Author: Art Davison

REMEMBER THE WORD…

JOHN 15:20-27

The Lord admonishes the disciples that they need to keep in mind some things that the Lord had said about being associated with Him.

Several things were mentioned. He referred to persecution as a result of their faith in Christ and at the end of His discussion He mentions the “Comforter” who the Father would sent to help the believer cope with these difficulties and others.

I. THE SERVANT IS NO GREATER THAN HIS LORD

A. We as His servants are not greater than our master, John 13:16, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord; neither he that is sent greater than he that sent him.”

B. They will persecute you, Matthew 10:24, “The disciple is not above his master, nor the servant above his lord.”

C. If they keep my sayings, they will keep yours also, Isaiah 53:1-2, “Who hath believed our report? and to whom is the arm of the LORD revealed? 2 For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground: he hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him.”

1. Some people followed and obeyed Jesus’ teaching, but some did not, Ezekiel 3:7,“But the house of Israel will not hearken unto thee; for they will not hearken unto me: for all the house of Israel are impudent and hardhearted.”

2. Those that believed Jesus also responded to the apostles’ message, 1 Corinthians 3:5, Who then is Paul, and who is Apollos, but ministers by whom ye believed, even as the Lord gave to every man?”

II. THEY DO THESE THINGS UNTO YOU FOR MY NAME’S SAKE

A. The root cause of the world’s hatred against the disciples is their identification with Jesus, Matthew 10:22, “And ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake: but he that endureth to the end shall be saved.”

B. They hate Jesus because they are ignorant of God, the One who sent Him, v. 23; John 8:40-42, “But now ye seek to kill me, a man that hath told you the truth, which I have heard of God: this did not Abraham. 41 Ye do the deeds of your father. Then said they to him, We be not born of fornication; we have one Father, even God. 42 Jesus said unto them, If God were your Father, ye would love me: for I proceeded forth and came from God; neither came I of myself, but he sent me.”

C. They hated the Lord Jesus because He told them of their sin, v. 22.

1. They knew that there had been a prophet among them, Ezekiel 2:5, “And they, whether they will hear, or whether they will forbear, (for they are a rebellious house,) yet shall know that there hath been a prophet among them.”

2. Now they have no cloak for their sin, Romans 2:1, “Therefore thou art inexcusable, O man, whosoever thou art that judgest: for wherein thou judgest another, thou condemnest thyself; for thou that judgest doest the same things.”

D. They hated both Jesus and His Father, vs. 23-25; 1John 2:23, “Whosoever denieth the Son, the same hath not the Father: (but) he that acknowledgeth the Son hath the Father also.”

1. They hated both the Son and the Father because they did not know them, 2 John 9, “Whosoever transgresseth, and abideth not in the doctrine of Christ, hath not God. He that abideth in the doctrine of Christ, he hath both the Father and the Son,”

2. This fulfilled the Scriptures, v. 25; Psalm 35:19, “Let not them that are mine enemies wrongfully rejoice over me: neither let them wink with the eye that hate me without a cause.”

III. THE COMFORTER COMES FROM THE FATHER

A. He is the Spirit of Truth, v. 26; John 14:16-17, “And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever; 17 Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.”

1. He will guide you into all truth, John 16:13, “Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.”

2. How we know the Spirit of Truth, 1 John 4:6, “We are of God: he that knoweth God heareth us; he that is not of God heareth not us. Hereby know we the spirit of truth, and the spirit of error.”

B. He shall testify of Me, John 16:14-15, “He shall glorify me: for he shall receive of mine, and shall shew it unto you. 15 All things that the Father hath are mine: therefore said I, that he shall take of mine, and shall shew it unto you.”

C. You also will testify of Me, v. 27; John 21:24, “This is the disciple which testifieth of these things, and wrote these things: and we know that his testimony is true.”

PERSECUTION OF THE SAINTS

JOHN 16:1-4

Introduction:

Here the Lord gives the disciples some “wounding words in the notice he gives them of the troubles that were before them.” Here are also healing words in the comforts he gives to them for their support under the forth coming troubles, They were going to be persecuted, perhaps even killed for the cause of Christ.

I. WHY WAS THE LORD TELLING THE DISCIPLES ABOUT THE WORLD’S HATRED AND PERSECUTION?

A. To be forewarned is to be ready for the offence, v. 1; Matthew 11:6, “And blessed is he, whosoever shall not be offended in me.”

1. They would be put out of the synagogue, v. 2; John 9:22, “These words spake his parents, because they feared the Jews: for the Jews had agreed already, that if any man did confess that he was Christ, he should be put out of the synagogue.”

2. They would be killed for the Lord’s sake, Matthew 24:9, “Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye shall be hated of all nations for my name’s sake.”

