbolized the cleansing that they needed. It showed them that they needed God to truly cleanse them… and it reminded them that a Savior was promised who would bear their judgment. By the way, this is why we don't connect John's baptism with the baptism that Jesus established. ·      #1, John's baptism was a ceremonial cleansings from the old covenant. That's why the delegate was asking him why he was baptizing since he was not Elijah nor the prophet. ·      #2. John's baptism was not done in the name of Jesus nor the Trinity as Jesus directed. It was very different. ·      #3 …perhaps the clearest reason. In the book of Acts, chapter 19, some of John the Baptists disciples were living in Ephesus. They had only been baptized into John's baptism. The apostle Paul explained to them that John's baptism was only a baptism of repentance. So, John's disciples were then baptized into Jesus' baptism – that is, into the new covenant baptism in Jesus' name. To say it again, John's baptism was to prepare the people's hearts for the coming of Christ. They needed to see their need for a Savior and repent. Ok, to summarize main point #1: John's identity in these verses is directly related to Christ, both in the negative and the positive. The negative - I am not him. And the positive - the very purpose of my life is to point people to him. And point to him, he does. 2. But He Is Which bring us to #2. But He Is John is not the Christ, as he says, and implicit in that statement is that the one to whom John directs people is the Christ. Look at verse 29. This is a new subsection. We read that it's now the very next day. The previous day, John had been answering the delegation about who he was not and that his purpose was to direct people to the Lord. But now, Jesus has come to John. And with absolute clarity, John gives witness to who Jesus is. Look how John describes Jesus in 29. He says, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” Remember, the apostle John's primary audience was Jewish. When they read or heard this, they would have no questions about its meaning. Jesus is identified as the sacrificial lamb, whom God sent to atone for the sin of the world. Sacrificing lambs had been part of their annual Passover celebration. Back when the Israelites were enslaved in Egypt, the very last command that God gave them was to sacrifice a lamb. They were to put its blood over their doorpost. And if they did that, the angel of death would pass over them and spare their firstborn. And the angel did spare them. But the Egyptians were not spared. And so Pharaoh released the Israelites from their bondage. Every year they were to celebrate their deliverance from Egypt by sacrificing a lamb. It was both a remembrance of God's deliverance out of Egypt, and a foreshadowing of the deliverance from sin that God would accomplish for them through the Messiah. So here, John the Baptist testifies that Jesus is that sacrificial Lamb – He's the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world… Now, you may be asking, Why is a Lamb of God needed? Why a sacrifice? That is a critical question. As we work our way through the book, the answer will become clear. But in the meantime, let me try to briefly answer. You see, in the heart of each and every human is a rebellion against God and against our fellow man. We see and experience this every day. We see and experience deceit, and anger, and betrayal. Evil exists in many forms – oppression, rape, and murder. And truthfully, if we just search our own hearts, we know our own selfishness and bitterness and desires for that which is not ours. All of those things fall under Scripture's category of sin. Over the years, I've had conversations with friends and family about the truth of Christianity. They've brought up good questions. For example, they've asked, if God really exists or if Christianity is really true, then why is there so much evil in the world. It's a very important question. I've usually respond that Christianity's view of the world includes a very clear understanding of evil and sin. I believe Christianity is true, in part, because it answers the questions of evil… it answers other life questions as well like meaning and morality and existence… including the difficult things in life and our rebellious hearts. Sometimes that will be followed up with the question. But if God is as you say he is, then why doesn't he do anything about it? About the evil and sin… He has. He's sent a Lamb. And that Lamb is Christ, and as John the Baptist says in verse 34, he is the Son of God. He sacrificed himself to deliver us not from the bondage of Egypt, but from the bondage of sin and the corruption of the world. The reason that a sacrifice was necessary goes all the way back to the beginning of the Bible. The very first command that God gave was to not eat of that which was forbidden. And the consequence of doing so was death. We cannot escape the consequences of sin. Those consequences include death and separation from God and his judgment. But God sent his Lamb to be sacrificed on our behalf. As the author of Hebrews puts it, without the shedding of blood, there is no forgiveness of sin. And so, when John sees Jesus, he calls him the Lamb of God and as the Son of God. John furthermore testifies that even though he came before Jesus, yet Jesus ranked before him because Jesus was before him. John had said earlier that he was not even worthy to untie Jesus' sandals. That was one of the most lowly of jobs reserved for a servant. John was saying that he wasn't even worthy to do that. Jesus' worthiness so far exceeds our unworthiness. Yet he has come to us. Let me note one more thing about John's testimony. These verses say that Jesus will baptize with the Holy Spirit. John's baptism was a baptism of repentance, but Jesus' baptism is a baptism of the heart. By the way, this is talking about true baptism – not the outward sign like you saw earlier this morning, but baptism of the heart when we receive the Holy Spirit through faith in Christ. And the reason that we can receive the Spirit of God from Christ, is because God's Spirit remains on Christ. Did you notice that phrase used twice? The Holy Spirit descended and remained on him. It indicates God the Father anointing Jesus as King. In the Old Testament, God's Spirit would rest upon God's anointed kings. But God's Spirt would leave when that King departed from God's way, like he did for King Saul. That is why King David prayed in Psalm 51, Lord, take not your Holy Spirit from me. In other words, do not remove your hand of Spiritual blessing on my kingship. May your Spirit remain on me as king of your people despite my sin. By the way, this Holy Spirit anointing of kings is different from the Spirit's work in the hearts of believers… old and new. I just want to be clear about that. What John the Baptist was witnessing in verses 32-34 was God the Father anointing his Son through his Spirit. When it says that God's Spirit remained on Jesus, it was indicating Jesus' eternal kingship. Next week we'll see that title King given to him. And let me mention one more thing about chapter 1. Every single title for Jesus in the entire book of John is introduced in chapter 1. Jesus is the Word of God. He is Christ, the Lamb of God, the Son of God, the Messiah, He is Rabbi (which means Teacher), King of Israel, and the Son of Man. Some of those we'll come across next week. In other words, this whole chapter bears witness to who Jesus is. Besides John the Baptist and the apostle John, God the Father and the Holy Spirit also bear witness to him. He is the Christ - Lamb of God and Son of God who takes away the sin of the world. I am not, but he Is. Application and Conclusion In Southern California, there's a very interesting solar power facility. It's in the Mojave Desert. It's different because it does not use a single solar panel. No, instead, this facility uses mirrors that direct the rays of the sun to central boilers. The boilers are super-heated by the sunlight reflected off of the mirrors. That causes the water boil, which creates steam, which then turns turbines, and which then generates power. There are 347,000 mirrors there. And as the sun moves across the sky, they all reposition themselves to keep the light shining on one place. Friends, you and I are not the Christ. No, but we are to reflect him and direct others to him. Like John the Baptist, we are to believe the Lamb of God for others to see. We are to testify that he has come to take away the sin of the world. We are to exalt Christ, witnessing to him in all the ways highlighted here. We are in a sense to be like mirrors that direct others to Jesus. And when we all work in concert, God is glorified and Christ is exalted. When people see us individually, they see him. And when people see a church whose members reflect Christ, they will see him. I would argue that our number one responsibility is to show forth Christ. It's tempting to have our number one focus be on other things. I am not saying that we should not have careers or serve our communities in different ways or have opinions about important matters. But if any of that puts the spotlight on us rather than Christ or if it overshadows our witness to him, then we are not fulfilling our responsibility to reveal him. So, May we each recognize that we are not our own savior, nor the savior of others. We are not the Christ… but Jesus is.  May we, like John, direct others to him, the Lamb of God, who is the Son of God and Savior of the world. Amen

Aan tafel deze week: oud-minister van Landbouw CDA Cees Veerman, oud-minister voor Grote Stedenbeleid D66 Roger van Boxtel, directeur van Artsen zonder Grenzen Karel Hendriks, spoedarts Emily Vandamme, schrijfster Anna Enquist. Presentatie: Joost Vullings Wil je meer weten over de gasten in Buitenhof? Op onze website vind je meer informatie. Daar kan je deze aflevering ook terugkijken en je vindt er natuurlijk nog veel meer gesprekken: https://bit.ly/buitenhof-8feb26 Partijprominenten Cees Veerman (CDA) en Roger van Boxtel (D66) riepen als eersten op tot een minderheidskabinet in Buitenhof. Na wekenlange onderhandelingen zijn hun partijen er samen met de VVD uit en is minderheidskabinet-Jetten aanstaande. Hoe kijken de oud-ministers nu naar deze nieuwe constellatie? Over drie weken moet Artsen zonder Grenzen samen met 34 andere hulporganisaties Gaza en de Palestijnse gebieden verlaten. Israël heeft hun registratie niet verlengd omdat de organisaties geen persoonlijke details over hun medewerkers willen delen. Karel Hendriks, directeur van Artsen zonder Grenzen, schuift aan. Hij noemt het ‘een lastercampagne'. Hoe is de medische situatie in Gaza nu? Daarover ook spoedarts Emily Vandamme vanuit Gaza.  'Het einde van Erna Ankersmit', de nieuwe roman van schrijver Anna Enquist, begint met een ontmoeting bij de voordeur. Een 40-jarige thuiszorgmedewerker belt ongevraagd aan bij de 80-jarige schrijver Erna Ankersmit. Zij weigert hulp, maar toch ontstaat er een bijzondere vriendschap tussen de twee vrouwen. Hoe kijken jongere generaties naar ouderen? En wat kunnen ze van elkaar leren?   