B. The Lord’s warning was designed to take off the terror of persecution, v. 4; Luke 21:12, “But before all these, they shall lay their hands on you, and persecute you, delivering you up to the synagogues, and into prisons, being brought before kings and rulers for my name’s sake.”

1. At first, they scourged them in their synagogues as a scorner of the law, Matthew 10:17, “But beware of men: for they will deliver you up to the councils, and they will scourge you in their synagogues;”

2. Then they would be cast out as Samaritans, as heathen men and publicans,

3. Then they would kill some the Believers:

a. Stephen, Acts 7:59, “And they stoned Stephen, calling upon God, and saying, Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.”

b. James, Acts 12:2, “And he killed James the brother of John with the sword.”

c. And others, Acts 9:1-4, “And Saul, yet breathing out threatenings and slaughter against the disciples of the Lord, went unto the high priest, 2 And desired of him letters to Damascus to the synagogues, that if he found any of this way, whether they were men or women, he might bring them bound unto Jerusalem. 3 And as he journeyed, he came near Damascus: and suddenly there shined round about him a light from heaven: 4 And he fell to the earth, and heard a voice saying unto him, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me?”

C. They think they are offering a service to God, Romans 10:2, “For I bear them record that they have a zeal of God, but not according to knowledge.”

II. THE WORLD WILL PERSECUTE THE LORD’S FOLLOWERS BECAUSE THEY DO NOT KNOW JESUS

A. Many have knowledge of God, but not saving knowledge, Psalm 95:8-10, “Harden not your heart, as in the provocation, and as in the day of temptation in the wilderness: 9 When your fathers tempted me, proved me, and saw my work. 10 Forty years long was I grieved with this generation, and said, It is a people that do err in their heart, and they have not known my ways:”

1. The Jews had murmured against Moses at Rephidim, Exodus 17:2, “Wherefore the people did chide with Moses, and said, Give us water that we may drink. And Moses said unto them, Why chide ye with me? wherefore do ye tempt the LORD?”

2. The incident at Meribah (strife) where Moses was to speak to the rock, Psalm 106:32, “They angered him also at the waters of strife, so that it went ill with Moses for their sakes:”

B. The knowledge that the disciples would be persecuted for their trust in the Lord strengthened them, Acts 5:41, “And they departed from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for his name.”

1. The apostles were honored to be suffering disgrace for the name of Christ, 1 Peter 4:14, “If ye be reproached for the name of Christ, happy are ye ; for the spirit of glory and of God resteth upon you: on their part he is evil spoken of, but on your part he is glorified.”

2. Peter encouraged Christians to “rejoice” when they would “participate” in sufferings on behalf of Christ, 1 Peter 4:13, “But rejoice, inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ’s sufferings; that, when his glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy.”

c. Sharing in the sufferings of Christ results in joy with Christ, 1 Peter 1:6, “Wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if need be, ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations:”

d. Sharing in the sufferings of Christ results in fellowship with Him, Philippians 3:10, “That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death;”

e. Sharing in the sufferings of Christ results in being glorified with Him, Romans 8:17, “And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together.”

f. Sharing in the sufferings of Christ results in reigning with Him, 2 Timothy 2:12, “If we suffer, we shall also reign with him : if we deny him , he also will deny us:”

CONCLUSION:

The Lord warned His disciple in order to prepare them for the future. That preparation gave that first church the determination to do God’s will. They rejoiced that they were worthy to suffer for Him.

While persecution is relatively light here in America, it isn’t in our countries. If God chooses to have us suffer, will we be as determined to do God’s will as the early disciples were?

OTHER SHEEP

JOHN 10:14-16

These are also His sheep. He has claimed them, but they are from a different place and a different people than the Hebrews. They are the Gentiles of all nations. They may be from Africa, or Asia, or Europe, or South America, but they are His. People from all nations will know the true God and His Son Jesus Christ.

I. ALL NATIONS SHALL CALL HIM BLESSED

Psalm 72:17, “His name shall endure for ever: his name shall be continued as long as the sun: and men shall be blessed in him: all nations shall call him blessed.”

A. All nations shall come and worship Him, Psalm 86:9, “All nations whom thou hast made shall come and worship before thee, O Lord; and shall glorify thy name.”

1. Men shall be blessed in Him, Psalm 24:5, “He shall receive the blessing from the LORD, and righteousness from the God of his salvation.”

2. Men shall rejoice in the Lord, Habakkuk 3:17-18, “Although the fig tree shall not blossom, neither shall fruit be in the vines; the labour of the olive shall fail, and the fields shall yield no meat; the flock shall be cut off from the fold, and there shall be no herd in the stalls: 18 Yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will joy in the God of my salvation.”