John 1:4-13 – The Light of the World Please turn in your Bibles to John 1:4-13. We started this new series in the Gospel of John two weeks ago. Remember the 5 “J”s of John. John, the apostle who is the author; Jews who were John's primary audience; Jerusalem where much of the setting took place; Jesus, of course, the focus of the book; and Jehovah – the emphasis that Jesus is God in the flesh. Then last week, we jumped in to verses 1-3. John's Gospel account doesn't begin with Jesus' genealogy nor the angels announcing of his coming, nor his birth in a manger. No, rather, John begins much earlier. He goes back to creation itself - the beginning of time. He reveals that Jesus is the very Word of God. He has always been and continues to be God. He is One with the Father and the Spirit. He has always existed. He is Christ, through whom God created all things. He begins there because he wants his readers to know that Jesus is truly God and creator. That brings us to verses 4-13. Instead of focusing on Christ's identity, we now learn about his purpose. The Word, who is Christ, is the light of the world. You'll hear that in our text. As I read, you will also hear a reference to a John. This John is not the Apostle John, but rather John the Baptist. He was sent by God to testify to Christ. Let's now come to God's Word Reading of John 1:4-13 Prayer Light is essential for life. I think you would agree with me.Without light, we cannot see. It exposes reality and reveals our surroundings. It purifies and penetrates. Light carries information across galaxies. The light of the sun warms the earth and perks us up. It gives energy to plants and trees. Really countless organisms use light to sustain life. It's no wonder that light is used in Scripture to illustrate God and his goodness and purity. And it's no wonder that darkness, the absence of light, illustrates sin and evil. That's because we intuitively know what light is. We understand it's illuminating nature. When it is dark outside and we need to walk or drive somewhere, we know we need light to see where we are going. We understand that evil and unrighteousness often happens in the dark. Take the Psalms for example. God's Word is described as being a light to our path. Elsewhere, God is described as being light. In our call to worship, we read that “The Lord is our light and our salvation, whom shall we fear?” We're also told in the Psalms that blessed are those that walk in the light of the Lord. And in them, we're given the contrast between light and darkness. God's light dawns in the darkness for the upright. And that is just the Psalms. So, when we get to John 1 and we read in these verses about the Word being the light of men and the darkness not overcoming it… and John the Baptist witnessing to Christ's light, we can understand it. The light of truth and righteousness in contrast to the darkness of sin and evil. We are to see the light of Christ and walk in his light. By the way, we are still in the opening verses of John's Gospel. We call this John's prologue. He's setting the stage by revealing the various themes in his book. And one of those themes is light. It's actually one of the apostle John's favorite themes. He speaks of light not just in this book but also his three letter and in the book of Revelation. In your bulletin on page 4, you'll see an outlin. We'll consider 3 things about this light. #1. The Revealing and Overpowering Light of Christ (verses 4-5) #2. Witnessing to the Light of Christ (verses 6-8) And #3. Receiving and Rejecting the Light of Christ (verses 9-13) 1. The Revealing and Overpowering Light of Christ (verses 4-5) Again, number 1 - the revealing and overpowering light of Christ. As John continues to reveal who this Word of God is, he says this in verse 4: “in him was life.” Prepositions are important. The preposition used here is “in” and not “through.” “In him was life.” It's speaking of Christ's life. It's not talking about the flesh and blood life of Jesus' human nature nor is it talking about our life in him. Rather, it's talking about Jesus' divine nature. We know that from the next few words. His life was shining forth and was penetrating the darkness. So the life spoken of here is Christ's being and existence as God. Notice it's the same verb that we considered last week - “was”. It's imperfect active. Christ's life always was and continues to be. I like how one commentator described Christ's life:  "[it] refers to the fulness of God's essence, his glorious attributes: holiness, truth, …love, omnipotence, sovereignty. This full, blessed life is said to have been present in the Word and this from all eternity…" It is that life – the fulness of God in Christ – which is the light of men. And it makes sense. Christ's righteousness and holiness and truth and love is our light. It is the source of light for all humanity. I mentioned that this theme is all through this book. Let me highlight three instances. ·      In chapter 3, Jesus said, "the light has come into the world, but people loved darkness rather than the light because their works are evil." In those verses he goes on to describe what it means to walk in the light. ·      In chapter 8, the most famous one, Jesus said, "I am the light of the world, whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life" ·      And in chapter 12, Jesus said, "while you have the light, believe in the light, that you may become sons of light" In these different passages, Jesus is calling us to #1 see his light; #2 believe his light and #3 walk in his light. As we work our way through John, we'll have plenty of time to consider all the aspects of light applied to Jesus, but as an introduction, verses 4-5, give us two of them. 1. First, the light of Christ's life is there for all to see – verse 4. And it emanates from his life. SO, his eternal being and nature are being displayed to us through his light. His goodness and truth and righteousness are there for us to see. And when we see it, God is revealing to us, Christ's nature. We see him when we see his light. Through his light, God reveals Christ and shows us that we need his light. He is our light… which includes of course, the path we are to walk in his goodness and righteousness and truth. So, his light reveals his life and our need for his light. 2. Second, verse 5, his light reveals darkness. Did you notice in verse 5 that the verb is now present tense. The light, it says, "shines in the darkness." The light of Christ IS revealing unrighteous and evil. That's what light does - it reveals what is in the dark. By the way, this is another parallel to Genesis. This time John 1 recognizes that creation has been corrupted by evil and sin – that is the darkness mentioned. Elsewhere in John, we read about the "works of darkness." Darkness is that which is opposed to the light of Christ. It's anything contrary to his light – That would include wickedness and foolishness and unrighteousness. And notice that the darkness has not overcome the light. Other translations use other words there like the darkness has not apprehended the light… or comprehend it or extinguished it. Indeed, darkness cannot put out the light. I shared this once before, but back when I was in college, I spent several days on a mission trip to Sweden. We were ministering to kids from eastern Europe who had come to a camp. For one of our outings, we went to a very large cave in the area. It was safe. You know, it had railings and the such, and you could go way back into the cave. And so we did, we went as far as we could. And then we all decided to turn off our flashlights. It was dark. I mean like dark dark. You couldn't see your hand in front of your face. One of the other leaders had brought a lighter – you know a small butane lighter. And he lit it. That little flame lit up the cave. It was quite amazing how such a small light could illuminate the darkness. We could see one another and we could see the cave around us. And then we read some of the Scriptures about light. I think we read from John 1 – I don't know for sure, but it makes sense. “In him was life and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness and the darkness has not overcome it” Darkness cannot overcome light. Darkness is, in fact, the absence of light. So, when light is revealed, darkness will be exposed. And that is what Christ has done. His love and justice and holiness and truth has revealed the darkness – evil and sin. It not only reveals it, but it cannot be overcome by it. It's really the other way around. The light overcomes the darkness. Christ has triumphed over the darkness. And that triumph has come through the cross and in his resurrection. Evil and sin have been fully exposed. The light of Christ in his life is in the act of overcoming darkness and revealing the path of life and purifying our hearts and minds. And one day soon, evil and sin will be defeated forever when the light of Christ comes to full fruition… when Jesus' return in Glory for all to see. Well, there is a lot more to say about light, which we'll get to as we work through John. The summary of point 1 is that Christ's light reveals his nature, shows us our need, and exposes sin and evil. 2. Witnessing to the Light of Christ (verses 6-8) Number 2. Witnessing to the light of Christ. In verses 6 and following, the Apostle John begins to transition from the lofty truths about the Word of God to that Word who has come in human flesh. We're told of another John, as I mentioned, who was sent to bear witness to the light. Notice that the word "witness" is used three times. His role is to testify to the light. We call John the Baptist the last Old Testament prophet because he was sent as the final prophet before Christ. John's purpose in being sent was to point to Jesus as the Messiah – the Savior – who was promised to come. And I want you to notice the contrast in verses 6-8. The contrast is between Christ, the Word of God, and John the Baptist. ·      John was not God, but rather, as verse 6 says, he was a man. ·      Furthermore, John was not eternal nor do things find their existence in him. Rather, he was sent by God, as it says. ·      And as verse 8 puts it, He was not the light, but came to bear witness to the light." ·      Later in this chapter, John the Baptist himself will say, "I am not the Christ." It appears from these verses that some were confused about the difference between John the Baptist and Jesus. We're not told the specifics, but perhaps some saw John and Jesus as equals. Or perhaps there was competition between their respective followers. Maybe some said, "I am a disciple of John" or maybe even, "I was baptized by John." Or, I was baptized by one of Jesus' disciples. Isn't that human nature? John Calvin is my boy. Oh yeah, well, Charles Spurgeon is mine. Well, neither of them can come close to Augustine or the early church fathers.  It's what we do, isn't it. We don't know what dynamic was at play. But we do know what these verses make absolutely clear. John the Baptist was not the light. Rather, he was a witness to the light. In other words, he was verifying that Jesus was the true light. By the way, the theme of being a witness runs throughout the book. I did a search on the word "witness" and it is used 27 times in the Gospel of John. The first several are about John the Baptist bearing witness to Christ. But that is not the only witness. God the Father and God the Spirit bear witness to Jesus as the Son. Jesus' works and miracles bear witness that he is Christ. Jesus himself bears witness that he is God the Son. Jesus's disciples bear witness to him as God in the flesh. That will definitely be a theme we come across over and over In a couple of weeks, we'll come back to John the Baptist. If you scan down to verses 19 and following, you'll see that we're given specifics of how John witnessed to Christ. But the bigger point is that John the Baptist was not pointing to himself. Rather, he was witnessing to Christ as the light. John was like a mirror, you know. He reflected the light of God and directed people to the source of God's light. And that source was and in Christ – the light of world. 3. Receiving and Rejecting the Light of Christ (verses 9-13) Which brings us to #3. Receiving and rejecting the light of Christ. A couple of weeks ago, we considered the purpose statement of John's Gospel. That was in chapter 20 verse 31. We read that John wrote these things… do you remember why? so that we may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing, we may have life in his name. In chapter 1, when we get to verses 9-13, it's here that we get the first glimpse of John's purpose in writing. He wants people to see Jesus for who he is as the light. He wants people to believe. And in these verses, John sets up the major conflict that almost every single chapter confronts. Who will believe? In verse 10, John writes that the light is in the world, and then he reiterates that the world was made through him. But then he makes two important statements. #1. End of verse 10 - The world did not know him and #2. Verse 11 - his own people did not receive him. The Jewish people didn't receive Jesus, even though they had been given the covenants, the law, the prophecies, and the promises. All of those things were witnessing to the light, yet, when the light came, many of the Jewish people did not recognize him. Yet, he was the very one who created the world and whom they had been waiting for… for centuries. He had come, but they, as it says, received him not. This is why John is writing. He wants people to see the light and believe. He wants #1 the world to see the light.  