B. The ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God, Psalm 98:2, “The LORD hath made known his salvation: his righteousness hath he openly shewed in the sight of the heathen. 3 He hath remembered his mercy and his truth toward the house of Israel: all the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God.”

1. To the Jew first and also to the Greek, Romans 1:16, “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.”

2. A light to the Gentiles, Isaiah 49:6, “And he said, It is a light thing that thou shouldest be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to restore the preserved of Israel: I will also give thee for a light to the Gentiles, that thou mayest be my salvation unto the end of the earth.”

II. THE GENTILES SHALL SEEK THE “ROOT OF JESSE”

Isaiah 11:10, “And in that day there shall be a root of Jesse, which shall stand for an ensign of the people; to it shall the Gentiles seek: and his rest shall be glorious.”

A. A Branch out of the root of Jesse, Isaiah 11:1, “And there shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a Branch shall grow out of his roots:”

1. Jesus is that Branch, Isaiah 53:2, “For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground: he hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him.”

2. He shall build the Temple of the Lord, Zechariah 6:12, “And speak unto him, saying, Thus speaketh the LORD of hosts, saying, Behold the man whose name is The BRANCH; and he shall grow up out of his place, and he shall build the temple of the LORD:”

a. He is the Son of God, Mark 15:39, “And when the centurion, which stood over against him, saw that he so cried out, and gave up the ghost, he said, Truly this man was the Son of God.”

b. He will build His Church, Matthew 16:18, “And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.

B. The Gentiles shall give glory to the Lord, Isaiah 42:10-12, “Sing unto the LORD a new song, and his praise from the end of the earth, ye that go down to the sea, and all that is therein; the isles, and the inhabitants thereof. 11 Let the wilderness and the cities thereof lift up their voice, the villages that Kedar doth inhabit: let the inhabitants of the rock sing, let them shout from the top of the mountains. 12 Let them give glory unto the LORD, and declare his praise in the islands.”

1. They shall sing a new song, Psalm 33:3-4, “Sing unto him a new song; play skilfully with a loud noise. 4 For the word of the LORD is right; and all his works are done in truth.”

2. The Gentiles shall turn to the Lord, Psalm 22:27, “All the ends of the world shall remember and turn unto the LORD: and all the kindreds of the nations shall worship before thee.”

a. They have seen the salvation of the Lord, Psalm 98:3-4, “He hath remembered his mercy and his truth toward the house of Israel: all the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God. 4 Make a joyful noise unto the LORD, all the earth: make a loud noise, and rejoice, and sing praise.”

b. They shall give God the glory, Psalm 96:7-8, “Give unto the LORD, O ye kindreds of the people, give unto the LORD glory and strength. 8 Give unto the LORD the glory due unto his name: bring an offering, and come into his courts.”

JESUS SAID, NO MAN COMETH UNTO THE FATHER BUT BY ME -Message 1

JOHN 14:6

This is the first of two messages about Jesus’ claim to be the only way to God the Father.

Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.” Is that the truth? The Bible says it is. There have been hundreds of claims about the way of salvation and to Heaven by hundreds of different religions. The Scriptures have the truth about this and about Jesus Christ. He is the “only begotten Son of God.” What does the Bible say?

I. JESUS IS THE ONLY ONE FROM THE FATHER

John 3:13, “And no man hath ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven.”

A. What is His Name? Proverbs 30:4, “Who hath ascended up into heaven, or descended? who hath gathered the wind in his fists? who hath bound the waters in a garment? who hath established all the ends of the earth? what is his name, and what is his son’s name, if thou canst tell?”

B. His Name is Jesus, Matthew 1:21, “And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins.”

C. He is the One who has made known the Father, John 1:18, “No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him.”

1. It is God’s will that all men honor the Son, John 5:23, “That all men should honour the Son, even as they honour the Father. He that honoureth not the Son honoureth not the Father which hath sent him.”

2. It is God’s will that we believe on Him that God has sent, John 5:24, “Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.”

3. It is God’s will that Jesus relieve you of your burden of sin, Matthew 11:28, “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.”

II. JESUS IS THE ONE WHO SUFFERED AND DIED FOR OUR SINS,

1 Peter 3:18, “For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit:”

A. He bore our grief, Isaiah 53:4, “Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.

B. He was wounded for our transgressions, Isaiah 53:5, “But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.”

1. The One who became Sin for us, 2 Corinthians 5:21, “For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.”

2. The One who took away our sin, John 1:29, “The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.”

III. THE ONE WHO LOVES US

Revelation 1:5, “And from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, and the first begotten of the dead, and the prince of the kings of the earth. Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood.”