AND #2 he wants to confront the Jewish people about rejecting the light. We see that theme throughout the book. John writes that many did receive Jesus, include many of the Jews. In fact, the word “many” is used many times. Let me highlight a few. ·      Chapter 2 – "many believed in his name who saw the signs he was doing" ·      Chapter 4 – "Many Samaritans believed" ·      Chapter 6 and Chapter 7 and Chapter 10 each include the phrase “many believed.” ·      Chapter 11 – listen to this one: "many of the Jews who… had seen what he did, believed" ·      Chapter 12 – a similar thing – "many on account of [Lazarus – who Jesus had raised]  were believing in Jesus." And also in 12, "many of the authorities believed in him" It's quite pervasive. Yes, many rejected him, and we are going to see that, but many would come to believe. He wanted his readers to know that… because he wanted his readers to likewise believe. I want to take a brief tangent and talk about application. You know, in the last 2-3 years we have studied Proverbs, 2 Corinthians, and Malachi. Think about the different kinds of life application in each – they are very different. ·      In Proverbs, it was about applying the wisdom of God in the rubber-meets-the road decisions of life. How do we follow God's path? ·      2 Corinthians included many things, but a big one was living with Gospel hope in affliction and pain and conflict. ·      Malachi, if you remember, was very different. It dug deep into our heart idols and our worship and our marriages… and it called us to repent. Isn't that quite a diversity of life application? But let me ask, what is the primary application of John? What does John's Gospel emphasize over and over for his readers… including us? The answer is, we're called to believe. Yes, we are going to see ways in which our lives do not reflect the light of Christ. But the main application of John is to believe. Believe in Christ. Believe in the Word of God. Believe in his promises. Believe in the Salvation that he offers. Believe in the Father and Spirit and Son as One God. It's to turn from our unbelief in whatever ways we haven't believed, and to believe. And that applies to all of us. As the father who had a child with an unclean spirit said – said to Jesus, "I believe, but help my unbelief." That captures our hearts. Briefly in closing, verses 12 and 13 reveal the blessing that those who do believe will receive. It says, "…to all who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, who were born not of blood nor of the flesh nor the will of man, but of God." New life in him. There's a lot in there in that last sentence. I almost shortened our sermon text, again. We don't have sufficient time today to cover it. However, it's yet another theme that will come up in the book - being born again and becoming children of God. It's a big emphasis in chapter 3. So, we'll get there soon. But the summary is that those who believe in Jesus as the light of the world, will be given new life. Will become God's children, born anew in him. So, may we believe in Jesus Christ, who is the light of the world. The darkness will not overcome his light. He has come and has offered his life so that we may live. May we believe in his name.

John 1:1-3 - Christ: The Logos of God Our sermon text this morning is John 1:1-3. If you read our weekly email, you may have seen that originally, I was planning to cover verses 1-5. I backed off a little because there is so much packed into the first 3 verses. That probably scares some of you because you're thinking, “is this going to happen every week? And if so, are we going to be in the Gospel of John for years?” Well, I can't say that this will be the last time that I narrow our focus to just a couple of verses. However, I will note that Jim Boice, the late pastor of Tenth Presbyterian church, preached 270 sermons in the book of John. Doing the math, that's over 5 years. I've planned about 70. Ok, turning our attention to these verses, you'll hear the word “word” three times. That is referring to Jesus Christ. We know that from verse 14 where John writes that “the Word became flesh and dwelt among us.” So, as I read, be sure to make the mental connection between the Word and Christ. Reading of John 1:1-3 Prayer “We hold these truths to be self-evident that all men are created equal…” Those legendary words bring us back to the very founding of our nation. Or how about this on: “I have a dream” Those words take us back to Martin Luther King and the struggle of segregation in the 1950s and 60s. Or perhaps you recognize this: “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.” Those are the opening words of Charles Dickens's book The Tale of Two Cities. It takes us back to the French Revolution and the stark contrast between London and Paris. Each of those opening phrases is packed with meaning and significance. They each capture our minds and our hearts. In some ways, they transport us through time and space and turn our attention to lofty ideas or significant events. Well, the opening words of John's Gospel do something very similar. For one, they are renowned. But also, their poetic language and expressive words raise the significance and consequence for the reader… and really for the whole world. Perhaps these words don't bring us back to a specific place, but they transport us to the very creation of the world. “In the beginning.” In the very beginning of all time and space “was the Word.” Does that not raise our senses and our curiosity and even our wonder at what is being communicated? As far as familiar opening words in the Bible, John 1 is only second to Genesis 1. And those are iconic words. Genesis 1 certainly ranks up there among the most famous in the world. Genesis 1:1 says “In the beginning, God created the heavens and earth.” Those 10 words reveal several things about God. ·      First, that he is one God. It doesn't say, “in the beginning, the gods (plural)...” No, rather it's a definitive statement. “In the beginning, God…” There is one God. ·      Second, Genesis 1:1 posits God as existing before the beginning of time itself – he is eternal. ·      And third those 10 opening words of Genesis speak about God's nature and work. He is the creator God of all things - things in heaven and things on earth. And I think you have probably already made the connection in your minds. The opening words of the Gospel of John are very similar to Genesis 1. They start with the same three words. Of course, one was penned in Hebrew – that would be Genesis – and the other was penned in Greek. But the connection is unmistakable. Really, the connection between the opening of Genesis and the opening of John's Gospel even further expand our understanding of God's nature and the ministry and work of Christ - God the Son. In Genesis 1, we're told of God's creative work and in John 1, God reveals who accomplished that work and how. So, let's jump into these opening three verses of John. As far as an outline, I want to highlight 3 things about Christ: 1. Christ's Identity as the Eternal Logos 2. Christ's Deity as One with the True God 3. Christ's Work as the Agent of Creation Let me say those again if you are taking notes. We didn't have room in the bulletin this week for an outline. 1. Christ's Identity as the Eternal Logos – I'll explain the word Logos in a minute. 2. Christ's Deity as One with the True God – Deity meaning his nature as God. And 3. His Work as the Agent of Creation. It is through the agency of Christ that God created all things. So, let's work through those. 1. Christ's Identity as the Eternal Logos And the first thing to understand is the word “word.” In the original Greek, it's the word Logos. Maybe you've heard that word before. Logos is one of two words that are often translated “word.” The other is the more common word, rhema in Greek, merely referring to words on a page or spoken words. But the word logos, on the other hand, is packed with meaning. Yes, it's basic meaning is a statement or speech – you know, a “word” spoken. But the word logos also includes the idea of a charge like I'm charging you with something… and the idea of cause like speech that causes something to happen. It's a word spoken that is effective. It accomplished something. Now, the Greek culture of the time used the word Logos as well. But their use was more of an abstract idea. Their logos was the rational order of the cosmos. It was used in an impersonal way. There was no being behind a Greek use of the word logos. Nonetheless it was still a powerful word. By the way, the Greek word logos is directly related to our English word “logic”… you know, a reasoned explanation. And sometimes you'll hear pastors try to apply that philosophical and rational meaning to the Logos of John 1. But remember from last week that John is writing to a Jewish context. He was Jewish himself. And the word logos in the Jewish community had been used for centuries. The Greek translation of the Old Testament uses the word logos hundreds of times. Our call to worship this morning was from Psalm 33. It says in verse 6 “By the word of the Lord the heavens were made.” Logos to the Jewish community was understood to be personal and declarative and often associated with God himself. That is very different from the Greco-Roman understanding. What I am arguing is that John is not borrowing the word Logos from the Greek culture. Rather, he is contrasting that impersonal understanding with the divine and personal understanding of Logos. He's revealing that the Logos of God is far superior to the Greek's rational concept of logos. We see that right there in verse 1. It says, “In the beginning was the Word.” From eternity past, the Logos existed – Christ existed. The verb is very important here. It's the English word “was” …you know, a form of “to be..” In the beginning “was” the word. And it's verb tense is the imperfect active. It means not only did Christ already exist in the beginning, but also that his existence continues. English does not have a good equivalent. The word “was” in English is past tense. But the Greek has a much broader meaning. “already was and continues to be” What we learn in these verses is that the Logos of God is eternal. He existed before the beginning of time and space and he continues to exist. Furthermore, he is not some impersonal rational concept about the ordering of the universe, but rather his eternal existence is personal. He has being, as the verb reveals. He is none other the person of Christ, again as verse 14 tells us. The eternal Logos of God. Now, in a few minutes we are going to further see how the word logos relates to Christ's work. That will be point 3, But let's move on to point 2 - the rest of verse 1 and verse 2. 2. Christ's Deity as One with the True God So, #2. Christ's Deity as One with the True God. – I'm saying it that way for a reason. He is God and he is One with God. The Logos mentioned here is not some force that God is harnessing. No, this Logos, Christ, is God himself. Look at the end of verse 1. It says, “the word was God.” It's the same imperfect active tense. The Logos already was and continues to be God. Now, that seems super clear, doesn't it? “The Logos was God.” Some of you know this, but about twice a week, you will see two of Jehovah Witnesses just outside of our church office. They are just standing there on the corner of Main Street. And if you ask them about John 1:1, they will say that it should be translated differently. They translate it as “the word was a god.” They say that Christ was like a god but not God himself. They argue that because there is no definite article before the word “God” (Theos), therefore Jesus is not being described here as God himself. However, they are wrong for two reasons. ·      Number 1, Greek scholarship is fairly unified on the translation. For those of you who are grammarians (you like grammar), the phrase is a predicate nominative. Greek predicate nominatives establish a shared essence between the subject and the predicate – especially when the predicate is placed before the verb as is here. In fact, predicate nominatives in the Greek usually do not use a definite article for the predicate. So, Christ is not being described here as a god, he is being identified as the God - fully and completely God. ·      And number 2. This identification of Jesus Christ being God himself is all throughout the Gospel of John. We considered that last week. Several times Jesus identified himself as one with God the Father. He said as much: “I and the Father are One.” We also considered all the I AM statements where Jesus identified himself as Yahweh. Furthermore, look at the phrase in the middle of verse 1 and in verse 2. They are very similar. It says, “And the Logos was with God… He was in the beginning with God.” This is one of the beautiful truths about the God of the Bible. God is personal and relational. Within the Godhead, as we say, there is a relationship between the three persons of God. The Father, the Son (who is the Logos), and the Spirit. This is something that the Gospel of John makes clear throughout. I also mentioned that last week. By the way, one of the things I plan to do as we work through this book, is to connect each section and paragraph to the broader themes. And this is one of them. Jesus teaches not only about his equality with God the Father but also his role as God the Son and the role of God the Spirit whom he and the Father will send. As I put it last week, this book is full of theology – the doctrine of God – Theos. And it begins with these profound