A. His love is a Great Love, Ephesians 2:4-5, “But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, 5Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;)”

B. He loves us with an everlasting love, Jeremiah 31:3, “The LORD hath appeared of old unto me, saying, Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love: therefore with lovingkindness have I drawn thee.”

C. God demonstrated His love for us, 1 John 4:10, “Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.” [act of being made favorable]

1. He love us first, 1 John 4:19, “We love him, because he first loved us.”

2. In love He calls us His “sons,” 1 John 3:1, “Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not.”

3. He gave us power to become His sons, John 1:12, “But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:”

CONCLUSION:

The conclusion to this matter is that Jesus Christ is the Way of Salvation and to Heaven. To deny that is to declare that you do not know God the Father, 1 John 2:23, “Whosoever denieth the Son, the same hath not the Father: (but) he that acknowledgeth the Son hath the Father also.” And that your name is not written in Heaven, Revelation 20:15, “And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.”

JESUS SAID, NO MAN COMETH UNTO THE FATHER BUT BY ME  MESSAGE 2

JOHN 14:1-6

Introduction:

This is the second of two messages about Jesus’ claim to be the only way to the Father.

I. THE ONE WHO HAS BEEN NAMED THE SAVIOUR

Acts 4:12, “Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.”

A. The One who was Chosen of God, 1 Peter 2:4, “To whom coming, as unto a living stone, disallowed indeed of men, but chosen of God, and precious.”

B. The witness of the Prophets, Acts 10:42-43, “And he commanded us to preach unto the people, and to testify that it is he which was ordained of God to be the Judge of quick and dead. 43To him give all the prophets witness, that through his name whosoever believeth in him shall receive remission of sins.”

1. Paul preached what Moses preached, Acts 26:22-23, “Having therefore obtained help of God, I continue unto this day, witnessing both to small and great, saying none other things than those which the prophets and Moses did say should come: 23That Christ should suffer, and that he should be the first that should rise from the dead, and should shew light unto the people, and to the Gentiles.”

2. Isaiah preached the same message, Isaiah 53:11, “He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities.”

3. Jesus declare the message of the prophets, Luke 24:25-27, “Then he said unto them, O fools, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken: 26Ought not Christ to have suffered these things, and to enter into his glory? 27And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, he expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself.”

C. The Record of God about Salvation, 1 John 5:11-12, “And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. 12He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life.”

1. The record of John the Baptist, John 1:19, 32-34, “And this is the record of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, Who art thou? 20And he confessed, and denied not; but confessed, I am not the Christ. 32And John bare record, saying, I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and it abode upon him. 33And I knew him not: but he that sent me to baptize with water, the same said unto me, Upon whom thou shalt see the Spirit descending, and remaining on him, the same is he which baptizeth with the Holy Ghost. 34And I saw, and bare record that this is the Son of God.”

2. The record of the Scriptures themselves, John 19:35-37, “And he that saw it bare record, and his record is true: and he knoweth that he saith true, that ye might believe. 36For these things were done, that the scripture should be fulfilled, A bone of him shall not be broken. 37And again another scripture saith, They shall look on him whom they pierced.”

II. THE ONE WHO IS THE ENTRANCE TO HEAVEN

John 10:7, 9, “Then said Jesus unto them again, Verily, verily, I say unto you, I am the door of the sheep. 9I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.”

A. Entering for salvation, John 10:9, “I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.”

B. Access to the Father, Ephesians 2:18, “For through him we both have access by one Spirit unto the Father.”

1. Boldness to Enter into God’s presence, Hebrews 10:19, “Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus,”

2. Through Him, Ephesians 2:18, “For through him we both have access by one Spirit unto the Father.”

III. THE ONE WHO IS THE MEDIATOR

1 Timothy 2:5-6, “For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus; 6-Who gave himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time.”

A. He Reconciled us to God, Romans 5:10, “For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.”

B. He Reconciled us through His Death, Colossians 1:21-22, “And you, that were sometime alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now hath he reconciled 22In the body of his flesh through death, to present you holy and unblameable and unreproveable in his sight:”

1. We needed reconciliation because we were… Romans 1:30, “Backbiters, haters of God, despiteful, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents,”

2. By His death we were made…

a) Holy, Luke 1:74-75, “That he would grant unto us, that we being delivered out of the hand of our enemies might serve him without fear, 75In holiness and righteousness before him, all the days of our life.”

b) Unblameable, Ephesians 1:4, “According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love:”

c) Unreproveable, Jude 24, “Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy,”

CONCLUSION:

“Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.” John 14:6. We have proved that Jesus is the ONLY WAY TO THE FATHER. Of course if the Scriptures are not believer I can’t help you. However, if you believe that the Bible is true, then you have to believe that Jesus Christ is “the way, the truth, and the life” and “the door” to Heaven.