words. You see, these opening words, especially verse 2 are not teaching that there are multiple gods. No. These verses are quite clear about that. Rather when they say that the Logos was with God from the beginning, they are revealing that God himself has relationships within himself. It's an amazing thing to consider. As humans created in God's image, we have been given the capacity and desire for relationships. That relational characteristic that every human being shares… comes from the Trinity. The Father, Son, and Spirit. One with each other. All eternal and all God. So, the Logos, who is Christ, is one with and in relationship with the eternal God. He is God. 3. Christ's Work as the Agent of Creation That being us to point 3: Christ's work as the agent of creation. This third point is very much related to the word Logos. Christ is creator. He is the one through whom the universe has come into existence. God's act of speaking his Word (his Logos) comes through the work of Christ. Going back to Genesis 1, the phrase that is used over and over is “God said.” “God said ‘let there be light' and there was light.” Every act of creation happens through God's word. God spoke, and it was so. Back to John 1. In verse 3 it says, “All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made” All things in the entire universe were made through Christ. Every galaxy, every star, every planet; every cell and molecule and atom and proton and neutron and quark. All things came into being through him. That may be something new to you. We don't often think of or speak of Christ's role as God's agent of creation. That's because we most often think and speak of his role as redeemer. And there is plenty of that in the Gospel of John. But just like in verse 3, several Scriptures passages speak of Christ's role as creator. Besides John 1, we read from both Colossians 1 and Hebrews 1 this morning. In Colossians, “…by [Christ] all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together.” In Hebrews 1. “In these last days [God] has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world. He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power.” Or consider 1 Corinthians 8:6, which says, “there is… one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all things and through whom we exist.” God spoke through his Word, through his Logos, who is Christ, to bring everything into existence. I remember when I learned this for the first time. I was amazed at the glory of God in his work of creation through Christ. Our Savior is not only our Lord, but he is our creator. One thing is very very clear in these verses. Christ was not created. No, he existed before creation and he is the one through whom God created all things. Conclusion He is (1) the eternal Word of God, (2) As God, he is one with the true God, and (3) the creator of all things… visible and invisible. That is what we learn in these verses. Now, I want you to imagine something. Imagine that you grew up in a Jewish community in the western part of Asia Minor (maybe Ephesus or Smyrna).  Imagine it's the later half of the first century. You studied the Torah in school and your knew the history of Israel. Your family was a devout Jewish family. Besides your Jewish education, you had always been intrigued by influences from the neighboring culture to the west - Greece. People from Athens often travelled through your city. They not only brought their wares, but they also brought their philosophy and gods. They loved to talk about the latest philosophical theories and ideas. They used the word logos often. When they did, they spoke of the ordering principle of the universe, you know, the force that structures all of nature, as they described it. So, you have that in the back of your mind, but you also know what you have been taught from the Hebrew Scriptures. God speaks into existence all of creation, like it says in Genesis and Isaiah and the Psalms. Now, imagine that you are reading John's Gospel account for the first time. One of your neighbors had a parchment and he let you borrow it to read. And so you read these opening words for the first time. “In the beginning was the Logos and the Logos was with God… and the Logos was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not anything made that was made.” And you are enraptured. These ideas are coming alive. You had been intrigued by the travelling philosophers of Athens, but this concept of a personal Logos who has eternally existed from all time and who is God is gripping your mind. And then you get down to verse 14… and you read “and the Logos became flesh and dwelt among us.” As you had been reading the first couple of paragraphs, you had been asking, “who is this Logos?” And then you find out from these words that the Logos has dwelt among us. He has lived among us. You had heard of a man named Jesus. But up until this point you had never understood why he was so significant or controversial. But now you knew. And your heart was leaping because not only are you reading here that he is and has always been the eternal Logos… but all of a sudden your mind is being flooded with all the things you had learned in your Jewish education. You begin recalling all of the promises and prophecies of Christ - the Messiah of God. Light bulbs are going off all over the place in your mind and heart. This personal, eternal Logos being written about is the Christ, the eternal promised one, and he has come to us in the person of Jesus. It's a life-transforming realization. You can't put the parchment down because every word and sentence and paragraph is speaking to your mind and heart. The Word of God, Christ, is becoming real to you in a way that you had never experienced before. He is changing your heart. I know that is just a thought experiment, but as we work our way through John, I want us to enter in to the lives of the first readers and hearers and those whom Jesus encountered. I want us to enter in to their situation. Through that lens, I believe these words will become living words for us. Maybe this is all new for you. And as you hear it, maybe your mind and heart are being drawn in with intrigue and wonder as you come to the understanding of who Christ is…. in his eternal nature as God and as the one through whom all things have been created. If that is you, as we go through this book, may you hear and grasp not only who Christ is, but what he has done for you. But maybe you've been a Christian for years… and these words are very familiar to you as they are to me. If that's you, may your heart and mind be re-ignited by the depth and clarity and wonder of God in the person and work of Christ, who became flesh and dwelt among us. As we go through this Gospel, may we all see him, our creator and Savior and Lord, the eternal Logos of God.

Veerman heeft de boot naar Istanbul gemist, Sem Steijn is gebombardeerd tot ongeveer vierde aanvoerder en Fred Farioli lijkt het tij heel langzaam te keren bij Ajax. Verder is Faber in een ding ter wereld succesvoller dan Thomas Müller, vliegen de Eagles te dicht bij de streep en hebben we te maken met een suikeroomderby. Welkom bij een nieuwe aflevering van De Derde Helft. ✉️ Op vrijdag kunnen jullie met ons via Substack vooruitblikken op het aankomende Eredivisie-weekend. Gijs, Tim, Snijboon, Pepijn en RogierPablo zullen hier allemaal één ding delen waar ze naar uitkijken in de aankomende speelronde. https://substack.com/@dederdehelft

Prijzenpakker Bosz breekt nieuw record, John van den Brom vond Feyenoord - FC Twente geen topwedstrijd en 90 minuten Tetris in Nijmegen levert geen winnaar op. Verder lijkt Heracles veel geld te verdienen aan Jizz, gooit Sierhuis weer eens een dubbel en draagt NAC de komende weken de gloeiend hete rode lantaarn. Op naar een nieuwe aflevering van De Derde Helft, deze week met YUKI KEMPEES!✉️ Op vrijdag kunnen jullie met ons via Substack vooruitblikken op het aankomende Eredivisie-weekend. Gijs, Tim, Snijboon, Pepijn en RogierPablo zullen hier allemaal één ding delen waar ze naar uitkijken in de aankomende speelronde. https://substack.com/@dederdehelft

Savage Race reportedly had their best turn out to a race in the past 5 years!  The elite side had a pretty great turn out with an increased payout at the event and when I saw that Tyler Veerman won, I knew that I wanted to have him on the show again! We first met and interviewed him after he won the 15K at OCRWC, had dinner with him in Palmerton after the 3K, and have crossed paths with him at WTM a few times and he has always seemed like a nice guy. We talk about him living in Colorado, how his Savage race win went, what he thinks went wrong at the recent Spartan Super World Championships where he DNFed, progress made across consecutive Pike's Peak races, and much more! Be sure to follow him on Instagram and check out his website! Start – 3:18 – Intro 3:18 – 8:28 – Quick News 8:28 – 9:06 – Content Preface 9:06 – 54:40 - Tyler Veerman Interview 54:40 – End – Outro Next weekend we will hopefully be hearing about a very DEEP event! ____ News Stories: Ryan Brizzolara Married Spartan Doubles Spartan Shirts Back at Finish Joe DeSena AI Responses Joe Response Stats and Answers Biggest Savage in 5 Years Betsy Knapp Fall Spartan Virginia Sprint Podiums Spartan Sesimbra Beast Podiums Black Cat Secret Link Japanese Ad Secret Link Bad Powers Secret Link Facial Recognition Secret Link High Pot Secret Link ____ Related Episodes: 300. OCR World Championships 15K with Elites and Vendors! (Oh and Episode 300 with Live Intro/Outro and Shoutout Compilation!) 307. World's Toughest Mudder with Tyler Veerman and New Champion DJ Fox! 412. World's Toughest Mudder 2024! (Part 3: Brunch Interviews and Audio) ____ The OCR Report Patreon Supporters: Jason Dupree, Kim DeVoss, Samantha Thompson, Matt Puntin, Brad Kiehl, Charlotte Engelman, Erin Grindstaff, Hank Stefano, Arlene Stefano, Laura Ritter, Steven Ritter, Sofia Harnedy, Kenny West, Cheryl Miller, Jessica Johnson, Scott "The Fayne" Knowles, Nick Ryker, Christopher Hoover, Kevin Gregory Jr., Evan Eirich, Ashley Reis, Brent George, Justin Manning, Wendell Lagosh, Logan Nagle, Angela Bowers, Asa Coddington, Thomas Petersen, Seth Rinderknecht, Bonnie Wilson, Steve Bacon from The New England OCR Expo, Robert Landman, Shell Luccketta and Jules Estes. Sponsored Athletes: Javier Escobar, Kelly Sullivan, Ryan Brizzolara, Joshua Reid, and Kevin Gregory! Support us on Patreon for exclusive content and access to our Facebook group Check out our Threadless Shop Use coupon code "adventure" for 15% off MudGear products Use coupon code "ocrreport20" for 20% off Caterpy products Use coupon code "OCRREPORT20" for 20% off Spartan, Tough Mudder, and DEKA events  Like us on Facebook: Obstacle Running Adventures Follow our podcast on Instagram: @ObstacleRunningAdventures Write us an email: obstaclerunningadventures@gmail.com Subscribe on Youtube: Obstacle Running Adventures Intro music - "Streaker" by: Straight Up Outro music - "Iron Paw" by: Dubbest